a 'sneak peek' at a few of my items

[jurggie]

As a collector, I'm interest in World War Two as well as World War One. It consists of militaria from any side that i happened to came across and had a particular interested in or that I just found very beautiful.

But the last four years I predominantly collected deathcards (Sterbebilder). I have around 900 of them, all categorized and more or less researched. A lot of them are what you would call 'ordinary deathcards' but there are also a lot of special, rare, tragic and extraordinary examples among them. I even wrote a book about it and I'm currently looking for a publisher.

Anyway, I will, from time to time, show some interesting items who'll hopefully interest you.


Some World War One to start with.

The Pickelhaube is an M15. These are typically field gray, in stead of the shining copper that was used before the war. This helmet was made by Mühlenfeld & Co Barmen in 1916. I especially like the look of this one.



Here we have an Iron cross 1st class and a very nice Gewehr88 that was never modified. A lot of them were sold to the Turks, but this one is still in its original state. The rifle was made in Danzig (now Poland) in 1894. It's all matching except for the bolt, which has completely matching numbers itself.

[jurggie]

Every war is tragic, but one of the most tragic things in ww1 were the so called Pals Battalions. Men who enlisted together were promised that they could serve among their friends, neighbors, brothers or work colleagues. This meant that when a unit suffered heavy casualties -which was often the case with the specific fighting methods of the first world war- the impact on individual villages and neighborhoods was devastating. In World War Two this kind of units didn't exist anymore, but this does not mean that men from the same village or friends couldn't serve in the same unit. Even brothers did.

This death card is a Brüderbild. As the war raged on often two or more sons of one family got killed. Richard and Augustin Baumeister served on the eastern front in autumn 1941. They were both Kradschützen. On October 12th 1941 their unit was involved in fighting around the Russian town of Wjasma. On that day, their family lost two sons on one day.
They were buried in the same grave.



In the early years of the war it was pretty easy to keep track of killed and missing. As the war went on, this wasn't a priority any more. Certainly when a part of the front collapsed, there was no one who documented where and if soldiers were killed. This meant that hundreds of thousands of families throughout Germany weren't informed about the death of their loved ones until years after the war. Often when a prisoner of war returned and was to inform other families.

This one is an example of just that. Heinrich Kouba -an Austrian- served in a Panzerregiment in North Africa. In the last days of the African campaign, he got killed in Tunis. This was on the 10th of mai 1943. When the death card was printed, the family was only just informed about his death. Right next to him we see his mother he died in november 1950. This means that this card is most probably from 1951 (or even later) which means that the family had to wait at least 8 years to receive this news.

[jurggie]

Of all the death cards I have, this one is probably one of the most horrific. It confronts you with the very essence of war: death. That's all what it's about, killing other people.

This is a large Sterbebild of the Ziegler family. Their youngest son died in april 1941 due to a fall. An accident that had most probably nothing to do with the war but it was a first blow for the family. In august 1942 their oldest son Karl Ziegler got killed in the summer offensive of the Wehrmacht towards Stalingrad and the Caucasus.
In 1944 their only remaining son was also drafted into the army. He died during the battle of the bulge in january 2nd 1945, aged 19. There was no chance Germany could win the war, but that did not mean it stopped. At april 29th. 1945, one day before Hitler shot himself and a week before the war ended, the conflict had reached their hometown in southern Bavaria. The house of Katharina and Angela Ziegler was hit by an American artillery grenade, which killed both of them.
The only remaining member of the family was the father Sebastian, who had lost everything and everyone. He died a year later in september 1946.

[Kengir]

Wow... very gut wrenching stuff; but it shows the realities of war.
Thanks for sharing these.

- Jeremy

[nlmedic]

Hi Jurggie

Very interesting and something different than helmets...

Thx for sharing

[Gran Sasso]

Right next to him we see his mother he died in november 1950. This means that this card is most probably from 1951 (or even later) which means that the family had to wait at least 8 years to receive this news.

Not necessary - it was kind of tradition to show died childreen again on the parents deathcards, no matter how many years have passed.

[jurggie]

Not necessary - it was kind of tradition to show died childreen again on the parents deathcards, no matter how many years have passed.

That's true. But in this case it's the other way around. Here the mother is shown 'again' on the deathcard of the son.

Underneath his name and picture you can read: "über dessen Tod wir erst jetzt benachrichtigt wurden'. They have just been informed about his death. That's the reason the card was printed. His mother, who died before the family recieved the news about the killing of Heinrich Kouba, is, like you said, also shown again.

[timothy downum]

Nice historic items brings tradgety to anyside. timothy

[jurggie]

I have a thing for the French army in 14-18 and, more specific, for the French adrian helmet. From all the involved armies, the French soldier probably suffered most. Mostly because of the way their own officiers and generals treated them.

This is a helmet for a French pioneer. I really like this one actually.


A couple of infantry helmets. The first one has both the original light 'horizon bleu' color, which was applied at the factories, and the darker blue with which the helmets were repainted in the field. Because the lighter blue was easier for the enemy to see.


A named artillery helmet. The name of the soldier was Guillermet and i believe his rank (S/Lt = Sous-lieutenant?). This one has the second model liner.




A little groupphoto. The pioneerhelmet isn't on this one and I have upgraded the artillery helmet.

[jurggie]

Time for another death card. This one is actually the highest ranking KIA I have found. Oberst Franz Kammerer was born in 1903, just south of Munich. I've searched online and he's actually mentioned on a few different sites.
Like you can see on the card, he was pretty highly decorated. He recieved the Iron cross 2nd and 1st class, the wound badge in silver, IAB and Deutsches Kreuz in Gold. He received the DKIG when he was a Major in the II. Inf.Reg. 437. on january 2nd 1942. Another award, which isn't on his deathcard, is the Krim shield. This one was awarded to him on the 16th of december 1942. By this time he had risen to the rank of Oberstleutnant, still in the same unit.

Somewhere in 1943 he was transferred to the 45. Inf.Div. and became an Oberst. In the second half of june 1944, he was the commander of Grenadier Regiment 130. Together with other units, they were trapped in the kessel of Bobruisk (Belorussia). On june 27 they tried to break out westwards. During this action the regiment was completely annihilated and Oberst Kammerer killed.