Secrets in the Cellar: A True Story of the Austrian Incest Case That Shocked the World

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If we all sat down and attempted to capture 30 years in a few lines or a brief report, or even in a slightly longer documentary, we wouldn’t succeed. After repeated requests by Elisabeth, Fritzl allows the enlargement of the prison, putting Elisabeth and her children to work for years digging out soil with their hands. The prison was enlarged from 35 to 55m 2 (380 to 590sqft). [51] Josef Fritzl: The absolute ruler of his underground concrete hell". The Scotsman. 17 March 2009. Archived from the original on 30 October 2015 . Retrieved 30 October 2015.

Inside the room, they had a television, radio, and a VCR. Food, passed to them through a hatch, was stored in a small refrigerator and cooked on hot plates. If the food was brought directly into the room, Elisabeth knew she was going to be raped. According to Elisabeth, “Light off. Mold. Light on. Rape. Light off. Mold. Light on. Rape.”Cellar father refuses to explain". BBC News. 30 April 2008. Archived from the original on 2 May 2008 . Retrieved 30 April 2008. You could probably talk to 50 different psychiatrists and read all of the literature and get 50 different answers about what drives the incest dynamic.

You can’t see anything. The neighbor wanted to prune the hedge last year, but Herr Fritzl said no, leave it. So far, Josef Fritzl is reported to have shown little remorse, even though he has confessed to his heinous crimes.An article in March 2010 in The Independent stated that Elisabeth and her children recovered remarkably well, given the difficult lives they endured for so long. [73] According to Josef's sister-in-law, Christine, Elisabeth enjoys spending her time shopping, taking frequent showers, and driving. She has passed her driving test without difficulty. Her relationship with Thomas Wagner, one of her bodyguards (who is 23 years younger than Elisabeth), [74] [75] was reported to be ongoing, with him becoming a big-brother figure to her children. All of Elisabeth's children have developed normal sibling relationships with each other, and after having trouble dealing with the traumatic events, the three "upstairs" children slowly began recognising Elisabeth as their mother. The children enjoy being outdoors, playing video games, and spending time with their mother and grandmother. Despite their strained relationship, Elisabeth and her mother Rosemarie started visiting each other more, and Elisabeth has reportedly forgiven her mother for believing her father's story. Elisabeth’s first years inside the cell were a particularly brutal type of hell. Early on, the chains that bound her to a column were removed and replaced with a leash that let her reach the toilet. Sometime later the leash was removed, and she was allowed to move about the small basement room. While in captivity, Elisabeth gave birth to seven children, all fathered by Josef. Kerstin How Fritzl Planned To Blame Years Of Torture On Evil Sect". Daily Express. 2 May 2008. Archived from the original on 5 May 2008 . Retrieved 2 May 2008. Translator: All the gardens are open while Herr Fritzl’s is all concealed, built up and the spaces are covered by trees and bushes. Decorations in the windows of the children’s bedrooms upstairs were eerily replicated in the dungeon bathroom below.