Please Help Me

[Naomi]

I had an great uncle, who unfortunately was killed in Russia fighting the Russians in WW2.

I know he had an iron corss, but my family never heard where he was burried or what became of his iron cross.

I would love to find something to do with that cross, the number it was or even what happened to it (but is that possible??)

Please help me with this. It doesn't just have a senitmental value. Also is there any way my family and myself can get a reproduction of it from the German Government??

Many thanks in advance,

Naomi

[Larry deZeng]

Hi Naomi -

To be able to answer your question, we will need to know his branch of service and his rank (officer or other ranks). The answers to those questions will determine the quantity of records that may exist. As for replacing his missing Eisernes Kreuz, I don't believe the German government will replace it (it was from the Nazi period), but you might be able to get a copy of the award document from his files provided his records survive.

As for the location of his place of burial, you will need his full name and possibly his rank at time of death and his date of birth. The latter two might be needed in the event of a common name, e.g., Wilhelm Schmidt, Heinrich Bauer, Hans Schneider, Otto Becker, etc. If you have these particulars, you can obtain the burial information on-line at:

Graves information (especially helpful for obtaining a few details on non-officer personnel):
Gräbernachweis des Volksbundes
Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e.V.
http://www.volksbund.de/graebersuche/content_suche.asp

--Larry

[tenoriodj]

Naomi, you will never get a replica of the 1939 EK from the Bundesarchiv or the Bundeswehr.

You are better off picking one up yourself, which u can do for under $100.