WW2 German dog tag

max1muz79 · 05-17-2009, 11:56 PM

Hello every one
could someone help me with this tag
1/Jnf.Ers.Btl.471
i found in a cave at Crete,Greece.

**Espenlaub Militaria** · 05-17-2009 11:56 PM

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**Adrian Stevenson** · 05-18-2009, 10:18 AM

Hi, and welcome to the forum!

The tag is for :

1st Kompanie/ Infanterie Ersatz Battalion 471.

Cheers, Ade.

max1muz79 · 05-18-2009, 04:25 PM

thank you for the response
I must be contacted with the German WWII cemetery of Maleme at Chania of Crete. 3-4 german soldiers are sleeping there and they must go "home" to RIP
after 60 years.
regards from Greece.

**Paul D** · 05-18-2009, 04:32 PM

Good work my freind contact the German Volksbund and find out who their representative is in Crete.

regards

Paul

**Adrian Stevenson** · 05-18-2009, 05:22 PM

You should see another set of numbers on the tag. What are those? This will be the soldiers roll number. There may also be a blood group letter.

Cheers, Ade.

**Paul D** · 05-18-2009, 05:36 PM

Jnf.Ers.Btl.471 was the Training Btl for IR 471 part of 251 Infanterie Division which served on the Eastern front central sector until it was destroyed in November 1943.

Many tags for Jnf.Ers.Btl.471 and ir 471 have been found in the area of Sewsk in the Briansk pocket area , it could be that your man is a survivor of the unit and ended up being posted to Crete,

regards

Paul

max1muz79 · 05-18-2009, 06:39 PM

Hello again
actually my hobby is caving (speleology) i am member of a team that we are exploring verticals caves. My grandfather was officer of the Greek army at the WWII, so i feel respect for the people who lost their lives at the battlefield, i don't care if they are enemies or allies.
I found only one tag and the number is 5100 blood group B.
As i remember there are 4 skeletons but i did not search to much for more tags. I ask some information from the local old people and they told that during the WWII the partisans kill about 10-15 German soldiers during a sabotage and through them into the cave.
They also told me that a few years before some veterans recover some bodies, but as i think the cave is to deep for the normal people and you need ropes, thats way are the 4 bodies at the bottom . It is 30 meters deep(for a caver is nothing, we exploring cave more 500m deep).
regards.

**j dubbel** · 05-18-2009, 07:06 PM

hello

in Greece there are 3 German if i am right cemetaries
1 in rapendoza 30 km nordeast of Athens and 1 in Dionyssos [same sight has 2 burial sights sorry if spelt wrong] and 1 in Maleme 20 km west of chania

or see the web link Kriegsgräberstätten | Stadt im Detail

hope this helps