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Panzer Recon Soldbuch

Peter U

Moderator
Staff member
With May 10 coming up I thought it was a good idea to show you guys a Soldbuch I recently acquired, it alas in the past has been vandalized by a faker but despite this damage it still is an interesting piece to illustrate a career of a German Panzer Recon officer.

Firtz Riedinger (°1912) from Jena was a career officer in the German army, at the time this Soldbuch was opened he was an Oberleutnant and CO of the radio platoon of AA4, the recon unit of the first Panzer Division, this unit was equipped with those armoured cars with the big antennas mounted on top.
His unit participated in the Poland campaign, for which he got the EKII but their moment of glory would come in May/June 1940 when they in six weeks defeat the French army and drove the BEF of the continent.
The concentration of seven of the ten available Panzer Divisions in to attack the weak spot of the allied front between Dinant (B) and Sedan (FR) with a swift advance through the Ardennes forest proved to be the success formula to defeat a numerical superior enemy.
AA4 was in the front of this operation, together with the motorcycle units of the 1 Pz Div they fought their way through the Ardennes and managed to cross the Meuse on May 13, three days after the start of the offensive.
For his actions in the Westfeldzug he was awarded the EKI; in the book "Tip of the spear" by RJ Edwards their is a anecdote about him and this might explain why he was awarded the EKI, a quote from this book:
AA4 not only did recon missions they also preformed raids, Pz AA4 got the order to blow up the rail lines leading to Besancon (Fr), the detachments of Hauptmann Kuczkowski and Olt Riedinger succeeded in interdicting the rail lines at Franois and Misere, with the result that no less then twenty fully loaded trains stacked up in the space of two hours at Misere, where their journey came to an end.
At the end of 1940 he was transferred to the third company of Pz Rgt 1 (1 Pz Div) with this unit he will invade Soviet Russia.
In the summer of 1941 he is promoted to captain and taken out of the frontline, for the next two years he will be posted to the school for motorized warfare in Wünsdorf.
After the debacle in Africa he is sent to the front again in the spring of 1943, more exactly to Sicily and Italy where he will see action with Stab/15 Pz Gr Div and as company commander of 4/Pz AA 26 of the 26 Pz Div.
At the end of 1943 another transfer follows this time again to the East as company commander of the first company of Pz AA 23 (23 Pz Div).
His Rumanian war medal is entered by Heeres Flak Abt 278, he fought with this unit in April and May 1944 on the Eastern front, he got two close combat days rewarded from them too.
Somewhere in 1944 he is taken away from the front again and placed in the OKH officer reserve pool.
In January 1945 he gets his last transfer, he now becomes the CO of Pz AA 11 (11 Pz Div), this unit will participate in operation Nordwind, a winter offensive in the Saar.
In March 1945 they will try in vain to hold the American advance from the Remagen bridgehead, eventually his unit will capitulte on May 2 1945 in Passau.


Now to the vandalism.
Some moron thought it to be necessary to upgrade this already great Soldbuch with some fake entries: the wounded badge in black, German Cross in Gold and promotion to Major are all post war entries.
These fake entries were done a long time ago, the ink has faded but they are bogus nevertheless.
 

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more images.
 

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Interesting read as always. What is the giveaway that some entry’s are fake ?


Thanks,


Their are lists of GCiG holders, he isn't on it.
The medal entries aren't stamped and signed for, they are just pressed in between original entries.
But the big give away is the Major promotion, together with this Soldbuch are some documents related to his time as a POW, he was captain while detained in a POW camp.
So we can be 100% sure that he was never promoted to the rank of Major prior to May 8 1945, the GCiG and VWA are done in the same handwriting and with the same ink, this one is fake the others are too.
It is a shame that it has been done but like decal digging it is something that was rather common in the past, collectors wanted helmets with decals and Soldbucher needed high end medals.
 
Peter, great stuff and research, bringing this document to life :happy0180: Decal uncovering was indeed the same level of moronic activity. Still an outstanding SB. Thanks for posting it.
 
These are the dog tags of the early members of A.A.4.
cf. Most people mistake it for a 4. Infanterie-Division unit, but it was actually part of the earlier 1. Panzer-Division.
 

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The attached photo is Aufklärungs Abteilung 4 of the 4. Infanterie-Division unit. " Infanterie-Divisions-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 4 "
Collection by André Pichi
 

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