KIA Wehrpass of a 23 year old Obergefreiter who was killed during the Kursk counteroffensive towards Orel in 1943.
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Johann started out in training units and eventually was placed with motorized infantry Regiment 125 that was sent to the Bulgarian/Greek birder in 1941. His unit took the vital bridgehead across the border and was tasked with taking the most fortified position in Thessaloniki called Fort Roupel. The Greek soldiers he fought against on the Metaxas line were honorable and hard fighters. They were adamant about holding their bunker position against great odds. They shot him in the upper thigh during a frontal assault on the bunker on the third day,, taking him out of action. He was awarded the Wound badge in black for this.
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After recovering in the hospital, he was reassigned to another reserve unit where he trained on the Panzerbuchse 39 anti tank rifle, and sent to the eastern front with another motorized Grenadier regiment 118!stationed in the Rzhev meat grinder with heeresgruppe Mitte. He was awarded the Infantry assault badge in Bronze there and 2 weeks later was awarded the iron cross 2nd class for his actions in the Rzhev battles. The division took heavy casualties.
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Johann would soon find himself with the 9th Armee defending the lines near Orel while the battle of Kursk raged on. The Soviets counterattacked from Kursk in Operation Kutsokov, aiming right towards Johanns unit who were dug into a trench line on the defensive. His company was overrun by Soviet tanks and infantry during multiple attacks that would last almost all day, where Johann and many others from his unit would be wiped out.
I found a grouping and letter sent to his company commander’s wife, who was also killed along with Johann on this day, explaining the hopeless situation that they were in when they were all killed, while trying to hold the flank of the trench. A very sad wehrpass of a unit who was overrun by a superior force after surviving the hell of the Rzhev meat grinder.
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Not sure why the pics came out sideways and out of order. I posted correctly (so I thought)
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