Johannes "Johann/Hans" Thaler
Date of Birth: 06.02.1920 - Breitenbach am Inn, North Tirol (Austria)
Date of Death: 07.04.1945 - Wien (Ostmark)
Buried: Zentralfriedhof Wien (Austria), Plot: Gruppe 97
Battles and Operations: Battle of Baranovici (1941), Battle of Smolensk (1941), Battle of Kiev (1941), Battle of Moscow (1941), Battle of Sevastopol (1942), Rostov-on-Don (1942), Case Blue (1942), Third Battle of Kharkov (1943), Battle of Kursk (1943), Battle of Normandy (1944), Battle of the Bugle (1944-1945), and the Defense of
Vienna (1945)
Spouse: Amalia Brumme (married 1940)
Children: Nancy Thaler (born 1941)
Promotions:
01.04.1943 SS-Unterscharführer
01.09.1944 SS-Oberscharführer
Career:
00.00.1930 - 00.00.1940 Hitlerjugend
00.00.1940 SS-Panzer-Ausbildungs-und-Ersatz-Regiment Beneschau
15.09.1940 SS-Division "Reich"
00.00.194_ 6.Kompanie / Panzer-Regiment 2 / SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Das Reich"
15.04.1945 (VDK): SS-Oberscharführer, KIA in Wien
Awards and Decorations:
20.08.1942 Medaille "Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42" (Ostmedaille)
12.02.1943 Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz
27.03.1943 Panzerkampfabzeichen
07.04.1943 Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse
22.07.1943 Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse
14.08.1943 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, as SS-Unterscharführer and Panzerfahrer in 6.Kompanie / II.Abteilung / SS-Panzer-Regiment 2 / SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Das Reich". Thaler's Ritterkreuz recommendation reads as follows: "During the attack upon Teterewino, Grasnoje and Kotschetowka, Thaler drove his tank at high speed towards the enemy. Together with two other tanks, they succeeded in cutting off seventeen enemy tanks. Three of these were quickly knocked out. Soon after, Thaler's tank received a heavy frontal hit that led to the accelerator and gear shaft being damaged badly. The tank commander knew this damage was crippling and announced over the radio that this was the end of the line for them. Johannes Thaler, however, had other thoughts. He personally worked on the damaged parts, and using some improvisation and under extreme physical exertion managed to get the tank working again. It was during this physical exertion, that Thaler suffered damage to his left hand. This left him only being able to use his right hand for all required actions. All of this was done under heavy enemy fire. Once this was done, this tank went on to destroy seven more of the enemy tanks that were nearby. Thaler remained at the driving controls and maneuvered the tank into the correct position each time, despite the extreme pain he was suffering due to the earlier wound. He did not stop there and after the destruction of their tenth enemy tank, they recognized an enemy anti-tank position about 100 metres away. They advanced towards this, again under very difficult circumstances in relation to the mechanical state of the tank and the physical state of its driver. They succeeded in destroying two anti-tank guns and prevented the remaining two from firing, thereby removing this enemy threat. These additional achievements, not to mention the fact that a disabled tank surrounded by the enemy was an easy target, can be attributed solely to the quick independent actions of this brave tank driver. It resulted in a decisive outcome for the company and altogether thirty enemy tanks were destroyed, as well as the anti-tank guns." The medal was submitted on 18.07.1943. Preliminary document and decoration on 19.08.1943 to Heeresgruppe Süd.
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Johann “Hans” Thaler, "Der Panzerfahrer mit hoher Schmerzgrenze" (The tank driver with a high pain threshold), was born on February 6th, 1920 in Breitenbach am Inn, and died (killed) on April 7, 1945 in Vienna. Johann "Hans" Thaler was a German SS Oberscharführer and tank driver in the Panzertruppe, as well as a recipient of the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross). He was the first tank driver to be awarded this high award!
Life As one of four children, Johann "Hans" Thaler was born on February 6, 1920, southwest of Kufstein in Breitenbach am Inn, the son of a simple mountain farmer. The Thaler family lived in poor conditions, which is why he had to work as a laborer on construction sites at the local village school immediately after finishing his school in order to be able to support his family with his earnings. He was used to hard work from his early youth.
At the age of almost 20 in 1940, Hans Thaler signed up as a volunteer to join the Waffen-SS. This was followed by his training as a tank driver at the SS Panzer Training and Replacement Regiment in Beneschau. After graduation, he received his position order and had to report to the 6th company of the 2nd Panzer Regiment of the SS Division "Reich" (from May 1942 SS Division "Das Reich"), which was in action on the Eastern Front at the time. This was followed by countless missions as a crew member of a Panzerkampfwagen III (Pz.Kpfw. III), where he was deployed in the battles for Baranovici, Smolensk, Kiev and Moscow between 1941 and 1942.
From May 9, 1942, the SS Division “Das Reich” was renamed the SS Panzergrenadier Division “Das Reich”. During the previous battles, especially the harsh winter battles in the East, the SS Panzergrenadier Division "Das Reich" caused heavy losses to the enemy, which was rewarded with an above-average number of awards of the Ritterkreuz to division members. The division was mentioned in the Wehrmacht report of August 27, 1943 as follows: "In the heavy fighting in the area around Kharkov, the SS Panzergrenadier Division 'Das Reich' earned particular fame in attack and defense. The division destroyed 1,000 enemy tanks within 35 days of fighting."
Already on November 6, 1943, this success story was even surpassed: "Between Kremenchug and Kiev, our troops threw the Soviets off some Dnieper islands and repulsed repeated enemy attacks in the Dnieper loop southeast of Kiev. In these battles, the SS Panzergrenadier Division 'Das Reich' has the 2,000th enemy tanks detroyed since the beginning of this year. This means that at the end of the war it was the division "Das Reich" that produced the most Ritterkreuzträger (Knight's Cross winners) within the Waffen-SS and had the highest number of enemy tanks knocked down.
On October 22, 1943, the division was renamed the SS Panzer Division "Das Reich". Johann Thaler has now received his promotion to SS-Unterscharführer. Hard missions followed during the winter fighting, where he was deployed as the driver of a Panzerkampfwagen IV (Pz.Kpfw. IV) belonging to SS-Untersturmführer Karl-Heinz Worthmann, who later won the Ritterkreuz. The crew around tank commander Worthmann and tank driver Thaler were a well-coordinated team, which they were to prove several times in the battles near Kharkov, Kursk and Prokhorovka. For example, they launched an attack against a heavily fortified enemy position that consisted of 22 anti-tank guns, or Pak for short. After the Panzerkampfwagen IV was hit by an anti-tank gun, the control stick broke, meaning the tank was only able to maneuver to a limited extent. Despite the problem, Thaler was aware of the danger: they still makes the tank an easy target for the enemy! So Thaler continued on so that the entire Pak Front could be wiped out. After Thaler's Panzer IV was knocked down by a Soviet anti-tank gun, with Thaler sustaining a slight wound, he was still able to rescue his commander, who had gotten stuck on the tank's drive. For this effort, Karl-Heinz Worthmann was awarded the Ritterkreuz on March 31, 1943, and the brave Johann Thaler was awarded the Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse. Thaler's commitment is all the more important because he suffered inflammation on his left arm before the deployment. Since there was a risk of blood poisoning, which should not be underestimated, the doctor recommended that the arm be immobilized. Although the higher command level had already organized a replacement driver, Thaler refused to be changed and drove the mission himself. Since only his right arm was usable, he operated the gearbox and both brakes with just one arm, which resulted in extraordinary strain.
On July 14, 1943, Thaler was wounded during an operation east of Belechinina. During an attack north of Lutschki, Thaler's Panzerkampfwager IV managed to shoot down four Soviet tanks, impressing the enemy with his daring driving skills. For this success, Thaler was awarded the Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse. Now Thaler's most impressive mission was to follow, which would go down in war history: During an attack from Teterewino on Grasnoye and Kochetowka, Thaler's Panzerkampfwagen IV was shot immobile. Thaler, who was once again aware of the danger, acted immediately and repaired the damage in the middle of the battle (!) and suffered severe bruises on his hand from the bent rod. The Panzer IV, which was once again operational, knocked down a total of 10 tanks and 4 anti-tank guns in the ensuing battle! On July 18, 1943, Thaler's superior wrote the award proposal for the Ritterkreuz, which was approved by the regimental commander on July 22, 1943.
The proposal for the award of the Ritterkreuz read as follows: "In the attack from Teterewino on Grasnoye and Kochetowka, Thaler drove against the enemy at top speed without any inhibition and thus made it possible to cut off and destroy 17 enemy tanks. After 3 enemy tanks had already been knocked down, his own tank received a severe frontal hit, which caused the gas linkage to break. When the commander asked 'Is everything OK?', Thaler replied 'The vehicle is moving.' He tore off the casing in which the gas linkage was led to the engine and operated the throttle linkage with both hands with extreme effort. In order to be able to keep the engine running while he needed one hand for the gearbox and steering brake, Thaler clamped the throttle linkage with his left hand. In doing so, Thaler sustained severe bruises to the left hand, so that it took superhuman energy to repeatedly jam the injured hand into the throttle linkage. Despite these enormous difficulties, he managed to drive the tank in such a way that the commander was able to knocked down another 7 tanks. After the 10th tank was destroyed, at front some 4 anti-tank guns was recognized at a short distance of around 75-100m. Thaler also carried out this attack with extreme courage under extremely difficult conditions. Two anti-tank guns were destroyed, two others were so surprised that the crew did not get around to firing. The credit for this goes to Thaler, who made this possible with his fast drive. Only after the battle did Thaler report that the tank was not ready for use and had it connected. Through his independent decision to continue driving even though the tank was no longer operational and his incredible courage, Thaler contributed to the fact that 10 tanks and 4 anti-tank guns were destroyed from his tank alone. He played a crucial role in the success of the company, which knocked down a total of 30 tanks in this battle.'
SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler was awarded the Ritterkreuz on August 14, 1943 for his performance and great personal commitment as a tank driver in the 6th company of the SS Panzer Regiment 2 "Das Reich" and was simultaneously promoted to SS-Oberscharführer. The tank driver thus joined the list of well-known war-heroes of the "Das Reich" division, including almost 70 Ritterkreuzträger, such as: Paul "Papa" Hausser, who was the commanding general of the SS Panzer Corps with the rank of SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS who was awarded the 261st Eichenlaub to his Ritterkreuz on July 28, 1943, or Walter Krüger, who was the then commander of the SS Panzergrenadier Division "Das Reich" with the rank of SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS, who received the 286th Eichenlaub. Like Thaler, both received high honors during the Battle of Kursk. Other well-known Ritterkreuz recipients were Wilhelm Bittrich, Heinz Harmel, Georg Keppler, Matthias Kleinheisterkamp, Walter Krüger, Otto Kumm and Heinz Lammerding.
Thaler had proven himself several times in action as a tank driver. Now training to become a tank commander followed. After completing his training as a tank commander in 1943/44, he was deployed during the battles near Kamenets-Podolsk, Normandy, Falaise and the Ardennes. In 1945, tough missions in Hungary and Austria followed, which means that his final number of missions must have been very high. Unfortunately, fate was not kind to Thaler and struck mercilessly on April 7, 1945. As a tank commander, Thaler was killed during street fighting defending the Austrian capital Vienna. He met a soldier's death when his tank was knocked down from a basement - probably by a large-caliber anti-tank rifle. His body could not be recovered. Johann Thaler was just 25 years old.
He married in 1940 to Amalia Brumme in the Catholic faith, and had one daughter, Nancy, born 1941, who immigrated to America in 1948.
SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler on the day he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, August 1943. At that time he served as Panzerfahrer in 6.Kompanie / II.Abteilung / SS-Panzer-Regiment 2 / SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Das Reich".
SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler.
SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler.
SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler inside the tank.
Ritterkreuzträger SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler (center) gathered with his comrades in front of a camouflaged Panzer IV. He received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 14 August 1943 as a Panzerfahrer in 6.Kompanie / II.Abteilung / SS-Panzer-Regiment 2 / SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Das Reich", the only tank driver in the Waffen-SS to win the Ritterkreuz! The picture was taken by Kriegsberichter Theobald of Kriegsberichter-Zug Oberbefehlshaber West during the Battle of Normandy, June 1944. Other pictures from this sequence can be seen HERE.
SS-Unterscharführer Johann Thaler (Panzerfahrer in 6.Kompanie / II.Abteilung / SS-Panzer-Regiment 2 / SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Das Reich") featured in Die Deutsche Wochenschau (German Newsweek) Nr. 680, 15 September 1943. Thaler received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 14 August 1943 as the first tank driver to be awarded this high award!
Source :
Bundesarchiv photo archive
"Die Waffen SS: Eine Bilddokumentation" by Herbert Walther
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=29879&hilit=thaler&start=20715
https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Johann_Thaler
https://reibert.info/media/img_95560_19896-jpg.60067/
https://sammler.ru/index.php?/topic/191157-%D0%B0%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BC-%D1%81%D1%81/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/35952/Thaler-Johann-Hans-Waffen-SS.htm
https://www.tumbex.com/ritterkreuz1939-1945.tumblr/post/165264947660/johann-hans-thaler-der-panzerfahrer-mit-hoher
https://web.archive.org/web/20110104235731fw_/http://ritterkreuztraeger-1939-45.de/Waffen-SS/T/Thaler-Johann.htm
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/forum/wehrmacht-uniforms-and-equipment/tony-barto-ss-uniforms-and-insignia-forum/84663-ss-black-panzer/page3#post1613850
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