Uncategorised "Afrika" cuff title documents

[luftguy]

I believe I have seen this Major's signature before. Does any one recognize it or can make out who it is?

Bill

[PKeating]

Hallo Bill!

The staff officer who signed this document on behalf of Ke?elring was a Major Pfeffer. As you say, his signature appears on quite a few documents. By the time this document was actually awarded, the title of Oberbefehlshaber S?d had been changed to Oberbefehlshaber S?dwest. It is not terribly common to see this early type with such a late award date. Below is another type, issued in the summer of 1944.

PK

Edited November 27, 2008 by PKeating

[Paul R]

Bill,

It is nice to see your document finally arrived. I still think that you should write a book on the Engineers!

[luftguy]

Could one of the moderators be kind enough to change the title of this thread to "Afrika cuff title documents"?

I would like to see others posted here.

Paddy: Thanks for posting yours. Is it for a Heer para? Do you have any other variations to show?

Bill

[PKeating]

This is the kind of document most often encountered to Heeresgruppe Afrika veterans. HG Afrika was formed in Tunisia on 22.2.1943 with German and Italian units from the Deutsch-Italienische Panzerarmee and Organisationsstab Tunesien, under Rommel's command. Rommel handed over to Generaloberst von Arnim on 9.3.1943. Arnim went into the bag as a POW on 12.5.1943 when HG Afrika surrendered, ending the German adventure in North Africa. Fallschirmj?ger-Brigade Ramcke, on the ORBAT of the Deutsch-Italienische Panzerarmee since late 1942, remained on the ORBAT of HG Afrika. So Burghaus probably took part in FB Ramcke's epic 200-mile march to safety after the second Battle of El-Alamein.

Ramcke-Brigade ORBAT:

Brigadestab

I./Fallschirmj?ger-Regiment 2 - Major Kroh

I./Fallschirmj?ger-Regiment 3 - Major von der Heydte

II./Fallschirmj?ger-Battalion 5 - Major Hubner

Fallschirmj?ger-Lehr-Battalion - Major Burckhardt

II./Fallschirm-Artillerie-Regiment

Pionier-Kompanie - Dr. Cord Tietjen

Panzerj?ger-Kompanie

After the escape from El-Alamein, the Ramcke Brigade was redesignated Luftwaffen-J?ger-Brigade 1 and was committed against British forces in the southern Tunisian mountains, under the command of Major Hans Kroh, Ramcke having been transferred to France, where the Fallschirm-Armee was being formed.

Alfred Burghaus might have served with the Heer's Fallschirm-Infanterie-Bataillon before the war. That said, I do not recall any photos of Fallschirmschule personnel wearing the FSA (Heer). That doesn't mean former Heer paras were not posted to jump schools, just that I am unaware of it. Eric Queen would be the man to ask. Burghaus was a Senior NCO in the Technical Company, which indicates that he might have had something to do with the development of new methods and parachuting equipment: dropping vehicles, the triangular parachutes etc etc...

He might have been wounded and evacuated before the end, hence his posting to Wittstock. Or he might previously have been an instructor or had some technical skills deemed vital to the formation and training of the new Fallschirm-Armee. The document is a loner, sadly, another victim of some idiot who broke up a group at some point in the past. Anyway, since I don't have any other AFRIKA documents, being in the process of getting rid of most of my TR stuff, here's a photo of Vater Ramcke himself, wearing another kind of AFRIKA band as he reviews fresh young paratroopers in France after his return from Tunisia. Note the absence of a breast eagle, the tunic clearly being brand new. He shouldn't have been wearing the AFRIKA cuff title in Europe but who was going to point that out to him?

PK

Edited November 28, 2008 by PKeating

[Guest Rick Research]

Terrific uniform photo!

Title changed-- would also like to see more. :cheers:

[nesredep]

This is the kind of document most often encountered to Heeresgruppe Afrika veterans. HG Afrika was formed in Tunisia on 22.2.1943 with German and Italian units from the Deutsch-Italienische Panzerarmee and Organisationsstab Tunesien, under Rommel's command. Rommel handed over to Generaloberst von Arnim on 9.3.1943. Arnim went into the bag as a POW on 12.5.1943 when HG Afrika surrendered, ending the German adventure in North Africa. Fallschirmj?ger-Brigade Ramcke, on the ORBAT of the Deutsch-Italienische Panzerarmee since late 1942, remained on the ORBAT of HG Afrika. So Burghaus probably took part in FB Ramcke's epic 200-mile march to safety after the second Battle of El-Alamein.

Ramcke-Brigade ORBAT:

Brigadestab

I./Fallschirmj?ger-Regiment 2 - Major Kroh

I./Fallschirmj?ger-Regiment 3 - Major von der Heydte

II./Fallschirmj?ger-Battalion 5 - Major Hubner

Fallschirmj?ger-Lehr-Battalion - Major Burckhardt

II./Fallschirm-Artillerie-Regiment

Pionier-Kompanie - Dr. Cord Tietjen

Panzerj?ger-Kompanie

After the escape from El-Alamein, the Ramcke Brigade was redesignated Luftwaffen-J?ger-Brigade 1 and was committed against British forces in the southern Tunisian mountains, under the command of Major Hans Kroh, Ramcke having been transferred to France, where the Fallschirm-Armee was being formed.

Alfred Burghaus might have served with the Heer's Fallschirm-Infanterie-Bataillon before the war. That said, I do not recall any photos of Fallschirmschule personnel wearing the FSA (Heer). That doesn't mean former Heer paras were not posted to jump schools, just that I am unaware of it. Eric Queen would be the man to ask. Burghaus was a Senior NCO in the Technical Company, which indicates that he might have had something to do with the development of new methods and parachuting equipment: dropping vehicles, the triangular parachutes etc etc...

He might have been wounded and evacuated before the end, hence his posting to Wittstock. Or he might previously have been an instructor or had some technical skills deemed vital to the formation and training of the new Fallschirm-Armee. The document is a loner, sadly, another victim of some idiot who broke up a group at some point in the past. Anyway, since I don't have any other AFRIKA documents, being in the process of getting rid of most of my TR stuff, here's a photo of Vater Ramcke himself, wearing another kind of AFRIKA band as he reviews fresh young paratroopers in France after his return from Tunisia. Note the absence of a breast eagle, the tunic clearly being brand new. He shouldn't have been wearing the AFRIKA cuff title in Europe but who was going to point that out to him?

PK

Hello!

Amazing photo you show.

All the best

Nesredep

[luftguy]

Thank you Paddy. It is always a learning opportunity to read the background and history of the pieces in your collection.

Let's see other examples of the Afrika cuff title document I hope some of you have examples to post.

Bill

[hucks216]

Here is my first one - to a ground crew member of JG 27

[hucks216]

Delete - posted in error.

Edited December 31, 2008 by hucks216

[luftguy]

Hucks - thanks for posting your fine example and welcome to GMIC.

Let's see some more!

Bill