Gebirgs Motorcyclists Crossing the River

Two motorcyclists, wearing their distinctive rubberised coats, wade across a stream during a Gebirgs units drive through southern Poland, September 1939. A pioneer with a spade has been attempting to erect a temporary crossing for the motorcycles, but without much luck.

Source :
Book "Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgsjäger in a Rubber Boat

German Mountain troops (Gebirgsjäger) are seen paddling across a river in a pneumatic boat during invasion of Poland, 1939. These 18 feet boats could carry a multitude of equipments up to 1.35tons. They were also used to construct pontoon bridges. In this photograph, bicycles can be seen stacked onboard.

Source :
Book "Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Civilian Carts of 1. Gebirgs-Division

Two photographs taken in sequence showing local civilian carts pressed into service and being used by Gebirgstruppen of the 1. Gebirgs-Division in September 1939. Local civilians were often hired to drive the wagons and were paid very well for their services. However, it was frequently a dangerous preoccupation with a number of them being killed by enemy fire.

Source :
Book "Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

U-128 on its Fourth Patrol

U-128, a Type IX C u-boat, was an extremely successful submarine attached to the 2. Unterseebootsflottille (2nd Submarine Flotilla) in Lorient. Built by Deschimag AG of Bremen, the boat was commissioned by Kapitänleutnant Ullrich Heyse on 12 May 1941. Heyse went on to achieve great success with this submarine in 1942 and early 1943. In the course of six patrols - of which the first was merely a transfer to Norway and the fifth is a seven-day radar trial - Ullrich Heyse and U-128 sank 12 ships totaling 83,639 GRT and damaged another! No wonder that the crew swore by their commander. The 35-year-old Berliner, a member of Crew 1933, knew how to lead his men. Once, on the boat, he pulled a knife from his pocket and sat down to help several of his men peel potatoes. Then, as he peeled, he discussed all the popular topics with this small circle. On land the captain often joined his men for a beer, which further strengthened the bonds with his crew. Before the war Heyse had served on merchant vessels, and as a submarine commander it was difficult for him to now have to sink such ships. In several cases he provided survivors with food, cigarettes and rum and expressed regret for having sunk their ship! Under Heyse, the boat wore a slightly modified version of the emblem of Ulm, U-128's sponsor city on the front of the conning tower, plus a white horse emblem on both sides. Encircling the horse were the words "HÜAHOH HÜAHOH ALTER SCHIMMEL" (secara harfiah berarti: "Hieh Hieh Kuda Tua"). As our drawing depicts, in the summer of 1942 the boat was camouflaged pale gray with dark grey longitudinal stripes. One of the stripes ran from the turret mantle aft to beneath the Wintergarten platform. All of the upwards-facing parts of the boat were painted black as per directives. Six days after completing his sixth patrol, on 21 January 1943, Heyse was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (Knight's Cross of the Iron Crosses). In March 1943 he handed the boat over to Oberleutnant zur See Hermann Steinert. Luck deserted him on his very first patrol, however. On 17 May 1943 US Naval aircraft bombed the submarine near a convoy and forced it to surface. The boat sustained heavy damage in further attacks and was unable to dive. With the destroyers USS Jouett and USS Mofett closing in, Steinert ordered his crew to abandon ship. The leading engineer initiated the scuttling procedure, but the submarine was sunk by gunfire from the destroyers. The USS Mofett rescued 51 members of U-128's crew, four of whom died aboard the destroyer.

 This photo (and the first photo above) depicts U-128, probably as it departed Lorient on its fourth patrol on 25 April 1942. The boat emblem and the coat of arms of the sponsor city of Ulm my be seen on the conning tower. Under Kapitänleutnant Hermann Steinert the boat also wore the Olympic rings of Crew 1936 on the conning tower.

Source :
"U-Boot im Focus" magazine - edition no.2 (2007)

Two Luftwaffe Instructors with Their Charges During Training

Two Luftwaffe instructors with their charges during initial training. The recruits are wearing white denim clothing, which was popular both on land and for general work aboard ships. The trucks on which they are sitting were quite common at the time. They were used on building sites, quarries and other places where heavy loads had to be moved. The tracks were often laid temporarily along the roads to overcome the problem of carrying heavy loads over soft ground or rough cobblestones. Heavy loads were still moved by horses and carts until some time after World War II. Lorries composed only a tiny fraction of the traffic on roads, many of which were unsurfaced tracks - even the more busy highways were covered with bumpy cobblestones. The vast majority of modern, tarmac surfaces did not appear on the continent of Europe until long after the war.

Source :
Book "Wolfpacks At War: The U-Boat Experience In WWII" by Jak Mallmann Showell

Bio Karl Wolff

Karl Wolff is second from the left in this 1941 photo taken in Russia. On the far left is Hermann Fegelein (then commander of the SS Kavallerie-Brigade) and on the far right is HSSPF Erich von dem Bach. Heinrich Himmler is speaking to Fegelein. Born in Darmstadt on May 13, 1900, Wolff joined the Army in April, 1917, and ended the conflict as a Leutnant in the infantry having won both classes of the Iron Cross. He served in the Freikorps during 1919 as a company commander then left the Army in May, 1920. After studying law and political economics he worked as a bank clerk, then ran his own advertising agency until it dissolved in 1931. Joining the NSDAP and SS on October 7, 1931, he first served with the 2./11./1 .SS-Standarte. On January 19, 1932, he took command of his Sturm until mid- September, 1932, and was commissioned as an SS-Sturmfiihrer on February 18, 1932. From September 20, 1932, to mid-March, 1933, he was adjutant of the IUI. SS-Standarte and was promoted to SS-Sturmhauptführer on January 30, 1933. /4.v adjutant to Franz Ritter von Epp (then Reich Commissioner for Bavaria) he served from mid-March to mid-June, 1933, and attended the first SS course at the Reich Leader School during Februar)1, 1932. Promoted to SS Sturmbannführer on November 9, 1933, and to SS-Obersturmbannführer on January 30, 1934, he was Himmler's personal adjutant from March, 1934, to November, 1935. He then was upgraded to Himmler's chief adjutant as well as being chief of Himmler's personal staff after that command was combined with the post of chief adjutant in November 1936. Holding this combined assignment until until June, 1939, he was also a member of the Reichstag from March, 1933 to May, 1945. Promoted to SS-Standartenfiihrer on April 20, 1934, to SS-Oberführer on July 4, 1934, to SS-Brigadeführer on November 9, 1935 and to SS-Gruppenführer on January 30, 1937, he was Chief of the Personal Staff Main Office from June, 1939 to May, 1945 but a designated deputy commanded in his place after February, 1943. On May 3, 1940, he became a Generalleutnant der WaJfen-SS. Promoted to SSObergruppenfiihrer und General der Waffen-SS on January 30, 1942, from August, 1939, to February, 1943, Wolff served as Himmler's liaison officer in Hitler's headquarters and then became HSSPF "Oberitalien West. " When that post expanded he became the HöSSPF "Italien " in September, 1943. He was also military governor for northern Italy from February to October, 1943 and official representative for the Wehrmacht in Italy from August, 1944, to May, 1945. From February to May, 1945, he was titular commander of the 29.Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS (italienische Nr. 1) though actual command was undertaken by his chief of staff (and later his deputy). Among his awards were the Gold Party Badge, the Olympic Games Decoration 1st class, both classes of the Iron Cross, the Reich's Sports Badge in Silver, the War Service Cross with Swords 1st class, the Social Welfare Badge and finally the German Cross in Gold awarded on December 9, 1944. A natural diplomat, he endured Himmler's abuse and acted as a buffer between his chief and the numerous personalities around him though he himself made enemies including RSHA Chief Ernst Kaltenbrunner. He incured Himmler's wrath when the latter refused to grant his divorce, Wolff then obtaining permission directly from Hitler. Wolff prevented implementation of the scorched earth policy in Italy and later testified at the Nuremberg Trials. Arrested in 1962, he served a term in prison from 1964 to 1971 for transporting Italian Jews and died in Rosenheim on July 17, 1984. (National Archives).

Source :
Book "Allgemeine-SS: The Commands, Units & Leaders of the General SS" by Mark C. Yerger

U-Boat Commander Hans Hellmann

Oberleutnant zur See Hans Hellmann was born on 8 March 1921 near the Polsih border, became a U-boat commander, and was murdered in Bremen just before the end of the war by an irate husband, who felt he had become too intimate with his wife! Naval authorities took a strong stand against men having affairs with married women, and before the war the punishment was instant dismissal. However, other authorities within the Third Reich did not consider such conduct too bad. Indeed, one such disgraced naval officer, Reinhard Heydrich, took a commission in the SS and became one of their powerful figure!

Source :

Book "Wolfpacks At War: The U-Boat Experience In WWII" by Jak Mallmann Showell

Kommando der Wachtruppe Parade through Brandenburg Gate

The origin of the Großdeutschland Division was the Kommando der Wachtruppe (Command of the Guard Troop) in Berlin, and the infantry-training regiment in Döberitz. This photo shows a guard company of the Kommando der Wachtruppe marching through Berlin's Brandenburg Gate to the Ehrenmal (Honor Memorial) in 1934. The famous guard parade with band took place every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. The parade route led from Moabit through the Brandenburg Gate and along the Unter den Linden to the war memorial in the Schinkel Building. The officer commanding the guard parade usually rode the white horse "Alaric." The horse, too, went on to become quite famous and is well-remembered by many Berliners.

Source :

Book "Panzer Grenadier Division Grossdeutschland" by Horst Scheibert

Book "The History of the Panzerkorps Grossdeutschland" by Helmuth Spaeter

Armored vehicle of the Hitlerjugend Division in the Ruins of Caen

A Sd.Kfz. 231 armored vehicle of the 12. SS-Panzer-Division "Hitlerjugend" photographed in the ruins of Caen, Normandy, France in July 1944. In the background the ruined Church of Saint-Pierre. The city of Caen was destroyed and reduced to rubble by the Allied bombing after they encountered difficulty in taking it (the bombing was futile as Germans positions were intact outside of the city, in the northern edge). The Allies flattened and wiped out cities and towns all across Normandy and Northern France in which tens of thousands civilians were killed outright.

Source :
http://5sswiking.tumblr.com/post/167393189682/a-sdkfz-231-armored-vehicle-of-the-12-ss-panzer

SS-Standarte "Der Führer" Soldiers

A group of enlisted men from the SS-Standarte "Der Führer". All wear the SS-VT (SS-Verfügungstruppe) pattern field cap and collar patch with numeral "3" alongside the runes. The SS-Standarte Der Führer was formed in March 1938 in Vienna as SS-Standarte 3 following the German annexation of Austria and it was made up Austrian volunteers around a cadre from SS-Standarte Deutschland. It was renamed SS-Standarte Der Führer at the Parteitag in Nuremberg 1938 when it also received its Deutschland Erwache standard.

Source :
http://www.axishistory.com/books/123-germany-waffen-ss/germany-waffen-ss-ss-vt/1462-ss-standarte-der-fuehrer
https://www.thirdreichmedals.com/article/WSS.html

SS-Verfügungstruppe on Winter Exercise

A group of motorised troops from the SS-VT (SS-Verfügungstruppe) on winter exercises. Most wear the standard Greatcoat - or "Mantel" - though some, such as the two at extreme right, wear the motorcyclist rubberised waterproof coat. Note the use of the SS-VT pattern field cap with metal deathshead button at front and small machine embroidered eagle on the side.

Source :
https://www.thirdreichmedals.com/article/WSS.html

German Soldier Watching the Drawing of His Wife

German soldier with his wife watching the drawing of the wife. He is wearing the chevron sleeve for Obergefreiter rank. Translated as "senior lance-corporal", in World War II the rank was normally given to soldiers who had command over small squads or to those soldiers who held the rank of Gefreiter and had performed a significant feat of achievement. An Obergefreiter was not considered a non-commissioned officer (Unteroffizier). In this picture, we can see also the ribbon for "Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42" (Ostmedaille), so we can safely assume that this picture was taken in the period of 1942-1945.

Source :
https://audiovis.nac.gov.pl/obraz/36772/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obergefreiter

SS Soldiers in France

German soldier from SS-Standarte "Der Führer" / SS-Division-Verfügungstruppe (motorisiert) in France in 1940. He wore a stahlhelm cover and a camouflage jacket of the Platanenmuster type. Shortly after the German military campaign in France, collar numbers were withdrawn from circulation for safety reasons, leaving only SS runes. This photo is taken from the book "Waffen-SS Im Westen: Ein Bericht In Bildern" by SS-Kriegsberichter Friedrich Zschäckel, published in 1941. The original caption reads: "Das Geschicht der Waffen-SS" (Face of the Waffen-SS).

Source :
"Waffen-SS Im Westen: Ein Bericht In Bildern" by Friedrich Zschäckel

German Soldier Washes a Civilian Car Impressed into Wehrmacht Service

A German soldier in Westende, Belgium, washes a 1937 Opel Super 6 cabriolet by the coachbuilder Hebmüller, civilian car impressed into German military service. The tactical symbol for a motorized Pionier Company has been painted on the left front fender alongside a small letter "K" and above the Wehrmacht Heer prefix (WH). The right fender carries an unknown unit emblem. The car still carries the civilian license plate IZ-226285 where IZ is the prefix for the Rhine Provinz. Once officially incorporated into a German unit, the car would be assigned a military license plate. The German military and government license plate prefixes during WWII were: WH = Wehrmacht Heer (army), WM = Wehrmacht Marine (navy), WL = Wehrmacht Luftwaffe (air force), SS [runes] = Schutzstaffel, OT = Organization Todt, Pol = Polizei, DR = Deutsche Reichsbahn, and RP = Reichspost.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=47&t=73232&p=2125953#p2125953
http://www.lonesentry.com/features/f41_german-military-car.html

“Hallo, wie geht’s?” Emblem of U-93

This photo of U-93 was taken in December 1940 shortly before the “Hallo, wie geht’s?” (Hello, how’s it going?) emblem was replaced by the new “Devil” emblem. Both the submarine’s paint and the emblem are heavily weathered, and the emblem has even been partly overpainted. Parts of the black and white hand and the word “Hallo” have disappeared. If one speaks of the “Red Devil” emblem to submarine enthusiasts, most automatically think of U-552, the boat in which Kapitänleutnant Erich Topp made a name for himself from 1941 to 1943. But there were many other boats whose commanders selected a “Teufel” (Devil) emblem for their vessels. One of these was the U-93, but prior to this the boat wore another, no less striking emblem. Commissioned by Kapitänleutnant Claus Korth at Krupp’s Germania Shipyard in Kiel on 30 July 1940, after acceptance trials the type VII C joined the 7. U-Flotille (7th Submarine Flotilla) in St. Nazaire. Korth had previously commanded the U-57, a type II C, from December 1938 until May 1940 with the 5th and later the 1st Submarine Flotillas. During that time he completed 11 patrols and his submarine wore an eye-catching “Fackelschwingenden Teufel” (Torch-Swinging Devil) emblem. His new boat would also carry an unusual emblem. And it wasn’t long before a suitable design was on the table. It consisted of a large smiling sun rising behind a black and white wavy band, and beneath this were the words “Hallo, wie geht’s?”. The design was inspired by the Number 1 of the tender Lech, once the mother ship of Korth’s first boat, the U-57. Whenever the U-57 docked, this senior boatswain would greet the crew with “Hello, how’s it going?”. As Kapitänleutnant Korth brought most of U-57’s crew with him to the U-93, the majority of his new boat’s crew was familiar with this hail which now formed part of the boat’s emblem. As well, to the submariners the rising sun of course meant return and survival, following the motto: “Uns geht die Sonne nicht unter” (The sun doesn’t set on us). The “Hallo, wie geht’s?” emblem was worn by U-93 on its first three patrols in autumn 1940. In the weeks following the end of the third patrol on 29 November 1940, however, Kapitänleutnant Korth began to miss his “Roten Teufel” (Red Devil) emblem from the early days. He therefore gave Oberleutnant zur See Götz von Hartmann, assigned to the crew as 1st Watch Officer (1. Wachtsoffizier) in December 1940 and a skilled artist, the task of designing a new devil emblem for U-93. Hartmann’s design depicted a devil with a dip net catching a steamer in which Churchill, the British First Sea Lord, sits smoking a cigarette. Accepted by the captain, in January 1941 this equally striking design replaced the “Hallo, wie geht’s?” emblem on the front of U-93’s conning tower. The boat completed three patrols while wearing this emblem in the spring and summer of 1941. After his sixth patrol Kapitänleutnant Korth stood down and in autumn 1941 transferred command to Oberleutnant zur See Horst Elfe. It is not known if this captain, who had previously commanded U-139, allowed the “Devil” emblem to remain on U-93. It is, however, to be assumed that the new captain was conscious of crews’ sensibilities with regard to the “glücksbringer” (good luck) emblems on their boats. If Oberleutnant zur See Elfe did retain the emblem, it certainly did not have the desired effect for commander or crew. After departing on its second patrol under its new captain the day before Christmas 1941, on 15 January 1942 it was depth-charged and sunk by the British destroyer HMS Hesperus in the North Atlantic north of Madeira at position 36º40’N/15º52’W. Part of the “Gruppe Seydlitz” with U-71 and U-571, it attempted to attack convoy HG 78 between Gibraltar and the Azores but was located and destroyed by the escort. Most of the crew was saved, just six men losing their lives. Concerning the famous “Roten Teufel” emblem of Erich Topp’s U-552, it should be stated here that the devil was no new idea by Topp or a member of his crew. Instead Topp first encountered this devil when he succeeded Kapitänleutnant Claus Korth as captain of U-57, which was wearing the above-described “Torch-Swinging Devil” as boat emblem. In December 1940 Topp adopted the devil for his new boat, the U-552.

 This photo provides a very detailed view of U-93’s second emblem. If one believes the existing literature, a version of the emblem with two men in the boat was also used. Only Churchill is represented in our photo. The above photo shows U-93 leaving Lorient on its 4th patrol, the first with the new emblem, on 11 January 1941.

Source :
"U-Boot im Focus" magazine, edition no.2 - 2007