Maj. Gen. Vincent Boles honors WWII Slave Soldiers in Orlando

Slave soldiers honored, called 'national treasures'
Story Highlights
For first time in history, Army recognizes soldiers held as slaves in Nazi Germany

Maj. Gen. Vincent Boles presented six Berga survivors with flags flown over Pentagon

350 soldiers held at Berg an der Elster; "It was a slave labor camp," general says

"These men were abused and put under some of the most horrific conditions"



By Wayne Drash
CNN


ORLANDO, Florida (CNN) -- Hobbled with age, weathered with time, the World War II veterans stood at attention. One by one, a two-star general delivered flags flown over the Pentagon in their honor. He looked them in their eyes and snapped his right hand in salute.


"National treasures," Maj. Gen. Vincent Boles said Saturday evening.

It marked the first time in history the U.S. Army recognized 350 soldiers held as slaves inside Nazi Germany. The men were beaten, starved and forced to work in tunnels at Berga an der Elster where the Nazi government had a hidden V-2 rocket factory. Berga was a subcamp of the notorious concentration camp Buchenwald.

"These men were abused and put under some of the most horrific conditions," the general told a private gathering of Berga survivors. "It wasn't a prison camp. It was a slave labor camp."

No ranking Army official had ever uttered the words "slave labor camp" in reference to the men's captivity at Berga. Boles knew the gravity of his statement -- that he was setting the historical record straight after 64 years.
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http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/06/08/berga.recognition/index.html