Nice period photos (all jackets except A-2's)

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Never knew he was captured by the Russians .

Burt. Western allies made an agreement with Soviet. For POWs who surrender themselves to the western allies, they have to hand over to soviets , if their units were fought in eastern front.

 

[B-Man2]

Burt. Western allies made an agreement with Soviet. For POWs who surrender themselves to the western allies, they have to hand over to soviets , if their units were fought in eastern front.

Never knew that either. I’m surprised that any of the POWs who were surrendered over survived post war .

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Never knew that either. I’m surprised that any of the POWs who were surrendered over survived post war .

Not very high ratio , perhaps. The key to stay alive for certain, is individual pow was mastered a trade or tech , that soviet needed it in urgent for rebuild work. In that case, Soviet gonna give him good life condition, as good as Soviet worker/ engineer who did the same for mother Russia.

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Yuri Gagarin , attending parachuting training.

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

where he was first sentenced to death, later on it was commuted to 20 years ( if he „cooperates „… which he did not.)..

Japanese used similar method, try to make captured ROC pilots to … cooperate with them, work for china collaborator government , over years, they captured many ROC pilots, over 100 for least, but successes only once. Real man wether he came from, never turn coat against his own nation.

 

[Pilot]

Japanese used similar method, try to make captured ROC pilots to … cooperate with them, work for china collaborator government , over years, they captured many ROC pilots, over 100 for least, but successes only once. Real man wether he came from, never turn coat against his own nation.

You are right and it should not have happened.
Hermann Graf ( 212 confirmed aerial victories) was turned around by the NKVD and was released after only less than 5 years of GULAG..
He betrayed to say the least his inmates and former squadron members/inmates.
He was excluded of all post war reunions/ memberships/ veterans meetings/brotherhoods etc.

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Fritz Christen , the first private who awarded Knight Cross , get full tens years in gulag as well.

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

You are right and it should not have happened.
Hermann Graf ( 212 confirmed aerial victories) was turned around by the NKVD and was released after only less than 5 years of GULAG..
He betrayed to say the least his inmates and former squadron members/inmates.
He was excluded of all post war reunions/ memberships/ veterans meetings/brotherhoods etc.

Any German military serviceman , if he really committed any real war crimes at eastern front , and Soviet authorities have a sort of solid proof, he get trialed and shot right way, after Soviet authorities got him.

 

[Pilot]

Any German military serviceman , if he really committed any real war crimes at eastern front , and Soviet authorities have a sort of solid proof, he get trialed and shot right way, after Soviet authorities got him.

101% correct.
With solid evendences of real war crimes, ( according to international laws ) his chances of survival were near zero.

 

[Thomas Koehle]

Fritz Christen , the first private who awarded Knight Cross , get full tens years in gulag as well.
View attachment 144563

What was it awarded for?

 

[Pilot]

What was it awarded for?

Fritz Christen

Fritz Christen (June 29, 1921 – September 23, 1995) was a decorated soldier of the Totenkopf division of the Waffen-SS during World War II. Having missed the Polish campaign, and having cut its teeth successfully in France, the Totenkopf division was heavily embroiled in combat on the Eastern...

military-history.fandom.com

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

What was it awarded for?

Sept 1941, he destroyed seven T34 single handed after his gun crew were all killed, in result stoped a potential Soviet breakthrough upon German line.

 

[Erwin]

Hey Shanghai-Mayne, why cropped image he went to gulag, as was a member of the Totenkopf Division, which was well known for committing war crimes on the eastern front [especially under the Eicke command]. Usually, members of the 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf were not taken into imprisonment by Soviet soldiers. It looks like he was "lucky" to return, maybe captors didn't get his Soldbuch - this was a common thing for SS POWs.

BTW it is good to remember that a lot of skilled civilians [especially coal miners, but also other skilled workers, also women] were taken to the soviet force labor-camps, even before the war was officially finished in May [in Europe]. This is not a very well-known fact regarding how civilians were treated by the Soviets.

 

[Thomas Koehle]

@Pilot and @Shanghai-Mayne thanks for the hints ...

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Hey Shanghai-Mayne, why cropped image he went to gulag, as was a member of the Totenkopf Division, which was well known for committing war crimes on the eastern front [especially under the Eicke command]. Usually, members of the 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf were not taken into imprisonment by Soviet soldiers. It looks like he was "lucky" to return, maybe captors didn't get his Soldbuch - this was a common thing for SS POWs.

BTW it is good to remember that a lot of skilled civilians [especially coal miners, but also other skilled workers, also women] were taken to the soviet force labor-camps, even before the war was officially finished in May [in Europe]. This is not a very well-known fact regarding how civilians were treated by the Soviets.

In general I don’t like SS or W-SS, since I watched a French movie based on Oradour-sur-Glane during early 1990s.
I use Christen as example, because it looks like , Soviet authority was seeking revenge against those German servicemen, who destroyed a lot of Soviet high value equipment during the war time.
Also , if Christen did participated massacre against Soviet non-combatants or captured Soviet partisan, and Soviet authority has solid proof, why not simply shot him? Like what happened to other members of the 3rd division.

I know about a couple of stories about Soviet troops looting German population as laborer force , but those stories lack certain elements, make me believe it’s kind of psychological warfare material.

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Barkhorn ,Hartmann ,Steinhoff and Rall

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

canadian troops at Italy

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

An orphan at Kunming , he was adoptioned by 14th AF

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]

Soviet paratrooper at Praha.

 

[Shanghai-Mayne]