Scandal at the Dominican Fair
A German folk ensemble visiting with an official delegation from Middle Franconia performed the song Ein Heller und ein Batzen before taking the stage at the St. Dominika fair in Gdańsk on Sunday.
During World War II the tune was widely heard among Wehrmacht soldiers and has appeared in films such as Forbidden Songs. In Poland the melody is known as Heidi, Heilo, Heida though its chorus is often heard as Heidi, Heido, Heida. The tune has long been viewed by many as an unofficial Wehrmacht anthem.
READ ALSO: Is this how Gdansk official fun should be judged? Scandal at the Dominican Fair. The crowd favored song of the Wehrmacht was sung
Płażyński: How much contempt do they have for us?
PiS MP Kacper Płażyński spoke to the wPolityce.pl portal about the song that resonated in Gdańsk. He said it was not merely a harmless tune. The song is recalled by Poles who survived German occupation. The words may feel cozy, but for those who watched German soldiers march through Polish towns during World War II, it carried stark reminders and pain.
When the Germans visited Gdańsk years after the war and carried out such performances, he lamented the spectacle and questioned the depth of contempt shown toward Polish history. He asserted that those singing professionally cannot claim ignorance about the meaning of the song.
– emphasized Kacper Płażyński.
READ MORE: ONLY WITH US. Heidi, Heido, Heida in Gdańsk? Płażyński says the Germans feel at home – in the worst sense of the word
In the end the German delegation offered an apology for the song Ein Heller und ein Batzen. The organizers of the St. Dominika festival stated that the team did not realize the negative associations tied to the tune in Poland.
SEE ALSO: The informal national anthem of the Wehrmacht at the Dominican Fair. The German delegation apologizes for Ein Heller und ein Batzen. How does it translate?
Funny situation?
Journalist Bartosz Wieliński of Gazeta Wyborcza suggested there was no real problem with the incident, at least not in his view. He indicated that Płażyński’s response did not land with much seriousness and even found it amusing.
Wieliński commented that Ein Heller und ein Batzen resembles a Polish song style familiar to peasants, students, and soldiers who found it easy to march along to the chorus. He noted that Polish politics tends to heighten sensitivity to German matters as elections approach, making any German performance hard to miss.
In response to Płażyński’s remarks, Wieliński joked that the politician linked Heidi to a Nazi gesture, a claim he saw as misrepresentation.
– I feel sorry for him, mocked the Wyborcza journalist, adding that similar memories exist beyond Poland and across other German-occupied regions where songs from earlier centuries resurfaced. He argued that Ein Heller und ein Bautzen was not created in the Third Reich era but about a century earlier.
Płażyński also argued that performing Ein Heller und ein Bautzen in Gdańsk showed a disregard for history. He noted a contrast with a fellow party member, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, the deputy head of the Foreign Ministry, who had recently sent a reparations report to thousands of Polish local officials. The argument mentioned the DHL courier service, operated by the German Post Office, as a reminder of historical ties to a former Nazi-era institution, a claim Wieliński dismissed.
Wielinski scoffed.
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Internet users comment
Twitter users weighed in on Wieliński’s remarks.
They linked the anthem to acts of violence and oppression against Poles, calling it an anthem.
– wrote Sylwia Malinowska.
No change in Michnik. Germans sing national anthems, Poles kill Jews.
– added Marcin Jarosz.
Władysław Fołtyn, a prisoner of Auschwitz, recalled the first executions in the camp set to the rhythm of a folk festival song. He commented to Gazeta Wyborcza readers that such coverage shows a lack of understanding about the gravity of the history involved.
– noted Emilia Kamińska.
Well the idea of singing Heili Heilo during opposition gatherings continues. Perhaps they do it better than with a Polish national anthem. Wyborcza may defend that nothing is wrong with it.
– Włodzimierz Graff wrote.
editor T. Wieliński of Gazeta Wyborcza reportedly found the situation quite amusing. Some Poles feel the cultural gap is obvious, while others wonder about how such views are shaped by personal ties. Will they be explained?
– added Wojciech Biedron.
wkt/PAP/wPolityce.pl/TT/wyborcza.pl
Source: wPolityce