Writing

Friedrich Ernst Klopp – The Sixteenth and Last Child of Friedrich and Emma Klopp

/ Peter Klopp / 17 Comments

My Father – Friedrich Ernst Klopp (1900 – 1964)

Introduction Part II

It was painful for me to discover that the son of Anna von Waldenfels was an SS officer. However, what made this particular case even more shocking was that Georg von Waldenfels’ heart and soul was filled with an insatiable lust for power, glory and possessions, which even went beyond the allowable within the regime he was serving. In other words, he was an opportunist of the worst kind and would have been ‘successful’ in any other political system. He skillfully exploited every opportunity for his personal gain. For example, he attempted to acquire an estate worth millions of dollars in today’s real estate market, a large piece of property complete with a mansion, even a factory and many outbuildings that been confiscated by the state from a Jewish couple.

In spite of this blemish in our family history, I decided to publish it. What made my decision a bit easier was the fact that I had no personal connection with the son of my aunt Anna von Waldenfels. In all biographical endeavours one needs a certain emotional distance in order to preserve objectivity. Furthermore, so far my task had been to translate merely the relevant passages from my cousin’s book published in German with the somewhat long-winded title: “A Letter to the Descendants of the Klopp Family from Altenburg/Brome and Wolmirstedt.”

When I now turn my attention to the biography of Friedrich Ernst Klopp, it is important to be aware of the fact that emotional distance in describing objectively my father’s life is no longer possible. On the one hand, I continue to rely on Eberhard Klopp’s family chronicle for invaluable information. On the other hand, there are my very own experiences with and personal impressions of my father that needed to be told in order to add some deeply felt love, understanding and respect for my father to an overly sober and matter-of-fact kind report by my cousin. To distinguish my insertions from the translation, I am going to use the italic font style whenever I feel the need to throw additional light on my father’s fascinating life story or fill some of the gaps left in the Klopp family chronicle.

Klopp Residence and Rope Manufacturing, Wolmirstedt, Germany

Natural Splendour of the Arrow Lakes

/ Peter Klopp / 25 Comments

Wednesday’s Videos

Mallard Ducks and Raging Waters

The contrast between the peace and serenity of our yard and the raging waters of a nearby creek could not be any stronger. On the one hand, there is the pastoral scene of the mallard duck couple happily searching and eating the sprouting vegetation in our yard. We had so much rain that small ponds developed in the low lying sections of our property which attracted the water loving creatures. On the other hand, there was the unnerving warning from our regional district that there was an imminent danger of flooding. Many communities were put on an evacuation alert, as the rivers and creeks were overflowing after heavy rains just a week ago. My wife and I went to have a look at Taite Creek some 10 km south of where we live. Here are two short videos that show peace and power provided by mother Nature. Enjoy.

Friedrich Ernst Klopp – The Sixteenth and Last Child of Friedrich and Emma Klopp

/ Peter Klopp / 14 Comments

My Father – Friedrich Ernst Klopp (1900 – 1964)

Introduction Part I

While translating parts from the family chronicles written by my cousin Eberhard Klopp, my main focus was on rendering an accurate translation. My personal interest in our family history and a deeply felt responsibility towards the Klopp branch and future descendants living in Canada provided me with the motivation and necessary persistence to delve into this laborious and time-consuming undertaking. With the exception of four aunts and my father Ernst Klopp, I did not get to know the other twelve children of my paternal grandparents Emma Christiane and Peter Friedrich Klopp. 

As I was writing down the wealth of ancestral information of Eberhard Klopp’s book containing more than 200 pages in small print and then publishing it on my blog one uncle and one aunt at a time, I gained deep insight into the causes of what makes a family function in harmony and of what makes it fall apart. Quite frankly, reading some of the stories shocked me so intensely that I hesitated for a long time to publish them online.

My readers, who read the posts on my nephew Georg von Waldenfels, a Nazi SS officer, may understand as to why I was tempted to leave out this embarrassing chapter of our family history. In the 1930s many people were misled by the promises made by the Nazi propaganda for a more prosperous and stronger Germany after having suffered through the worst economic depression in German history. Actually, at least initially, their hopes and aspirations were being fulfilled. While millions of people had been struggling to make ends meet, every person willing to work was now gainfully employed and able to put bread and butter on the table. They had no idea that the Third Reich that was supposed to last a thousand years would lie in ruins so quickly and millions of soldiers and civilians would be sacrificed on the altar of an insane ideology.

Title Page of the Klopp Family Chronicle

 

Natural Splendour of the Arrow Lakes

/ Peter Klopp / 21 Comments

Wednesday’s Photos

Lilac Finally Shows off its Flowers

You will recall the budding development studies a couple of weeks ago. After six weeks of waiting, the magnolia bush put its beautiful flowers on glorious display. Then as a big surprise, the azalea plant, which had been so slow during the entire period, suddenly as if in response to my taunting was bursting out with a colourful and victorious cry: I am not going to be last as predicted by that ignorant blog writer Peter. And in third place comes the blooming lilac bush. So the rank order is official now. For the rose (in fourth place) to blossom, we will need to wait at least another week.

First: Magnolia
Second: Azalea
Third: Lilac

Otto Klopp – Friedrich and Emma’s Fifteenth Child

/ Peter Klopp / 14 Comments

Otto Klopp (1898? – 1915)

Killed in Action in World War I

It was very difficult to obtain any concrete information on Otto Klopp, as no birth and place records were found. It is not even certain if mother Emma had taken him with her to her new residence in Elsenau, West Prussia in 1903 or 1904. In any case, he was mentioned among family circles as a 15-year or 16-year old in Wolmirstedt.

Hermann Weihe (1888 – 1947), the brother of his sister-in-law Marie-Luise Klopp (née Weihe) of Zielitz, arranged a job for Otto at a farm in Farsleben near Zielitz before 1914. There Otto in all likelihood started an apprenticeship program in agriculture. He was, therefore, the only one of the Klopp-Bauer children with whom mother Emma maintained a connection with the otherwise avoided Klopp-Weihe family. The author, Eberhard Klopp, offers the following explanation. Emma tried very hard to keep financial and family responsibilities within a manageable scope. For that reason Otto had to be taken care off in Farsleben.

At Wolmirstedt, Otto was presumably drafted into the German army to fight on the Russian front where he was killed in the 1915 offensive. As cause for his ‘hero’s death, several events during that year in World War I could be considered: his involvement in the Winter battle of February March 1915 in Masuria, East Prussia. Furthermore, he could have lost his life during the establishment of a new front and munition line of the Tenth army northeast of Suwalki. Finally, in connection with an attack at Kowno, he could have been killed during an enemy counterattack in the summer operation against Russia in July or August 1915. Otto Klopp received a shot through the lungs and bled to death in a wire entanglement.

A death notification similar to the one above was sent to Emma Klopp, Otto’s mother..

Natural Splendour of the Arrow Lakes

/ Peter Klopp / 41 Comments

Wednesday’s Photos

Invitation to Feast and to Pollinate

This is our red delicious appletree. Today I noticed a lot of humming and buzzing around the blossoms. We have no honey bees in our community. So I thought I would only be seeing bumblebees. To my great surprise, there were other insects, some looked like wild bees and others I have not encountered before. Perhaps some of you insect experts like my blogging friend Gerhard in Germany could figure out and report back their names. Enjoy.

Bumble Bee with Red Thighs
Another Kind of Bumble Bee
Looks Like Some Kind of a Fly