IN trying to recall my impressions during my short war duty as an officer in the Austrian Army, I find that my recollections of this period are very uneven and confused.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I did frequently refer to my war record in World War II, but not in any flamboyant way.
I was a soldier in WWII. The last couple of months of the war I was actually in combat.
I'm interested in wartime stories, as I think it's important to remember what the soldiers went through.
I grew up in the time of Germany after the war.
I have always had a keen interest in defence and military history and read more on this subject than anything else.
For a great many years, as a soldier, I had a suspicion that war was a racket; not until I retired to civil life did I fully realize it.
When I became a soldier, I was drafted in 1937, and instead of being released two years later, I had to stay on because the war had started in the meantime. I was a soldier for more than eight years, as long a time as I was Chancellor.
It's important to study and understand your responsibilities within any profession, but it's particularly important for military officers to read, think, discuss, and write about the problem of war and warfare so they can understand not just the changes in the character of warfare but also the continuities.
I was a lieutenant in World War II.
My own military background is wholly un-distinguished. I was a sergeant.