A few weeks ago my grandmother died and i inherited the historical stuff cause I´m the one who is interested in history in our family. And I learned that my grandfather was a member of the party and a member of the SS. I knew that he died in the last weeks of ww2 but I never knew the circumstances and never knew about his political background. When ever I asked my grandmother about my grandfather she always only told me that he was a tall pride man and that he had a good behaviour but died on the eastern front. She never mentioned that he was a member of the SS. This is all what remained of him. I scanned some of his document which are remaining. That is him.
His last letter from the eastern front. I have much more. He must have died between March 45 and 24th April cause his Scharführer wrote to my grandmother that he is missing since 24th April after a soviet tank raid. His last function was that of a machine gunner.
It's an interesting set of papers you have posted here. Do you have an english translation of the letter? Thanks JB
About his crimes I nearly know nothing. I looked after his SS files in the Bundesarchiv but unfortunately the file was empty. I only found a note in his Reichsbahnakte, that he was at the concentration camp Bruttig-Treis, France from March 44 till June 44 but I don´t know if he was there as a guard or as his function as a Reichbahndeputy. His normal function was that as a Reichbahn employer.
You have such a lot of information about him there to go on. Are you going to do further research? Thanks for sharing these items they are interesting to see.
It's an interesting set of papers you have posted here. Do you have an english translation of the letter? Thanks JB Unfortunately I even cannot read the letters in german. If some of the germans in this board maybe can help translate it into modern german I can translate it into english language.
If some of the germans in this board maybe can help translate it into modern german I can translate it into english language. Sounds like a job for Kate.
What a fascinating set of documents Pollux5. It is this sort of thing that makes this forum (and the internet) such an amazing tool. Without them I doubt I would be able to see primary material from 'the other side' without huge expense in both time and money. So a big thank you to you and good luck with your research.
Pollux thanks for being so upfront and sharing. Can I ask - how did you first feel when you made this discovery?
What a treasure to inherit. I think you hit the jackpot receiving those in to your custodianship to keep for future generations. Thank you for sharing them with us too. Time has moved on, and there is far less of a stigma attached to which side some one was attached to in WW2. There are plenty of lessons to be learned from individual cases on all sides, and I think it is a wonderful thing that your grandfather's family held on to all these papers all this time. They must have loved and missed him a great deal, and been proud of him too. I hope someone can volunteer to translate the letter for you. ..and don't assume just because he was in the SS he committed any 'crimes' as you put it. You have to apply the law(s) applicable at that time in the places that he served. He may have done things which we today would not approve of, but then most soldiers committed acts which today in peacetime would not be tolerated. That is the nature of war and politics. It still happens in conflict zones around the world now.
Sounds like a job for Kate. I'm on it - just give me a few hours. @Pollux: Thank you for sharing all this info and material.
Hi, with the help of a local retired high school teacher, I could try to convert the text in modern German and translate it to English. I see him tomorrow anyway and ask him, because I could translate, but cannot read the German text either (I am too young).
Very interesting collection of items. Like many, I have never seen anything like it before. What are the book of stamps in post 4? Keith
Many thanks for sharing a piece of history that doesn't get shown very much on here and well done Kate for the translation - I await the English version
