Original German WWII Afrikakorps Motorcycle Machinegun Battalion 15 Soldbuch of Obergefreiter Theodor Deumer with Research and Extras
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Original Item: One-of-a-kind Set. This is a fantastic genuine WWII German Heer Army Soldbuch zugleich Personalausweis (Pay book and identity card), issued to Obergefreiter Theodor Deumer, born 21.4.1917. in Mannheim, Germany. This example does not have a photo, and does not appear to have ever had one, unless it had been glued to the inside of the cover. His soldbuch was issued 7. 9. 1939, and the first unit he was assigned to was the 12. (M.G.) Kompanie / 104 Inf. Regiment, as noted on page 2. The book indicates on pages 1 and 3 that he started out at the rank of Schützen, later being promoted to Gefreiter 1. 1. 40 and Obergefreiter 1. 10. 40 while part of this unit.
Shortly after this, Deumer was reassigned to 4. (M.G.) Krd. Schtz. Btl. 15, or 4. Kompanie (MaschinenGewehr) Kradschützen Bataillon 15 (4th Company (Machinegun), Motorcycle Infantry Battalion). This unit was formed on 11 November 1940 in Wehrkreis XII by reorganization of the 3rd Battalion of the 93rd Infantry Regiment, with the addition of personnel from other units. The battalion's peacetime base was Salzwedel in Wehrkreis XI. The Battalion subordinate to the 15th Panzer Division. In the spring of 1941, the battalion moved with the division to North Africa and took part in the battles of the German Africa Corps. On 1 April 1942, Panzer-Späh-Kompanie Heldt (formerly 2./90) was renamed 1. Company. In the fall of 1942, the battalion was transferred to the 21st Panzer Division as the III Battalion of the 104th Rifle Regiment.
Overall condition is quite good despite the staining and the pages still have clear handwriting and ink stamps, meaning this has some excellent further research potential. These are exceptionally rare and difficult to find with this much information, especially one from a soldier in the Afrika Korps!
In addition to the soldbuch, there is also a well worn and folded Dauerausweis fur Wasserempfang (Permanent Permit for Water Collection), which details all of the water allotments that were received. There are also two issues of "My Africa Souvenir", a wartime pamphlet and radio broadcast in Africa for Allied troops. All of this comes with some great printed our research on the 15th Motorcycle battalion, which is sure to provide some great reading.
Comes ready for further research and display!
Of note: some of the writing in this book is in Kurrentschrift, an older form of Germanic script writing, which is why the all the "u" letters are written as "ŭ". In this script the lowercase "n" and "u" are identical, so the latter gets the arc shaped mark over it. This is not indicative of an umlaut or other diacritical marking.
More on the German Soldbuch:
The Soldbuch served the soldier as a personal identification document in wartime and as an authorization to receive pay from his own or outside pay-stations. In addition, it was identification for rail travel, detached service, leave, and for receiving mail. The Soldbuch was always carried by the soldier on his person in a tunic pocket. Leaving the book in one's baggage or in one's quarters was not permitted. The careful preservation of the book was in the best interest of the owner. The Soldbuch had to be kept in an orderly fashion. The owner must see to it, that all changes in pay due to transfer or promotion are immediately entered by his responsible duty station. The Soldbuch was an official document. Entries were only to be made by a Wehrmacht duty station. Making unauthorized changes is punishable as falsification of official documents. The loss of a Soldbuch was to be reported as soon the loss is discovered to the holders unit or duty station, and the issue of a new Soldbuch will be requested.
- This product is available for international shipping. Shipping not available to: Australia, France, or Germany
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- Due to legal restrictions this item cannot be shipped to Australia, France or Germany. This is not a comprehensive list and other countries may be added in the future.
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