Selected text
I spent a lot of time in Maccabi. We had a wonderful rhythmic gymnastics trainer and we succeeded in our performance. We did not only tour Estonian cities we were also in Latvia and Lithuania. In 1939 we were invited to Finland. There was a large stadium in Helsinki constructed on the occasion of Olympic games, where in 1939 on the eve of the Soviet-Finnish War [9], an international gymnastics event was held with the participation of 300 Estonian girls and boys. Our nine ladies from Maccabi, including me, also took part in the event. The audience was pleased.
In 1939 Germany attacked Poland [10]. The war was over shortly after Soviet troops entered Poland. Then the Soviet Union attacked Finland. We followed the military actions and were worried for Finland. We were very happy when the war was over as Estonia always had very good relationships with Finland. Then the Soviet government signed a non-aggression agreement with Germany [the so-called Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact] [11] and put pressure on the Estonian government to have military bases constructed on its territory [12].
Of course, at that time we did not know what it was for and felt calm. Many of those who were frightened of the intrusion of German troops in Poland even welcomed the idea of Soviet military bases in Estonia thinking it to be a pledge for peace. We knew that Jews were killed in Germany. By the middle of the 1930s there were quite a few fugitives from Germany. They said what was going on there. At any rate, our family feared fascists much more than the Soviet Union.
In 1939 Germany attacked Poland [10]. The war was over shortly after Soviet troops entered Poland. Then the Soviet Union attacked Finland. We followed the military actions and were worried for Finland. We were very happy when the war was over as Estonia always had very good relationships with Finland. Then the Soviet government signed a non-aggression agreement with Germany [the so-called Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact] [11] and put pressure on the Estonian government to have military bases constructed on its territory [12].
Of course, at that time we did not know what it was for and felt calm. Many of those who were frightened of the intrusion of German troops in Poland even welcomed the idea of Soviet military bases in Estonia thinking it to be a pledge for peace. We knew that Jews were killed in Germany. By the middle of the 1930s there were quite a few fugitives from Germany. They said what was going on there. At any rate, our family feared fascists much more than the Soviet Union.
Period
Year
1939
Location
Talinn
Estonia
Interview
Siima Shkop