Fleeing Home: A German Family’s Refugee Story in March 1945

This article examines the refugee experiences of the Stein family, who fled from Germany to Denmark in March 1945 and eventually ended up in Danish refugee camps behind barbed wire. Employing the singularisation approach within microhistory, this article centres on the Stein family and their immediate context, refraining from using their story to illuminate broader phenomena, events, or social structures. The article engages in ongoing debates within microhistory by discussing how the singularisation approach, with its intense focus on a singular unit, can serve as a counterbalance to broader historical analyses. The central argument is that this approach offers new possibilities for other fields, such as studies on German refugees after World War II, which typically use individual accounts to illuminate larger events. Drawing primarily on oral and written testimonies from the Stein family, this article weaves their individual voices into a collective narrative, aiming to capture their shared and distinct personal experiences.