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WW2 Veterans


stewy

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#57 Karl Hensler Ost , a not often seen Ost medal with packet. No Hensler Ost's have a makers mark. This is from a Vet's estate. Stewy

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Paper packets usually have the maker's name on the reverse. Otherwise many medals have the maker's code stamped into the ring, but not always.
I got a couple of years ago, a KVK 2nd class with paper packet by Franz Jungwirth of Wien (Vienna), the cross is zinc with a rather soggy looking brown coating (bronzed), but all present, the ribbon was missing, with a slight tear to the paper packet. This came from an old friend of mine, who served as a "Funker" with Panzer-Nachrichten-Regiment 2 (Pz.-Korps Guderian) on the Eastern Front and also in Jugoslawien. He also served in other units. He was Obergefreiter Eckhardt Elbelt from Spandau, born February 1920, and now living in Hamburg-Eilbek. I have known him for 30 years now, and we met at the weekend for lunch. He is now 96, but still going very strong. Unfortunately he doesn't seem to have any more souvenirs left from those days, he lost everything in an American prison camp in Austria in May 45. Eckhardt couldn't remember what he got the KVK for, but it is apparently a later version, being in zinc.
I don't think he had the Ostmedaille, although I think he could have qualified for it.

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Yes, off the top of my head I can't think of an Ost packet that doesn't have the makers name or LDO number stamped on the reverse. But such awards as ASA, KBA, PKA don't always have a maker printed on the reverse of the packet, some only have a stamp defining the award on the front. Perhaps this was a later war thing to save as much expenditure as possible. Stewy

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photo of veteran Eckhardt Elbelt from our recent weekend lunch last Saturday now added

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  • 1 year later...

Added Photo of Eckhardt's only decoration, which he gave me a couple of years ago with its original paper packet, here with replacement ribbon,
Maker: Franz Jungwirth, Wien. Zinc with a bronze coating.
Telephoned with him recently. He had a stroke late last year, and is now 98. He seems to have recovered somewhat, but hardly leaves his house at the moment, the wife or a neighbour now does most of the shopping.  I got the impression he couldn't quite remember me anymore.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Nice to see the medal and the recipient Fritz. I'm not sure Stewy will reply, we have been trying to contact him for a while now as have others. We hope you are well Stewy, if you read this please reply, allot of forum members are concerned that you are OK? 

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Eckhardt's daughter lives in France, she was seriously ill several years ago, but recovered from a major operation. She owns a large cottage in the south of France and produces most of her own foodstuffs.  She also accomodates tourists. There are grandchildren and also great-grandchildren. One granddaughter is living in Ireland, and Eckhadt's son-in-law was from England.
Marina travelled extensively to India and Afghanistan in younger years, she speaks fluent French as well as German as her native language and is also still learning English. She is a vegetarian and very self-sufficient.

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  • 3 weeks later...

It's a shame, we used to have lots of veterans who would visit the shop, but now they are practically all gone , we still get the odd soldier in to get their medals mounted but they are very few and far between now. John Aitken was in last month you can see the medals we mounted for him in this picture.   He is on the right hand side.

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  • Kenny Andrew pinned and featured this topic

Germany, neither East nor West ever rewarded, nor gave any recognition to any of their soldiers for their services in WW2. They were lucky not be have been charged with any "crimes", which many were.

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The Austrians did produce a veterans medal but not sure if it was officially issued by their Government?     

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This was apparently an official or at least semi-official decoration in recognition of the services of Austrians in WW2, without any political association. This was brought out some time in the earlier postwar years, but it is doubtful if an Austrian government of the latter years or present day would do so, politics and societies change. Austria  no longer holds a position of neutrality in Europe - since the fall of the Iron Curtain and joining the EU in 1995.

Austria was postwar occupied by the Allies in four zones, similar to Germany. Vienna was also divided up into zones, similar to Berlin.  An agreement between the allies brought about their withdrawal and the proclamation of a new constitution on 26. October 1947 with Karl Renner as the first president of the 2nd Austrian Republic (Republik Österreich). The constitution of the First Republic was re-introduced. The first new law passed was the " Gesetz des Verbots der Wiederbetätigung" - a law passed against National Socialism. It is strange that the Austrian eagle symbol has the addition of a hammer and sickel, no doubt due to Soviet influence.

No doubt, the present Austrian government regrets that it's predecessor ever allowed the issue of this medal, times and governments change.

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  • Kenny Andrew unpinned this topic
  • 7 months later...

On telephoning recently with his daughter, I learned that Eckhardt passed away last May at the age of 101. His daughter lives in France and was staying with her parents at the time.

R.I.P. Eckhardt

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  • 11 months later...

Another veteran has left us

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Curd Friedrich, former veteran of Waffen-SS Division "Frundsberg", 2018 +
I knew him from my visits to the Deutsche Seemannsheim in London E.14 in
the early 1970s. One of his younger sons is a re-enactor!

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Here with a former British veteran

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A photo with his family

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Günther Lange was in SS-Division "Wiking" and was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz
He had an antique shop in Altona.

 

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That's sad, there are not many veterans left now. 

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