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High quality color & exceptional B/W photographs. German side


Fritz

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Nice detailed photo of SS soldiers getting presented awards. A mixture of officers and NCO's, with a good amount of badges such as the infantry assault, Iron Cross 1st class and wound badges. They have the "Der Fuhrer" cuff title on the sleeves. 

Der Führer was first formed in September 1938 after Germany's annexation of Austria during an NSDAP Rally in Nurnberg and authorised to wear their new title. Later they were to become the "2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich" but ratained the right to wear the "Der Führer" cuff title. In October 1943 they underwent yet another name change, that of the 4th SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment "Der Führer"

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Here is an interesting sight, Der Spiess (easily identified by the 2 rows of tresse on his cuffs) motivating a troop. Looks like an inspection of sorts, they are holding towels and they are wearing low quarter shoes. I guess he is not happy with some of the results!

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Photo from France in 1940, German troops watching over captured soldiers. The three German in the foreground all the the Blitz patch on their arms indicating they were involved with signals. Good view of German field gear as well as that of the French troops. 

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Nice photo of Germans gathering captured US weapons. The soldier on the left has 6 M1 Garand semi-auto rifles and at least one M-1923 ammunition belt that held the rounds for the rifles. The soldier on the right has a M1 on his right shoulder and on his left, another ammo belt as well as two Thompson sub-machine guns. The left one is the M1A1 model and the right side is the M1928A1 model, both fired the .45 caliber pistol round. 

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The first Ritterkreuzträger (Knight's Cross recipient) in Tunisia: Stabsfeldwebel Ewald Mrusek received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 19 january 1943 for heroism while serving as a Zugführer (Platoon Leader) in 2.Kompanie / Feld-Bataillon "Tunis 1" / Infanterie-Regiment "Tunis" (part of 5. Panzerarmee), in the winter 1942/43 in Tunis. Mrusek received the  medal after he defended an important elevated position in the Tunisian forward area with only nine men and, thanks to them, a strategically important section of land could be reclaimed from the Allied forces. The Ritterkreuz award ceremony would be held a month later, on.17 February 1943, in Tunisia, North Africa. This pictures was taken on that date. Mrusek himself was born on 26 December 1911 in Beuthen/Silesia, Germany, and died on 24 March 1981 in Bremen, Germany. His other medals and decorations: Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 4.Klasse, 4 Jahre; Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse und I.Klasse; Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen in Silber; Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz; and Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42

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 SS-Obersturmbannführer Vinzenz “Zenz” Kaiser. He was a battle hardened veteran of the Eastern front in the "Das Reich" Division. During the fighting in Kharkov, he personally destroyed 4 enemy tanks with hand held weapons. Wounded numerous times, in 1944, after recovered he was posted to the SS Panzergrenadier school and made Commander of the SS Panzergrenadier Lehr Regiment. In March 1944 this unit was sent to Hungary and was integrated into the 16th SS-Panzergrenadierdivision “Reichsführer". After the successful capture of Budapest he returned to the school and was awarded the Close Combat badge in gold for his 50th confirmed day in close combat. He went on to fight numerous battles, eventually being recommended for the oak leaves to the Knights cross, however this was never completed as the war ended. He fought on the western front in 1940, as well as the Italian and Russian fronts. There is some controversy about his death as his body was never found, but it seems he was killed by American troops around Nurnberg while on a recon mission.

He was awarded the Knights Cross, Iron Cross 1st and second class, Gold Close Combat Clasp, wound badge in silver, infantry assault badge, 4 tank destruction badges.

 


 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Here is something not often seen, the M39 Gas suit, which was introduced in mid 1941. It consisted of boots, pants, gloves, a bib type neck and shoulder cape. All of these items came in a rubberized pouch. These kits were usually kept in the supply train and with troops who were trained with decontamination procedures. Although not seen very often, you can still find these sets for a reasonable price. Last set I saw a few months ago was around $300. Included is a image of these items. 

Source: Internet

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  • 2 weeks later...

Bildergebnis für mackenzie battledress ww2

German troops in Rome salute a sentry of the Vatican Guard, who has a Gew. 98 with the long bayonet

Bildergebnis für mackenzie battledress ww2

Gebirgsjäger at the Swiss border

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Here is the Enigma coding machine, probably early war. Note the bottle green collar and shoulder boards, also the rifles stacked in the foreground.

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Nice view of the Sd.Kfz. 251 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug 251) in North Africa. It was a versatile halftrack, with many modifications and models used. Here it is in the role of a signals unit. 

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Here is a nice posed photograph of a German Soldier and the Flammenwerfer 35. This unit could project a flame stream 25 meters away. It weighed 36 kilos and had about 10 seconds worth of fuel used in a continuous burst, it was used up till 1941 when it was replaced by the M41 version. 

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During the course of the war, the Germans recruited many foreign troops to bolster their forces, sometimes in support roles or in combat. Sometimes these recruits came from occupied territories, others from neutral or enemy countries. The image below shows some of these troops, most likely Russian far east troops. 

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Uncommon image of DAK troops at a field kitchen in North Africa. 

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New recruits for Grossdeutschland getting outfitted.

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Nice detailed image of a German mountain soldier, an unteroffizier. Looks in need of a good rest. 

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1940, Heinkel He 111 Fliegerschütze wearing a steel helmet operating MG 15. A really remarkable picture. Notice also the spent cartridge tube to collect shell cases, loose shell cases within the machine could cause mechanical problems with the system.

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A well known photo from the Norwegian campaign, possibly Oslo, April 1940

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I like the LW gunner photo Fritz! Very nice.

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He 111 on the production line, possibly at the Heinkelwerke Rostock or Oranienburg

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He 111. around 8. May 1945, quite a few escapes were made to the West using larger aircraft, also Ju 52. The intention was to land in the western allied zones rather than wait for the Russians. This one came from northern Norway.

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Here is a GrossDeutschland (GD) NCO, with his MP-40, side cap in his belt, general assault badge, EK first class. Note his Y-Straps have had the side straps removed as evident by the hole in his strap where the grommet was to attach the side straps. 

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Here is a nice photo of 2 German troops manning a M1914 French Hotchkiss heavy machine gun, which is just visible on the left. The feed strips for this gun are at the bottom left of the photo. The information regarding the photo says it was taken on the Eastern Front, but not anywhere specific. Note the stick grenades, pistol holster and badges. 

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Here are some images of Batterie Lindemann which held 40.6 CM guns that were part of the Atlantic Wall. 

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Nice view of the Panzerschreck anti-armor weapon. Note the tank destruction sleeve badges on the 2 soldiers. 

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Hauptmann Peter Kisgen, ace tank destroyer, instructs young recruits in the handling of the anti-tank "Panzerfaust" weapon. Note the tank destruction badges on his sleeve. 

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Here is Gunther Viezenz who has the distinction as the highest scoring hand-held tank destroyer with a tally of 21. He has 4 tank destruction badges in gold and one in silver. He also had the EK first and second class, the silver infantry assault badge, black wound badge, silver wound badge, eastern front medal, and the Knights Cross. He survived the war and became a Colonel in the Bundeswehr and retired in 1980. The photo below was before he exchanged some of the silver ones for the gold ones. 

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