Hello guys,
Lately I have been hit by a tidal wave of Soldbucher and I will be glad to share them with all of you on this forum.
Today I'll show and tell the story of Wilhelm Haug a Kriegsmarine sailor.
When we think about the Kriegsmarine the first things that jumps in to the mind are U-Boots or big battleships like the Bismarck or the Tirpitz but we seldom think of minesweepers and convoy escort ships.
Wilhelm Haug was a sailor that served in one of these unknown units, nevertheless his war story is an interesting one.
Wilhem Haug (°1923) a former junior HJ leader from Stuttgart was a sailor (Matrosen Gefreiter) in the 8 Vorpostenflottille, a unit of eight fishing vessels (steamboats) that had been upgraded to navy ships by mounting a canon on their deck, their task was to escort convoys in the North sea from the Elbe estuary to Rotterdam.
Because it is a second issue Soldbuch I don't know exactly when he started his military service but on February 13 1944 he is awarded the "Vorpostenabzeichen" also known also the minesweeper badge, so he at least served from early 1944.
On July 22 1944 they are escorting a convoy between the Elbe - and Ems estuary when they are spotted by British torpedo bombers, in the first attack wave V812 Amtsgericht Pitschke is hit by bombs and is so damaged that it needs to be towed; then in the second attack wave the British bombers manage to sink the V812 together with the ship that is acting as a tugboat, the V810 Falkland.
Wilhelm Haug was most likely a crewmember on one of these two ships; he was wounded in this action and received besides the wounded badge in black also the EKII for it; his Soldbuch was either lost or so damaged in the shipwreck that he was issued a new one.
After he is recovered from his wound on August 8 1944, he returned to his old unit and is issued this Soldbuch, he also gets 14 days extra leave because of long extended combat duty.
On October 26 1944 they are escorting a convoy along the Dutch coast.
- According to an official press release the German army confirms that on that day their had been a clash between German security ships and Royal Navy MTB's (motor torpedo boats) for the Dutch coast; in this press release they mention that one MTB was sunk, I can't find any confirmation for that or the sinking of any other vessel.
These official press release messages are notoriously known for their lies but they also always hold a certain amount of truth in them also, what I presume is that indeed a German convoy was attacked by MTB's in front of the Dutch coast but that no MTB or any other vessel was sunk.
What is a fact is that Wilhelm Haug is seriously hit that day, so the British MTB's certianly scored hits on their target(s); he gets a piece of shrapnel in his lung (the piece that also penetrated his Soldbuch) and the back of his right hand is also damaged; he is first treated in a field hospital in The Hague (Holland) on October 26 1944, so I guess his ship managed to make it to a harbour.
On November 6 1944 he is transferred to a field hospital in Apeldoorn (Holland) and the 17th to a hospital in Germany (Tubingen), where he will remain until the end of the war.
Cheers,
Peter
Lately I have been hit by a tidal wave of Soldbucher and I will be glad to share them with all of you on this forum.
Today I'll show and tell the story of Wilhelm Haug a Kriegsmarine sailor.
When we think about the Kriegsmarine the first things that jumps in to the mind are U-Boots or big battleships like the Bismarck or the Tirpitz but we seldom think of minesweepers and convoy escort ships.
Wilhelm Haug was a sailor that served in one of these unknown units, nevertheless his war story is an interesting one.
Wilhem Haug (°1923) a former junior HJ leader from Stuttgart was a sailor (Matrosen Gefreiter) in the 8 Vorpostenflottille, a unit of eight fishing vessels (steamboats) that had been upgraded to navy ships by mounting a canon on their deck, their task was to escort convoys in the North sea from the Elbe estuary to Rotterdam.
Because it is a second issue Soldbuch I don't know exactly when he started his military service but on February 13 1944 he is awarded the "Vorpostenabzeichen" also known also the minesweeper badge, so he at least served from early 1944.
On July 22 1944 they are escorting a convoy between the Elbe - and Ems estuary when they are spotted by British torpedo bombers, in the first attack wave V812 Amtsgericht Pitschke is hit by bombs and is so damaged that it needs to be towed; then in the second attack wave the British bombers manage to sink the V812 together with the ship that is acting as a tugboat, the V810 Falkland.
Wilhelm Haug was most likely a crewmember on one of these two ships; he was wounded in this action and received besides the wounded badge in black also the EKII for it; his Soldbuch was either lost or so damaged in the shipwreck that he was issued a new one.
After he is recovered from his wound on August 8 1944, he returned to his old unit and is issued this Soldbuch, he also gets 14 days extra leave because of long extended combat duty.
On October 26 1944 they are escorting a convoy along the Dutch coast.
- According to an official press release the German army confirms that on that day their had been a clash between German security ships and Royal Navy MTB's (motor torpedo boats) for the Dutch coast; in this press release they mention that one MTB was sunk, I can't find any confirmation for that or the sinking of any other vessel.
These official press release messages are notoriously known for their lies but they also always hold a certain amount of truth in them also, what I presume is that indeed a German convoy was attacked by MTB's in front of the Dutch coast but that no MTB or any other vessel was sunk.
What is a fact is that Wilhelm Haug is seriously hit that day, so the British MTB's certianly scored hits on their target(s); he gets a piece of shrapnel in his lung (the piece that also penetrated his Soldbuch) and the back of his right hand is also damaged; he is first treated in a field hospital in The Hague (Holland) on October 26 1944, so I guess his ship managed to make it to a harbour.
On November 6 1944 he is transferred to a field hospital in Apeldoorn (Holland) and the 17th to a hospital in Germany (Tubingen), where he will remain until the end of the war.
Cheers,
Peter
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