The Forgotten Story Of Independent Saarland

After WW2, Germany was split in two parts: West Germany, and East Germany. And Saarland. Wait, what? As Germany prepares to celebrate 30 years of Reunification, I went to Saarland to discover the story of the little country that divorced and rejoined Germany... twice.
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For more stories about football in independent Saarland, there's a great article here: longballfootball.wordpress.co...
...and another one here (in German): www.volksfreund.de/sport/regi...
IMAGE CREDITS
Frank Lampard: www.flickr.com/photos/uk-in-j... (c) British Embassy Tokyo
Frank Ocean: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
Frank Rijkaard: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
Roman Soldier: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
Saar coins: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
1871 Map Of Germany: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
1954 World Cup Final stadium: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...

[@TheTimTraveller]

CATASTROPHIC MAP ERROR: Thüringen was, of course, in East Germany. Oops! Apologies for any offence / distress / injury / death caused.

[@cyrilio]

But how many deaths did your error cause?! Must’ve been in the single digits.

[@ethanh6370]

cyrilio It's Germany, we can't be too sure.

[@mats7492]

@@cyrilio i was so offended by that error, i dropped dead instantly, yes, im german!

[@SvenAlbertPedersen]

As a born Thuringian spotted, that sth. looked weird there. 😉

[@nephilimcrt]

@@mats7492 Wenn ist das Nunstück git und Slotermeyer? Ja! Beiherhund das Oder die Flipperwaldt gersput!

[@KyleKartan87]

As a german I can say not only the history of the independent Saarland got forgotten. The Saarland in gerneral gets usualy forgotten.

[@heicom.2701]

Not true. In the news, they refer to "an area the size of Saarland" all the time. :)

[@derauditor5748]

Autsch. No it's not. It's an official Unit for Measurement of anything larger than a Soccer Field. At least for some TV Formats. Everything is measured in "Saarlands". Forest Fires, Oil Spills in the Oceans, The Area of spreading Epidemics, the Dimension of the Plastic Carpets in the Oceans and so on.

[@turingmachine4617]

Der Auditor funny how every country has this - when I lived in the USA it was West Virginia www.coldmountainreview.org/issues/spring-2018/the-size-of-west-virginia-by-valerie-nieman

[@EduardoEscarez]

@@turingmachine4617 The international version is New York City, but as a Chilean we have two versions: Santiago (the capital) as a surface measurement unit, and the whole country as a ruler 😆

[@LordZarano]

@@turingmachine4617 "An area the size of Wales" for anyone in the UK en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_unusual_units_of_measurement#Wales

[@AS-ci5go]

Being a Saarländer myself, a friend of mine once made this absolute fantastic comparison: Saarland is like a lizard's tail of Germany. Everytime Germany gets into danger it throws off the Saarland, but in the end it somehow always grows back. I think that's hilarious 😂

[@waltergro9102]

The Saar region was never thrown off by Germany.

[@Sir_Mike]

So'n Saarland Ding :) liegt wohl in der Familie xD

[@the.simrob1n229]

My great grandmother was born 1898 near Saarbruecken. She changed her nationality four times, lived through two world wars and paid with six different currencies. She has been through a lot, without even moving once!

[@angeloachmedmerkel5462]

I was cleaning up at my grandparents home when i discovered my great great grandmothers ID card from 1919 saarland and it was in french kind of interesting.

[@Luterius]

My Family motherers side all burn in Saarland and live in Metlach but i live in Berlin

[@vaclav_fejt]

That reminds me of a joke about an old Jew who died and went to Heaven only to be stopped at the gates: "Listen here, Mr. Rabinovitch, I see here you were born in Austria-Hungary, studied in Czechoslovakia, got married in Hungary, lived in the USSR and died in Ukraine. We're a little suspicious regarding world-wanderers here..." "Dear me, I've never even set foot out of Mukachevo!"

[@sandie157]

Your poor grandmother, what a time she has had The story of this place is a true reflection of the madness of the 20c

[@ak5659]

She didn't need to see the world. The world came to her!

[@Moazra101]

Wherever you go in the world, you will always find a Saarländer. The same goes for this comment section.

[@andreassteinel9712]

That is so true. And we always recognize each other by the different saarländian accents.

[@ThomasNimmesgern]

Dat glawwschde awwa!

[@AshK69]

Ei jo

[@ludwigskirchesaarbrucken5800]

That is absolutely true. I remember hiking Ireland 30 years ago. One evening in the last hostel east of New York City. The hostel was completely empty, except for 2 Germans and an Austrian. Boy, was the Austrian p****d when we found out that we 2 Germans were both from the Saarland ...

[@manuelsier743]

Eijo

[@kutter_ttl6786]

Me before I click on the video: "I certainly hope there's a Baumwipfelpfad."

[@turingmachine4617]

Just this morning I was lamenting that we don’t have one here in Ireland and was hoping to see one on KZbin

[@WG55]

I never knew I needed one until now!

[@_Piers_]

I think that just before I open the curtains in the morning, so far the garden has been a great disappointment! :)

[@deejayC]

Sounds like something you might say if you’ve got a mouthful of bread

[@userofthetube2701]

@CommandoDude This is why Germans have developed a special power that allows them to string separate words together into one.

[@hardanheavy]

I had a colleague from the Saarland. Others were sometimes joking with him, calling him 'Rucksackdeutscher' (German with a backpack (travelling between countries) ) or 'Spätheimkehrer' (Late to come home). He always countered with: 'That maybe so, but we have the biggest win of all: French food, German portions!' Touché ^^

[@Rhinelander]

*Rucksackdeutscher

[@hardanheavy]

@@Rhinelander Ups, Tschulligung. Auch nach 20 Jahren Deutschland mache ich immer noch Fehler. I bin a Zugroasta ^^

[@Ellessar1985]

My colleagues only ever call me frenchy for being a proud Saarländer, so you had a very lucky colleague for only being called "Rucksackdeutscher" xD

[@eddiejc1]

@@Rhinelander Or, as they would say in Canada----Rowsdower!

[@ixlnxs]

He also had better jokes.

[@hunterlines5704]

Me born and raised in Saarland, watching this video like "Oh my god, ive been there, I know this place"

[@lenyaheidrich2699]

Same, I live since I was born in Saarland and I was in the summer holidays the first time at the Saarschleife, I look this video like " I knew this place, I was there" (I'm sorry about my englisch haha, I'm a German girl and learn englisch since 3 years now)

[@itsleonhard185]

Same I still live there

[@dragonmartijn]

How do you call a woman from Saarland? Saarländerin?

[@markomihajlovic7091]

@@itsleonhard185 how is it? I did my Erasmus in Saarbreucken. I miss the place badly. Please remember me when schwenking next time.

[@eckiger_luki6424]

cool wie ist es wenn die eltern geschwister sind ? xD Spaß xD

[@Artaios02]

Another French influence: My aunt from Saarland told me cafés were placing tables and chairs outside on the sidewalks long before this became common in the rest of Germany.

[@d22matt]

"Ah yes, France was chatting up Saarland in a night club... What is this video"? 😂 These videos are perfect for a pick me up chuckle 👌👍

[@justinv433]

Yueu cc. Kk

[@levako05d]

I saw this video for the first time today and I swear to you I came back multiple times during the day just for that joke.

[@tintinandthedarksideofdog2205]

Mauerpfeifer Saarbrücken the best eletronic club in the Saarland

[@janecherrytree]

As a person from Saarland, I was certainly surprised to see this in my recommendations. :D

[@howhiareu1020]

same

[@andreassteinel9712]

thanks to the recommendation algorithm!

[@oliverm6286]

Same

[@donerbezwinger7984]

Isch aach

[@hypnotizedx5439]

Same im from there too lol

[@RukaHulla]

Living in Saarland and will be moving to Paris in a few weeks, but my heart will always stay in Saarland ❤️

[@panchalim]

Married to a proud Saarlander, lived in Saarland for 4 years and still go almost every month to visit parents-in-law. Saarland holds a very special place in my heart.

[@andreisimion247]

Careful if I were you , those people are not known for being faithful and whatnot .

[@wilhelmaschenberger5556]

@@andreisimion247 why do you think so? People from Outside told me often they Got the feeling that we're more kinda rude, but Just because we are very honest without a mean intention. But there are Always people of different character at any place.

[@Varraz]

I'm honestly surprised nobody made an incest joke yet, Saarland is Germanys Alabama/Tasmania when it comes to jokes

[@maze2000wi]

The football story is actually even *more* twisted: The manager of Saarland's team, Helmut Schön, later went on to become manager of the (West) German national team and eventually lead them to win the World Cup in 1974.

[@KurtKind]

Also Helmut Schön, born in Dresden (East Germany), was coach of the sovjet-zone team in 1949/50, what makes him even more part of the twisted history of the different germanys.

[@countluke2334]

There is even another interesting bit about constitutional history: When the West German constitution, the Grundgesetz, was written, they included two separate articles for re-unification with Saarland and for re-unification with East Germany. While the "Saarland-Article" always was designed like "annexing" the Saarland should they choose so in the referendum with France, the consitution called for a Federal assembly and a whole new constitution in case of the unification with East Germany. Even the name "Grundgesetz" suggests that it was meant to be provisional until that happened. However, when 1989 happened, nobody was keen on actually doing that, and in the end East Germany was annexed using the "Saarland-Article" and we still have the Grundgesetz which is now valid in all Germany.

[@Milo_Minderbinder]

Hey, I'm from Saarland. And this is the best video about this topic ever !

[@Michel-7.7.7]

And probably the only one😁👍

[@logoseven3365]

“...they spell it the mëtäl wäÿ.”

[@daanwilmer]

That made me genuinely laugh out loud, thanks Tim

[@martijnhooijer3243]

The world needs more umlauts

[@logoseven3365]

Martijn Hooijer I didn’t know you could umlaut Y!

[@dezzmotion4475]

@@logoseven3365 we germans only do ü,ä and ö

[@logoseven3365]

Dezzmotion I took 4 years of German. I remember numbers, hello, goodbye, and 3 songs. I started playing with my phone to write my response and was pleasantly surprised by the ‘ÿ’. I wasted 17 years of my life, I should have bought an iPhone instead of going to school!... ...in 1976...

[@DarrenBates]

"Which is what I call Saar-casm." Fantastic!

[@billmmckelvie5188]

Well done you beat me to it.

[@trollhorn1977]

Greets from Großrosseln! It is my homevillage and it is next to the french village "Petite Rosselle" or in english: "Little Rossel". "Rossel" is also the name of the river that marks the border between Germany and France. The name is derived from the celtic name "Rossela" which means "red river".

[@G-Man_STNH]

As Saarländer, i am appreciate this video a lot. Greetings from the near of the Saarschleife :) fun-fact: Olders in Saarland still say "over there in the Reich..." (Drüben im Reich) when they mean German territory, but off-saarland. (Like Trier or Kaiserslautern) but its bearly used in language these days. thx @The Tim Traveller

[@marcelmorales1035]

wieder was gelernt :D danke

[@hendrikwordehoff6191]

Funny side note: the law that was used for the Wiedervereinigung with East Germany was originally brought into place for the Saarland.

[@TheTimTraveller]

This is an EXCELLENT fact.

[@tulsatrash]

Cool.

[@kbtzpictures]

When I look at this, I can only see Wjejwudisheyeufiebsh

[@dickjohnson4447]

An other fun fact is Ernst Thälmann Island was not mentioned in the reunification between East and West, making it last remaining part of East Germany. Sadly it's uninhabited and so far from Germany that everybody just kind of forgot about it.

[@kleincamper]

@@dickjohnson4447 What? I never heart of that. Tim can you make an episode about that fact?

[@threestepssideways1202]

This video (and channel) is the perfect example of why YT, for all it's myriad faults, was a great idea. Edit: ''Germanys answer to the Isle of Dogs, which I call saar-casm'' is genius, that made me laugh most merrily.

[@someopinion2846]

Saar-chasm.

[@threestepssideways1202]

@@someopinion2846 It works both ways, which is why it's so funny.

[@Tflexxx02]

For non-Brits, what's the "Isle of Dogs". Doesn't sound great.

[@threestepssideways1202]

@@Tflexxx02 It's a peninsular formed by a bend in the River Thames in east London.

[@TonboIV]

@@Tflexxx02 "Isle of Dogs" sounds fantastic to me, and I'll be crushingly disappointed if that name is less literal than Japan's "cat islands".

[@vivientakacs5599]

When you live in Saarland and get this vid recommended

[@djm5687]

Salü!

[@gamermapper]

When you live in Alsace which is saarland but the opposite and get this video recommended lol

[@Zoddom]

Die do Kommentarabdälung is jetz saarlännisch!!

[@patrickdiederich7469]

Ei joo! Do gugge na, was?

[@s.t.697]

Geh fort!

[@kyty3225]

Hie kommt kenner meh rin

[@jeffersonatomix]

@@kyty3225 warum es saarland is doch enfach scheen

[@kyty3225]

@@jeffersonatomix ich han gemennt et kommt kenner meh in unser saarlännich Kommentarabdälung rin. Die is besetzt

[@TideKnotTravellers]

You have a great way of telling a historical story, this is some complex history too. Genuinely should be showing your video in schools, I studied German History at school, would’ve loved these videos then!

[@139Gaming]

Him and Oversimplified. Great and fun ways to learn history.

[@user-gs8jv4oq6w]

Agreed

[@charliebrown7004]

So true 👍

[@Lancor84]

In German schools you most likely don't even get told this story here, that's how forgotten it is.

[@sonkeschluter3654]

Fun fact: The Saarland is often used as a unit of area. Similiar to football fields and stuff

[@Illuminati_HD]

Well, not in Germany that is.

[@lesand5484]

For anyone who wants to know the area of Brazil in Saarland, its 3324,4. Thank you Katapult Magazin for providing me with this precious piece of information. By the way, the smallest state in Germany is Bremen with a size of just 0,2 Saarland with Hamburg (0,3) and Berlin (0,4) following closely.

[@modern_milkman]

@@Illuminati_HD It is, though. I've heard and read "an area almost as big as/twice as bis as/bigger than the Saarland" ("Eine Fläche fast so groß wie/doppelt so groß wie/größer als das Saarland") multiple times when large areas have been described (for example large forest fires). While comparisons to other Bundesländer to describe an area might happen as well, they are for some reason by far less common than comparisons to the Saarland.

[@TheCardiganR]

Just like an area the size of Wales....

[@MoveAhead101]

Yes, something like: if the Saarland would be covered with solar panels, we could run the whole of germany on renewables.

[@moste101]

In the map at the beginning showing the separation of Germany you show Thuringia as a territory of West Germany, although it belonged to East Germany.

[@demonte6582]

das ganze video ist sehr ungenau und enthält mehrere fehler. Der größte im titel; niemand hat das saarland "vergessen".

[@raileon]

@@demonte6582 während die Sache mit Thüringen durchaus ein Fehler ist; ist die Entscheidung, den Titel so zu nennen eher eine bewusste Überspitzung. Zumal ich es für recht wahrscheinlich halte dass viele Deutsche durchaus nicht mit der Saarländischen Geschichte vertraut sind.

[@demonte6582]

@@raileon Natürlich sind die wenigsten deutschen mit deutscher geschichte vertraut. Besonders in gegenden mit hohen afd-wähleranteil fällt das immer wieder auf.

[@raileon]

@@demonte6582 da haben Sie wohl recht.

[@YGOMaster97]

@@demonte6582 good one xD

[@margodoughty1359]

Wow, visited Mettlach with my ex husband and greyhound(windhound) Rocky back in 1990 for a Volksmarch as my husband and I were stationed at Sembach AB and must say this is wonderful news as I just knew there was something special about Saarland. Thanks for the happy stumble onto your site and may your future travels be amazing!

[@Stuart76]

1:48 great collection of ‘Franks’. Rijkaard, Zappa, Sinatra, Lampard. And I think Ocean. Well played. Almost thought my eyes were deceiving me until I went back.

[@Thirdeariespace]

Yes, definitely Ocean. My favourite joke of the video.

[@platypusfrenzy]

I though that seemed off but I don't know enough about Germanic tribes to dispute it...

[@TheRubinho96]

Yea Frank Ocean, that's the one I noticed and made me rewind and pause. Brilliant

[@-haclong2366]

To be frank, it was funny.

[@SoulpowerMSRS]

With me I noticed a goatee I thought I recognised and rewound to confirm it was Zappa. Then the joke sunk in.

[@cjwhite7801]

The dry humor makes this video 100x better

[@luisazimmermann3442]

Greetings from the Saarland. Thank you for visiting our beautiful Bundesland ✌️

[@genilp797]

I live in Saarland and im loving it!!! Btw: We talk in two Different dialects here. Rheinfränkisch and Moselfränkisch. They also have some french tweaks in them.

[@janecherrytree]

Das ganze in nur zwei Dialekte zu unterteilen, grenzt ja fast schon an grobe Beleidigungen. Ich hör mich doch nicht an wie ein Trierer. xD

[@David2412]

Dann schreib halt ach uff blat

[@Candyskill]

Wir sind doch keine trierer lol wir reden nur SAARLÄNDISCH AAAAAAAAAAA

[@Jonasweber95]

Geh fort

[@christianhans1449]

Also eisch find de Schmelzer Dialekt am schlimmste Do griwwelts mA immer in der Ore datt mit der zwei Dialekte stimmt off gar kä fall

[@tonTeufel]

4:13 The imperial flag was not used by the Weimar Republic. It used the same black-red-yellow flag that we have today. The nazis reinstated the imperial flag in 1933 and used it until 1935 when the swastika flag became the sole flag.

[@Piktogrammdd1234]

Which is quite important today, because right wing nuts are waving the flag of the empire on their rallies :(

[@reuben8140]

@@Piktogrammdd1234 Crazy nuts wanting a future for indigenous people, absolute madmen.

[@EliStettner]

The Nazis murdered millions of civilians in concentrations camps and death camps.

[@Hand-in-Shot_Productions]

I have noticed that a lot of non-German sources incorrectly use the black-white-red tricolor to represent the 1919-1933 "Wiemar Republic" (otherwise known as _Deutsches_ _Reich,_ usually translated as "German Empire", but meaning "German Realm" in this context). Yes, the black-white-red flag did serve as the basis for various military flags used by the German government of the time (and yes, Germany _did_ have a military at the time: the _Reichswehr,_ or "Realm Defense"). However, the national flag of the German Realm remained black-red-gold, like today's Germany. Meanwhile, the black-white-red became used in less monarchist sense, getting a more nationalist usage during this time, as opposed to the moderate pro-republican groups using the black-red-gold flag (or the opposite extreme: the communists with the red flag, but that's a different story). This is why, as you said, the Nazis revived the black-white-red flag from before World War I, with this status as a flag for a newly-founded dictatorship lasting until 1935, when it was replaced by a certain _other_ black-white-red flag (no coincidence here, the Nazis just rearranged the pre-WWI flag colors to fit their own usages). This is also why out of the many political groups in the modern-day Federal Republic of Germany that use the "monarchist" black-white-red tricolor, few, if none, are actually monarchist. When the existence of democracy was very controversial: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Germany#Weimar_Republic_(1918%E2%80%931933) Military flags of the _Reichswehr_ in the German Realm: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_German_flags#Weimar_Republic_(1919%E2%80%931933)

[@jimtaylor294]

Worth noting that reinstating the Kaiserreich flag was popular with most political factions in interwar germany, moderate and not. The "red, black & mustard" flag was seen by many as an emblem of a failed experiment, that had only brought political bedlam and economic ruin. The NSDAP reinstated it to play lip service to the traditionalists, but didn't hesitate to use the Bremen incident as an excuse to substitute it as the national flag with their own party banner. Just after WWII the Kaiserreich flag was among several considered by East Germany, before they opted for a defaced version of the Red, Black & Mustard. (I like the nickname, but mainly because I think most shades of yellow look terrible on flags) Today the Kaiserreich flag is chiefly used by German Monarchists, with other less decent factions use thereof being chiefly a crutch against german laws banning party flags like the swastika from public use.

[@Quast]

"Saarcasm", I think that's a word that's going in my personal dictionary! :'P

[@simonalexandercritchley439]

I thought it was Saar-chasm

[@dataminuper]

Da lernt man mal was übers eigene Wohngebiet, danke für den tollen Beitrag! Mir is ganz warm ums Herz (-;

[@Rachel.Parsons]

Thank you for making this video! It was excellent! I have cousins that live in Saarland and I will definitely be showing them this video. Saarland is one of my favorite places in the world. ♥️

[@ThreeRunHomer]

Alternate Universe: Saarland is an independent nation, has football clubs in both the Bundesliga *and* Ligue 1, and frequently wins both leagues! The people of France and Germany are aggravated by this, but the Saar food is so exceptional that all is forgiven.

[@jlkanne8330]

fun fact: my favourite football club did actually play in Ligue 2 for one season but then got kicked out again after they won the League... Edit: I'm talking about 1. FC Saarbrücken or FC Sarrebruck as it was called in the French time. got promoted to the 3rd tier of German football last season.

[@lmn6023]

@@jlkanne8330 Wow. i didn't know that. Although, as an Elversberger, I also wouldn't care much about it.

[@graup1309]

For a second there I was like "there is no way such a small nation could stick around in that specific area", but then I remembered Luxembourg exists ...

[@Mishima505]

All for a portion of Dibbelabbes!

[@flopunkt3665]

@@graup1309 Luxembourg and Belgium were already founded as a buffer between Prussia/Germany and France. We don't need a third one.

[@lth5015]

"65 years since you ran this place, they still have the best cooking in Germany. And if that doesn't make you proud to be French, I don't know what will" That's both nonsense and makes perfect sense.

[@maximilianbeyer5642]

They keep their recipes in the family, just like their bloodline

[@mashedtomato2079]

@@maximilianbeyer5642 haha, it's like Germany's Alabama

[@mashedtomato2079]

@@maximilianbeyer5642a married couple in Alabama go for a divorce, they ask if they can stay as brother and sister?

[@eikejung572]

Haha I'm from the Saarland and I like this shit xD And actually we use many French words in our local way of talking (e.g. merci, salut, allez, and many more) :)

[@carinaknight12]

Love the Video! Thank you for sharing and Greetings from Saarbrücken 🤍

[@paul3345]

Brilliant. Love it, as always. French viewer here, who spent part of his childhood in England. Well done, Tim! Plus the accent really is spotless and delightful to listen to. C’est intelligent, fin, divertissant et instructif. Chapeau, Monsieur Tim! Yet I still winced a bit when the tricoloured flag and the Marseillaise showed up to represent France in the... late 1600s?? Grave anachronism. Haha

[@ColinH1973]

Just the sound of your cheery voice is enough to make anyone feel better! I was in Seléstat in Alsace-Lorraine, and the locals' evening greeting is a very German 'Ahbend'. Keep up the great work Tim, you cheer up a lot of people. 👍

[@daanwilmer]

When I lived in Freiburg im Breisgau (just over the border, on a clear day I could see the Vosges from the top op the building where I worked) I was told that the region of Alsace had changed so many times between Germany and France that they feel more Alsacian than French (or German). Although, to be fair, in Freiburg (which has always been German AFAIK) I saw more flags of Baden than flags of Germany, outnumbering them about 2:1 or 3:1 (and almost no flags of the state, Baden-Württemberg). So maybe it's a common thing in that region to be more connected to the region than the country it's in?

[@schnappueber]

@@daanwilmer The problem is rather that symbols of nationalism e.g. the German flag are a bit frowned upon in a non-footbal context. Local flags however do get a pass.

[@0megax788]

Just so you know Alsace and Lorraine are two different regions/entities

[@derwolf9670]

Brilliant video, mate! Thanks from Düsseldorf

[@cryostorm2178]

Just moved here like 2,5 months ago from Dortmund in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Really like it here. Especially with my mountainboard. Here are so many forest, hills and fields that I can blast through with that thing

[@pixlplague]

"They spell it the metal way." I actually loled!

[@andreassteinel9712]

And true. Saarland has besides the highest Michelin stars the highest ratio of metal bands per citizen. At least I understood the ‚metal way‘ as a hidden reference to this fact.

[@ThomasNimmesgern]

No, yöü äctüälly lölled!

[@Rondo2ooo]

Me too, pixlplague!

[@jurgnobs1308]

@@andreassteinel9712 pretty sure it's a reference to some bands putting umlaut-dots on random letters in their name. the most famous band that did this is of course a rockband, not a metal one. motörhead. the most famous metal band that did this is mötley crüe

[@LeeGee]

@@jurgnobs1308 Motley Crew aren't metal, they rubbish. \m/

[@derauditor5748]

I'd like to add: It's an official Unit for Measurement of anything larger than a Soccer Field. At least for some German TV and News Formats. EVERYTHING is measured in "Saarlands". Forest Fires, Oil Spills in the Oceans, The Area of spreading Epidemics, the Dimension of the Plastic Carpets in the Oceans and so on. I knew INSTANTLY that it would contain the Saarschleife Ü Awesome Piece and i've learned a bit here and there. That's what i love about your Videos. Always very entertaining but also sneakingly educating.

[@acciid]

In the UK we use Wales. Wales > football pitches > double decker buses.

[@luckyqualmi]

@@acciid haha ... I wonder what other countries are using? Comment below! :)

[@nlpnt]

@@luckyqualmi Rhode Island is what we use in America, as in "the forest fire started by fireworks set of at a gender-reveal party burned an area the size of Rhode Island".

[@sidraahmad3870]

loved this video! SO INFORMATIVE AND FUN AT THE SAME TIME *-*

[@robhunt8682]

Why do I love these videos...! I think they’re great. Keep at it!

[@dapengu777]

Because my Grandfather lives in Mettlach i was there many times, actually the Saarland has a beautiful Forrest.

[@janecherrytree]

We do! My hometown is actually right on the edge of national park "Saar-Hunsrück". Saarland has some beautiful corners, I tell you!

[@relgeiz2]

Fun fact: The special status of the Saarland caused it to be the birthplace of French commercial Radio (Radio Europe No. 1, which was transmitted via a giant AM Transmitter at Berus until 2019) and German commercial television (Telesaar). Additionally, the Saarland (after the small reuification) was the only west german state to transmit german (625 lines) television in the French (819 lines) standard for a while.

[@ludwigskirchesaarbrucken5800]

And don't forget the French 1 ltr beer bottles ...

[@relgeiz2]

@@ludwigskirchesaarbrucken5800 - is there any way to claim any frenchness for the "Schwenker" in all of its three meanings?

[@Hexelovemarlene]

Your videos just always lighten up my day 🥰

[@danharwood]

I've only been watching your videos for about a year since I relocated from the UK to Germany, but I am loving them! Keep up the awesome work!

[@TheTimTraveller]

Ah cheers! And to be fair, a year ago we were on 1000 subscribers - pretty much everyone here has only been watching for about a year :D

[@root42]

@3:36 "Saarcasm". Oh my god. I threw myself away, laughing. I will use that next time a colleague from Saarland is around.

[@Qualltoxy]

Not even many in Germany know about this somehow.

[@starther]

I just stumbled upon your site and I am glad you're doing a video about Germany- my grandmother is from Saarland so I know what you mean by they can cook extraordinarily well! Thanks to her me and my sister inherited the passion for cooking - but besides, you gave me some really important information about the historical background which I hadn't known yet. Thank you! Best from Rhineland-Palatinate!

[@michaelkies9451]

Wow im so Happy to see you covering my region, would have never thought youd make Saarland so interesting. Thank you :)

[@bokhans]

My uncle was there as Swedish peace keeper (League of Nations) (Saarbataljonen) around the referendum dec 1934 to feb 1935 and I went trough documents from there last month in a state archive in Stockholm. Very fascinating. All letters to the Swedish postmaster there was saved. Several hundreds asking to have envelops with stamps postmarked with the special temporary Swedish postmark. There was also maps of where they where living and you could sense history coming to life. All soldiers that had a flue was registered and all their fever curves was saved. A very detailed archive from this short period of only three month.

[@hassanalihusseini1717]

That is really interesting. I like to read this personal stories about other times. It was very good of you to do this research about times that are due to be forgotten.

[@derdurstbursch]

So where was your uncle living when he was there?

[@bokhans]

Der Vater aller Lappen der Nation in Mettlach

[@derdurstbursch]

@@bokhans Ah that's a bit far away. If in Saarbrücken, i would have taken a picture of the exact building for you or something 🤷‍♂️

[@bokhans]

Der Vater aller Lappen der Nation thanks for thinking of me. I do a lot of travel so i guess i have to check it out myself. It was only a small group from sweden stationen there. Investigating your relatives is such an adventure. I found out not long ago that my grandfather housed a man that was the last to be sentenced to death in Sweden. He and my grandfather made a bomb in the kitchen and what followed was the reason he was sentenced to death.

[@oalsaker]

Your map of divided Germany has Thüringen in West-Germany. Nicht gut!

[@TheTimTraveller]

Oops!

[@LukasPasseck]

I was just about to write it, too

[@oalsaker]

@@LukasPasseck I am usually too late to the party. This time it feels like I won the youtube comment lottery

[@rbr6561]

@Oliver Eales no

[@Darwinek]

I am sure people in Thuringia would very much appreciate being on the other side of the inner German border all those years.

[@lonnhoffman6865]

Tim, thank you so much for this video. I’ve just started doing research on Saarland, as many of my ancestors were born and raised in Saarland.

[@breatharian2009]

I loved this video. Thank you as always for the insight!

[@williamshortfilm5818]

I have never seen such a francophile Englishmen before. Good to see they still exist ! Once again, a very fun and intresting video. Great job ! :-)

[@jimtaylor294]

We Brit's don't particularly dislike the french... but have to keep up our side of the - now rather a wee bit less intense - perpetual sparring match ;-) .

[@kekistanihelpdesk8508]

We just want bourdoux back.

[@Miranes]

1:38 It's time to learn geography NOW!

[@hiredan9046]

Tim, I love your videos and the sense of humor. Please keep making these! Best!

[@dazwischen1]

Salü! I`m a guy from the Saarland. I live in Cologne now but raised in the Saarland for 27 years. Your video is very funny and cool! Baumwipfelpfad :-D :-D :-D But there is so much more in this little country! The beautiful cities of Saarlouis and Saarbrücken or the many hills with there observation towers, the Saar, the massiv woods ...and annd and ;-) Oh, and by the way - we Saarländer are less "germans" as you say ;-) I think it`s 50:50 german and french in us. We have a lot of french words in our language, we live the french life the "savoir vivre" , we eat much more in the french way , we drink more wine and in our hearts - we love France!

[@LazierSophie]

Merci ! Danke! Aus Paris.

[@timm9631]

Tim, thank you so much for posting this. I think this is my favorite video of yours so far. I love Saarland. I lived in Zweibruecken in the 80's (graduated high school there) and even have some Saar coins. But I had no idea of Saarland's history or it's Michelin stars! This is now a bucket list of mine to visit the Baumwipfelpfad (great job pronouncing that, BTW!!) Thank you, thank you, thank you again, by the end I was in tears, I miss that area so much. Cheers my friend, please keep the videos coming!

[@arthur_p_dent]

Zweibrücken is of course not part of the Saarland. Just right across the border. You see that if you want to go to the "Globus" on Mary's assumption (Mariä Himmelfahrt). The hardware store (Baumarkt) is in Rhineland-Palatinate, and open. The grocery story is just across the border in Saarland and therefore closed, since Mary's Assumption is a public holiday in Saarland but not RLP.

[@timm9631]

@@arthur_p_dent I know it's not in Saarland, but it was 5 minutes away. Your comment seems very nitpicky and condescending. As an American, I was simply excited to learn more of the history of a place that was so close to me. Now I want to explore it.

[@arthur_p_dent]

@@timm9631 sorry for coming across condescending. It's just that people right next to the border between Saarland and Pfalz are very aware of their local identity and there is a strong rivalry. Calling a Zweibrücker a "Saarländer" (or, by extension, suggesting Zweibrücken is in Saarland) can come across very offensive to the locals, much like calling their neighbors from right across the border "Pfälzer". It's akin to calling a Scotsman an Englishman, you want to avoid it even if he is from Gretna Green.

[@kerstinrosner7339]

I‘m from Saarland. I love your Video about us, the Saarschleife, the Baumwipfelpfad and the history of pur Culture. Thanks and Greetings aus Saarbrücken. Die u know, That we have pur Owen dialect?

[@unnamedchannel2202]

Actually two!

[@magnussigurdsson9548]

I love you! Im currently writing a presentation about Saarland which i got stuck on. Then this video popped up in my recommended and saves me!

[@MeinungMann]

I will give a presentation about Saarland some time soon and this video helped me to figure out a lot about this region. Thanks! I also liked the humor

[@jrosenthal7111]

0:30 To be historically correct, Germany was divided into three parts after the war: Allied-occuppied west Germany, Soviet-occupied east Germany and the eastern territories which came "under polish (and soviet) administration". While it is not really relevant anymore, this was a part of the division that is often overlooked for political reasons, but was quite relevant in German foreign relations up until the early 70s (at least in west Germany).

[@MattiBlume]

Considering Saarland, it's four parts; considering Austria five; considering the separate allied zones (until 1948), eight parts...

[@carlosandleon]

That's right, we need to invade Poland

[@MrTohawk]

@@carlosandleon The 2+4 treaty 30 years ago ended the territorial dispute. The only area still under Polish occupation is the independent Free City of Danzig

[@Josep_Hernandez_Lujan]

@@MrTohawk What about Kaliningrad? That's still Russian right?

[@MrTohawk]

@@Josep_Hernandez_Lujan Germany accepted it's 1990 borders. Danzig was not German and got invaded by Germany just like Poland.

[@jeromesnail]

I hope you have made some videos on the French side of the border too. I live at 30km or so from the Saarschleife, it's an amazing place indeed. The whole Saarland is great for hiking. Everybody knows radio salut here on the French side of the border, I've never heard a saarlander say "salut" though ^^ I guess you have seen the bid antennas near Saarlouis, it's in Germany but it actually broadcast a French radio station "Europe 1" on long waves.

[@yannicyh]

Older generations do my parents and their friends use it quite often. A families friend owns a pub called "Salut" as well. Some of my friend greet each other with "salut" as well, but they kind of drop the "ü-sound" so it sounds more like "sale"

[@Alexp37]

Absolutely brilliant and entertainkng video! Thoroughly enjoyed it. Subbed. Greetz from a dude from Hannover.

[@imranh5395]

A brilliant documentary and a barrel of laughs- thank you!

[@muhCrafting]

I am from Saarland and I love your video💯👍🏻

[@MichaEl-rh1kv]

Small correction: The German flag from 1919 to 1933 was black-red-gold (like in the time of the German Association / Deutscher Bund from 1848 to 1866). The Black-White-Red flag was only valid after the Prussian-Italian victory over Germany, resulting in the Prussian annexation of most of the Northern German States. It was first the flag of the North German Association (Prussia had black-white and Brandenburg, the original German part of Prussia, had red-white) and became after the War against France 1870/71 the flag of the new-founded German empire (of Prussian nation - to draw a parallel to the Roman Empire of German nation ;) ) which ended with the end of WW I. Only ship flags continued to show black-white-red (with black-red-gold in the upper left field). 1933 the Nazis returned to the Prussian colors, but replaced them 1935 by their party flag. The colors black red gold go back to the "wars of liberation" against Napoleon and were the colors of the 19th century unification movement. The republican revolutionaries of the 1848/49 riots however put them vertically in reminiscence to the french revolution (very similar to the flag of Belgium, but in the German order).

[@fhlostonparaphrase]

First time viewer of the channel (the trivia factor of Saarland lured me in) and I must say that it won't be the last vid of yours that I will be watching. All the small touches; the map...details, the nightclub, the poking fun at the German language; I like it, makes me chuckle :) British humour ftw. And I gotta say, Baumwipfelpfad popping up all over Europe? The horror! :-/

[@jonathandrahos2566]

I recently discovered your channel and I find I am learning a lot of European history as well as. English entertained. Thank you for doing what you do.

[@kangaroo092]

J'ai appris des choses sur l'histoire de mon pays. Et j'adore ton accent français ! Encore mille mercis pour cette superbe vidéo, intéressante, travaillée, dans laquelle tu t'investis et fais des recherches. C'est très pédagogique, agréable à regarder, avec de l'humour, ... Et je sais que cela prend du temps à filmer, monter et travailler dessus alors ... Félicitations !

[@SidonZeklar]

'What on earth is a Baumwipfelpfad?!?' cracked me up! Love your videos and bonus points for a video about Germany, my home.

[@bassaddict8984]

It’s like a climbing garden.. you can walk in the tree tops with safetyropes and nets

[@SidonZeklar]

@@bassaddict8984 I think you got me wrong. I know what it means. I AM German after all. Just wanted to point out, that I found Tim's comment very funny.

[@justathought958]

Loved the vid and esp. Son of Horseshoe Curve. I believe there's a similar curve in Norway. Keep up the great work!

[@samswift1718]

Absolutely fantastic my favourite video of yours yet!! Thanks for all your work, every video I add to my “must visit list” 😄 if your ever in Hamburg do a meet up! 😀

[@stroznik]

Tim is giving so mutch love to my homestate in recent viedeos. Its nice to see an outsiders perspective on this small and often ignored part of germany.

[@yeah.cheers]

I absolutely love the style and tone of your videos. Looking forward to being able to leave Australia and go on some great European railway journeys!

[@ctwentysevenj6531]

I like to visit the Brenner Pass and see all the international trains going through.

[@svenl8765]

Many thanks for this beautiful video of my homeland :-)

[@jensdermusikus8043]

Great work Tim! Cheared me up. And educational😉

[@resterdebout57]

This also reminded me that Luxembourg had it's own "occupation zone" in Germany in the first few years after the war, consisting of the towns of Bitburg and Saarburg. However, both are actually in Rhineland-Palatinate, just north of Saarland.

[@girlgirl4548]

That must have been hilarious, the Luxembourg Army occupying part of Germany.

[@resterdebout57]

@@girlgirl4548 considering that plenty of Luxembourg soldiers were also German-born - yes indeed.

[@maximilianbeyer5642]

How many soldiers occupied these towns? Five? Ten?😂

[@arthur_p_dent]

Not so loud @@maximilianbeyer5642. Given the current state of the Bundeswehr, it is doubtful we could fend off the invasion if Luxembourg decided to attack.

[@lordrewwot7336]

@@arthur_p_dent That shows that you don’t know anything. We could easily demolish Luxembourg. We just need to build a couple hundred trebuchets/catapults to throw our stuff at them...

[@crystalmik8410]

Wait a minute, Mettlach?! I literally stood on the bridge at 1:10 one month, and about 23 hours ago. If you are there again, be sure to check out the hiking trails in Luxemburg near Müllerthal and Berdorf! There's also one not far away from those in Germany called Teufelsschlucht.

[@felidae-lynx]

Definitely recommend both of those. The river in the Teufelsschlucht has really nice white water in winter (Irreler Wasserfälle).

[@dnsdaman.s]

I live in Saarland since 2008 and I didn't even know half of it's history until now. Very good job! Keep them coming!

[@cborisa]

What a fantastic commentary in the video! Great story, great video!

[@conraydo]

I am German and I was literally today years old when I learned about this. I always thought the Saarland had it's French influences from being situated next to France since I've also met people from Belgium and Luxemburg who lived relatively close to the border and spoke perfect German.

[@qqleq]

THE FRANKS at 1:48 It was just there 2.5 seconds and I needed 2.3 seconds to realise something fishy was going on there...

[@MrDerJohann]

Thx for this Video about my Country... 👍And greattings from Blieskastel /Saar🧡

[@lspg5397]

Man I was at the location in the thumbnail! It was on a foggy morning and it made the scenery much more majestic.

[@ow4744]

Some choice accents in this one

[@ow4744]

And I've never heard an instrumental version of 2 become 1 before but I'm here for it.

[@nik_ye]

Never have I clicked so fast

[@nik_ye]

@Oliver Eales ok buddy

[@peterlustig6888]

I first thought about the real east germany :(

[@halflink]

I came here for the content and stayed for your sense of humour and video editing skills. And the content :)

[@xXCrEd0Xx]

Iam really proud to say Thank u for this awsome Video about Saarland.

[@Felix-ve9hs]

I am a German and didn't know until now that Saarland has such a crazy history ... how embarrassing

[@derauditor5748]

That's the Thing. The broken and twisted German History is full of crazy and bonkers stuff. So stuff like this gets easily overlooked.

[@kreiseltower]

@PlatinMovie Oder der deutschen Geschichte auf KZbin

[@oocares]

'Embarrassing'? Try living in Perfidious Albion...

[@damian8487]

I'm living there and i didn't know anything😂

[@accomify]

Awesome, I live in Dudelange, 20 minutes from the Saarschleife. Moien! I have climbed that same path. Very scree-like and hairy at the top, isn’t it? I love how you always make the effort and research to pronounce the place names correctly in all the countries you visit.

[@Meisterqn]

Bescht Gréiss un déi letzeboier Noperen 😉

[@ImEazyE]

ech wunnen och zu Lëtzebuerg! Hien muss e Video bei eis maachen

[@dandixon8080]

Awesome video. Thank you

[@markt4110]

Loving your videos! Funny, interesting and engaging.