The story of a little HJ boy in a big World War

Joined
Jan 2, 2013
Messages
10
Thanks Received
10
Hello

Beginning this year I got this small document group of a HJ boy that ended the war in a Grenadier regiment. The paperwork is almost complete with an extra bonus a personal handwritten war diary. This is always helpful to get some background information to complete the info in the soldbuch.
HJ is not my field of collecting but when i always like to research a document group like this.

I would like to thank the guys at dokumentenforum.de and Matthias (ake Arthur Spooner @ GCA) for their help decoding the handwritten German texts.

If you have some extra information that i missed please post.

Best regards


stijn :belgium

You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Birth

Philipp Schulmeyer is born on 20/04/1925 in Langen. His family lived at Mühlstrasse 10 in Langen. His mother is Marie Schulmeyer born Kolb. There is little to no information about his father. In his soldbuch there isn’t a father mentioned. In the group there is a document for “Allgemeines Ehrenzeichen mit der Inschrift für Tapferkeit“ for a Philipp Schulmeyer. It is possible this was his father but I don’t know for sure.
Unfortunately I can’t read with is written on the reverse of the document.

You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
HJ Period

On 01/09/1934 when Philipp is 9 years old he joins the HJ, Jungbannes 287.
Here are the entries that are on the “Mitgliedsausweis der Hitlerjugend”:

01/09/1934 Aufgenommen in die HJ und JB 287 zugeteilt
27/03/1938 Hordenführer (Deutsches Jungvolk)


On 17/09/1938 he get his „Führerausweis der Hitlerjugend”

17/09/1938 Führer der Jungenschaft 13/25
01/10/1940 - 04/10/1941 Kameradschaftführer (Motor Gefolgschaft 4/287)
30/01/1941 Oberrottenführer (HJ)
05/10/1941 Scharführer (Gefolgschaft 36/287)
30/01/1942 Kameradschaftsführer

You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
RAD

Philipp kept a personal diary (Kriegstagbuch = KTB) is a small booklet. There was interesting information that gives more background to his story. After his HJ “career” he went to RAD “Reichsarbeitsdienst”. On 11/01/1943 he became a RAD member. There are +/- 31 pictures of his RAD time. Looking at the pictures and what is written on the back of some I can only conclude he served in “Westen” and more specifically in France. Here is a small compilation of a few of his RAD pictures.

You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Wehrmacht

There is no other information about his RAD time, only these pictures. In his diary I read he was “entlassen” on 24/09/1943. On 02/10/1943 he enlisted in the Wehrmacht and had to go to Kaserne Friedberg in Hessen. A little search on the internet showed me that this place would become very famous because of one special soldier. In 1960 Elvis Presley stayed there. Here is a picture of the barracks in 1962.
There are only a handful pictures of his time in the Wehrmacht. Most of them are taken during his training.

According to his Soldbuch the first unit he served in was Reserve-Infanterie-Bataillon 36. The Lexicon der Wehrmacht says this unit was stationed in the French city “Bourg” from December 1943. This is consistent with the information I found on the reverse of a picture (top left pic of the compilation): Im Westen, 26/12/1943.

It isn’t clear till what date Philipp was in training. From 12/03 till 28/03/44 he has Einsatzurlaub. During this holiday he went back home to Langen.

Next unit is Grenadier Regiment 464. It isn’t clear when he joins this regiment. GR 464 is part of 253. Infantry Division. A rather infamous unit as you can read in this article regarding warcrimes (Kriegsverbrechen).
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/253._Infanterie-Division_(Wehrmacht)

In July the 253. division fought in the North of Ukraine at Cholm.
He got wounded on 09/07/1944. In his Soldbuch we can follow the journey he made from the front. On 12/07 he came to Kriegslazarett 4/533. He gets the code 31a (=bulletwound). It isn't indicated where he got hit. In the Kriegslazarett he stayed till 23/07. His transfer took 2 days because on 25/07 he arrived in Reserve Lazarett II in Zittau. He stayed there till 08/08 and then he moved to a village next to Zittau: Olbersdorf. There was a Teillazarett from Reservelazarett I Zittau. It is hard to read but it looks he got the code 31b (= schrapnel).

When he came in the Reservelazerett Olbersdorf / Zittau he got a little paper that he could use to proof that his Soldbuch was at the lazarett. He also had the luck to get a Urlaubs-Ausweis for 24 hours two times.
At the hospital he gets the wound badge in Black. Unfortunately there was only the Urkunde. The actual medal isn’t there anymore. It is a standard document signed by a doctor who worked at Zittau.
He stayed at Olbersdorf till 17/11/1944. After he is released from the hospital he can go on holiday from 20/11 - 19/12/1944.
Just when he is returning to his unit he gets Sonderurlaub (special holiday) because his father died. Because of this tragedy he can spend Christmas at home with his mother as he is at home till 11/01/1945.
 
There is no other information about his RAD time, only these pictures. In his diary I read he was “entlassen” on 24/09/1943. On 02/10/1943 he enlisted in the Wehrmacht and had to go to Kaserne Friedberg in Hessen. A little search on the internet showed me that this place would become very famous because of one special soldier. In 1960 Elvis Presley stayed there. Here is a picture of the barracks in 1962.
There are only a handful pictures of his time in the Wehrmacht. Most of them are taken during his training.

According to his Soldbuch the first unit he served in was Reserve-Infanterie-Bataillon 36. The Lexicon der Wehrmacht says this unit was stationed in the French city “Bourg” from December 1943. This is consistent with the information I found on the reverse of a picture (top left pic of the compilation): Im Westen, 26/12/1943.

It isn’t clear till what date Philipp was in training. From 12/03 till 28/03/44 he has Einsatzurlaub. During this holiday he went back home to Langen.

Next unit is Grenadier Regiment 464. It isn’t clear when he joins this regiment. GR 464 is part of 253. Infantry Division. A rather infamous unit as you can read in this article regarding warcrimes (Kriegsverbrechen).
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/253._Infanterie-Division_(Wehrmacht)

In July the 253. division fought in the North of Ukraine at Cholm.
He got wounded on 09/07/1944. In his Soldbuch we can follow the journey he made from the front. On 12/07 he came to Kriegslazarett 4/533. He gets the code 31a (=bulletwound). It isn't indicated where he got hit. In the Kriegslazarett he stayed till 23/07. His transfer took 2 days because on 25/07 he arrived in Reserve Lazarett II in Zittau. He stayed there till 08/08 and then he moved to a village next to Zittau: Olbersdorf. There was a Teillazarett from Reservelazarett I Zittau. It is hard to read but it looks he got the code 31b (= schrapnel).

When he came in the Reservelazerett Olbersdorf / Zittau he got a little paper that he could use to proof that his Soldbuch was at the lazarett. He also had the luck to get a Urlaubs-Ausweis for 24 hours two times.
At the hospital he gets the wound badge in Black. Unfortunately there was only the Urkunde. The actual medal isn’t there anymore. It is a standard document signed by a doctor who worked at Zittau.
He stayed at Olbersdorf till 17/11/1944. After he is released from the hospital he can go on holiday from 20/11 - 19/12/1944.
Just when he is returning to his unit he gets Sonderurlaub (special holiday) because his father died. Because of this tragedy he can spend Christmas at home with his mother as he is at home till 11/01/1945.

You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Here are 4 other pics that go with the previous post.

You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Back to the front

In his KTB he writes that on 17/01/1945: Abstellung Mühlheim / Ruhr. There he starts a long journey to reach his unit again. In his KTB there are is a long list of places he passes : Essen, Bochum, Siegen, Haiger, Wetzlar, Frankfurt, Aschaffenburg, Heigenbrücken Nürnberg, Pilsen, Prag, Wien (Strasshof). They stay for 2 days in Vienna, where he attends a comical opera „Eine Nacht in Venedig“.
From Wien to Lundenburg to Zilin and finally he arrives in Jablunkau (Oberschlesien) on 06/02/1945. Jablunkau (=Jablunkov) is situated in the Czech Republic near the Polish border. According the Lexicon the 253. ID is active in Oberschlesien at that time which is consistent with Philipp’s information. From there they march 100 kilometers through mountains and in stormy weather. He finally reaches the front on the 14/02.

On 19/02 they already have to repel the first attack of the Russians. Next attack is on 21/02 and 2 days later the third. Philipp writes that are on duty (Einsatz) day and night. After 7 days without sleep they can rest on 24/02 in the second divisional positions for 3 days. After that they are thrown back into action. They change a lot of times of position (Stellungswechsel).

From 07/03 till 09/03 he is in the “Tross” for treatment for two frozen feet. When he returns at the front on 10/03 there is a big attack from the Russians at Schwarzwasser, +/- 30 000 shots (maybe he means artillery shells?). He will not be staying long with his unit because a day later (11/03) he gets wounded a second time. This time a bullet grazed his head (Kopfstreifschuss) and one shot that went through (Durchschuss) his right upper leg.

He is transported on a stretcher to the Hauptverbandplatz where he only stays one day. He is transferred to Wal-Meseritz (Meseritz is German name for Midzyrzecz, Poland). There Philipp is put on a hospital train with direction Prag. It takes 7 days (12/03-19/03) to get there. On 01/04 he is operated. The recovery takes about a month as he is released on 29/04.

From the hospital he goes to the Frontleitstelle in Prag. Then his journey starts to get back to his unit. Via a few Frontleitstelle he finally finds the “tross” of his unit in Patzmannsdorf (Austria near Czech border) on 02/05. He rides with the tross until 10/05 because he still needs medical care as his wounds haven’t healed completely yet.
In the village “Heinrichsweiler/Protektorat” he gets his promotion to Gefreiten and gets the E K II. The cross is missing but the document survived. The date on the document is 21/03/1945. At that date he was still in the hospital in Prag. There is no indication for what kind of action he got the cross. It is signed by Generalleutnant Becker (Carl), commander of 253. ID. Becker got the Ritterkreuz (29/10/1942) mit Eichenlaub (14/04/1945).

You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
POW

On 09/05/1945 they become a POW of the Russian troops.

In his war diary there are a lot of entries describing the daily life in the POW camp. Matthias (aka Arthur Spooner) made the transcription of the written German text. Once again thank you very much for your help and time Matthias!! Some words were hard to decipher they are indicated with a ?.
The text gives a good inside of the life in a POW camp. He writes until 29/09/1945.

It isn’t clear on what exact date Philippe is released. It has to be second semester 1945. He writes and signs himself the last entry ever in his Soldbuch: Urlaub für immer! - 01/01/1946.

There is no more information about his later life.

If you are interested in the POW diary please let me know and i'll post it here. Please keep in mind it is completely in German.

If you have extra information that i missed please share.
Thank you for looking.

Best regards


stijn

You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Thank you very much for your reply, SS Collector. Much appreciated.
For me also the last entry in his soldbuch is the best!

Best regards


stijn
 
Amazing documents and story of one person,can't get better,I've got a group for a SA member with 15 pieces of documents,passes etc, but not as comprehensive as this.
 
Back
Top