Meeting with RK Traeger Artur Becker-Neetz

[TWS]

The interest received for posting my story about meeting Eberhard Schmalz encouraged me to make a post about another Knight's Cross recipient, Artur Becker-Neetz. I know he's been mentioned in at least one other thread in here, so I weighed posting this alone or adding to the old thread.

While stationed in Germany I obtained Herr Becker-Neetz's contact information and wrote to him explaining that I am (was) an American armor officer working here in Germany and study WWII extensively and I would be honored to meet him if he had the time. I didn't mention anything about being a collector as I didn't want him to think it was an attempt to swindle him out of his RK.
Herr B-N responded enthusiastically and we arranged a meeting. From much more recent exchange of messages with one other WAF member, it seems Herr B-N was accustomed to these requests and had a pretty standard format of where he liked to meet up, etc. as this WAF member had a nearly identical story.

We had a great visit, so much so that I went to meet him a second time and corresponded for a while afterwards. At our very first meeting, he talked me through the battle for which he was awarded the RK, along with sketches on a napkin! One day soon after a package arrived...

[TWS]

I cropped out my ugly mug to spare members the pain and horror and also to keep the focus on the hero Herr B-N.

Pilfered from another website:
Promotions:
July 1st, 1940: Unteroffizier der Reserve;
January 16th, 1944: Leutnant der Reserve.

Career:
April 4th, 1938 - March 27th, 1939: Danziger Arbeitsdienst;
July 3rd, 1939: Landespolizei-Regiment I, Danzig;
?: Danziger Infanterie-Regiment 1;
October 15th, 1939: 6. Kompanie, Infanterie-Regiment 243;
August 14th, 1940: 7. Kompanie, Schützen-Regiment 394, 3. Panzer-Division;
?: Reservelazerett III, Frankfurt am Main;
May 25th, 1943: 4. Kompanie, Panzer-Grenadier-Ersatz- und Ausbildungs-Bataillon 3;
August 6th, 1944 - November 23rd, 1944: 14. Fahnenjunker-Lerhgang der Panzertruppen, Wischau;
?: Scharfschützen-Lehrer, Dänemark;
May 8th, 1945 - September 4th, 1945: British POW.

Basically, Herr B-N was awarded the RK for taking command of his Panzergrenadier company as an Unteroffizier during an intense fight in a forest after all officers and senior NCO's were either killed or wounded. Despite being shot through his helmet - the Russian bullet furrowed his forehead as can be seen - Unteroffizier B-N rallied the company and counterattacked and drove the Russian unit back.

Herr B-N told me that he saved the helmet with the bullet hole and brought it home. His mother hung it on a rack next to his school uniform caps from his boyhood. Towards the end of the war when the Russians approached Danzig (his home city) his mother took the helmet and threw it in a canal so as not to have any obvious military equipment in the house when the Russians arrived.

[Tom B]

He was a wonderful man ! In 1981 a visit to his home lasted 2 days and 40 beers later ! We were friends for MANY years and he is greatly missed ! Tom

[TWS]

He was a wonderful man ! In 1981 a visit to his home lasted 2 days and 40 beers later ! We were friends for MANY years and he is greatly missed ! Tom

Completely second that! He definitely was.

I really regret not corresponding more/longer with him. My wife has relatives that live not far from Frankfurt a.M. and I should have finagled a return trip to Germany under the guise of visiting her relatives while I snuck out and met Herr B-N again.

[Archi]

Hello !

Thanks to both of you, for sharing these detailed informations and personal stories on a Knights-cross holder !

Best regards,

Archi

[smitty]

Meeting with RK Traeger Artur Becker-Neetz

Thanks for sharing the story and the pictures. Back in high school, 1970's Peter
Schmidt's father ran a Shell gas station in Del Mar California. He was a Luftwaffe fighter pilot in WWII. He never talked about the war, just how glad he was to be in La Jolla California with his family. He walked with a limp from the many injuries he suffered from battle. He kept our VW's running well. Thanks again for sharing, Smitty.

[wehl]

very interesting thread