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My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies

Article about: My first post so here goes. My dad died a few years ago and never really wanted to speak about the war. We still have his uniform c/w badges and wondered if any light could be shed on it. It

  1. #1

    Exclamation My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy first post so here goes.
    My dad died a few years ago and never really wanted to speak about the war. We still have his uniform c/w badges and wondered if any light could be shed on it.
    It looks like the badge of the 3 Silesian Lancers, but I always understood that my dad was in the 16th Lancers, Bydgozsz from 1936 until the start of the war. He was taken prisoner and drafted into the Wehrmact 16th (Geisen) infantry, scarpered from these guys whilst in Italy in 1943 ish, got over to Naples, surrendered to the Yanks, shipped over to Egypt and went back into Italy with the Polish 2 Corps, 14th Armoured. If anyone can shed any light on what may have taken place I would be grateful.
    I'll post some pics of his uniform etc.

  2. #2

    Default Re: Polish Regimental Badges WW2

    Welcome aboard Ade, and thanks for sharing pictures of your father’s items. You are very lucky to have these family treasures in your possession. What I wouldn’t give to have my father’s uniform!

    Quote by Ade Kentzer View Post
    . . .
    It looks like the badge of the 3 Silesian Lancers, but I always understood that my dad was in the 16th Lancers, Bydgozsz from 1936 until the start of the war. . .
    If I understand your comment correctly, you are wondering why the badge of the 3rd Silesian Lancers is on the uniform instead of the 16th Lancers from your father’s pre-war service. Quite simply, his uniform is fully badged for the unit he served in while in the Polish 2nd Corps, which is entirely correct and what would be expected. The 3rd Silesian Lancers was one of the three tanker regiments of the 14th Wielkopolska Armoured Brigade.

    Super looking battledress tunic and beret. It would be great to see pictures of the inside of the tunic.

    Quote by Ade Kentzer View Post
    . . . If anyone can shed any light on what may have taken place I would be grateful . . .
    Posted below is the record of your father’s award of his regimental badge. The Order of the Day of June 12, 1946 spells his surname correctly and then for some reason it is misspelled in an undated record. He served in the 2nd Squadron. There are also photos of the award ceremony of June 13th, 1946, and its quite likely your father was there. General Anders along with his brother Lt. Col. Jerzy Anders (the CO of the 3rd Ulans) were both present. The only other thing I can offer is that he was wounded at one point as evidenced by the wound bar on his uniform (blue with two parallel horizontal lines and a single star). Your best bet for more information about your father’s service would be to take the route suggested here:
    https://www.warrelics.eu/forum/polis...mbatant-12172/

    Regards,
    Tony
    Click to enlarge the picture Click to enlarge the picture My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies   My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies   My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies   My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies   My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  
    All thoughts and opinions expressed are those of my own and should not be mistaken for medical and/or legal advice.

    "Tomorrow hopes we have learned something from yesterday." - John Wayne

  3. #3

    Default Re: Polish Regimental Badges WW2

    Many thanks Tony. I'm speechless and nearly in tears. I'll PM you later if thats ok.
    Last edited by Ade Kentzer; 10-29-2012 at 01:45 PM.

  4. #4

    Default Re: Polish Regimental Badges WW2

    Hi again Tony,

    I'll post some pictures of the inside of his beret, tunic and also the trousers if you wish.

    As you can see we have a Monte Cassino bar; should there be a MC cross to go with this ? Dad had told us years ago that he'd had a couple of medals stolen / misplaced so it would nice to find out if he was entitled to a cross or not.

    thankyou,

    Ade

    p.s. It was the Wehrmacht 44th Infantry (geisen) regiment that dad was forced to join. If anyone should have any info regarding these guys could they please guide me in the right direction.
    Last edited by Ade Kentzer; 10-29-2012 at 07:02 PM.

  5. #5

    Default Re: Polish Regimental Badges WW2

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German ArmiesMy father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies

    Heres the pics as promised of inside the uniform.

    Canadian tunic.
    Kangol beret.
    ??? tailors Ltd , trousers.

    Also a box that dads British medals came in and a ribbon that I have no idea is from.

    Ade
    Click to enlarge the picture Click to enlarge the picture My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies   My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  

    My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies  

  6. #6

    Default Re: Polish Regimental Badges WW2

    Hi Ade, the ribbon is for the Africa Star.

    Info on the Regt can be found here: it is in German, but you can run it through Google translate:

    http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/...enter/IR44.htm

    Cheers, Ade.

    PS: Welcome to the forum! Fantastic stuff!
    Had good advice? Saved money? Why not become a Gold Club Member, just hit the green "Join WRF Club" tab at the top of the page and help support the forum!

  7. #7

    Default Re: Polish Regimental Badges WW2

    Hi Ade & Ade. Watching these posts and the unfolding story of your Dad has been absolutely fascinating. Thanks so much for sharing. On a totally different subject I notice your Dad was a tall man. Most tankers tended to be short as there wasn't a lot of room.
    all the best
    James

  8. #8

    Default Re: My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies

    Hi again Ade,

    First off, I’ve moved this discussion from the exiled forces badge thread onto its own dedicated thread. Please let me know if you'd prefer a different title.

    Thanks for posting these additional pictures. You’ve confirmed the hunch I had from seeing the first series of pictures that this is a Canadian made BD. The uniform and beret have survived in top condition. It appears that they were safely stored away right after your father’s discharge, which would have most likely been in 1947. Really a superb uniform set!

    Quote by Ade Kentzer View Post
    . . . As you can see we have a Monte Cassino bar; should there be a MC cross to go with this ? Dad had told us years ago that he'd had a couple of medals stolen / misplaced so it would nice to find out if he was entitled to a cross or not.. . . .
    Yes, the bar indicates that he would have been awarded the Monte Cassino cross. It’s unfortuate that it has gone missing. Have you checked to see if the award document for the cross still exists amongst any surviving paperwork?

    Fellow mod Andrzekju has the list of MC Cross recipients and may be able to dig up some more informaton for you. If you pursue his military records via the channels mentioned in my previous post you would likely get positive confirmation of his awards, including the Africa Star identified earlier by Ade Stevenson.

    Cheers,
    Tony
    All thoughts and opinions expressed are those of my own and should not be mistaken for medical and/or legal advice.

    "Tomorrow hopes we have learned something from yesterday." - John Wayne

  9. #9

    Default Re: My father’s WW2 Service in the Polish and German Armies

    Thanks and gratitude to all for the information offered etc. Now begins the search !!! The move to a dedicated thread is fine Tony.

    Dad was about 5' 11" in height, maybe thats why he lost some of his teeth in his Sherman

    Ade

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