My New SoldBuch

[Larry deZeng]

According to a 300+ page glossary of abbreviations, KP was the abbreviation for Kriminalpolizei, and Gerätstaffel would be an equipment section or column about the size of a small company (c.100 personnel).

But I have never heard of SS-Kriminalpolizei 500 Gerätstaffel, so I have no idea what it would have been, other that the equipment column belonging to Geheime-Feldpolizei-Gruppe 500? the men of the GFP nearly all belonged to the Kriminalpolizei branch.

--BHS1956

[Ian Jewison]

Most probably stands for Kraftfahr Park.......definately not Kriminalpolizei.

/Ian

[Larry deZeng]

The abbreviation for Kraftfahrpark was Kf.Pk. But I am sure people shortened it to suit their needs, especially toward the end of the war.

In looking through Tessin, I notice that "500" was a skipped number in the series for GFP Gruppen. I also notice that when Großdeutschland was elevated to a Panzerkorps, all of the division's supply, support and service units were reorganized as Korpstruppen, expanded and renumbered "500" effective 20 Dec 1944. Among these was the new Versorgungs-Rgt. 500 with:

Nachschubtruppen 500
Feldzeugtruppen 500
Kraftfahr-Park-Truppen 500
Verwaltungstruppen 500
Sanitätstruppen 500

So "KP 500 Gerätstaffel" may be an incorrectly abbreviated SB entry for Kraftfahrpark 500 Gerätstaffel. But why the "SS" in front of it? Großdeutschland and its components were Heer, not SS.

BTW, Pz.Gren.Div. Großdeutschland was in East Prussia at that time, then fought along the Frisches Haff to the southwest of Königsberg and then the Balga Peninsula, while the Pz.Korps Stab, support units and other divisional components were along the Oder and then the Neiße between Cottbus and Görlitz.

--BHS1956

[Ian Jewison]

I would not expect to see "SS" in front of an Army unit....so that unit can not be correct.

Tessin has many mistakes and does not really cover Parks etc.

The FP nr. written on page 1 corresponds with his unit:

29948



(Mobilmachung-1.1.1940) Stab mit Nachrichten-Staffel Polizei-Bataillon I Polizei-Infanterie-Regiment 2,

(28.4.1940-14.9.1940) Stab I mit Nachrichten-Staffel u. 1.-4. Kompanie Polizei-Infanterie-Regiment 2,

(25.9.1940-15.2.1941) Stab I u. 1.-4,Kompanie Polizei-Infanterie-Regiment 2,

(16.2.1941-18.7.1941) Stab I u. 1.-4. Kompanie SS-Polizei-Infanterie-Regiment 2,

(10.2.1943-23.8.1943) Stab I u. 1.-4. Kompanie SS-Grenadier-Regiment 2 (Polizei-Division),

(24.8.1943-5.4.1944) 11.2.1944 Stab I u. 1.-4. Kompanie Panzergrenadier-Regiment 8 (SS-Polizei-Division),

(6.4.1944-9.11.1944) 31.7.1944 gestrichen.


Page 3 bears the signatures of:

SS Untersturmführer Karl Seibert + 5.4.1945
SS Hauptsturmführer Hans Hauser

camomania,

Is there any other entries that you can show to provide another clue? If the Soldbuch has been filled in correctly, there should be a corresponding dated entry on page 18-19 for his promotion under Stellengruppe/Wehrsoldgruppe.

/Ian

[JUNGCO]

I have a Soldbuch/Wehrpass to an SS Rottenfuehrer who was with the Nord Div. and his unit the "SS Inst.Abt 6-KP geratstaffel" became "SS Kraftpark 500-geratestaffel " on 29.11.44, serving in the "heimat Kriegsgebiet." His Kr. number stayed the same. If you check Tessin, many SS units became 500 under Sondertruppe RF-SS and as Ian said, Tessin doesn't cover Park "staffel." Maybe this is even the same Kraftpark.
Jeff

[Ian Jewison]

The abbreviation for Kraftfahrpark was Kf.Pk. But I am sure people shortened it to suit their needs, especially toward the end of the war.

Incidentally, a reference I have to hand in photo copy form has AKP and HKP as Armee and Heeres or Heimat Kraftfahr Park.

Seeing as I am away I can not check my other references, however I have around 6 that cover abbreviations.....4 by the English MOD/War Office and 2 by the US War Deptartment.....some cover Navy, Air Force/Aeronautical terms, Army etc. but each one has a different option for some abbreviations! It depends what arm/service you are looking for and what reference you are looking in!

/Ian

[Larry deZeng]

I have a Soldbuch/Wehrpass to an SS Rottenfuehrer who was with the Nord Div. and his unit the "SS Inst.Abt 6-KP geratstaffel" became "SS Kraftpark 500-geratestaffel " on 29.11.44, serving in the "heimat Kriegsgebiet." His Kr. number stayed the same. If you check Tessin, many SS units became 500 under Sondertruppe RF-SS and as Ian said, Tessin doesn't cover Park "staffel." Maybe this is even the same Kraftpark.
Jeff

On 11 October 1944, nearly all Waffen-SS supply, support and service units that used a 3-digit number that indicated which SS-Korps they belonged to were renumbered by adding 400 to their 3-digit number. Thus, 101 became 501, 105 became 505, etc., etc. Those that carried the number 100 became 500 and these were re-classified as Sondertruppen des Reichsführung-SS (Special Troops of the SS High Command).
[Source: Bender, Roger James and Hugh Page Taylor. Uniforms, Organization and History of the Waffen-SS. Vol. 2. Mountain View (CA): R. James Bender Publishing, 1971. pp.18 and 27-28.]

So "SS-Kraftfahr-Park 500 Gerätstaffel" existed and now makes sense. The source states that the units numbered 500 came directly under the control of RF-SS and were used wherever necessary.

I have the reference material to dig much more deeply into this, but there isn't much point in it. Mr. Camomania was only interested in learning the identity of the unit in his SB.

--BHS1956

P.S. You are right - these units are NOT in Tessin under the number 500.

[Lee Luke]

BHS1956, please do go more in depth. This detailed info is great!

[polux]

Kp 500

Hello,

It would be interesting that Camomania presents the page 4 of this Soldbuch (and page 17 if registration).

Is the unity indicated to the page 3 reproduced on the page 4 or 17 ?

From my part, I think as the three answers that precedes mine (JUNGCO, Ian, BHS1956). It is very probably about a unity dependent directly of the SS-FHA.

Here is an example of a Wehrpass of my collection. For information, SS Trsp Sich Kp 500 does not appear in the Tessin !

Cordial greetings.

Polux

[Panzer Rob]

Don't know how much this will help, but...

Taken from: http://www.waffen-ss.com/page.php?page=320

"During the course of the Second World War the Waffen-SS established a number of SS corps headquarters, with their respective corps troops, to provide the necessary tactical leadership for its field divisions. At first, specific SS divisions were allocated to make up each corps, and the rule was two divisions per corps. In practice, however, their corps were made up of whatever was available, and with the demands of war and the constant movement of mobile divisions, SS corps could be found comprising purely SS, a combination of SS and army, or just army elements.

SS corps were number in Roman numerals. Each had certain service and security units, some of which were indissoluble from it. These included a signals battalion, a military police troop, a security company and a field post office. The number of corps troops varied from corps to corps, and generally those corps formed first were more richly endowed. The following is a list of those elements most usually found within a corps:

German Abbreviation English Translation
SS-Korpskommando Corps Headquarters
SS-Kartenstelle K (mot) Motorized Map Office
SS-Fla.-Kp. Anti-aircraft Company
SS-Korps-Nachr.-Abt. (mot) Motorized Signal Battalion
SS-Kraftfahr Kp. Motor Transport Company
SS-Kraftfahrzeug Inst.-Kp. Motor Transport Repair Company
SS-Kr.Kw. Zug (Krankenkraftwagen) Motor Transport Ambulance Section
SS-F.P.A. (mot) (Feldpostamt) Motorized Field Post Office
SS-FG-Trupp (mot) (Feldgendarmerie) Motorized Field Police Troop
SS-Korps Sich.-Kp. (Sicherheits) Corps Security Company


In addition, some SS corps had other units designed for the immediate use of the corps itself, rather than for detachment to divisions, and these varied from one corps to another.

The corps troops were originally designated as being "of the … SS Corps" ("der … SS-Korps") or had the word "Corps" ("Korps") included in their title, but these were later numbered by adding the parent corps’ number to a base of 100 and expressing the result in Arabic numerals. For example, the SS Corps Security Company of the I. SS-Panzer-Korps was designated "Korps Sich.-Komp. 101".

In 1944, some of the corps troops were re-mustered as SS Army Troops (Führungstruppen) or Special Troops of the SS High Command (Sondertruppen des Reichsführung-SS). On 11 October 1944 the numbering of these units was altered by the addition of 400, so bringing them up to the 500+ series. As Special Troops of the SS High Command they were not supposed to have been attached to any specific corps, but were to be used when and where required. Certain of these former corps troops did, by necessity, remain behind with their old corps, such as signals and security units and these were probably not renumbered. In other cases it is believed that corps commanders who were unwilling to lose control of such units insisted that they remain behind. Such units that received the 500+ numbers will only be listed as corps troops in the lists that follow where they are known to have served as such, and have been found in original documents.

Properly-constituted SS corps numbered in Roman numerals should not be confused with the specially created formations also called "SS Corps" (e.g. Degrelle’s SS-Korps "West", (SS)-Korps "Gille", and (SS)-Korps "Oder"). These were created in the latter stages of the war and were of a completely different nature, like SS battle groups (SS-Kampfgruppen), but larger.

No special insignia was worn by members of the SS corps staffs and corps troops1. Naturally, members of those elements comprising the corps retained their original insignia."

[camomania]

Hello,

now I can send some pictures
K.P.500 is Kraftfahrpark 500.
Sorry I am not expart of Soldbuch.
Thank you for great discussion.

This Soldbuch has a certificate of discharge.

[camomania]

1

[camomania]

2