Hi, guys.
I am a newbie here so maybe the question has been answered; if not maybe Peter U. can reply. My question is why the German Soldbuch contained so much information. It is not just a pay book and ID but contains the soldier's unit, previous units, hospital stays, weapons issue, etc.. etc., in effect, his whole personnel file. Surely it was convenient to have all that in one place, especially if the soldier was moving around, but as a former security type, it gives me the willies; what a bonanza those books must have been for Allied intelligence! I tend to compare this to an American soldier's ID card and dog tags, which have little else but name, rank, serial number, religion and blood type.
I have to wonder if the Germans might have harmed their cause simply because their soldiers carried too much information around with them.
Jim
I am a newbie here so maybe the question has been answered; if not maybe Peter U. can reply. My question is why the German Soldbuch contained so much information. It is not just a pay book and ID but contains the soldier's unit, previous units, hospital stays, weapons issue, etc.. etc., in effect, his whole personnel file. Surely it was convenient to have all that in one place, especially if the soldier was moving around, but as a former security type, it gives me the willies; what a bonanza those books must have been for Allied intelligence! I tend to compare this to an American soldier's ID card and dog tags, which have little else but name, rank, serial number, religion and blood type.
I have to wonder if the Germans might have harmed their cause simply because their soldiers carried too much information around with them.
Jim