Kriegsmarine grouping

[Hank C.]

Received a grouping today, a real nice bunch of documents, photo's, and 2 EK's. The sweetest part of this group were the cased EK 1 and the Kreta armband Urkunde. If anybody would like any pix, or more details on the items, feel free to get in touch.

The grouping consists of:
1. The cased EK1
2. EK 2 (no mm - I've got 5 now with no markings!)
3. Kreta Aermelband Besitzurkunde
4. Besitzurkunde fuer Kriegsabzeichen fuer Minensuch-, U-boots-Jagd- und
Sicherungs-verbaende
5. Besitzzeugnis fuer Verwundetenabzeichen Schwarz
6. 2 docs (1 a draft? the other final copy) of a declaration that the secret items on the boat were thrown overboard, and not captured by the enemy. And the station was destroyed & boat sunk. Some greek writing on the reverse of this. Odd.
7. A letter advising the family of the award of the EK 1, and asking them to forward the award & letter to wherever their son might be now.
8. A few Feldpost letters (09902) in which he tells his parents among other things, he was awarded the EK 2.
9. A letter authorizing him to visit Athens.
10. A letter showing him authorized to be at a Lazarett in Bad Gleichenberg in the Steiermark area. The date on this letter conforms to the date on the wound badge doc.
11. Letter from the Deutsche Dienststelle (WASt) answering an inquiry into his awards. 12. 4 small photo's:
A. At a harbor, destroyer in background
B. With shipmates, baskets visible. His daughter tells me they hid mines in the
baskets, and went without uniforms to give the appearance of being casual
fishermen.
C. With 3 comrades. Back of pic says "Athens Nat'l Park"
D. Again w/ shipmates, one at the steering wheel of a boat.
13. 3x5 "official" photo w/ ek1, minensucher badge, ek2 ribbon.
14. 3 Kriegsmarine postcards sent to family.
15. Letter identifying him as returning to station from a sunken ship, therefore allowed to proceed "as is".

As always, can't post pix. But if ya like, drop a PM.

'til next one....
Hank

[Rick Research]

What was the ship he survived the sinking of?

[Hank C.]

Ships unknown...

After quite a bit of correspondence with his daughter, she & her mother both don't know. He had the good fortune to survive two sinkings. But he was apparently not on large boats. The pix I rec'd show the crew on what can only be recognized as a smaller boat, as the wheel to steer the ship is on an open deck, and the men are without shirts, to appear as fishermen. I am hoping somebody can put a time with the wound badge (Sep 9, 1944) with some action. But it might be he had been stationed elsewhere in the meantime.
His daughter said that, like many veterans, he didn't talk much about the bad times. He made some references to helping Germans escape from the Eastern sections of the country (Konigsberg, perhaps?) towards the closing days of the war, and his shoes being stolen. But the items I received make no mention of that, or where he happened to be.

[Rick Research]

Ah, I hoped that would have shown on 6). I have lists of German ships sunk in WW2, but by name/number designation, not date.

[Hank C.]

Ah, I hoped that would have shown on 6). I have lists of German ships sunk in WW2, but by name/number designation, not date.

All it shows on the document is that the items were thrown overboard weighted with iron, in approx. 415 meters of water, about 12 sm. (miles?) from Kytera. The date of the doc. is 17 July, 1941. The action occured on the 9th of July '41 during an attack by a british submarine.

Hank