Ritterkreuzträger of Kampfgeschwader 27 (KG 27) "Boelcke"

Kampfgeschwader 27 “Boelcke” was formed on 1 May 1939 from the earlier Kampfgeschwader 157 “Boelcke” with its Stab and I. Gruppe at Hannover-Langenhagen, II. Gruppe at Wunstorf and III. Gruppe at Delmenhorst, equipped primarily with the Heinkel He 111 medium bomber and authorised to wear the Ärmelstreifen “Geschwader Boelcke” in honour of the First World War fighter pilot Oswald Boelcke. Under its first Geschwaderkommodore Oberst Hans Behrendt the unit took part in the invasion of Poland in September 1939, flying from bases in eastern Germany against Polish airfields, railways and troop concentrations. During the Phoney War it conducted armed reconnaissance over France before participating fully in the Western Campaign of May–June 1940 and subsequently in the Luftschlacht um England from bases in France. From June 1941 the Geschwader was transferred to the Eastern Front under Luftflotte 4, supporting the advance into the Ukraine and southern Russia with attacks on Soviet airfields, bridges, supply lines and troop concentrations. It remained heavily engaged on the southern sector throughout 1942–43, flying from bases such as Focsani, Kirovograd, Kursk and Millerovo, and suffered steady attrition while supporting operations around Stalingrad and the subsequent retreats. A specialised 14. (Eis) Staffel was formed in 1943 for railway interdiction missions. In late 1944 the surviving elements were withdrawn westwards, redesignated Kampfgeschwader (J) 27 on 23 November 1944 and converted to single-seat fighters (Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190) for Reichsverteidigung duties. Notable commanders included Oberst Hans-Henning Freiherr von Beust (1942–43) and the final Geschwaderkommodore Major Rudolf Kiel. The unit was disbanded in April–May 1945 after the unconditional surrender of the Wehrmacht.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Oberstleutnant Reinhard Günzel (1907-1970) was born on 2 February 1907 in Posen and joined the Luftwaffe in the mid-1930s, serving with the Legion Condor in the Spanish Civil War where he earned the Spanienkreuz in Bronze on 6 June 1939. At the outbreak of the Second World War he flew with Kampfgeschwader 27 “Boelcke” and received the Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse on 16 September 1939 followed by the Eisernes Kreuz I. Klasse on 23 June 1940 for operations over Poland and the Western Front. As Hauptmann and Kommandeur of the II. Gruppe of Kampfgeschwader 27 “Boelcke” he led numerous successful bomber missions against targets in Britain and later on the Eastern Front, completing approximately 150 combat sorties by the time he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 17 September 1941 for his distinguished achievements as a bomber pilot and formation commander. Continuing to fly intensive operations against Soviet transport routes, railways and troop concentrations, he was promoted to Major and received the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 24 September 1942 while still with the II. Gruppe. By early 1943 his mission total had risen to around 320, and for his continued outstanding leadership and personal flying skill on the Eastern Front he was awarded the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 21 January 1943 as Major and Kommandeur of the III. Gruppe of Kampfgeschwader 27 “Boelcke”, becoming the 184th recipient of this decoration. Günzel ultimately completed more than 500 combat missions during the war and rose to the rank of Oberstleutnant. After the conflict he worked as a police officer and died on 5 December 1970 in Eiche near Berlin at the age of 63.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kampfgeschwader_27

Ritterkreuzträger of Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 667

Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 667 was formed on 24 June 1942 in Jüterbog by expanding the experienced Sturmgeschütz-Batterie 667 into a full Abteilung with three batteries as a Heerestruppe under Wehrkreis III. After completing its establishment the unit was transported by rail in late July 1942 via Dünaburg and Witebsk to the Wjasma area on the Eastern Front and assigned to Heeresgruppe Mitte. Its first combat deployment occurred with the 5. Panzer-Division at the Chleppen bridgehead, followed by heavy fighting at Gredjakino, Cholm and especially in the Rshew–Sulzow sector during the prolonged battles for the Rzhev salient. Serving as a mobile fire-brigade against repeated Soviet attacks the Abteilung claimed the destruction of 468 enemy tanks by 31 January 1943 and produced several highly successful Sturmgeschütz crews, most notably that of Wachtmeister Hugo Primozic. During Unternehmen Büffel in March 1943 it covered the orderly withdrawal of German forces from the salient through Wjasma to the Dnjepr and Dorogobusch, after which it was temporarily subordinated to the 98. Infanterie-Division for the defence of the road southwest of Wjasma. Subsequent operations took the unit through the sectors of Jelnja, Roslawl, Kritschew, Mogilew, Smolensk, Witebsk and Newel. On 14 February 1944 it was redesignated Sturmgeschütz-Brigade 667 and on 10 June 1944 reorganised as Heeres-Sturmartillerie-Brigade 667 with additional Begleitbatterien. Almost completely destroyed during the Soviet summer offensive of 1944 the remnants were withdrawn and rebuilt, later seeing action on the Western Front in the Aachen area and in the Ardennes. Commanders included Hauptmann Vagedes from formation until December 1942, followed by Hauptmann Rudolf Zettler, Hauptmann Joachim Lützow, Hauptmann Max Wölfle and later Major Ludwig Knüppling. The brigade remained active until the final collapse of the Wehrmacht in May 1945.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Leutnant Hugo Primozic (1914-1996) was born on 16 February 1914 in Backnang in Württemberg as the son of a Slovenian father and a German mother and entered the Reichswehr in 1934, serving as a gunner in various artillery units including Artillerie-Regiment 5 and later Artillerie-Regiment 152 during the French campaign. In April 1941 he volunteered for the Sturmartillerie and after training joined Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 667 in May 1942, arriving on the Eastern Front in the central sector around Rzhev as Zugführer of the II. Zug of the 2. Batterie. On 15 September 1942, during heavy defensive fighting against a major Soviet attack, he led his Sturmgeschütze forward and personally destroyed 24 enemy tanks in a single day at close range, helping to prevent a breakthrough and bringing his total to 45 tanks destroyed. For this outstanding achievement he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 19 September 1942 as Wachtmeister und Zugführer in the 2. Batterie of Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 667, becoming one of the first NCOs to receive the decoration for assault-gun actions. Continuing to fight with exceptional skill and coolness, he destroyed a further 15 tanks including seven in one day during a counter-attack on 11 December 1942, raising his confirmed total to 60. On 25 January 1943 he became the first non-commissioned officer of the Heer to receive the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz as Oberwachtmeister und Zugführer of the same unit, the 185th recipient overall. Promoted to Leutnant shortly afterwards he was withdrawn from the front and assigned as an instructor at the Sturmgeschützschule Burg and other training establishments, later serving as Batteriechef in the closing months of the war with Kampfgruppe Burg. Taken prisoner by American forces in May 1945 he was released on 1 August 1945 and lived quietly in postwar Germany until his death in Fulda on 18 March 1996 at the age of 82.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=160397
https://www.hl-barbara.de/index.php/die-garnison/wehrmacht/sturmartillerie/die-ersten-batterien
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gliederungen/Sturmgeschutzeinheiten/Sturmgeschutzabteilung667.htm

Ritterkreuzträger of 79. Infanterie-Division

The 79. Infanterie-Division was formed on 26 August 1939 as a second-wave division of the Wehrmacht in the area of Idar-Oberstein and Hammelburg within Wehrkreis XII, drawing personnel and cadres from the 33., 34. and 36. Infanterie-Division to create its core regiments of Infanterie-Regiment 208, Infanterie-Regiment 212 and Infanterie-Regiment 226 together with Artillerie-Regiment 179 and the usual divisional support units. Initially deployed along the Westwall for training and fortification work, the division saw limited action on the Saar front before joining the 1940 campaign in France, where it participated in the breakthrough of the Maginot Line south of Saarbrücken and advanced toward the Moselle and Epinal before performing occupation duties. In June 1941 the division was transferred east for Unternehmen Barbarossa under Heeresgruppe Süd, fighting through the Ukraine, breaking the Stalin Line, taking part in the battle for Kiev and later operating in the Kharkov and Donets sectors through the winter of 1941–42. During the 1942 summer offensive it advanced toward the Don and was committed to the assault on Stalingrad on 17 October, receiving the mission to capture the Red October metallurgical works in intense hall-to-hall fighting. Encircled with the 6. Armee in the Kessel after the Soviet counter-offensive of November, the bulk of the division was destroyed; its commander Generalleutnant Alexander von Daniels surrendered with the remaining troops in late January and early February 1943 while elements of the staff, including the Ia Oberst Hans Schwanbeck, were flown out. Reformed in March 1943 near Stalino from survivors, convalescents and new drafts, the division next fought in the Kuban bridgehead, then in defensive battles around Melitopol, the Dnieper bend and Nikopol before moving to the Jassy sector in Romania. In August 1944, during the Soviet Jassy-Kishinev operation and following the Romanian defection, the 79. Infanterie-Division was again encircled near Chitcani on the Berlad River and virtually annihilated, with fewer than one thousand men escaping; its commander Generalleutnant Friedrich-August Weinknecht went into captivity. The remnants were later used to form the 79. Volksgrenadier-Division, which continued the unit’s traditions on the Western Front until the final collapse in 1945, the original formation having borne the motto „Tapfer und Treu“ throughout its hard campaigns on both major fronts of the war.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Günter Goebel (1917-1993) was born on 14 November 1917 in Hagen in Westphalia and entered the officer career of the Wehrmacht in 1936, joining the Infanterie-Regiment 18 and later serving as Adjutant of the III. Bataillon of the Infanterie-Regiment 208 of the 79. Infanterie-Division. Promoted to Leutnant in early 1938 and to Oberleutnant on 1 June 1940, he took part in the campaigns in the West and then on the Eastern Front. On 14 September 1941, as Regimentsadjutant of Infanterie-Regiment 208, he independently assumed command of a temporarily leaderless Radfahr-Bataillon and led it in decisive actions in the area of Kiev that contributed to the German advance, for which he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 18 October 1941 as Oberleutnant. He was also entered in the Ehrenblatt des Heeres on 6 November 1941. Promoted to Hauptmann on 1 February 1942, he later commanded a Kampfgruppe during the fighting around Stalingrad. From 17 December 1942 near Nishnij-Tschirskaja along the Chir river, in the sector of the 384. Infanterie-Division, he held a critical bridgehead over the Don with approximately 3,000 men assembled from scattered and poorly equipped units, sending the radio message that became known throughout the 6. Armee: “Kampfgruppe Hauptmann Goebel hält mit 3000 Mann Donbrücke (Werchne) Tschir(skaja). Haltet den Kopf hoch wie wir!” He maintained this position for weeks against superior Soviet forces until early January 1943, thereby helping to delay the enemy advance westward and southwestward. For this determined defence he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 18 January 1943 as Hauptmann and Führer of the Kampfgruppe. Severely wounded while breaking out westward, he was promoted to Major and later served in staff positions, rising to Oberstleutnant im Generalstab by March 1945. Captured by Soviet forces on 11 May 1945 in Courland, he remained in captivity until October 1955 and died in Hagen on 4 September 1993.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/79th_Infantry_Division_(Wehrmacht)

Ritterkreuzträger of 60. Infanterie-Division (mot.)

The 60. Infanterie-Division was formed on 15 October 1939 in Danzig from the Gruppe Eberhardt, a special formation drawn largely from the Landespolizei of the Free City of Danzig and SA units under Generalleutnant Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt. It initially consisted of the Infanterie-Regiment 92, Infanterie-Regiment 243 and Infanterie-Regiment 244 together with the Artillerie-Regiment 160 and supporting units, and took part in the 1940 campaign in the West as part of the 1. Armee. In the summer of 1940 the division was motorized, redesignated 60. Infanterie-Division (mot.) in August, reduced to two motorized infantry regiments (Infanterie-Regiment 92 and Infanterie-Regiment 120, the latter formed from the former 244), and received additional motorized elements including a Kradschützen-Bataillon and Panzerjäger-Abteilung. After a period of training and service in Romania it participated in the Balkan campaign of April 1941 against Yugoslavia and Greece. Transferred to the Eastern Front for Operation Barbarossa, the division advanced under the 1. Panzergruppe through Uman, crossed the Dnieper, took part in the fighting for Rostov and the subsequent withdrawal to the Mius River, and held defensive positions during the winter of 1941–42. In the spring of 1942 it fought in the Second Battle of Kharkov under Generalleutnant Otto Kohlermann and then advanced during Fall Blau across the Donets and Don toward Stalingrad as part of the XIV. Panzerkorps of the 6. Armee. Assigned to secure the northern corridor between the Don and the Volga, the division played a central role in repelling the Soviet Kotluban offensives of September 1942 and later became heavily engaged in the bitter urban and defensive fighting inside and around Stalingrad. Encircled with the rest of the 6. Armee in November 1942, the 60. Infanterie-Division (mot.) was completely destroyed by February 1943. Its remnants were later used to form the Panzergrenadier-Division Feldherrnhalle in 1943.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Major Karl Willig (1908-1977) was born on 31 August 1908 in Niederneisen in Hessen and entered military service in 1927 as a Fahnenjunker in the Infanterie-Regiment 5, later serving as an officer in the Reichswehr and Wehrmacht. Promoted to Oberleutnant and then to Hauptmann on 1 December 1939, he commanded the 10. Kompanie of the Infanterie-Regiment 15 during the campaigns in Poland and France. From June 1941 he led the 11. Kompanie of the Infanterie-Regiment 120 (later redesignated Grenadier-Regiment 120 (mot.)) of the 60. Infanterie-Division (mot.) on the Eastern Front, distinguishing himself in the fighting around Kharkov in the spring of 1942. As Führer of the II. Bataillon of Infanterie-Regiment 120 he played a key role in the German counter-offensive during the Second Battle of Kharkov; on 17 May 1942 his battalion, operating on the left wing of the regiment, bypassed Soviet resistance nests and stormed the fortified village of Fidlerowo in fierce close combat, relieving the neighbouring 100. Jäger-Division and enabling the continuation of the encirclement of Soviet forces. For this successful combat leadership he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 25 July 1942 as Hauptmann and commander of II./Infanterie-Regiment 120. Promoted to Major on 1 August 1942, he continued to lead the II. Bataillon of Grenadier-Regiment 120 (mot.) during the advance on and fighting inside Stalingrad. After the Soviet encirclement in November 1942 he commanded a Kampfgruppe that defended the key village of Marinowka on the western side of the Stalingrad pocket in a series of hard defensive battles lasting from 28 November 1942 until 10 January 1943. For this prolonged and determined defence under desperate conditions he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 18 January 1943 as Major and Kommandeur of II./Grenadier-Regiment 120 (mot.). Captured at the end of January 1943 when the pocket was liquidated, Willig was one of the few survivors who returned from Soviet captivity in December 1949 and lived thereafter in Germany until his death on 2 December 1977 in Eschwege.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/60th_Infantry_Division_(Wehrmacht)

Ritterkreuzträger of 29. Unterseebootsflottille

The 29. Unterseebootsflottille was established in December 1941 at La Spezia in Italy as a Frontflottille of the Kriegsmarine’s U-Boot-Waffe, operating exclusively in the Mediterranean Sea against Allied convoys and supply lines under the command of the Führer der Unterseeboote Italien and later the Führer der Unterseeboote Mittelmeer. Its first Flottillenchef was Korvettenkapitän Franz Becker from December 1941 until May 1942, followed by Korvettenkapitän Fritz Frauenheim from May 1942 to July 1943 and then Korvettenkapitän Günther Jahn from August 1943 until the unit’s dissolution. In late May 1942 the remaining boats of the disbanded 23. U-Flottille were absorbed into the 29. Unterseebootsflottille, expanding its strength. The primary base remained La Spezia until August 1943, after which the flotilla transferred its headquarters to Toulon in southern France while maintaining additional support facilities at Pola, Messina, Marseille and Salamis. Equipped mainly with Type VII B and Type VII C U-Boote, the flotilla was assigned a total of fifty-two boats over its existence, including well-known vessels such as U-81, U-331, U-73, U-559 and U-565. These boats conducted numerous Feindfahrten against Mediterranean shipping, supporting Axis operations in North Africa and targeting Malta-bound convoys under difficult conditions of clear water and strong Allied air and surface defenses. By mid-1944 losses had severely reduced the number of operational boats, and after U-407 was sunk on 19 September 1944 the final two remaining vessels, U-565 and U-596, were scuttled at Salamis, leading to the formal dissolution of the 29. Unterseebootsflottille in September 1944.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Kapitänleutnant Friedrich Guggenberger (1915-1988) was born on 6 March 1915 in Munich and entered the Reichsmarine as a cadet on 26 September 1934, later transferring to the U-Boot-Waffe in October 1939 where he served as I. Wachoffizier aboard U-28 under Kapitänleutnant Günther Kuhnke before briefly commanding the boat himself in a training role. On 26 April 1941 he commissioned U-81 and took her on successive Feindfahrten, first in the Atlantic and then into the Mediterranean after successfully forcing the Strait of Gibraltar. On 13 November 1941, while operating against a British naval formation in the western Mediterranean despite heavy enemy defenses, Kapitänleutnant Guggenberger launched a torpedo attack that struck the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal (22,600 tons), causing such severe damage that the vessel sank the following day with the loss of only one crewman; for this outstanding success, together with earlier sinkings, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 10 December 1941. He continued to command U-81 on further Mediterranean patrols, sinking additional merchant and naval vessels including tankers, and was recognized as one of the most successful U-Boot commanders in that theater. On 8 January 1943, after accumulating a total of seventeen ships sunk totaling over 66,000 GRT, he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz as its 171st recipient while still holding the rank of Kapitänleutnant and command of U-81. He briefly commissioned U-847 before serving as Admiralstabsoffizier on the staff of the Befehlshaber der U-Boote, then took command of U-513, which was sunk off Brazil in July 1943; Guggenberger survived and spent the remainder of the war as a prisoner. After release he worked as an architect, rejoined the Bundesmarine in 1956, rose to Konteradmiral, served as Chief of Staff at NATO’s AFNORTH headquarters, and retired in 1972; he disappeared on a walk near Erlenbach am Main on 13 May 1988 and his remains were found two years later.

Source :
 

Ritterkreuzträger of Kampfgeschwader 4 (KG 4) "General Wever"

Kampfgeschwader 4 „General Wever“ was formed on 1 May 1939 through the redesignation of Kampfgeschwader 253, receiving its honorary name from General Walther Wever, the prewar advocate of strategic bombing who had died in a 1936 aircraft accident, and initially based its Stab at Erfurt with I. Gruppe at Gotha, II. Gruppe at Erfurt and III. Gruppe at Nordhausen, equipped primarily with Heinkel He 111 bombers. Under its first Geschwaderkommodore, Oberst Martin Fiebig, the unit took part in the Polish campaign of 1939 and then in Unternehmen Weserübung against Norway and Denmark in 1940, where its crews distinguished themselves in attacks on ports and troop concentrations including Andalsnes, Namsos and Dombaas. During the Western Campaign it supported operations over the Netherlands, Belgium and France before transferring to bases in Holland for the Battle of Britain, conducting night bombing and minelaying missions against England, including raids on Coventry, until early 1941 when III. Gruppe temporarily left to join Kampfgeschwader 30 after converting to Junkers Ju 88. Elements of the Geschwader participated in the Balkan campaign and the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, operating under various Fliegerkorps on the Eastern Front and later supporting the Stalingrad airlift as well as the continuous defensive fighting that followed. From late 1943 parts of I. Gruppe converted to the Heinkel He 177 heavy bomber for longer-range missions, while the bulk of the unit continued flying He 111s in tactical bombing and supply roles during the retreats of 1943–1945, including operations over the Crimea, Hungary and the final relief efforts for Budapest and Breslau. Successive Geschwaderkommodore after Fiebig included Oberst Hans-Joachim Rath, Oberst Dr. Gottlieb Wolff, Oberstleutnant Heinz-Joachim Schmidt, Oberstleutnant Werner Klosinski and Major Reinhard Graubner, who led the remaining Gruppen until the unit surrendered to British forces on 8 May 1945.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RITTERKREUZTRÄGER


General der Flieger Martin Fiebig (1891-1947) was born on 7 May 1891 in Rösnitz, Upper Silesia, and entered military service on 3 March 1910 as Fähnrich in Infanterie-Regiment „von Grolmann“ (1. Posensches) Nr. 18, serving as company officer before becoming battalion adjutant at the outbreak of the First World War and later transferring to aviation as pilot and squadron leader in a bomber wing until 1918. After postwar service involving secret aviation development work in the Soviet Union and time with Lufthansa, he rejoined the Luftwaffe, rising to Oberst by 1 June 1938 and assuming command as Kommodore of Kampfgeschwader 253, soon redesignated Kampfgeschwader 4 „General Wever.“ Leading this Geschwader through the Polish campaign and the Norwegian operations of Unternehmen Weserübung, where its crews achieved notable success against targets including Andalsnes, Namsos, Grong, Dombaas and Steinkjaer, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 8 May 1940 as Oberst und Geschwaderkommodore. Shot down over Holland on 10 May 1940 during the Western Campaign and briefly held as a prisoner, he later directed close-support units with the IV. and II. Fliegerkorps on the Eastern Front from 1941, commanded the 1. Flieger-Division, and on 1 July 1942 became Kommandierender General of the VIII. Fliegerkorps. For the outstanding leadership and combat achievements of this Fliegerkorps on the Eastern Front he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 23 December 1942 as its 168th recipient while holding the rank of Generalleutnant. Promoted to General der Flieger in early 1943, he subsequently commanded the X. Fliegerkorps and other higher formations until the war’s end, after which he was extradited to Yugoslavia, convicted of war crimes related to the 1941 bombing of Belgrade, and executed by hanging in Belgrade on 23 October 1947.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kampfgeschwader_4

Ritterkreuzträger of 45. Infanterie-Division

The 45. Infanterie-Division was formed on 1 April 1938 in Linz within Wehrkreis XVII from the former Austrian 4th Division after the Anschluss and took part in the occupation of the Sudetenland before mobilizing fully in 1939 for the invasion of Poland as part of the XVII. Armeekorps under the 14. Armee of Heeresgruppe Süd, advancing through Bielitz, the Sola sector, Tarnow, Rzeszow and toward Lemberg. In 1940 it served in the Western Campaign under the XXVI. Armeekorps, crossing the Aisne and advancing past Reims along the Marne and Seine to the Loire near Nevers. Transferred east in May 1941, the division opened Operation Barbarossa on 22 June by assaulting the fortress of Brest-Litowsk, which fell after a week of intense fighting under Generalleutnant Fritz Schlieper, then pushed through the Pripet Marshes via Pinsk, crossed the Beresina toward Gomel and contributed to the Kiev encirclement before advancing toward Moscow via Rylsk and capturing Jelez. During the Soviet winter counteroffensive of 1941–1942 it suffered heavy losses while withdrawing across the Sosna and Trudy rivers, fighting in fragmented Kampfgruppen around Livny, Schtschigry and the Voronezh bridgehead under successive commanders including Generalleutnant Fritz Kühlwein. Reorganized with Infanterie-Regimenter 130, 133 and 135 (later redesignated Grenadier-Regimenter) plus Artillerie-Regiment 98, Panzerjäger-Abteilung 45 and Pionier-Bataillon 81, it endured the 1943 defensive battles near Voronezh, Rossosh, Orel and Gomel before being virtually destroyed in the Bobruisk pocket during Operation Bagration in June 1944 while serving under Heeresgruppe Mitte. Reconstituted on 18 July 1944 as the 45. Grenadier-Division from remnants and the 546. Grenadier-Division, it was redesignated 45. Volksgrenadier-Division that autumn, fought at Warsaw and Radom in 1945, retreated through Silesia to Königgrätz and finally surrendered in Czechoslovakia.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RITTERKREUZTRÄGER


Generalleutnant Helmuth von Pannwitz (1898-1947) was born on 14 October 1898 into a family of Prussian nobility on his father's estate at Botzanowitz in Silesia, near the then German-Russian border. At the age of twelve he entered the Prussian cadet school at Wahlstatt and later the main cadet school at Lichterfelde, joining the Imperial German Army as a volunteer with the 1. Ulanen-Regiment upon the outbreak of the First World War and being promoted to Leutnant at sixteen while earning both classes of the Eisernes Kreuz for bravery. After the war he fought in Freikorps units in Silesia, lived for a time in Poland as a farm administrator, returned to Germany under amnesty in 1931, served briefly in the SA, and rejoined the army in 1935 as Rittmeister in Reiter-Regiment 2 before transfer as Major to Kavallerie-Regiment 11. At the start of the Second World War he commanded Aufklärungs-Abteilung 45 of the 45. Infanterie-Division in the Polish and French campaigns. On 4 September 1941, as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur of that Abteilung, he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for actions in the Pripet Marshes during the opening month of Operation Barbarossa, when his Vorausabteilung secured Pinsk on 4 July, thrust into the Dawidgrodek-Turow area near Olszany on 8 July against strong Soviet forces, and launched a lightning attack around Olszany that rescued hard-pressed German troops east of the canal while preparing the division's subsequent advance to seize the territory between the Mostwa/Stwiga and the Pripet. Promoted to Oberst, he later formed and led the improvised Reiter-Verband von Pannwitz (also called Kampfgruppe Pannwitz) under 4. Panzer-Armee of Heeresgruppe Don, consisting of Panzer-Abteilung Sauvant, a Romanian cavalry brigade, Romanian heavy artillery, German alarm units, Cossacks and Flak. In November 1942 northeast of Kotelnikowo near Scharnutowskij this force annihilated the Soviet 61st Cavalry Division, then destroyed the 81st Cavalry Division near Kotelnikowo itself and a Soviet rifle division near Pimen Tscherni/Nebykow, thereby stabilizing the front in that sector and earning him the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 23 December 1942 as the 167th recipient. Thereafter he organized the Cossack volunteer formations that became the 1. Kosaken-Kavallerie-Division and eventually the XV. Kosaken-Kavallerie-Korps, which he commanded as Generalleutnant and later SS-Gruppenführer while being elected Feldataman by the Cossacks. He surrendered with his corps to British forces in Austria in May 1945, voluntarily accompanied his men into Soviet custody despite being exempt as a German national, and was tried in Moscow, sentenced to death and hanged in Lefortovo Prison on 16 January 1947.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/45th_Infantry_Division_(Wehrmacht)

Ritterkreuzträger of 3. Infanterie-Division / 3. Panzergrenadier-Division

The 3. Infanterie-Division was established in October 1934 under the cover designation Kommandant von Frankfurt in Frankfurt an der Oder within Wehrkreis III and received its official title on 15 October 1935. Mobilized on 1 August 1939, the division crossed into Poland as part of the 4. Armee under Heeresgruppe Nord, advancing through the Polish Corridor and participating in the encirclement battles that followed. In May 1940 it took part in the campaign in the West within the 12. Armee of Heeresgruppe A, crossing the Meuse and advancing deep into France before occupation duties near Le Creusot. Returned to Germany in October 1940, the formation was fully motorized and redesignated 3. Infanterie-Division (mot.), transferring Infanterie-Regiment 50 to the newly raised 111. Infanterie-Division. During Operation Barbarossa in June 1941 the division advanced with Heeresgruppe Nord toward Leningrad, fighting near Luga and south of Lake Ilmen, before transfer to Heeresgruppe Mitte for Operation Typhoon and the subsequent defensive battles around Moscow through the winter of 1941–42. In the summer of 1942 it moved south for Fall Blau, advancing across the Don toward Stalingrad, where it was encircled with the 6. Armee and destroyed by February 1943. Reconstituted on 1 March 1943 in southern France from remnants and the 386. Infanterie-Division (mot.), the unit was redesignated 3. Panzergrenadier-Division on 23 June 1943 under commanders including General der Panzertruppe Fritz-Hubert Gräser and later Generalleutnant Walter Denkert. Deployed to Italy, it participated in the disarmament of Italian forces after the armistice, opposed the Salerno landings, and fought at Anzio, along the Gustav Line, and in the defense of Rome before withdrawal northward. Transferred to the Western Front in August 1944, the division engaged in Lorraine, the Ardennes offensive, and the defense around Remagen, finally surrendering in the Ruhr Pocket in April 1945 after nearly continuous combat across multiple theaters.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Generalleutnant Helmuth Schlömer (1893-1995) was born on 20 May 1893 in Hausberge near Minden and joined the Königlich Preußische Armee on 9 March 1913 as a Fahnenjunker in the 8. Lothringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 159, serving as an officer throughout the First World War in roles including company commander, battalion adjutant and regimental adjutant before being retained in the Reichswehr after 1918. In the interwar years he held various troop and staff appointments and in 1935 served as an instructor at the Kriegsschule München; with the expansion of the Wehrmacht he took part in the invasion of Poland and the campaign in the West. As Oberst and Kommandeur of Schützen-Regiment 5 he distinguished himself during Operation Barbarossa, particularly in the final advance of Heeresgruppe Nord that aimed to sever the land connection to Leningrad, leading his regiment through heavily fortified and swampy terrain along the Ljuban–Ishora–Leningrad axis, for which he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 2 October 1941. Shortly thereafter he assumed command of Schützen-Brigade 7 and on 30 April 1942 was appointed Kommandeur of the 3. Infanterie-Division (mot.). As Generalmajor he directed the division in the southern sector of the Eastern Front during the 1942 summer offensive, achieving the successful crossing of the Tim on 28 June 1942, the stubborn defence of the Voronezh bridgehead from 7 to 13 July 1942, the hard-fought actions in the Don bend between 24 July and 10 August 1942, and the prolonged defence of the northern edge of the German salient at Stalingrad between the Don and the Volga. These achievements earned him the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 23 December 1942 as the 161st recipient. Promoted to Generalleutnant, he took over the Generalkommando XIV. Panzerkorps inside the Stalingrad pocket on 15 January 1943 after General der Panzertruppe Hans-Valentin Hube was flown out, and on 29 January 1943 became the first corps commander to open surrender negotiations with the Red Army. Taken prisoner with the remnants of the 6. Armee, he later joined the Nationalkomitee Freies Deutschland and the Bund Deutscher Offiziere, was released in 1949, and died on 18 August 1995 in Minden-Lübbecke at the age of 102!

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3rd_Infantry_Division_(Wehrmacht)

Ritterkreuzträger of 326. Infanterie-Division / 326. Volksgrenadier-Division

The 326. Infanterie-Division was formed on 9 November 1942 as a Kriemhilde-Einheit from replacement troops drawn from Wehrkreise VI, XII and V for occupation duties in southern France under Heeresgruppe D. Deployed by late November to the Narbonne area, it conducted security, coastal defence and anti-partisan tasks while initially organised with Grenadier-Regiment 751, Grenadier-Regiment 752, Grenadier-Regiment 753, Artillerie-Regiment 326, Schnelle-Abteilung 326, Pionier-Bataillon 326 and Infanterie-Divisions-Nachrichten-Abteilung 326. On 5 May 1943 the formation was converted into a bodenständige Infanterie-Division, its grenadier regiments redesignated Festungs-Grenadier-Regimenter and the Schnelle-Abteilung dissolved with its companies redistributed. Command passed successively to Generalleutnant Max Dennerlein, Generalleutnant Karl Böttcher and, from 1 June 1943, Generalleutnant Viktor von Drabich-Wächter. Relocated to northern France in early 1944 as army reserve near the Pas-de-Calais, the division remained largely intact until mid-July 1944 when elements crossed the Seine to form a reception line for retreating units. Committed around Caumont-l’Éventé against British forces during Operation Bluecoat, it suffered heavy losses under intense artillery and air attack; Generalleutnant Viktor von Drabich-Wächter was killed on 2 August 1944, temporary command falling to Oberst Kretsch and then Oberst Erwin Kaschner. Virtually annihilated in the Falaise Pocket by late August, the remnants were withdrawn and the division was reconstituted on 4 September 1944 in Galanta, Hungary, as the 326. Volksgrenadier-Division by redesignation of the 579. Volksgrenadier-Division. Transferred west in November, the new formation fought in the Ardennes offensive and subsequent defensive battles in the Eifel before withdrawing across the Rhine; by April 1945 its two separated Kampfgruppen entered American captivity in the Ruhr Pocket and the Harz respectively.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SCHWERTERTRÄGER


Oberstleutnant Josef Bremm (1914-1998) was born on 3 May 1914 in Mannebach in the Vulkaneifel region as the son of a Volksschule teacher, completed his Abitur, entered the Wehrmacht on 1 November 1935 with Infanterie-Regiment 7, rose through the ranks from Gefreiter and Unteroffizier to Feldwebel der Reserve and Leutnant der Reserve by 1938, and after brief discharge was reactivated in 1939 as Zugführer and later Adjutant in Infanterie-Regiment 453 of the 253. Infanterie-Division, earning the Eisernes Kreuz II. and I. Klasse during the 1940 campaigns in the West. Transferred eastward, he became Chef of the 5./Infanterie-Regiment 426 of the 126. Infanterie-Division and on the morning of 22 December 1941, with his depleted Kompanie, repelled a strong Soviet assault on the Orelje barracks bridgehead before launching an immediate counterthrust that broke into the enemy ranks, where he personally killed a commissar with machine-pistol and hand grenades, partially destroying an opposing Bataillon and shattering the rest, an action that brought him the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 18 February 1942 as Leutnant der Reserve. Continuing to distinguish himself southeast of Lake Ilmen, at the end of September 1942 he led an assault troop that penetrated and rolled up an enemy blocking position, enabling his Regiment to reach its objective, and days later shielded the Division’s flank against heavy attacks despite being wounded for the fourth time, remaining in command until the assaults were broken; for these deeds he received the 165th Eichenlaub on 23 December 1942 as Oberleutnant der Reserve and Chef of the 5./Grenadier-Regiment 426. Promoted successively to Hauptmann, Major and finally Oberstleutnant, he later commanded the Füsilier-Bataillon of the 712. Infanterie-Division and from August 1944 Grenadier-Regiment 990, fighting in Normandy, the Ardennes and the final defense of Germany. In April 1945, at the head of the remnant Kampfgruppe formed from Grenadier-Regiment 990 and supported by Tiger II tanks near Kassel, he conducted repeated counterattacks against an American armored spearhead of the U.S. Third Army, actions for which he was nominated for the Schwerter; the Association of Knight’s Cross Recipients records the 159th Schwerter as awarded on 9 May 1945 according to the Dönitz decree, though the presentation was never officially completed before the 11. Armee’s surrender. Taken prisoner by American forces at war’s end, Bremm later worked as a salesperson for agricultural machines, married Agnes Steffens, and died childless on 21 October 1998 in Monreal, remembered as the highest-decorated soldier of the Eifel region.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/326th_Infantry_Division

Original Color Photographs of Ferdinand Schörner by Walter Frentz

Generaloberst Ferdinand Schörner (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe Nord) in a picture taken on 16 January 1945 by Walter Frentz, during Brillanten award ceremony with Hitler at the Neue Reichskanzlei in Berlin, Germany. Schörner formally received the Brillanten zum Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern on 1 January 1945 as the 23rd recipient for his determined leadership as Oberbefehlshaber of Heeresgruppe Nord during the defensive battles in the Baltic region in late 1944. After taking command of Heeresgruppe Nord in July 1944, he faced the massive Soviet Baltic Offensive that began on 14 September 1944 against German forces still holding positions in Estonia and northeastern Latvia. Under Schörner’s direction the troops of Heeresgruppe Nord conducted an orderly withdrawal from these territories without suffering significant losses, despite being heavily outnumbered and repeatedly cut off. Once the remaining formations of the 16. Armee and 18. Armee were compressed into the Kurland-Kessel, Schörner organized the defence of the Courland Peninsula and directed the first three of the four major Kurland battles that followed. In these prolonged and bitter engagements the Soviet forces, employing overwhelming numerical and material superiority in infantry, armour and artillery, launched repeated large-scale assaults but were able to achieve only limited territorial gains at the cost of severe personnel and equipment losses. Schörner’s personal presence at the front, his energetic reorganization of the defensive lines, and the resolute resistance he inspired among the isolated units of Heeresgruppe Nord prevented a complete collapse of the pocket and tied down substantial Soviet strength that might otherwise have been transferred to other sectors of the Eastern Front. For these sustained defensive successes, which were among the last German operational triumphs of the war, he was awarded the Brillanten while still serving as Oberbefehlshaber of Heeresgruppe Nord, shortly before his transfer to command Heeresgruppe Mitte.

Source :
"Hitler's Personal Security: Protecting the Führer 1921-1945" by Peter Hoffmann
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=1020564&hilit=sch%C3%B6rner#p1020564
https://www.walter-frentz-collection.de/fotoarchiv/personenarchiv-a-z/personen-s/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/1054/Sch%C3%B6rner-Johann-Ferdinand.htm

Ritterkreuzträger with Bulgarian Medals

 ORDEN ZA HRABROST (ORDER FOR BRAVERY)

The Bulgarian Military Order for Bravery, known in Bulgarian as Военен орден „За храброст“, was established on 1 January 1880 by decree of Prince Alexander of Battenberg as the first national order of the Principality of Bulgaria under Article 59 of the Tarnovo Constitution, which permitted decorations solely for battlefield valor. Modeled on the Order of Military Merit of the Grand Duchy of Hesse, it was designed exclusively for military personnel to reward exceptional courage and heroism in combat and was first conferred on 17 April 1880 to thirty-three veterans of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. The badge takes the form of a white- or red-enamelled Maltese cross with crossed swords between the arms, a central medallion bearing a crowned lion or the founder’s cypher, and the inscription „За храброст“, suspended from a sky-blue ribbon edged with silver stripes. Originally structured in four classes for officers and generals together with lower Soldier’s Crosses for non-commissioned officers and enlisted men, the order was refined in 1886 by the creation of a Grand Cross reserved for the ruling monarch as Grand Master and the division of the first class into two grades, with further wartime classes added in 1915. It was awarded extensively during the Serbo-Bulgarian War of 1885, the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, the First World War, and the Second World War, recognizing both Bulgarian and foreign recipients for deeds performed under fire. After the abolition of the monarchy the order ceased to exist on 15 September 1946, yet it was revived by the 39th National Assembly on 29 May 2003 and promulgated in 2004 as a state decoration of the Republic of Bulgaria. In its modern form the order comprises three degrees, awarded with swords to military personnel and without swords to civilians for acts of bravery and heroism benefiting Bulgarian society and the state, and is conferred by the President. Throughout its history the Military Order for Bravery has remained the pre-eminent symbol of martial honor in Bulgaria, embodying the nation’s tradition of recognizing selfless courage on the field of battle.



Oberst Dr. jur. Ernst Kupfer (1907-1943) was born on 2 July 1907 in Coburg, where he attended the Ernestium secondary school before completing a banking apprenticeship; after a period of unemployment he finished his Abitur and studied jurisprudence for several semesters at the University of Heidelberg, earning his Dr. jur. degree on 4 March 1937. On 1 October 1928 he entered military service with the 5. Eskadron of the 17. Bayerisches Reiterregiment of the Reichswehr, rising through the ranks of the Heer to Rittmeister before transferring to the Luftwaffe in 1939 and undergoing training as a Stuka pilot. Assigned in September 1940 to Sturzkampfgeschwader 2 „Immelmann“, he soon became Staffelkapitän of the 7. Staffel (nicknamed 7. Schwadron in reference to his cavalry background) and flew his first combat sorties during Unternehmen Merkur over Crete. On 22 May 1941 he contributed decisively to the sinking of the British cruiser HMS Gloucester with a direct hit; later, during attacks on the Soviet Baltic Fleet at Kronstadt in September 1941, he claimed a cruiser and scored a 1 000 kg bomb hit on the battleship Oktyabrskaya Revolutsiya, yet was himself shot down three times by ground fire, the final crash leaving him with multiple skull-base fractures, other broken bones and severe concussion. While still in hospital he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 23 November 1941 as Hauptmann and Staffelkapitän 7./StG 2 „Immelmann“ after approximately 260 sorties. Recovered, he assumed command of II. Gruppe / StG 2 on 1 April 1942 as Major, once landing under fire beside a downed crew to rescue them; for his bold leadership of the Staffeln against the factory districts of Stalingrad and for completing his 500th combat mission he received the Eichenlaub on 8 January 1943. Promoted to Geschwaderkommodore of StG 2 in March 1943, he directed the unit through the Kuban battles and Operation Citadel at Kursk, temporarily commanding the ad-hoc Gefechtsverband „Kupfer“. In September 1943 he was appointed General der Schlachtflieger and Oberstleutnant, advocating the replacement of the Ju 87 and Hs 123 by the Fw 190. After 636 combat missions he was killed on 6 November 1943 when the Heinkel He 111 in which he was returning from an inspection flight crashed in bad weather in the Belasiza mountains roughly 60 km north of Thessaloniki; posthumously promoted to Oberst, he was awarded the Schwerter on 11 April 1944 for his personal and command successes over the Kuban, Kursk and the Orel salient.



SS-Obersturmbannführer Max Wünsche (1914-1995) was born on 20 April 1914 in Kittlitz and joined the SS in July 1933, graduating from the SS-Junkerschule at Bad Tölz in 1935 as SS-Untersturmführer before serving as a platoon leader in the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. In October 1938 he became an orderly officer in the Führerbegleitkommando, then in January 1940 rejoined the LSSAH as platoon commander in the 15. Kradschützen-Kompanie under Kurt Meyer during the Western Campaign, earning both classes of the Iron Cross and promotion to SS-Hauptsturmführer. As adjutant to Sepp Dietrich he took part in the Balkan and Barbarossa campaigns, later commanding the SS-Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 1 and, after staff training, the I. Abteilung of SS-Panzer-Regiment 1 as SS-Sturmbannführer. During the Third Battle of Kharkov in February 1943 his battalion broke through to Alexejewka to relieve Kurt Meyer’s encircled force and, on 25 February, on his own initiative launched an enveloping armoured attack near Jeremejewka against a strong Soviet column of the 350th Rifle Division, destroying 24 long 7.62 cm guns, 13 short 7.62 cm guns, 10 4.5 cm anti-tank guns, six 12.2 cm guns, one 10.5 cm gun, 300–400 sleds and numerous other weapons while inflicting 800–900 enemy dead for only five dead and fourteen wounded of his own, actions for which he received the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold that same day and the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes three days later as Kommandeur of the I./SS-Panzer-Regiment 1. In June 1943 he was appointed Kommandeur of the newly forming SS-Panzer-Regiment 12 of the 12. SS-Panzer-Division Hitlerjugend, promoted to SS-Obersturmbannführer in January 1944, and led the regiment from its first combat near Authie after the Allied landings, destroying 219 enemy tanks west of Caen by early July and preventing an Orne bridgehead at Amayé-sur-Seulles and Saint-André-sur-Orne on 28–29 June, for which he was awarded the Eichenlaub on 11 August 1944. Wounded while attempting to break out of the Falaise Pocket, he was captured by British forces on 24 August 1944, held in Camp 165 at Caithness until 1948, then returned to Germany, worked as an industrial manager in Wuppertal, and died in Munich on 17 April 1995.

Source :
https://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2013/03/album-foto-tokoh-third-reich-peraih.html

Ritterkreuzträger with Koppelschnitt (German Military Haircuts)

During the Second World War the standard male haircut in the German Wehrmacht, particularly within the Heer, followed a distinctive practical style known in contemporary barber manuals as the short cut or full crown haircut, in which the sides and back of the head were closely clipped or shaved with a machine starting from the left temple, continuing around the nape, and finishing at the right temple, typically rising at least one inch or more above the ears before tapering upward, while the hair on the crown remained comparatively long, often combed and slicked straight back from the forehead with pomade or petroleum jelly and, when parted, featuring a high part line. This arrangement, sometimes referred to in later reenactment contexts as a form of "Unterschnitt" or "Koppelschnitt" when the transition was sharper, ensured that the Stahlhelm and other headwear fitted securely without interference from hair, facilitated hygiene under field conditions, and presented a uniform, disciplined appearance required of Soldaten, Unteroffiziere, and Offiziere alike. Although no single rigid service regulation dictated exact millimetre lengths for every rank or branch, recruits received a strict initial "Haarschnitt" (haircuts) upon induction into units such as Infanterie-Regimenter or Panzer-Divisionen, and subsequent maintenance was enforced by company barbers or field Friseure to keep the lower portions short and the top manageable. Photographs and film of Landser in the Afrikakorps, on the Eastern Front, or in Festungen show slight individual variations—some men allowed the top to grow fuller, others kept a cleaner taper—yet the overall silhouette of short sides and longer, rearward-swept crown remained the most common throughout the Heer, Luftwaffe ground units, and even among many Waffen-SS personnel. Beards were generally discouraged except for specific specialist roles or temporary field necessity, and sideburns were kept minimal, reinforcing the clean-shaven or lightly stubbled look expected of a Soldat. The style’s practicality under combat stress, combined with its visual association with military order, made it the prevailing Haartracht from the mobilisation of 1939 until the final months of 1945, when shortages of barbers and equipment sometimes led to more irregular cuts among isolated Kampfgruppen.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HEER


Major Hans-Detloff von Cossel (1916-1943) was born on 1 July 1916 in Swakopmund, German South-West Africa, and entered military service on 6 April 1934 with Reiter-Regiment 6, receiving promotion to Leutnant on 1 April 1937 before transferring to Panzer-Regiment 35 of the 4. Panzer-Division. As Oberleutnant he took part in the Polish and French campaigns, earning both classes of the Eisernes Kreuz, and in the summer of 1941, while Führer of 1./Panzer-Regiment 35, he forced the Dnjepr crossing near Stary Bychow, broke through the Stalin Line and, after losing all his tanks and being wounded, led the survivors back across the river, actions for which he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 8 September 1941. Promoted to Hauptmann and later Major, he assumed command of I./Panzer-Regiment 35 (the so-called Bärenabteilung) in early 1943 and was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 5 May 1943 for earlier fighting around Orel and Ssewsk. During the defensive battles of Operation Kutuzov in July 1943, south of Orel, his Abteilung penetrated deep into Soviet positions, shielded a neighbouring Panzer-Division from a flank attack, and on 19 July, on his own initiative, gathered available infantry and personally led the capture of the vital height Point 254.5 with light losses while inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy; later he converted a withdrawal into a counter-attack that seized and held a village until relief arrived, and his abteilung repeatedly prevented Soviet breakthroughs. On 22 July 1943, while directing a counter-thrust near Kromny (or Gromy), he was killed in action; posthumously promoted and decorated, he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz (285th award) on 29 August 1943 as Kommandeur of I./Panzer-Regiment 35.

Source :
https://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2010/11/potongan-rambut-tentara-jerman.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Undercut_(hairstyle)
https://www.menshairforum.com/talk/Thread-SS-Haircut-and-Nazi-Hairstyle-Guide-with-Rare-Hair-Pictures
https://ww2aircraft.net/forum/threads/mens-hairstyles-in-ww2.23653/

Ritterkreuzträger of 5. SS-Panzer-Division "Wiking"

The 5. SS-Panzer-Division „Wiking“ was formed in late 1940 on the orders of Heinrich Himmler as a motorised infantry division intended to incorporate Germanic volunteers from the Netherlands, Flanders, Denmark and Norway alongside German cadres, initially designated SS-Division „Germania“ before being renamed SS-Division „Wiking“ by Führerbefehl of 21 December 1940. Its core consisted of the experienced SS-Regiment „Germania“ drawn from the SS-Verfügungs-Division, together with the newly raised SS-Regiment „Nordland“ and SS-Regiment „Westland“, plus supporting artillery, reconnaissance, pioneer and anti-tank units; command was given to SS-Obergruppenführer Felix Steiner, former commander of the SS-Standarte „Deutschland“. Although propaganda emphasised the foreign contingent, German personnel always formed the large majority of its strength. After training at Truppenübungsplatz Heuberg the division entered combat in June 1941 with Heeresgruppe Süd during Operation Barbarossa, advancing through Galicia and taking part in the encirclements at Uman and Kiev before fighting for the Dnepropetrovsk bridgehead and Rostov, then holding the Mius line through the winter of 1941–42. In summer 1942 it received its first Panzer-Abteilung and participated in Fall Blau, capturing Rostov and advancing into the Caucasus foothills as far as the Terek and Malgobek before the Stalingrad disaster forced a fighting withdrawal covering the retreat of the 1. Panzerarmee. Redesignated SS-Panzergrenadier-Division „Wiking“ on 9 November 1942 and later 5. SS-Panzer-Division „Wiking“ on 22 October 1943, it fought in the Third Battle of Kharkov, served as reserve during Operation Citadel, and suffered catastrophic losses in the Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket of early 1944, from which only remnants escaped. After reconstitution it defended at Kovel and Maciejow, where its Panzer-Regiment destroyed hundreds of Soviet tanks, then fought near Warsaw and in the relief attempts of Budapest during Operations Konrad before taking part in Operation Frühlingserwachen in Hungary. Successive commanders after Steiner included SS-Obergruppenführer Herbert Gille, SS-Oberführer Eduard Deisenhofer, SS-Standartenführer Johannes Mühlenkamp and finally SS-Oberführer Karl Ullrich. The division ended the war in Austria, where the bulk of its remaining personnel surrendered to American forces near Radstadt in May 1945.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


SS-Obergruppenführer Felix Steiner (1896-1966) was born on 23 May 1896 in Stallupönen, East Prussia, and entered the Preußische Armee in March 1914 as Fahnenjunker in the Infanterie-Regiment „von Boyen“ (5. Ostpreußisches) Nr. 41 at Tilsit, serving through the First World War where he was severely wounded, rose to Oberleutnant, and received the Eisernes Kreuz first and second class together with the Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz. After the war he joined an East Prussian Freikorps, was absorbed into the Reichswehr, and left active service in 1933 as Major before entering the NSDAP and SA and transferring in 1935 to the SS as Obersturmbannführer, soon commanding the newly formed SS-Standarte „Deutschland“ of the SS-Verfügungstruppe. As SS-Oberführer he led this Standarte through the occupation of Czechoslovakia, the Polish campaign and the Westfeldzug of 1940; for his decisive leadership in the three-day advance that captured the island group of Zeeland from French forces, the rapid thrust to Vlissingen, the storming of strong positions at the Beveland Canal and the causeway to Walcheren Island, and subsequent fighting in northern France, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 15 August 1940, becoming the first member of the Waffen-SS to receive the decoration. Promoted SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS, he formed and commanded the SS-Division „Wiking“ from December 1940, leading it with marked success yet also harsh methods during the invasion of the Soviet Union; for outstanding performance on the Eastern Front, particularly the fighting along the Terek river, the relief of the 13. Panzer-Division near Gisel and the destruction of a Soviet Guards division that threatened the sole supply road near Tschikola, he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 23 December 1942 while holding the rank of SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS. In 1943 he assumed command of the newly created III. (germanisches) SS-Panzerkorps, organising the Division „Nordland“ and the Brigade „Nederland“ under its banner, conducting successful defensive operations against breakout attempts from the Oranienbaum pocket, and preserving the integrity of his forces during the withdrawal from Leningrad and their redeployment on the Narva front, achievements for which he was awarded the Schwerter to the Ritterkreuz on 10 August 1944 as SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS. After illness, brief command of the 11. SS-Panzerarmee and the theoretical Armeegruppe Steiner in the final defence of Berlin—orders he declined to execute—he surrendered to American forces in May 1945, was released in 1948, later helped found HIAG and published apologetic works on the Waffen-SS, dying in Munich on 12 May 1966.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5th_SS_Panzer_Division_Wiking

Ritterkreuzträger of 2. SS-Panzer-Division "Das Reich"

The 2. SS-Panzer-Division „Das Reich“ originated in October 1939 when the regiments Deutschland, Germania and Der Führer of the SS-Verfügungstruppe were combined into the SS-Verfügungs-Division under the command of SS-Gruppenführer Paul Hausser. After distinguishing itself in the 1940 Westfeldzug in the Netherlands and France, particularly in the capture of Rotterdam and the clearing of Zeeland, the formation was redesignated SS-Division „Reich“ and later „Das Reich“; the regiment Germania was detached to form the cadre of another division. In April 1941 elements of the division, led by a small detachment under SS-Hauptsturmführer Fritz Klingenberg, accepted the surrender of Belgrade during the Balkan campaign. Assigned to Heeresgruppe Mitte for Operation Barbarossa, it fought in the Battle of Yelnya, the drive on Moscow and the subsequent winter battles, suffering catastrophic losses that reduced some of its regiments to mere handfuls of men. Withdrawn to France in 1942 for conversion into a Panzergrenadier-Division, it returned to the Eastern Front in early 1943, playing a central role in the recapture of Kharkov and in the southern sector of the Kursk salient during Unternehmen Zitadelle. Redesignated 2. SS-Panzer-Division „Das Reich“ in October 1943 to reflect its armoured establishment, the division was transferred to southern France in 1944. Ordered north after the Allied landings in Normandy, it conducted a protracted road march marked by clashes with the French Resistance and by the notorious massacres at Tulle on 9 June and Oradour-sur-Glane on 10 June 1944. In Normandy it fought at Mortain and in the Falaise pocket before withdrawing across the Seine, later participating in the Ardennes offensive and, after transfer eastward, in Operation Spring Awakening in Hungary. Throughout its existence the division was noted both for its combat effectiveness and for repeated war crimes against civilians and prisoners. Remnants of the formation surrendered to American forces in May 1945 near Linz.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RITTERKREUZTRÄGER


SS-Obergruppenführer Felix Steiner (1896-1966) was born on 23 May 1896 in Stallupönen, East Prussia, and entered the Preußische Armee in March 1914 as Fahnenjunker in the Infanterie-Regiment „von Boyen“ (5. Ostpreußisches) Nr. 41 at Tilsit, serving through the First World War where he was severely wounded, rose to Oberleutnant, and received the Eisernes Kreuz first and second class together with the Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz. After the war he joined an East Prussian Freikorps, was absorbed into the Reichswehr, and left active service in 1933 as Major before entering the NSDAP and SA and transferring in 1935 to the SS as Obersturmbannführer, soon commanding the newly formed SS-Standarte „Deutschland“ of the SS-Verfügungstruppe. As SS-Oberführer he led this Standarte through the occupation of Czechoslovakia, the Polish campaign and the Westfeldzug of 1940; for his decisive leadership in the three-day advance that captured the island group of Zeeland from French forces, the rapid thrust to Vlissingen, the storming of strong positions at the Beveland Canal and the causeway to Walcheren Island, and subsequent fighting in northern France, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 15 August 1940, becoming the first member of the Waffen-SS to receive the decoration. Promoted SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS, he formed and commanded the SS-Division „Wiking“ from December 1940, leading it with marked success yet also harsh methods during the invasion of the Soviet Union; for outstanding performance on the Eastern Front, particularly the fighting along the Terek river, the relief of the 13. Panzer-Division near Gisel and the destruction of a Soviet Guards division that threatened the sole supply road near Tschikola, he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 23 December 1942 while holding the rank of SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS. In 1943 he assumed command of the newly created III. (germanisches) SS-Panzerkorps, organising the Division „Nordland“ and the Brigade „Nederland“ under its banner, conducting successful defensive operations against breakout attempts from the Oranienbaum pocket, and preserving the integrity of his forces during the withdrawal from Leningrad and their redeployment on the Narva front, achievements for which he was awarded the Schwerter to the Ritterkreuz on 10 August 1944 as SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS. After illness, brief command of the 11. SS-Panzerarmee and the theoretical Armeegruppe Steiner in the final defence of Berlin—orders he declined to execute—he surrendered to American forces in May 1945, was released in 1948, later helped found HIAG and published apologetic works on the Waffen-SS, dying in Munich on 12 May 1966.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2nd_SS_Panzer_Division_Das_Reich

Ritterkreuzträger of 8. SS-Kavallerie-Division "Florian Geyer"

The 8. SS-Kavallerie-Division „Florian Geyer“ was a cavalry formation of the Waffen-SS raised in 1942 from the cadre of the earlier SS-Kavallerie-Brigade, itself created in 1941 from the SS-Totenkopf-Reiter-Standarten that had operated under the Kommandostab Reichsführer-SS. Formed between June and September 1942 on the Truppenübungsplatz Dębica near Kraków by adding a third regiment composed largely of Rumäniendeutsche and other Volksdeutsche, the division was initially designated SS-Kavallerie-Division and assigned to Heeresgruppe Mitte. It saw combat in the Rschew salient and the Orel sector until spring 1943, then conducted extensive Bandenbekämpfung operations that resulted in the killing of thousands of civilians, before being committed to the retreat toward the Dnepr in autumn 1943. On 22 October 1943 it received the numerical designation 8. SS-Kavallerie-Division; its principal units included the SS-Kavallerie-Regimenter 15, 16 and 17 (later joined by 18), together with supporting artillery, Panzerjäger, Flak, Nachrichten and Pionier elements. In December 1943 the division was withdrawn to Croatia for rest and reinforcement, where it continued anti-partisan duties, while its training battalion had earlier participated in the suppression of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. On 17 March 1944 it was granted the honorary title „Florian Geyer“ after the Franconian knight who led the Black Company in the German Peasants’ War, and it took part in the occupation of Hungary. After fighting in Transylvania following the collapse of the Romanian front, the division was driven back into Hungary and, in December 1944, became trapped inside Budapest as part of the IX. SS-Gebirgs-Korps. Commanded at various times by officers including SS-Gruppenführer Hermann Fegelein, SS-Obergruppenführer Wilhelm Bittrich, SS-Gruppenführer Bruno Streckenbach and finally SS-Brigadeführer Joachim Rumohr, the formation was virtually annihilated during the Siege of Budapest; of the roughly 30,000 men of the corps only about 800 reached German lines, and the last divisional commander took his own life after being wounded in a final breakout attempt on 11–12 February 1945. Surviving elements outside the pocket later contributed to the formation of the 37. SS-Freiwilligen-Kavallerie-Division „Lützow“.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SCHWERTERTRÄGER


SS-Gruppenführer Hermann Fegelein (1906-1945) was born on 30 October 1906 in Ansbach and began his career in 1925 with the Reiter-Regiment 17 before joining the Bavarian State Police and transferring to the SS in 1933, rising rapidly through equestrian units to command the Haupt-Reitschule München and later the SS-Totenkopf-Reiterstandarte, which evolved into the SS-Kavallerie-Brigade deployed on the Eastern Front. As SS-Standartenführer and Führer of the SS-Kavallerie-Brigade under the XXIII. Armee-Korps of the 9. Armee in Heeresgruppe Mitte, he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 2 March 1942 for his leadership in the fighting around Rzhev, where from late January 1942 the brigade held a sector against breakthroughs, then on 5 February attacked and captured the road junction and station at Tschertolino against superior forces, followed by a night assault on 9 February that destroyed an enemy group of over 1,800 men, and the seizure of Jersowo on 14 February that enabled the final annihilation of the encircled Soviet forces southwest of Rzhev. In December 1942, as SS-Oberführer commanding Kampfgruppe Fegelein in the great bend of the Don with Heeresgruppe B, he earned the Eichenlaub on 22 December after launching a personal counterthrust with staff elements and Sturmgeschütze against a Soviet penetration into a gap in his lines, defeating the attackers in close combat, sealing the breach, and on a reconnaissance thrust capturing a Russian corps headquarters including its commanding general, chief of staff, and operations documents, though he was twice wounded by snipers on 21 and 22 December. Appointed commander of the 8. SS-Kavallerie-Division “Florian Geyer” in May 1943 and promoted to SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS, then later SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS, Fegelein received the Schwerter on 30 July 1944 for the division’s successes near Orel, extensive anti-partisan operations in the Pripet Marshes during summer 1943 including Operations Weichsel, Zeithen and Seydlitz, and defensive fighting south of Kharkov in late summer 1943, where between 26 August and 15 September the division repulsed five assaults of divisional strength and about eighty-five of battalion strength, notably around Bespalowka and Bol’shaya Gomol’sha. After severe wounds in September 1943 he became Waffen-SS liaison officer at the Führerhauptquartier, married Gretl Braun on 3 June 1944, was lightly wounded in the 20 July bomb plot, and on 28 April 1945 was arrested in civilian clothes in Berlin, court-martialed for desertion, and executed by firing squad in the garden of the Reichskanzlei.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8th_SS_Cavalry_Division_Florian_Geyer
http://www.old.axishistory.com/list-all-categories/119-germany-waffen-ss/germany-waffen-ss-divisions/1276-knights-cross-holders-of-8-ss-kavallerie-division-florian-geyer?_gl=1*3s7oqs*_ga*MTUxMzQ2NjY4MC4xNzQ4NDQ3MDg5*_ga_NBNC43HFJZ*czE3ODc0NDg4MDQkbzkkZzEkdDE3ODc0NDg4OTYkajUyJGwwJGgw