The Emigration of our
Ancestors
By Mathias Huber
Two hundred
years
ago
there
was great economic
need in Germany. Those
who had some land of
their own had to work
industriously without
any outside assistance
while those who had no
land had to live on
beggary for months at a
time.
At that time, the
borders of Austria
extended from Baden to
the Banat. As a result
of the wars with the
Turks there was a great
deal of deserted,
unpopulated and desolate
land. The Empress Maria
Theresia was very much
involved in settling and
developing these lands
as was her successor and
son Joseph II. A series
of agents from Vienna
were sent to the
Rhineland.
During the years of
settlement from
1747-1778, over twenty
entirely German villages
inhabited mostly by
Roman Catholic settlers
were established in the
Banat, the eastern
Batschka and the region
west of the Tisza
River. Many
Serbian hamlets were
expanded into larger
communities through the
addition of German
settlers.
The new arrivals
received land
allotments, a house with
all the necessary
utensils, all at the
expense of the State.
This is what attracted
more and more people,
and even though there
were now sufficient
numbers of settlers,
another large group of
Swabians were on their
way around 1790. Most
of them came on foot as
far as Ulm, others as
far as Vienna and then
boarded ships and
traveled down the Danube
River.
Those who
went on ahead received
directions and
instructions either in
Vienna or Budapest as to
which settlement area
they were to head
towards as did those who
followed after them
later but the upkeep and
support they received
for the journey was less
than adequate.
They came down the
Danube close to the
vicinity of Belgrade
which did not prove to
be the Promised Land;
instead they had jumped
from the frying pan into
the fire. The last
major war between
Austria and the Turks
was in full swing in the
area from 1788-1791 and
the Military
Administration in Semlin
had no idea of where to
send the settlers. By
now the people had spent
all of their travel
allowance and the
savings they had brought
with them and were in
terrible straits.
J. K. Soppron, the
historian of Semlin,
reported several
instances related to
these settlers.
“Katharina Wittmann, a
widow, requests that
since her son Johannes
has been taken for
training by a military
officer and she found
herself ill and would no
longer receive the daily
3 Kreuzer support money
in the near future she
desires to be settled in
Serbia.” The
maintenance and support
provisions were only in
effect until May 15,
1791. Most of the
settlers were down with
fever and were unable to
earn their bread because
the only work available
was in the vineyards
which was work with
which they were
unacquainted.
None of the surrounding
Serbian or Croatian
villages took the
settlers in.
Lengthy and protracted
deliberations with the
Imperial Court Chamber
in Vienna followed.
. In the meantime, they
sent the destitute
people to the Slovak
village of Stara Pasova
that lay about an hour
north of Semlin and had
been settled in 1770.
Their co-religionists
(fellow Lutherans) who
spoke another language
received them in a very
friendly manner, became
the Godparents of
several of the children,
and welcomed them with
various acts of
kindness.
The first
entry in the church
records dealing with the
Swabian settlers informs
us that Johann
Ellenberger a bachelor
married Maria the widow
of Friedrich Schneider
on September 27, 1791.
In addition, Kaspar, the
son of Kaspar and
Katharina Lang born on
October 2, 1791 and
Johannes Peter Scheffler
from the Duchy of
Württemberg both died on
October 14, 1791.
They
found shelter in several
half fallen down border
guard posts. Up
until 1781 the southern
border along the Sava
River was constantly
kept under the guard.
There was a citizen’s
militia made up of
farmers in the
surrounding villages
known as Grenzer (border
guards), who took turns
every few days doing
sentry duty.
This is the way the
defense of the border
against the Turks was
organized along the
Danube in the southern
Batschka after 1748.
They consisted primarily
of married Serbs who had
fled northward in 1690
and loved to fight the
Turks.
After the Turks were
driven further to the
south there were those
among the citizen
soldier families that
migrated southwards to
be closer to their old
beloved homeland along
the new Sava River
southern border. That
was also the case at Stara Pasova and they
apparently moved on
after several decades so
that the Swabians took
up residence in their
abandoned mud huts.
[Published at DVHH.org 18 Aug 2009]
The Settlement of
Neu-Pasua (Nova Pasova
or New Pasua)
By Mathias Huber
Translated by Henry Fischer,
Edited by Rose Vetter
Finally, a definitive
location where they
could settle and live
was assigned to them six
kilometers to the south,
consisting of those
parcels of land that
were combined together
for this purpose plus a
small section of another
and was given the name
Nova Pasova. But things
would not go well for
the settlers for very
long. The unfamiliar
climate took its toll.
In the second half of
October 1791 three
adults and three
children from among the
small group of sixty
families died.
Alongside the health
hazards another dark
cloud hung over the
settlement. Early in
the summer of 1791
Bishop Matthew
Franciscus Krtica of
Djakovo, in whose
diocese the new
settlement was being
established raised
complaints in Varsadin.
He pointed out that the
people were adherents of
the Augsburg Confession
(Lutherans) and if they
were tolerated their
teachers could easily
enter the entire
province and the entire
northern region up to
the border. He appealed
to a law passed that
same year forbidding
adherents of the
Augsburg and
Helvetic
(Swiss) Confessions to
settle in Dalmatia,
Croatia and Slavonia
with the exception of
Lower Slavonia. The
issue was brought
forward in Zagreb
addressed to the Ban,
Johannes Erdödy, the
governor of the region
and sent on to the
Government Chancellery
in Ofen (Buda) and
eventually reached
Vienna. In the end, the
ordinances of the past
prevailed and no
guarantees were given
for the future. During
the times that followed
the people were often
threatened with
expulsion. It was only
as a result of the
Austrian and Italian War
of 1850 that Austria put
forward a toleration
clause in the new
Constitution and things
got better for the
Protestant settlers.
What the people had to
endure to maintain their
spiritual life and faith
is a subject that needs
to be addressed
elsewhere, here we
simply mention it to
note that they did not
enjoy the same
favorable situation
that the Protestants in
the Batschka received.
In the State plan of
the village it was to
have had four streets
that intersected at the
centre. “In the very
early years of
settlement and following
the constant rains a
virtual lake was created
around the village to
such an extent that the
western section became
totally uninhabitable so
that the fourth street
that faced the east had
to be abandoned because
the majority of the
houses that were built
there were under water
and later caved in.”
The houses on the street
were later rebuilt after
applying landfill to the
house lots and the
section from the church
to the small lane (Gasslein)
that begins at the
cemetery as far as the
orphanage was given the
name: Wassergasse
(Water Street). Shortly
before the turn of the
century the section was
given the name Zottelgasse.
For as long as
we were there it was
commonplace for people
to catch fish from
behind their houses.
Ten years of freedom
from paying taxes was
also granted but once
the time lapsed they
were responsible to pay
back the cost of their
houses and the other
costs involved in their
settlement to the State
which was fully
accomplished by 1807.
A small church was
built quite early but by
the 1830s it was far too
small as well as badly
in need of repairs.
Finally in 1837 there
was agreement for the
expansion and
construction of a larger
church beginning with
the building of a tower
that would befit the
proportions of the much
larger new prospective
church. Because the
construction costs would
be covered by the State
Ministry of Finance the
plan was forwarded to
Vienna to the
appropriate officials.
In one year’s time the
plan was returned due to
a flaw with regard to
the prospective tower
that did not appear to
be suitable and in
conformity to the
architecture of the
church. A new plan had
to be made and sent
back. The plan simply
sat there in Vienna for
four years despite
frequent inquiries.
This was at a time when
a great degree of
hostility and
intolerance was directed
against the Lutherans.
Finally in 1842 word was
received: “His Imperial
Majesty has signified
his gracious pleasure
and acceptance of the
report of the approval
of the Imperial Royal
War Office of February
28th of this year to the
request of the Lutheran
congregation of Nova Pasova to build their
Bethaus (Prayer House)
along with a sacristy in
addition to a clock
tower.”
Finally the
construction contract
could be awarded but the
approval by the Border
Regiment for that
purpose was only
received in December.
In the spring of 1843
the construction began
and the rather simple
tower was completed in
1844 after almost ten
years of effort on the
part of the
congregation.
The above information
comes from an excerpt
from, “Samuel Schuhmacher, a Herald of
the Youth Organization
of the Christian
Endeavour Society among
the Danube Swabians,” by
Friedrich Renz.
The following is a
synopsis of the
statistical information
given on page seven
based on the situation
on the day of the Flight
on October 6, 1944:
1,153 Houses
5,880
Inhabitants
5,812 German
Lutherans
11 German
Roman Catholics
31 Croats
5 Slovaks
1 Serb
2 Czechs
18 Gypsies
Second World War
losses up to October 6,
1944
124 Men
[Published at DVHH.org 18 Aug 2009]
The
Military Administration of
Alt-Pasua, Neu-Pasua and Woika;
A
Footnote; Peterwardein Border
Regiment Nr 9/10 Company
By Mathias Huber
Translated by Henry Fischer,
Edited by Rose Vetter
The ethnographic and
topographic documents
relating to the
communities of
Alt-Pasua, Neu-Pasua and
Woika for the
Peterwardein Border
Regiment Nr. 9,
responsible to the
Governor of the Crown
Lands of the Serbian
Vojwodina and the
Temesvár Banat in the
years 1859/1860 are
written in the German
language and are
handwritten. From that
period of time there are
219 handwritten reports
related to these
communities in the State
Archives in Temesvár.
We are indebted to
Professor Anton Scherer,
an instructor and
teacher at the
University of Graz for
the discovery of these
documents.
A Footnote
The following accounts
are from the original
documents of the three
Grenzer (border)
communities. In order
not to stray too far
from the original
handwritten records we
have maintained the
primary military usages
of the past. However,
primarily for the sake
of younger readers
engaged in research the
author has inserted the
contemporary German
words for those terms
and old usages that are
no longer in use.
Lesser known words are
explained in brackets.
There are some
statements in the
original records that
contradict other
information but the
reader should not allow
that to upset him.
Peterwardein Border
Regiment Nr 9/10 Company
This is the
compilation and
presentation of data for
a historical and
geographical record of
the Serbian Banat Region
and the adjoining
Imperial and Royal
Military Frontier
District, Temesvár,
January 8, 1859.
[Published at DVHH.org 18 Aug 2009]
Section 1
Locales: 1. Village of
Alt-Pasua 2. Village
of Neu-Pasua 3. Village
of Woika
History of These Locales
By Mathias Huber
Translated by Henry Fischer,
Edited by Rose Vetter
Alt-Pasua was
established with the settlement of
Slovaks from Upper Hungary
(present-day Slovakia) in 1770, and
Neu-Pasua came into existence in
1790/1791 with the settlement of
Germans whose origins were in
Württemberg. Before the founding of
Neu-Pasua, Alt-Pasua was simply
known as Pasua. A portion of the
village of Alt-Pasua was previously
settled by Serbs. Woika (now known
as Vojka) has existed since time
immemorial, farther back than Roman
times.
The inhabitants of Alt
and Neu-Pasua are
Lutheran. The first are
Slovaks and the latter
Germans. As mentioned
previously a portion of
the residents in
Alt-Pasua are Serbs.
The inhabitants of Woika
are Slavs of Orthodox
and Uniat faith. The
occupation of the
inhabitants is farming
and cattle herding. Up
until twenty years ago
immigration played a
prominent role. The
population rose sharply:
1. Alt-Pasua
numbered
1,563 males 1,499
females Slovaks
403
males 376
females Serbs
2. Neu-Pasua
numbered 742 males 764
females Germans
3. Woika 1,355
males 1,314
females Slavs
Alt-Pasua had one
Lutheran Church, one
Greek Orthodox and one
Uniat Church; one Public
School and one Military
School.
Neu-Pasua had one
Lutheran Church and a
Public School operated
by the congregation.
Woika had a centuries’
old solid church, which was
in need of repairs in
1857 due to its
dilapidated condition,
one Public School and
from 1811-1822 a German
school operated there.
Industries:
None of the three
locales had any local
industries. Alt-Pasua
has four better class
stores: House Petrovic
has a variety of goods
and a license to sell
liquor; a silk spinning
operation; a brickworks
and cattle trading. The
town has two annual
market days. Since 1822
Alt-Pasua has become
Company Headquarters.
Prior to that time it
was in Woika.
The Geographical
Location of the Three
Locales
The three communities
are situated in the
corner where the Danube
and Sava Rivers meet.
There is a slope from
the north to the south.
There are no creeks,
lakes or forests. Woika
lies at the lowest level
of the slope. All three
locales fall under the
political, judicial and
military authority of
the Peterwardein
Regiment with its
headquarters in
Mitrowitz.
Authorities and
Public Offices
The Company
Headquarters, a post
office, German, Slovak
and Serbian schools are
all located in
Alt-Pasua. In Neu-Pasua
there is a secondary
military Headquarter
while in Woika there is
one with a higher degree
of authority. There are
established church
parishes in all three
locales.
State of the Roads
and Travel
In all three
locales there are streets, but they
are without a foundation or base.
They are 32 metres wide with a
ditch on both sides and side
streets, leading from one locale to
the other. During the summer months
they are good to travel on, but
during the winter and at times of
sustained rainy weather they are
very bad. The postal route leads
from Peterwardein to Alt- and
Neu-Pasua towards Semlin. There are
no railways or canals.
Mountains
There are no mountains
or any high elevations.
Landscape
There is no
exceptional scenic landscape
scenery because of the
lack of any valley
formations.
Water Resources
There are no water
reservoirs outside of
the marshes around Woika.
Section III: Condition of the
Acreage; Produce and
Businesses; Livestock Rearing;
Trade and Commerce;
Trade in Iron; Trade in Horned
Cattle.
Condition of the
Acreage
The land is divided
equally in all three
locales in terms of
cultivated land, meadows
and pasturage.
Alt-Pasua has
4,825
Joch (the amount of land
a man can plough with an
ox in one day) of
cultivated land, 1,547
Joch of meadows, 1,445
Joch of pastureland and
household gardens.
Neu-Pasua has 2,090
Joch of cultivated land,
1,343 Joch of meadows,
175 Joch of household
gardens.
Woika has 5,047 Joch
of cultivated land,
1,405 Joch of meadows,
1,936 Joch of pasture
land and 425 Joch of
household gardens.
The quality of the soil is first
class. The German fertilizes and
works his land the best. The Slav
relies on whatever nature provides,
does not fertilize and works
haphazardly; his acreage is
cultivated primarily by sowing two
different crops simultaneously;
little with wheat but more with
oats, barley and maize (corn). The
result, even in good years, does not
meet the entire needs of the Slovaks
and Slavs; they have to make up for
that by selling livestock. The
Germans in comparison produce more
than they require for themselves.
The danger of flooding existed only
in Woika. The owners of the land
are enlisted Grenzer. Day
labourers, tradesmen and such only
have their house and gardens as
property.
There are no exemplary
businesses or farm
operations. There is
seldom a shortage of
hay. Only the Germans
and Slovaks bring in a
second crop of hay. The
growing of fruit is
poorly developed and is
intended only for their
own use.
Produce and
Businesses
There are no
vineyards. There is no
lime kiln. There are no
factories except for the
silk spinning works of
Petrovic in Alt-Pasua
that employs 40 to 50
women. There are
distilleries operated by
the owners of the
vineyards but only for
their personal
consumption. Coal
mining and the lumber
industry do not exist
due to the fact that
there are no forests.
Livestock Rearing
Only to be found among
the Grenzer families.
The Slovaks and Slavs
raise small stunted
horses without stables.
Germans rear larger and
better horses.
Grenzer
raise
a good breed of horned cattle.
The Germans and Slovaks milk cows;
the Slavs milk sheep. Pigs are
raised to meet their own needs and
there are no goats. Both oxen
and horses are used for ploughing and
field work. Only the
Germans stable their
livestock.
Prices: one horse
costs 30 to 40 Florin
(Guilder); one ox 50 to
60 Florin; one cow 30 to
40 Florin; a pair of
sheep 8 to 10 Florin; a
pair of swine 15 to 20
Florin. The livestock
prices for the Germans
are half as much
higher.
Trade and Commerce
There are no weekly
markets. In Alt-Pasua
there are two trade
fairs annually with
articles for
agricultural and
household use. Commerce
in these three locales
was centered on meeting
the daily needs by the
local shopkeepers. In
Alt-Pasua there were
three major stores to
meet the local needs and
those of the surrounding
area. Corn trading took
place in all three
locales. The largest
store in Alt-Pasua was
operated by the
merchant, Petrovic. The
exporting of trade goods
was by ship on the
Danube and Sava Rivers.
The prices varied. A
peck could be purchased
for 1 Florin and 36
Kreuzer and sold for 2
Florin and 14 Kreuzer in
around 1848.
Trade in Iron
Trade in iron was
unimportant and carried
on by merchants in the
area.
Trade in Horned
Cattle
The merchants,
Petrovic and Ljubischa,
were engaged in this
trade and also dealt in
fattened cattle, which
were primarily delivered
to Austria.
Section IV:
The Populace;
Schools, Houses, Nutrition;
Clothing, Women's Clothing; Head Covering;
Footwear; Traditions and Customs; Superstitions; Entertainment and
Amusements
The Populace
The influences of the climate,
diseases and war greatly
affected the position and
situation of the population.
The growth of the population was
constant. The economy was based
on agricultural cultivation and
livestock rearing. The average
age attained was 50 to 60
years. The major illnesses are
malaria, lung disease and
smallpox among children. The
Serbs honored St. Elias and
Nicholas as their church
patrons, mostly the latter in
Woika.
Schools
All of the schools were built
and funded by the community and
only the German school in
Alt-Pasua was erected by the
State. Every German school had
three classes and every Serbian
and Lutheran school had two
classes. Because of the
shortage of schoolrooms the
young people were taught
religion classes on Sundays.
Houses
The number of houses:
Alt-Pasua 396, Neu-Pasua 147 and
in Woika there were 266. Mode
of construction: stamped clay
adobe with reed roofs. In the
last 15 to 20 years many houses
had tile roofs. In Neu-Pasua
the houses were of solid
construction with the gable
facing the street.
The interior divisions of the
houses: One or two rooms faced
the street and one faced the
yard and in between them was the
kitchen. Cellars were seldom
dug because of the high water
table. Ovens were primarily
built out of lime while a few
were made of brick and tile.
The heat in the stove was
produced from straw and only
seldom with wood. The windows
were larger in German houses and
much smaller in the houses of
the others. In most cases the
stables were built separately
from the house.
Nutrition
The bread is good and made of
multi-grains. The meat dishes
consist of beef, mutton, pork
and fowl.
The German kitchen provides a
greater variety than that of the
Slovaks and Serbs.
Dumplings and noodles were the
major flour based foods. There
was very little fresh fruit
available. There were seldom
any fish. The Germans made
various foods using a milk base
while the Slovaks use milk far
less in cooking. The Serbs used
milk only during the summer
months when they milked their
sheep. The Serb enjoys fried
meat and during the three day
Christmas celebration large
families consume an entire one
year old pig. At Easter the
Serb slaughters a lamb. During
the holidays the Germans and
Slovaks are content to eat
various kinds of fowl.
Alongside of water both wine and
brandy are drunk. Of course
wine and brandy are only
available to those with
vineyards. Beer is not drunk.
Clothing
Men wear worn and
threadbare clothes on work days
and on Sundays and holidays they
wear new and better clothes.
Germans wear lighter clothing
made of cloth primarily in
shades of blue or dark colors;
their trousers are held up by
colored cords. During the
winter the German men are
attired in cloth or long fur
jackets. Slovaks and Serbs wear
darker outer garments made of
cloth and in winter, especially
the Serbs, many wear fur jackets
as well as fur trousers.
Women’s Clothing
Older German women
wear darker colors while
children wear brighter colors.
The Slovaks favored wearing
brighter colors. The Serbian
women were more extravagant in
their dress. During the winter
women primarily wore short cloth
coats or fur jackets that the
Germans call Csurak. Women’s
clothing is mostly made of
purchased dry goods.
Head Covering
In all three locales
men wear felt hats and in winter
wear black fur caps in winter. Women wear
kerchiefs on all occasions and
the Germans wear mostly dark
ones while the others tend to
wear bright ones.
Footwear
Both men and women, especially
when working in the fields wear
a type of sandal called Opanken.
On Sundays the Germans and
Slovaks wear lightweight shoes
called Schlappen. In all three
locales during the dry summer
months both women and children
wear special knitted footwear
both out of doors and in the
house. In the cold of winter
and during wet weather young and
old wear wooden shoes known as
Klumpen much like the Dutch
wooden shoe.
Traditions and Customs
Among the Serbs there are many.
Christmas is celebrated for
three days. In addition there
are celebrations in honor of the
patron saint of the household,
weddings, Christmas and Easter.
At both Christmas and Easter the
greeting is: “Christ is born”
or “Christ is risen.” The
person who is greeted in this
way, responds to the greeting in
the same manner, either “He is
born” or “He is risen.” On
Christmas Eve hay is spread
about in all of the rooms and
remains there during the next
three days. At the celebration
of their patron saint a special
loaf of church bread is baked
with a silver coin worked into
the dough. At the same
celebration wheat germ is
cooked, sweetened with sugar and
offered to guests, in the order
in which they arrive. The
Serbian bride is obliged to
undertake certain tasks: in the
first days of her marriage she
must wash the feet of her
father-in-law and when out on
the street she must kiss the
hand of all older people and
kiss children on both of their
cheeks. The Germans and Slovaks
have traditions and customs of
their own.
Superstitions
Some Serbs still believe in
witches. An old woman who does
not eat garlic counts as a
witch. There are Slovaks who
believe in vampires or
bloodsuckers. Many believe that
the ringing of bells in the
church tower can drive away
thunderstorms and lightning.
For many who are sick an old
woman with her household
remedies acts as their doctor.
Entertainment and
Amusements
Among older people, it consists
mostly of drinking bouts and
carousing. There is much
eating, drinking, singing and
dancing. The youth have the
greatest time, both on Sundays
and holidays and dance out in
the open in the centre of the
village. In the face of
inclement weather the dancing
and entertainment moves
indoors. During Church
celebrations the Serbs are known
for their generous offerings to
the church with gifts of 10 to
20 Florins or in kind, i.e. an
ox. At the time of Serbian
Church celebrations there is
usually the ringing of the
church bells and the firing of
gun salutes, and ceremonies take
place in the homes of richer
families involving rites
conducted by the priest. Toasts
are drunk to the leaders of the
nation, the princes of the
Church and other important
personages.
Germans celebrate their
Kirchweih (anniversary of the
dedication of their church) in
various traditional ways.
Guests from outside of the
community are richly entertained
and shown great hospitality but
no offerings or gathering of
gifts for the church are carried
out. In very much similar ways
the Germans and Slovaks
celebrate the Christmas
festival.
Reutlingen, June
1974, M. Huber
Neu-Pasua From the Settlement to the
Flight
Neu-Pasua is located
22 kilometers north-west
of Belgrade in the
fertile region of
Syrmia. It has
connections to the
most important railway
line in Europe that
links the north-west and
south-east portions of
the continent: Ostende-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Constaninople.
The geographical
importance of the
community is heightened
by the fact that it is
located only 4
kilometers from the
Danube and not far from
the Sava estuary. After
the Second World War the
Belgrade Airport was
constructed on the site
of our former
community. The church
stood at the centre of
the community 80 meters
above sea level. In
this flat landscape the
“Pickerle” was 3 meters
higher than the village
and was the highest
elevation. The area
where Neu-Pasua was
established lay within
the Austrian Military
Frontier District and
from its founding was
administered by the
military authorities in
Peterwardein. It was
only 90 years after the
settlement that the
inhabitants of the
village elected their
first mayor, Adam Lang.
Up until then this
function had been
carried out by an older
lower ranking military
officer who was
responsible to the
officer in command in
Alt-Pasua. During this
period of strict
military governance the
use of the public stocks
as a form of punishment
was in effect.
The reasons given for
bringing our forebears
to this country were
primarily of an economic
and military nature.
When the Turks were
driven out of Middle
Europe at the end of the
17th Century they
abandoned and left
behind a sparsely
populated, devastated,
swamp infested region.
In order for that region
to be cultivated the
Austrian Empire had to
think of settling these
territories. In
addition to the former
inhabitants and newly
settled Slavs the
decision was made to
recruit German farmers
and tradesmen in south
western Germany. This
undertaking was met with
some success because the
German farmers who lived
under the burden and
demands of what remained
of the feudal system
were easy to win over.
These industrious and
ambitious farmers who
lived under terrible
economic and social
conditions in the south
western Germany
principalities not only
had to contend with the
difficulties of a new
beginning during the
settlement period in
their new homeland but
also had to undertake
military service and act
as border guards along
the frontier. During
the extensive publicity
campaign during the
reign of Empress Maria
Theresia those settlers
who responded were
overwhelmingly Roman
Catholic. It was only
under the leadership of
her son Joseph II who
issued the Edict of
Toleration that
Protestants were also
allowed to participate
and settle after 1780.
In 1790 the military
authorities in
Peterwardein assigned 62
families, all of whom
were Protestants, to
settle along the Sava
River that served as the
border with the Turks to
serve there as border
guards. These settlers,
who were our forebears,
were brought to
Alt-Pasua where Slovaks
had been settled since
1770. Because the
locale for the new
settlement was still not
defined and little
preparation had been
done this group of
settlers spent the
winter of 1790/1791
among the Lutheran
Slovaks in Alt-Pasua.
In 1791 the settlement
began on what was then
known as the “Pasua
Puszta” and had been
leased to others who had
left. It was a narrow
stretch of land and no
large fertile areas
remained to be had. It
was this primitive
remote settlement in a
swampy area close to the
Sava River that our
forebears fought for
their lives and their
families’ existence.
It would be
interesting to list the
places of origin of all
sixty-two families from
southern Germany who
were involved in the
settlement that can be
found in an article
written by Professor
Lotz. This however
would go beyond the
parameters of this
writing. Only the names
of cities, towns and
district designations
will be mentioned.
They are as follows:
Böblingen, Calw,
Emmendingen, Esslingen,
Göppingen, Heilbronn,
Kehl (Baden), Lahr,
Lörrach, Ludwigsburg,
Marbach am Neckar,
Mosbach, Nürtingen,
Reutlingen, Tübingen,
Ulm
an der Donau,
Vaihingen, Waiblingen,
Zuffenhausen
and others.
The settlement plan for
the village by
Lieutenant von
Wechselberg was done on
a scale of 1:7200. This
village plan is in the
War Archives in Vienna
under the reference
designation GJh Number
494. In the centre of
the village there was a
large exercise area used
for the military
training of the Grenzer
border guards. In this
plan, the dimensions and
boundaries of the
pastureland
and the
individual house lots
are clearly shown and
identified. Forty-one
house lots were on the
Semlin Road, (both Upper
and Lower streets) and
twenty on the Banovci
Road (Ratzen- and Zottel
Streets).
The new settlers were
confronted by virgin
swampy land and soil and
an unhealthy climate.
At the time of
settlement, the
community of Neu-Pasua
was assigned 2,500
Katastral Joch of land,
including the village
itself.
This adequately
met the needs of the
first generation of
settlers, but was not
sufficient to support
their descendants.
After one hundred years
of tireless efforts and
industriousness on the
part of
the entire
population, it became
what our poets would
describe as “a blooming
Eden brought forth in a
wasteland.” Houses and
roads were built;
ditches and canals were
dug. The growing
prosperity of the
farmers made it possible
to expand their acreage
and vineyards to ten
times the original
uncultivated wasteland
allotted to them, by
their purchase of land
in twelve communities in
the districts of
Alt-Pasua and Semlin.
Towards the end of the
18th Century and the
beginning of the 19th
numerous families moved
to Neu-Pasua, especially
from Bulkes, Cserwenka
and Werbass. Neu-Pasua
was one of the most
blessed in its large
number of children among
all of the German
communities in the
country. Before the
Flight in October 1944
there were 105 families
with five or six
children and 28 families
with seven or more
children. On one street
alone three neighbors
had twenty-five children
among them.
Because of its ongoing
economic development
over 153 years the
community could no
longer expand so that
many families were
forced to migrate
elsewhere. Daughter
communities were
established near and far
throughout the
vicinity. In addition
numerous families also
emigrated overseas.
According to the
statistics presented in
the Neu-Pasua Heimatbuch
using as the fixed date
the Flight, October 6,
1944 a perfect picture
emerges with regard to
the village inhabitants
through the compilation
of the information that
was provided. In total,
Neu-Pasua had 5,880
inhabitants. The
refugee families from
other communities that
sought safety among us
out of fear of Partisans
attacks are not included
in that number. There
were 5,812 Lutheran and
11 Roman Catholic
Germans. From among the
57 non-Germans there
were 39 Slavs and 18
Gypsies. The latter had
lived here for several
generations and spoke
the Swabian dialect
fluently. The village
counted 26 streets and
alleys. There were
1,153 houses alongside
of workshops and
stores. On the basis of
these statistics
Neu-Pasua like all of
the other German
communities had already
suffered heavy war
losses prior to the day
of the Flight. At that
time there had been 124
men that had fallen in
battle or were missing.
It was only several
years after the end of
the war that the
sorrowful balance sheet
of our losses could be
drawn up
resulting from the mass
murders carried out by
the Partisans, the
numbers of victims of
epidemics in Tito’s
internment and death
camps and the years
spent in slave
labour from 1948 to
1951.
In
total, during the Second
World War the number of
those who fell in
battle, are missing or
were put to death in an
inhumane manner in
captivity include 295
men in the military and
169 civilians primarily
the elderly, women and
children for a total of
464 persons. It is a
proven fact that the
losses suffered at war’s
end were greater than
during the actual
conflict and should be
considered unique if not
unthinkable. These
losses account for 8% of
the population compared
to 3% in the First World
War when 137 persons
lost their lives. We
need to mention that a
transport consisting of
187 of our people the
majority of which were
family members from
Neu-Pasua were forced on
trains in Ried in Upper
Austria and were shipped
back to Yugoslavia at
war’s end. This train
transport travelled as
far as Mitrowitz in
Syrmia where the vast
majority of these
destitute people
perished in utter misery
in the internment camp
there. But there were
other German communities
that suffered greater
losses than we did.
Agriculture; Crafts & Trade; The
Co-operative Society; People’s
Savings Bank; Industries;
Community Life
Agriculture
The community was
without qualification a
farming village with 80%
of the population
engaged in agriculture.
This was carried out in
a very progressive
manner. As early as
1908 the first combine
harvesting machines made
in the United States of
America were introduced
locally. Up until the
Second World War the
grain crops were
harvested with this kind
of machinery. As a
result of the prevailing
and generally accepted
inheritance rights the
family acreage in almost
all cases was evenly
divided among all of the
male heirs. Because of
this practice no large
scale farms developed
but rather remained
mid-sized or small plots
of land. The major
crops were wheat and
maize in addition to
barley, oats, sugar
beets and other root
crops. In the last
years prior to the
Flight sunflowers were
grown as a source for
cooking oil. As an
example of the yields
that our fields produced
in terms of maize and
wheat we can share the
following: there was a
yield of about 400
wagonloads of maize and
250-300 wagonloads of
wheat. If we add the
yield of oats and barley
to meet the individual
farmers needs, the large
scale cattle rearing,
the feeding of swine for
slaughter and seeds for
the next year’s planting
the annual production
exceeded 1,000
wagonloads. The
vineyard annually
produced several
thousand Hekto liters of
good wines.
Crafts and Trade
The reputation of the
local tradesmen went far
beyond the borders of
our home community. In
many cases the Serbs in
the neighbouring
communities preferred
the services of our
tradesmen to their own.
Many tradesmen also had
some small landholdings.
The daily activities
and skills of the
tradesmen were as
follows: They spun,
sewed, knitted,
crocheted, baked,
slaughtered, wove
baskets, made brooms and
so on. Much of this
work was done in the
winter months when
fieldwork was at a
standstill. Thanks to
these trades our rather
unassuming but neat and
tidy farm clothing was
worn right up to the
Flight in our home
village.
The Co-operative
Society
The Society did not
exist until the mid
1920s. The Farmer’s
Assistance Association,
the so-called Agraria
was founded under the
chairmanship of Johann
Flohr in 1925.
Following the
establishment of this
institution the
co-operative was forced
to face very unstable
times for a few years
until after meeting a
major crisis it led to a
healthy agricultural
economy and general
prosperity for the
farmers. In the years
ahead the Farmer’s
Assistance Association
consisted of a
membership of over one
thousand villagers.
Credit was generously
extended to the members
that enabled them to
purchase additional
land.
A type of credit union
was a component of the
Farmer’s Assistance
Association that proved
itself of great value.
There was a hardly a
family or household that
was not part of it. The
Farmer’s Assistance
Association had its own
kiln to dry maize that
processed over one
hundred wagonloads from
autumn through the
winter. The existing
seed cleansing machinery
was used by the farmers
a great deal. Through
the efforts of the
Farmer’s Assistance
Association,
agricultural equipment
and machinery were
ordered and used, along
with other necessary
articles for farming and
vineyard production.
Outside of the scope of
the Farmer’s Assistance
Association there was a
livestock insurance
co-operative that
provided insurance on
cows, which was a major
concern of the farmers.
The risk of the loss of
beef cattle was not
considered as great.
The requirements for
this insurance and the
necessary regular
examinations of the
animals by veterinarians
resulted in a
tuberculosis-free herd
in the community.
People’s Savings Bank
The oldest financial
institution in Neu-Pasua
was the People’s Savings
Bank established in 1905
by our countryman Ludwig
Schumacher. With the
arrival of the Farmer’s
Assistance Association
it lost a great deal of
its importance. It
remained in operation
until the time of the
Flight.
Industries
They were not very well
developed due to the
lack of capital. There
was a textile works in
the village, the firm of
Müller and Company, with
a workforce of 35 to 40
persons; in addition,
there were also a large
and smaller brickworks.
In 1944 Neu-Pasua had
two modern export
customs houses for mill
products. There were
approximately a dozen
modern mills in other
locales, owned and
operated by men from
Neu-Pasua. A workshop
made bicycle parts. At
that time there were
eighteen commercially
operated threshing
machines in the various
German communities and
in Serbian villages that
earned a good income for
the owners in Neu-Pasua.
Community Life
The cultural life of
the village was
deliberately curtailed
by the Yugoslavian
government to prevent
the German consciousness
of the inhabitants to
gain ascendancy. The
German teacher was not
permitted to lead the
choral society founded
in 1905. One of the
deserving members of the
society was Dr. Noll the
village doctor. He
achieved great results
in singing
competitions. Sports
activities only began
after the First World
War and began with
football (soccer).
Callisthenics and
gymnastics first began
to develop in the
1930s. The Fire
Department was first
founded after the First
World War under the
leadership of Fritz
Schneider the local
innkeeper. One can say
this was rather late in
being established. In
one respect there was
always the danger of a
major fire because of
the enormous numbers of
haystacks and piles of
maize leaves in the
barnyards while on the
other hand the danger
was minimized by the
nature of the
construction of the
houses out of bricks and
roofed with tiles.
Otherwise when fires
broke out every farmer
abandoned whatever work
he was doing and lost no
time in coming to help.
There was no lack of
wells or water to put
out the fire.
The
most significant
landmark in the village
was the baroque style
church built in 1812.
The services were always
very well attended. At
the time of the major
festivals not all of the
worshippers were able to
find seating. Chairs
were placed along the
centre aisle of the
church. The Siloah
orphanage established in
1910 did not only serve
the village of
Neu-Pasua. It is now
located in Isny in the
Allgäu and has developed
into a children’s and
youth village. It
serves approximately 150
children and youth and
will never be forgotten
by its founders, the
people of Neu-Pasua.
Neu-Pasua Today
The church, the Luther
memorial and the
parsonage were
demolished by the new
inhabitants shortly
after the Second World
War. The Luther Hall
next to the church alone
was spared destruction
and today serves as a
place of worship and has
a cross attached to its
gable. The former neat
and tidy houses have
become quite unsightly.
Because the village is
easily accessible by
roadways to the nearby
capital city of Belgrade
it has been expanded by
its current inhabitants
and a portion of our
former homes have been
subdivided so that
around 14,000 people now
live there. The current
population of Neu-Pasua
are Serbs mostly from
around the surrounding
area as well as people
from more distant parts
of Yugoslavia who are
employed as workers in
Semlin or Belgrade.
Only the portion of rich
agricultural land around
the Pickerle has been
designated and used for
farming by the state
farm collective.
In conclusion to these
observations there are
two comments by persons
of non-Neu-Pasua origin
who have characterized
the village and its
inhabitants as follows.
Long before the Second
World War, a Serb from
the neighboring village
of Vojka was reputed to
have said, “It is good
that we have Swabians
around who drive their
wagons along the bumpy
road through our village
in the early grey dawn
of morning to go
ploughing and harvesting
and make such a noise
that they inadvertently
wake us in our sleep
announcing our own work
day was about to begin.
If there were no
Swabians around we would
have to invent them.”
A former
German soldier from the
Reich, a member of an
anti-aircraft unit, who
had spent a month in
Neu-Pasua and its
vicinity and gotten to
know the people quite
well, returned to
Yugoslavia years after
the Flight as a
tourist. As the editor
of a well-known
newspaper in the West
German Bonn Republic he
wrote about his
impressions, and I
quote: “Neu-Pasua is a
jewel compared to the
other communities around
it, and even today
remains beautiful on the
outside, giving
expression to its past.”
It is beyond dispute
that our people from
Neu-Pasua, as is true in
general of all the
Swabians in the Danube
basin, have fulfilled
their mission as
pioneers and German
colonists in the wider
world and our
descendants can take
pride because of it.
Reutlingen, May
1969, M. Huber
The
Neu-Pasua Homeland Committee and Its
Task
The Emigration of our
Ancestors
At the general Treffen
(assembly) of the Danube
Swabian Expellees
Organization held in Reutlingen in June 1951
there were many of our
countrymen present from
our home community
Neu-Pasua. A small
group of them talked
among themselves and
agreed to eat their noon
meal together at the
local Ratstube and spend
a leisurely together.
As agreed about 30 to 40
persons appeared at the
restaurant, almost all
of them countrymen from
Neu-Pasua. Even prior
to the Treffen the
necessity for founding a
Homeland Committee had
been raised by some
former residents of
Neu-Pasua who saw its
importance and gave
serious consideration to
it. The Neu-Pasua
former residents who
were present were from
Reutlingen or lived in
its close proximity or
in not too distant
regions and during their
dinner conversation they
were all of one mind to
found a Homeland
Committee. The
formation of the
committee required the
election of persons who
would carry out all the
necessary requirements
to ensure the success of
the work to be
undertaken. Whenever
possible they needed to
live in close proximity
to Reutlingen and could
be reached quickly
whenever necessary.
Names were put forward
that resulted in the
following listing in
alphabetical order:
Ludwig Alter, Jakob Deh,
Jakob Göttel, Adam
Hellermann, Mathias
Huber, Michael Huber,
Anton Hudjetz, Georg
Jentz, Philipp Kendel,
Friedrich Kühbach, Jakob
Rometsch and Philipp
Staufenberger.
In order to give the
reader a glimpse of the
work done by the
Homeland Committee to
date, I will give a
short summary of the
purpose that the
committee set for itself
and its consequent
performance.
The organization and
carrying out of Treffen
and the necessary
arrangements. There
have been seven
Neu-Pasua Treffen that
were arranged and held
during the following
years: 1952, 1954,
1956, 1958, 1964, 1969
and 1973. All of these
assemblies were well
attended by our
countrymen. A program
was developed and
closely tied to each
Treffen and the
preparation and
implementation required
much time and effort.
These programs
included a memorial
service at the
Reutlingen cemetery;
festival worship
services; an evening of
celebrating our folk
customs, along with
dancing, a social time
and reunion. The sixth
Treffen was combined
with a timely
exhibition: Everything
that reminds us of
Neu-Pasua, along with an
interesting stamp
collection of our
countryman Georg Dewald
and a coin collection of
our countryman Jakob
Schumacher. All of the
Treffen without
exception were warm
friendly gatherings and
highly esteemed by our
countrymen whereby our
solidarity and love for
our old and new homeland
were given expression.
At all of our Treffen
our countrymen from the
daughter settlements and
those related to
Neu-Pasua were always
invited and participated
in them.
At Pentecost 1953 the
brochure written by the
author of this book was
published under the
title, “The War Victims
of the Danube Swabian
Community of
Neu-Pasua”. Several
members of the Homeland
Committee assisted in
gathering and compiling
the information.
Beginning in 1953 and in
the years that followed
the matter of
compensation for those
driven out of their
homeland was
undertaken. It would
take too much time to
get into the particulars
of individual cases.
Still I offer a few in
concise form. The
extent of the number of
personal claims for
compensation from among
the population of
Neu-Pasua living in the
Bonn Republic was in the
neighborhood of 2,000.
Only a small proportion
of the compensation
claimants were capable
of submitting the claim
on their own. This
was due to the fact that
our home village was
located within the
former Military Frontier
District which required
community approval for
the undertaking.
Because of that the
resolution of the claims
was more complicated
than it was for other
communities. In
addition during the war
years 1941 until 1944
there were major changes
in the boundaries of the
pasture lands and the
village of Neu-Pasua
itself. During
this process there were
many persons who joined
the Homeland Committee
that had the necessary
knowledge with regard to
the compensation
legislation and were
able to assist many of
our countrymen to
complete their
submissions with proven
good advice and
supportive action.
Two members of our
committee were
spokespersons for both
short and longer periods
with the government
ministry related to the
compensation. Here
we would like to mention
the fact that the
Director dealing with
reparations from
Yugoslavia within the
government ministry, our
countryman Leopold Egger
of Semlin (Franztal)
went to great lengths to
meet the requests coming
from our former
community. In
response to requests of
our Homeland Committee
our countryman Egger
personally provided the
evidence with regard to
community property and
the established
boundaries in order that
they could be acted
upon.
As a result many of the
farming families of
Neu-Pasua were assisted
in making successful
claims. We are
gratefully indebted to
him.
Collaboration in the
publication of the
Homeland Book which was
published in 1956. It
was written by Dr.
Irmgard Hudjetz-Loeber
commissioned by the
Homeland Committee and
includes the very
worthwhile contribution
of Pastor Jakob Rometsch:
the Family Register from
1791-1956. In addition
to there were other
portions provided by
other members of the
Homeland Committee. We
are justly proud of our
Homeland Book. The
edition consisted of
2,500 printed copies and
has since become
unavailable. Along with
the Homeland Book a
series of pictures in
postcard format
developed by Pastor
Jakob Rometsch were also
published which had been
sold to a great degree.
At the same time as the
book was published a
ground plan of Neu-Pasua
on a scale of 1:3000 was
also published.
In this plan every house
is identified by the
name of its occupant,
and as such is a
document of great value
to all of our former
villagers.
For
this exceptional work we
express our thanks and
give recognition to our
countrymen Adam Lebherz
now of Balingen.
The Orphanage Siloah: Members of the Homeland
Committee Friedrich Kühbach, Jakob Rometsch
and Mathias Huber have
worked alongside of the
Orphanage Union dealing
with its affairs over
many years.
At the various Treffen
that have been held, the
donations have been
forwarded to the home
for several years.
During the Christmas
holidays there were
house gatherings in the Reutlingen area in
support of Siloah. At
the Treffen in 1969 a
stone memorial
commemorating the war
victims of Neu-Pasua was
commissioned and is now
imbedded in the wall of
one of the children’s
homes in the youth
village in Isny.
The House of the Danube
Swabians:
Included in the honor
roll of the supporting
communities that
provided the financing
for this house in
Sindelfingen, the
village of Neu-Pasua is
identified as one of the
patrons.
These funds
resulted from the
response to an appeal
made by the Homeland
Committee to all of our
Neu-Pasua countrymen.
Members of the Committee
themselves made
significant personal
contributions. At the
head of the list of
donors was our
countryman Georg Jentz
who donated 1,000 DM on
behalf of himself and
his family.
Reutlingen, June
1974, M. Huber
[Published at
DVHH.org 18 Aug 2008 by Jody McKim Pharr]
|
Last
Updated:
17 May 2018 |
Keeping the Danube Swabian legacy alive
