Innehållsförteckning för Issue 14 från Iron Cross

The writer had the good fortune when visiting a militaria fair in the United States during February 2008 to scan and copy photos and documents which came directly from the widow of Michael Wittmann. Some of these photographs and documents had not been published before and the author is pleased to have been given the opportunity to make these historical pieces and documents available to a broader community through Iron Cross magazine. From a historical perspective, this grouping is significant in the field of the collecting of orders, medals, and decorations given its connection to one of the Wehrmacht’s most famous soldiers. The medals and associated documents are presented here as a photographic and historic record appertaining to the awards granted to one of the Second World War heroes of…

Most of those who are interested in the Tiger tank and its wartime operations will be aware of countless descriptions of the career of Germany’s ‘most successful tank commander’, Obersturmführer Michael Wittmann. Unfortunately, almost all the reports about Wittmann and his actions are simply wrong. Evaluations made immediately after the events in which he was involved require critical appraisal, this being made possible with the action at Villers-Bocage now having been verified down to the smallest of details. To set the scene for the events that unfolded at Villers-Bocage, the Allied advance from Gold and Omaha beaches had put the 352. Infanteriedivision under pressure, and as the division withdrew south, a 12 km gap opened in the front line near Caumont-l’Éventé. Sepp Dietrich, commander of I. SS-Panzerkorps, ordered Schwere SS-Panzerabteilung…

INSIDE EVERY ISSUE: Latest militaria news, reviews, auctions and events Features on naval, weapons, medals and people Regular articles on ordnance, bayonets, insignia and uniforms Historical events and battles WWI and WWII campaigns Buying and collecting militaria for both novice and experienced collectors Book reviews and competitions To view our latest subscription offers visit: militaria.ma/arm-subs22 or call on 01778 392489 and quote ARM/SUBS22 Small print: Rates are correct as of print and are subject to change. For overseas subscription pricing visit militaria.ma/arm-subs22.…

When assembling the fleet of aircraft for the 1969 film Battle of Britain, the production company faced the initially daunting hurdle of sourcing ‘German’ aircraft to represent the Luftwaffe. Fortunately for the film company, the Spanish air force still had serviceable ‘Messerschmitt 109’ and ‘Heinkel 111’ aircraft on their inventory, these being made available to the film makers. In reality, these were CASA 2.111 aircraft (to represent the Heinkel 111) which had been built in Spain under licence by Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA), and the Hispano Aviación HA-1112 to represent the Messerschmitt 109s. Again, the latter were licence-built versions and based on the Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2. Despite both types being powered by Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, they adequately represented the aircraft in service with the Luftwaffe during 1940. And for…

The SMS Emden was the second and final member of the Dresden class of light cruisers built for the Imperial German Navy. She was laid down in Danzig in November 1906, launched in May 1908, completed in July 1909, and after her sea trials was commissioned in September 1909. In April 1910, Emden was sent overseas to join the German East Asia Squadron under the command of Admiral Maximilian von Spee, based at Tsingtao, a German colony in northeast China. In 1913, she came under the command of Commander Karl von Müller, a highly regarded officer. Before the war, Emden had already gained some notoriety in a brief exchange of fire with rebel Chinese forts on the Yangtze River. It was a notoriety that was set to continue across the…

During both the First and Second World War, the bicycle was a means of transport used by all combatant nations. Indeed, that form of transportation has continued in common use by armies around the globe right up until the present day. The subject of our colourised photograph in this issue, however, depicts a ‘bicycle’ of a rather different nature. With wireless and telegraphic communications coming very much to the fore as a developing technology for all the combatant nations between 1914 and 1918, it was necessary to provide a reliable electricity supply to power transmissions and to be able to receive signals. Very quickly, it became apparent that effective wireless communications in the field could either make or break success on the battlefield, and it thus became necessary to ensure…

On 25 October 1940, RAF intelligence were notified that a Messerschmitt Bf 109 had been shot down at Marden, Kent, and its pilot taken prisoner. It was an otherwise far from remarkable event for the period. However, the discovery of no less than 49 ‘kill’ markings on the Messerschmitt’s rudder initially marked this incident out as potentially being something significant. From such an impressive tally, the RAF must have initially thought they had downed one of the Luftwaffe’s leading aces. Nothing could have been further from the truth. Investigating the crash site and the wreckage, the RAF’s Air Intelligence A.I.1(g) section reported: “Me.109. Crashed on 25.10.40 at Maidstone Road, Marden. Map Reference: R.1762. There were no identification markings on the fuselage. Manufacturer’s plate was not found. Engine: D.B. 601, made…

The Junkers 87 was certainly notorious to anyone who endured its attacks. And many were shot down by our fighters and guns, of course. Its appearance gave the impression of being cumbersome and un-manoeuvrable. But I would never have called it any of those things. It is true, however, that the example I flew had been lightened by the removal of all its guns and some of its armour plate, but the basic flying characteristics seemed to be truly excellent. I first made the acquaintance of Junkers 87 -D, S7 + LL, at Martuba on the Libyan coast, towards the end of November 1942. The Battle of El Alamein had been won, and 213 Squadron had just brought its Hurricanes back from a secret landing ground some 150 miles behind…

At Winston Churchill’s home, Chartwell, an Iron Cross First Class of the Third Reich period is displayed by the National Trust at what was the wartime Prime Minister’s country residence. As war trophies go, Iron Crosses were ‘two-a-penny’, becoming sought after and popular souvenirs brought home by returning service personnel at the end of war. Many, of course, had no specific story apart from those held in the memories of the service personnel who had taken them as souvenirs. Almost without exception, such Iron Crosses had been picked up as Allied armies swept across Europe and into Germany. Sometimes, they had been taken from POWs, sometimes bartered in exchange for food or cigarettes and – however distasteful - sometimes looted from bodies. Similarly, Allied soldiers on the Western Front in…

Alfred Becker was born in Krefeld in 1899 and on the outbreak of war in 1914 volunteered for service, aged 15. He went on to serve in the artillery where he became an officer, seeing action at Verdun and Cambrai. Following the Armistice, he became a mechanical engineer and co-owner of Volkmann & Company, Krefeld. He also formed a manufacturing business, Alfred Becker AG of Bielefeld. In August 1939, Becker was called up to serve in the 227th Infantry Division Rhine-Westphalian, and made an officer in the division’s 15th Artillery Regiment, rapidly being promoted to Hauptmann. When Germany invaded Poland, Becker was serving on the western frontier near the Belgian border. In December 1939, Becker’s division prepared for Fall Gelb and on 10 May 1940 the division engaged in the…

As the world marched inexorably towards a global war in the early 20th century, so Germany developed its Artillerie-Prüfungs-Kommission (Artillery Test Commission) or A.P.K aerial bomb in 1912/13, a simple cast-iron spherical shell of either 5 kg or 10 kg and fitted with an impact fuze and suspension ring. A crude device, it was nevertheless the first bomb designed specifically for aerial delivery by Germany. Although the weapon was not deployed during the war, it was a portent of things to come. When it became clear to all combatant nations that the war would be conducted in the air, as well on land and at sea, so the technological race to develop weaponry for use in aerial warfare gathered momentum. Initial efforts to fully utilise aircraft and airships for military…

In the late 1960s, writing the introduction to an astonishing record of life as a Stuka pilot, Kurt Scheffel explained the background to how such a unique document came to be compiled: “During the third meeting after the war in Bad Königstein/Taunus of veterans of the 3rd Staffel of Stukageschwader 77, the wish was expressed for a history to be written of I Gruppe of StG 77. “According to the Bundesarchiv in Freiburg, however, there were hardly any official documents of the unit in existence. Thus, any history could only be written by former pilots of the Gruppe. Today, it is difficult for former comrades to sit down and write down their memories of events; moreover, many of them are still working and do not have time to do so.…

Although only relatively few Tiger I tanks were built (1,347 between July 1942 and August 1944) they nevertheless became one of the most famous tanks operated by the German army, if not one of the most well-known and ‘revered’ tanks of the Second World War. The Tiger I (officially the Panzer VI Tiger Ausf E) first entered service with schwere Panzerabteilung 502 on the Eastern Front in August 1942. The unit was attached to Army Group North for operations in the Leningrad sector of the front, where the terrain posed as many problems as the Red Army. Guderian later wrote scathingly of its first deployment on 23 September 1942: “He [Hitler] was consumed by his desire to try out this new weapon. He therefore ordered that the Tigers be committed…

Most of those who are interested in First World War aviation probably first became fascinated by the subject after reading stories of pilots’ heroic adventures flying primitive wood and fabric aircraft in deadly duels - and without parachutes. The ‘novelty’ of such combat, and the courage needed to participate in that new adventure, appeals to the appreciation of the heroism involved. Additionally, the unsophisticated technology of the early aircraft involved is also of interest to many. However, beyond the heroic exploits or even comparison of the relative merits of the opposing aircraft types, one needs to look at the greater context of the warring powers and the different situations confronting the combatants. In this respect, it is important to consider how effectively Idflieg*, the German Inspectorate of Flying Troops, guided…

Although Werner Mölders’ Flugbuch (logbook) survived the war, it is frustratingly scant as to any identifying information on the specific aircraft he flew and on which flights. The personnel who entered the data into his Flugbuch only began recording the Werk Nummer and fuselage markings of the various aircraft he flew from 5 February 1941. We therefore only have surviving photographs with which to piece together the identities of the aircraft Werner Mölders flew up to that point. Many of these photographs show Werner Mölders in the cockpit of various Bf 109 Es during the mid to late 1940 period. Several of these he did not use regularly but were simply the aircraft of other Stab pilots or spare aircraft used by the Geschwaderstab of JG51. However, photographs of the…

Send your letters to: Post: Iron Cross Magazine Warners Group Publications, The Maltings West Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH Email: andy.saunders@warnersgroup.co.uk The Kriegsmarine’s ‘Toads’ Dear Sir, It was with great interest that I read the article on the notorious ‘Channel Dash’ in issue #12 of Iron Cross magazine. My late father, Flight Lieutenant Alan Green, was involved in Operation Fuller as navigator on one of the three Wellingtons (R1448, commanded by Sgt Griggs) deployed by 218 Squadron. According to the squadron Operations Record Book, these aircraft were to attack the ‘Toads’ (RAF code name for the three ships) which ‘…had moved out of Brest and were sighted in the English Channel’. Unfortunately, two of the Wellingtons failed to take off due to technical problems, while R1448 left 218 Marham at…

As with many of the big days of fighting during the Battle of Britain, 18 August 1940 started quietly enough – a quietness which belied what was to come. Initially, German air activity was restricted to a few reconnaissance sorties across the South of England. Significantly, the track of these flights took the reconnoitring aircraft over many of the RAF’s airfields. It was a portent of what was to come later that day, but initially those plans were hampered by a summer haze. Once it lifted, however, the German assault got into its stride with a ferocity and intensity that gave birth to 18 August 1940 being dubbed, much later, as ‘The Hardest Day’. Attacks on airfield targets in southern England were seen during the morning, but it is the…