I would like if a reader may post a pic of Standartenführer Cassius Freiherr von Montigny, (and his fate or military CV after 1940), a WW1 submarine commander and Weimar’s police colonel ,who was the AI of the T-division in 1940 . He was replaced by SS Brigadeführer Knoblauch in december 1940 .Eicke appreciated Montigny a lot, but hated
Knoblauch whom he suspected to be spying on him for Himmler’s account. So Knoblauch was finally replaced by
Lammerding, but only time after Barbarossa.
Your information about Lammerding succeeding Knoblauch is not fully correct!! See Andreas Schulz & Dr. Dieter Zinke "Die Generale der Waffen-SS und der Polizei", Volume 2, being edited in February 2005, Biblio-Verlag
Also pics of Standartenführer
Karl Genzken, medical officer of the division in 1940,
Please need the "search"-button in our forum and you will find a lot about later SS-GRUPPENFÜHRER UND GENERALLEUTNANT DER WAFFEN-SS Genzken. There is also a book from Andreas Schulz and myself "Die Generale der Waffen-SS und der Polizei", Volume 1, edited in 2003, Biblio-Verlag
DZ
Ostubaf Anton Kaindl, administrative officer in 1940 , and
Stubaf Dr. Wihlelm Fuhrlander, “racial expert” officer .
The T-division was considered by the soviets as the toughest german unit of WW2, and was accepted as “real” military unit by the WH only after the extremely tough battle of Demjansk which lasted for months and where the troopers of “Papa Eicke” had to sleep in the snow with no shelter (shelters being systematically destroyed by the soviet aircrafts .)
Along the war, the T-division won 55 Ritterkreuze, incluiding 8 Oakleaves and one Sword. It exist today in the USA a good looking re-enactment group of the T-division .
Others officers of the T-division will end the war as SS generals, including
Max Simon, Kdr of SS T-regiment 1 and later of the Kampfgruppe Nord (Kampfgruppe Simon) at Demjansk
Do you know the cruels in Italy, done in autumn 1944 from the SS-Panzer-Aufklärungsabteilung 16 der Division (SS-Sturmbannführer Walter Reder):
Molina di Quosa, Sant‘ Anna di Stazzema in Versilia, Fivizzano and Valla sul Bardine, Vinca, in Bergiola Foscalina and in Marzabotto (Grizzana und Monzuno) with 770 innocent civilian victims, and at last Rochidoso ??!!
Simon was accused by the British in Padua
and until his death by the western-german jurisdiction (Standgerichte, 4 Todesurteile, in Brettheim, Württemberg).
DZ
and then Kdr of the
16. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Reichsführer SS",
Otto Baum, Batallion commander at Demjansk who will command also the 16. "RFSS", Hermann Priess, later Kdr of
I. SS Panzerkorps in Ardennes/Hungary
(and accused in the "Malmedy-Prozess")
, Helmuth Becker, last Kdr of the T-division, Karl Ullrich, later Kdr of the Wiking division, Heinz Lammerding, chief of the T-engineer Btl., later
Ia
of the division, adviser of of the antipartisan forces of SS general von dem Bach in central Russia, Kdr of the 2. SS "Das Reich" in Normandy and lately,
Chef des Generalstabes (not Ia !!)
of Heinrich Himmler when Reichsheini commanded an army
(no, my friend, but the Heeresgruppe Weichsel !!)
at the end of the war .
Oberführer Tschimpke who will command the 29. SS italian division in 1945 and
Oberführer Bertling , who provened from the LSSAH and commanded briefly the SS T-regiment 2 before to be transferred ‘cause he didn’t get along well with Eicke, later Kdr of the SS Indien Legion
(Indische Freiwilligen-Legion der Waffen-SS, built out of IR 950 of the army)
and then of the Kolberg Fortress in 1945
(commander in Kolberg was Generalmajor Fritz Fullriede!! DZ).
Lower ranks officers incluided also some later –to-be figures like Otto Skorzeny who was the engineer officer of the 3. SS Panzerregiment from october 1942 to March 1943, Saalbach who commanded later the Aufklärungsabteilung of the SS Nordland at Berlin, Ostubaf Götze, former Kdr of the SS Heimwehr Danzig who will fallen in France, 1940 , infamous Ustuf Knöchlein, the responsible of the massacre of brits POWs at Le Paradis in France and who will end the war as Ostubaf and Regimentskommandeur in the Nordland division ,before to be hanged by the brits in 1948, and also Yngve Hellenborg a swedish volunteer who started the war as a private in SS Rgt "Der Führer" and served in the T-division as an NCO in 1941 –42. .This swedish man will be send to Bad-Toelz, graduating within 9.kriegs-Junkerlehrgang in 1943 . He was scheduled to comeback as officer to the Totenkopf but, strangely, he was transferred as Untersturmfuehrer to the SD at the last minute ,being sent to the scandinavian area for some special mission .
An SS PK officer of the T-division was Friedrich Zschaeckel who served with this divison at Kharkov being promoted to Ostuf for bravery in combat in that same battle , EK I, later sent to the Das Reich at Kursk and the HJ in Normandy.
Some SS PK who covered the T-division at a time or another (but not officers) were
- Peter Adendorf (1942-44), won the Panzer assault badge .
- Baumann (in 1941)
- Duerr (in 1943)
- Franz Gottschmann, at Demjansk and Kharkov were he was KIA in 1943.
- Hermann Groenert in 1943 and then back to cover the SS-T in Poland in 1944 where he was promoted Uscha and won the EK I ,also the wounded badge in silver and Infantry assault badge .
- Hilkenbach, in late 1943 .
- Willy Merz, EK II, at Kharkov and Kursk .
- Werner Zeymer in 1943 .
To all the ones interested in the T-division, I strongly suggest to go to :
http://totenkopf2000.tripod.com/toten3.htm ( no pics but a lot of text ,like a small book and very detailed with new infos that I may rate as excelent one – To all the one who appreciate my posts : when der Ostuf Charlemagne recommend a book or webpage about the SS, do not hesitate, you won’t be disappointed ! )
For the reader who wanted more pic, willkommen !
Here the pics of Ostubaf
Dr. iur.
Eduard Deisenhofer , Kdr of 1. Btl., SS T-Regiment 1 at Demjansk ,later to be Kdr of the 15.SS Lettland in 1945 where he will be killed on the first day when he took command ... and Stubaf Georg Bochmann, Kdr of the SS – T Pak Abteilung
(no, this was the Panzerjäger-Abteilung)
at Demjansk and who will be later Kdr of the 17.SS Götz von Berlichingen .
More will follow .
I would like to see a more different and critical view of the "Totenkopf"-division. There is a gap of knowledge with you. Sorry
DZ
