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**Matt L** · 02-11-2006, 09:29 PM

Hi Brian,

It's Stammkompanie Landesschützen-Ersatz-Bataillon 14

Matt

**mudsharkangler** · 02-11-2006, 10:07 PM

Matt,

Thank you for the reply and information, it is much appreciated! Now what does it translate to in English?

Brian

Originally posted by Matt L

Hi Brian,

It's Stammkompanie Landesschützen-Ersatz-Bataillon 14

Matt

**Matt L** · 02-12-2006, 08:56 AM

Hi Brian,

Sorry, it probably would have been useful to define the text, yes?

It's 'root company, Landessch******252;tzen-replacement-battalion 14'

From the US War Department publication Tactical and Technical Trends, No. 51, October 1944:

"The Local Defense Battalion (Landessch******252;tzen-Bataillon) is the basic local defense unit. It, however, is part of the Field Army and not of the Replacement Army. It is composed of older personnel and of soldiers temporarily or permanently unfit for field service. These battalions have hitherto been employed for guard duties within Germany, as additional support in occupied countries, and for protection of communications in occupied countries and rear areas of theaters of operations. Two to six of these battalions are usually controlled by a regimental staff and called a Local Defense Regiment (Landessch******252;tzen-Regiment). Local defense units are frequently converted into line of communications [sic]units (Sicherungseinheiten)."

Actually Sicherungseinheiten were security units- I'm not sure why the text calls them communications units, but the explanation of the Landessch******252;tzen is quite accurate. The important thing to understand is that they were real field army units and composed of real soldiers- they weren't the analog of, say, the British Home Guard- that was the Deutsche Volkssturm.

One can sometimes find that personnel from Landessch******252;tzen-Bataillone did end up being transferred to front-line combat units- in a documentary about Stalingrad a few years ago, a guy there who recovers remains for proper burial visited with a couple of German veterans and presented them with an Erkennungsmarke (identity disc) he had found- it was from a Landessch******252;tzen unit. Clearly, and unfortunately for him, that soldier had been sent to the front.

Your disc, as is the case for the vast majority of them, is from a replacement unit- all German soldiers entering the service after the start of the war began with replacement units for their initial training, and would carry the same identity disc throughout their service time, regardless of which other units they might transfer to (unless they switched branches- Luftwaffe to Waffen-SS, for example), or if they required a replacement disc (their original was lost or something). What this means is that it's often impossible to tell where a soldier served from the information on his disc. Usually, a replacement unit is associated with the field unit of the same number- e.g., Infanterie-Ersatz-Bataillon 1 supplied replacement troops to Infanterie-Regiment 1- but just as often replacements were sent where they were needed, so this isn't necessarily an absolute truth. Unfortunately in the case of Landessch******252;tzen-Ersatz-Bataillon 14, there was no single related field unit- in fact, there could be as many as 23 possibilities.

Matt

Matt

**mudsharkangler** · 02-12-2006, 09:11 AM

Matt,

Once again, thank you for the wealth of information!! You provided much more than I ever expected. It is always good to learn something, and I certainly did today. What great info. Thanks again and take care!

Brian

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