When they fled, many refugees hoped that they would be able to return later. A bunch of keys from Marienburg, which has been preserved in the West Prussian State Museum, bears witness to this hope.
On June 22, 1941, the German Reich invaded the 
Soviet Union
deu. Sowjetunion, rus. Sovetskiy Soyuz, rus. Советский Союз

The Soviet Union (SU or USSR, Russian: Союз Советских Социалистических Республик (СССР) was a state in Eastern Europe, Central and Northern Asia existing from 1922 to 1991. The USSR was inhabited by about 290 million people and formed the largest territorial state in the world, with about 22.5 million square km. The Soviet Union was a socialist soviet republic with a one-party system.

Sowjetunion in the Online Encyclopedia of the Culture and History of the Germans in Eastern Europe (German)
Sowjetunion at Google Maps
. The aim was to realize the "Generalplan Ost"   "Generalplan Ost" "Generalplan Ost" the masterplan of the National Socialists to create new "Lebensraum" (living space) in Eastern Europe by means of forced resettlement and extermination of the indigenous population, who were stigmatized as "subhumans". Over 30 million people were to be either exterminated or deported to Siberia. The plans were drawn up in several documents between 1940 and 1942 on behalf of Heinrich Himmler, in particular by the agronomist and SS-Oberführer Prof. Dr. Konrad Meyer, who had been head of the planning office at the Reich Commissioner for the Consolidation of German Nationhood (RKF) since 1939.   The aim was to conquer Eastern Europe as far as the Urals and establish it as a German settlement area. After the defeat of
Wolgograd
rus. Stalingrad, rus. Царицын, rus. Сталинград, rus. Волгоград, rus. Zarizyn

The city on the Volga was called Tsaritsyn until 1925, then Stalingrad until 1961. It is internationally known because of the Battle of Stalingrad in World War II, in which the Wehrmacht and its allies were devastatingly defeated by the Red Army in the winter of 1942/43, and which is considered a psychological turning point in the war. In the framework of de-Stalinization, the city was renamed Volgograd in 1961.

Wolgograd at Google Maps
at the end of January 1943, the German troops were pushed back more and more. In the summer of 1944, the Red Army reached the Reich's border, and in the winter of 1945, what was at that time 
West Prussia
deu. Westpreußen, pol. Prusy Zachodnie

West Prussia is a historical region in present-day northern Poland. The region fell to Prussia as a result of the first partition of Poland-Lithuania in 1772 and received its name from the province of the same name formed by Frederick II in 1775, which also included parts of the historical landscapes of Greater Poland, Pomerania, Pomesania and Kulmerland. The Prussian province lasted in changing borders until the early 20th century. After World War I, parts fell to the Second Polish Republic, founded in 1918. The largest cities in West Prussia include Gdansk (Polish: Gdańsk, today Pomeranian Voivodeship), Elbląg (Polish: Elbląg, today Warmia-Masuria Voivodeship), and Thorn (Polish: Toruń, today Kujawsko-Pomeranian Voivodeship).

Westpreußen in the Online Encyclopedia of the Culture and History of the Germans in Eastern Europe (German)
. In January, as part of its major offensive, the Red Army conquered the Marienburg area east of the Vistula River. On January 25, Soviet units occupied the first areas of 
Malbork
deu. Marienburg

Marienburg (Polish: Malbork) is a city in the Polish voivodeship of Pomerania (Polish: Pomorskie). It is located in the north of Poland, about 50 km southeast of Gdańsk/Gdansk. Marienburg lies on the Nogat River and is populated by just under 39,000 people.

Malbork in the Online Encyclopedia of the Culture and History of the Germans in Eastern Europe (German)
Malbork at Google Maps
. The subsequent fighting for the town and Marienburg Castle (Malbork) lasted until March 9, 1945. 
Already on January 23, the Neumann family fled Marienburg and, like many other families, they thought they would return. Large sections of the population assumed that the advance of the Red Army would be stopped at the Vistula River at the latest. Those who took the train west often bought return tickets as a matter of course. 
The Neumann family also set off westward, firmly convinced that they would be able to return to their house in Marienburg by the end of the war. Before they left, they neatly locked all the cupboards, compartments and doors of the house. The dream of returning, however, would never be fulfilled – their escape took them from Marienburg to Potsdam and then on to Bad Salzdetfurth in Lower Saxony. The bunch of keys was never needed again.
English translation: William Connor
Martin Steinkühler
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