Our man was born on May 1st, 1.924 in Erkenschloik, Recklinghausen and he was a non believer and a roof worker.
He was inducted into the Wehrmacht on December 18th, 1.942 in Rathenow by the 1. Stammkompanie Pz.Pi.Ers.Batl. 208 receiving his Dog Tag number 465 and his Soldbuch number 460.
For his training he was assigned to 2./Pz.Pi.Ausb.Batl. 208 with number 521/42 and after successfully completed it he was transfer to Marschkompanie “A” Pz.Pi.Ers.Btl. 208 to go to his frontline unit.
During his training he visited the hospital as he suffered from Pneumonia and was in Reserve Lazarett Zendesanstalt Garden bee Brandenburg/Havel from January 6 till February 26th, 1.943 when he was discharged back to the troops not without a leave granted on March 3rd allowing him to visit Recklinghausen from 6th to 21st for recovery (Genesungsurlaub). He also passed his first security control on February 27th, 1.943 with 2. Komp.Pi.Ausb.Btl. 208 with K.St.R. 371/42.
He arrived to Orel on April 26th, 1.943 and the next day he was assigned to his new unit, 2./Pz.Pi.Btl. 32, Feldpost number 18943.
Being preparing Unternehmen Zitadelle he arrived to the frontline on July 12th when the division was with Gruppe Wuthmann with 112 I.D. since the next day. Unfortunately for him his first days in combat means a wound as he received shrapnel in the forearm and chest which put him back to the hospital where he stay from 16th (despite he wrote in his diary he arrived on 17th maybe because the Fp is from Kranken Transport Abteilung 693 and he wrote in his diary he arrived to an hospital in Orel) till the 21st when he was discharged again to the troops. During his short time at the front he was credited with 2 CC days on 15th and 16th also he showed he had what was requested for a brave Pionier and received from the 12 P.D. the Iron Cross 2nd class, unfortunately the water damaged the part where the date was written so we know it was after July 21st, his hospital release, and August 25th when the Pz.Pi. 32 awarded him the Wound Badge in Black
Back on the saddle he continued to fight with his unit on the retreat from Orel with Heeresgruppe Mitte till February 44 when he was transfer to the North of Russia. He continued to fight well and received during 1.943 another 5 CC days on August 4th, September 10th, 11th, 12th and 19th, and was promoted to Gefreiter on December 1st, 1.943 by Pz.Pi. 32 confirmed on 15th and received the General Assault Badge on December 14th. He also passed his second security check on December 1st with Pz.Pi.Btl 32 with Kr.Str.Nr. 782 and finished the year at home as he was granted a leave on December 20th with extended from December 24th till January 17th, 1.944.
The year 1.944 saw him going north and fighting around Leningrad, Luga, Pleskau, Bobruisck ended in East Prussia in Kurland in August where the 12 will be till the end.
He received during those combats at least two wounds, but he never put a foot in an hospital, maybe light enough to be treated by the medical personal of his unit or from the Sanitätsdients 2.
Despite all of this he behaved well and brave several times, enough to receive the Iron Cross 1st class from the 12 P.D. on July 30th, 1.944 and the Wound badge in Silver on September 1st. The nature of his combats credited him with CC days on February 4th and 5th, March 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th and 14th, July 17th, 18th, 24th, 25th, 26th, 28th and 29th, another 18 to add to the 7 credited in 1.943 so he was awarded the Nahkampfspange in bronze on September 15th surely for the 17 days credited till March 43. He continued to receive CC days, on October 30th and on November 4th and 6th ending with 28 credited to him, I am sure that he could be awarded the silver clasp if the officer in charge have had time to check the records as he continued fighting till his wound in April 2nd, 1.945.
Using his CC day list I can guess that he was wounded around mid March 44 as he stay almost 4 months with not a single day credited and his other wound could have been around end of July 44 as again he was 3 months without a single day credited.
The last part of the year also gave him his last promotion, he was named Unteroffizier on November 1st, 1.944 by 2./Pz.Pi. 32 confirmed on the 9th.
He passed his last security check on September 3rd, 1.944 again with the same unit and same number.
Also he enjoyed his last leave, granted on December 3rd for bravery and result in 20 days leave plus travel time from December 19th till February 2nd, 1.945. He was lucky to pass the last war Christmas with his family, a lot of comrades will wait up to 10 years to have one again with their families. This last leave was signed by Hauptmann Gunther Hemmleb who will receive the DKiG on February 28th, 1.945.
He was back to the fight and received an MP, first the clerk wrote MP 38/40, but later change it to the real one, an Italian with s/n 4878, previously he used a Car 98k and aP08.
From now all info comes from a small diary he had, not too much info, but combined with the Soldbuch gives us a good insight of the odysee he pass from being wounded to being released.
According to his Soldbuch he was admitted in Feldlazarett (mot) 193 on April 6th, 1.945 for wounds due shrapnel and transfer to the Reich by vessel St Staude on 11th and admitted again on Feldlararett 774 on May 7th and transfer on August 19th. No further info on the Soldbuch except some payments when in POW camp and hospitals in September (Hospital 774) and October and November (POW camp Munster). When we read his diary he pointed he was wounded on April 2nd, admitted to Lazarett Zabeln in Kurland on 6th where he was operated and put in a cast, then to Krankensammelstelle Liebau on 13th, out of Liebau on 27th and arrives to Denmark on May 1st on the 2nd he was at the Harbor of Nieburg (I can not find it, help, please) and on 4th he was transfer from the vessel to an hospital train arriving to Friedenicia on 5th and to Herning on 7th, being admitted in an hospital on 8th (Maybe Feldlazarett 774) he was cured and put another cast on 9th. On June 25th he was operated again to remove some shrapnel and on 28th changed his cast again. He need to wait till August 19th to be loaded on an hospital train and next day leave at 01h 00’ just to arrive to the border at 09h 00’. He arrived to Hospital Munster (lager) on 22nd and on 27 he was put in a new cast for nine weeks and released to POW Camp Munster on September 15th where he was registered with the number 4082 (he named the camp Gefangen Lager (F) Munster (Lager)). Next move was to Braunschweig on November 5th and work on construction since 6th till December 1st that he marked as “Back” (I suppose he was back home) he was officially released on February 5th, 1.946 by a RAF Flight Leutnant J.K. Grant and declared as Partly Fit by a Doctor Victor.
Photos of him in his induction with peak cap and M34 with soutache and his dog tag, in the reverse he scratched his name and no blood type is written in it.
He was inducted into the Wehrmacht on December 18th, 1.942 in Rathenow by the 1. Stammkompanie Pz.Pi.Ers.Batl. 208 receiving his Dog Tag number 465 and his Soldbuch number 460.
For his training he was assigned to 2./Pz.Pi.Ausb.Batl. 208 with number 521/42 and after successfully completed it he was transfer to Marschkompanie “A” Pz.Pi.Ers.Btl. 208 to go to his frontline unit.
During his training he visited the hospital as he suffered from Pneumonia and was in Reserve Lazarett Zendesanstalt Garden bee Brandenburg/Havel from January 6 till February 26th, 1.943 when he was discharged back to the troops not without a leave granted on March 3rd allowing him to visit Recklinghausen from 6th to 21st for recovery (Genesungsurlaub). He also passed his first security control on February 27th, 1.943 with 2. Komp.Pi.Ausb.Btl. 208 with K.St.R. 371/42.
He arrived to Orel on April 26th, 1.943 and the next day he was assigned to his new unit, 2./Pz.Pi.Btl. 32, Feldpost number 18943.
Being preparing Unternehmen Zitadelle he arrived to the frontline on July 12th when the division was with Gruppe Wuthmann with 112 I.D. since the next day. Unfortunately for him his first days in combat means a wound as he received shrapnel in the forearm and chest which put him back to the hospital where he stay from 16th (despite he wrote in his diary he arrived on 17th maybe because the Fp is from Kranken Transport Abteilung 693 and he wrote in his diary he arrived to an hospital in Orel) till the 21st when he was discharged again to the troops. During his short time at the front he was credited with 2 CC days on 15th and 16th also he showed he had what was requested for a brave Pionier and received from the 12 P.D. the Iron Cross 2nd class, unfortunately the water damaged the part where the date was written so we know it was after July 21st, his hospital release, and August 25th when the Pz.Pi. 32 awarded him the Wound Badge in Black
Back on the saddle he continued to fight with his unit on the retreat from Orel with Heeresgruppe Mitte till February 44 when he was transfer to the North of Russia. He continued to fight well and received during 1.943 another 5 CC days on August 4th, September 10th, 11th, 12th and 19th, and was promoted to Gefreiter on December 1st, 1.943 by Pz.Pi. 32 confirmed on 15th and received the General Assault Badge on December 14th. He also passed his second security check on December 1st with Pz.Pi.Btl 32 with Kr.Str.Nr. 782 and finished the year at home as he was granted a leave on December 20th with extended from December 24th till January 17th, 1.944.
The year 1.944 saw him going north and fighting around Leningrad, Luga, Pleskau, Bobruisck ended in East Prussia in Kurland in August where the 12 will be till the end.
He received during those combats at least two wounds, but he never put a foot in an hospital, maybe light enough to be treated by the medical personal of his unit or from the Sanitätsdients 2.
Despite all of this he behaved well and brave several times, enough to receive the Iron Cross 1st class from the 12 P.D. on July 30th, 1.944 and the Wound badge in Silver on September 1st. The nature of his combats credited him with CC days on February 4th and 5th, March 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th and 14th, July 17th, 18th, 24th, 25th, 26th, 28th and 29th, another 18 to add to the 7 credited in 1.943 so he was awarded the Nahkampfspange in bronze on September 15th surely for the 17 days credited till March 43. He continued to receive CC days, on October 30th and on November 4th and 6th ending with 28 credited to him, I am sure that he could be awarded the silver clasp if the officer in charge have had time to check the records as he continued fighting till his wound in April 2nd, 1.945.
Using his CC day list I can guess that he was wounded around mid March 44 as he stay almost 4 months with not a single day credited and his other wound could have been around end of July 44 as again he was 3 months without a single day credited.
The last part of the year also gave him his last promotion, he was named Unteroffizier on November 1st, 1.944 by 2./Pz.Pi. 32 confirmed on the 9th.
He passed his last security check on September 3rd, 1.944 again with the same unit and same number.
Also he enjoyed his last leave, granted on December 3rd for bravery and result in 20 days leave plus travel time from December 19th till February 2nd, 1.945. He was lucky to pass the last war Christmas with his family, a lot of comrades will wait up to 10 years to have one again with their families. This last leave was signed by Hauptmann Gunther Hemmleb who will receive the DKiG on February 28th, 1.945.
He was back to the fight and received an MP, first the clerk wrote MP 38/40, but later change it to the real one, an Italian with s/n 4878, previously he used a Car 98k and aP08.
From now all info comes from a small diary he had, not too much info, but combined with the Soldbuch gives us a good insight of the odysee he pass from being wounded to being released.
According to his Soldbuch he was admitted in Feldlazarett (mot) 193 on April 6th, 1.945 for wounds due shrapnel and transfer to the Reich by vessel St Staude on 11th and admitted again on Feldlararett 774 on May 7th and transfer on August 19th. No further info on the Soldbuch except some payments when in POW camp and hospitals in September (Hospital 774) and October and November (POW camp Munster). When we read his diary he pointed he was wounded on April 2nd, admitted to Lazarett Zabeln in Kurland on 6th where he was operated and put in a cast, then to Krankensammelstelle Liebau on 13th, out of Liebau on 27th and arrives to Denmark on May 1st on the 2nd he was at the Harbor of Nieburg (I can not find it, help, please) and on 4th he was transfer from the vessel to an hospital train arriving to Friedenicia on 5th and to Herning on 7th, being admitted in an hospital on 8th (Maybe Feldlazarett 774) he was cured and put another cast on 9th. On June 25th he was operated again to remove some shrapnel and on 28th changed his cast again. He need to wait till August 19th to be loaded on an hospital train and next day leave at 01h 00’ just to arrive to the border at 09h 00’. He arrived to Hospital Munster (lager) on 22nd and on 27 he was put in a new cast for nine weeks and released to POW Camp Munster on September 15th where he was registered with the number 4082 (he named the camp Gefangen Lager (F) Munster (Lager)). Next move was to Braunschweig on November 5th and work on construction since 6th till December 1st that he marked as “Back” (I suppose he was back home) he was officially released on February 5th, 1.946 by a RAF Flight Leutnant J.K. Grant and declared as Partly Fit by a Doctor Victor.
Photos of him in his induction with peak cap and M34 with soutache and his dog tag, in the reverse he scratched his name and no blood type is written in it.
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