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Remembered Today:

66th German Infantry Regiment, 26th Wurtenburger Infantry Division


DaveC

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Hi All

Seeking information on the above Regiment, also any information on these Officers:- Lt Hermens Company Commander 10th/66th, Lt of Reserves Mewes, Under Officer Nonnemann, Lt of Reserves Botticher, Lt of Reserves Kroplin, Lt, Mener Platoon Comander, 3rd Machine Gun Company, Cpl. Muller, Under Officer Horn. I know it's a long shot but thought i would give it a go. Kindest Regards DaveC

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Dave

Can you make your question a little more precise, please? IR 66 was part of 52nd Infantry Division from its formation on 6 March 1915. 26th Inf Div came from Wuerttemberg, so IR 66, Prussian, from Magdeburg, had nothing to do with that formation. It was initially part of 7th Div, fighting at places such as Mons. A number of the men you mention were KIA, including Boetticher, Hermens and Mewes. There is a good history, so I should be able to home in on what you want, once you can define it more closely.

Jack

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Dave

I have sent you a map of the deployment area of IR 66 in early September 1916 to your e mail address. Get back to me if it does not arrive safely.

Jack

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  • 7 years later...

I am certain I was reading something somewhere on GWF about this unit which took me to Zuber's book, https://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/publication/the-german-66th-regiment-in-the-first-world-war/9780750962001/ But while a Google finds it, a GWF 'Search' does not! Anyway, I am reading it now. Interesting!  

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Hello!

Unfortunately all documents about prussian soldiers were destroyed by an air raid in ´44. (IR66 was a prussian regiment from Magdeburg)

The regimental history could help or check the casualty lists:

http://des.genealogy.net/eingabe-verlustlisten/search/index

The regiment had never been in that division!

2.8.14-8.3.15: 7.Inf.Div.

10.3.15-1.4.17: 52.Inf.Div.

1.4.17-23.12.18: 113.Inf.Div.

 

The regiment was temporary in the württemberg 26.Reserve-Division! (1.9.16-3.10.16)

Edited by The Prussian
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11 minutes ago, The Prussian said:

Hello!

Unfortunately all documents about prussian soldiers were destroyed by an air raid in ´44. (IR66 was a prussian regiment from Magdeburg)

The regimental history could help or check the casualty lists:

http://des.genealogy.net/eingabe-verlustlisten/search/index

The regiment had never been in that division!

2.8.14-8.3.15: 7.Inf.Div.

10.3.15-1.4.17: 52.Inf.Div.

1.4.17-23.12.18: 113.Inf.Div.

 

The regiment was temporary in the württemberg 26.Reserve-Division! (1.9.16-3.10.16)

 

Hi Andy,

 

I have been off GWF for a while - for "this and that".

 

Zuber's book is - it says - a translation of the O.Korfes edition of the 1930 regimental history... No, I have not and do not intend to do a page by page check (! - I am too old and too busy for that!), but yes, as you say, ID 72, then ID 52, then ID 113. 

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Hello Julian!

Let´s wait for Dave. Maybe he mixed the active and the reserve division.

If he confirm the reserve-division we have a period of one month (september 1916)

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21 minutes ago, The Prussian said:

... Unfortunately all documents about prussian soldiers were destroyed by an air raid in ´44. 

 

An addition - but a pedantic one! My research - not intense by any means - suggests the Potsdam air raid was the 14th February and 14th April 1945... Happy to be corrected! But note also the Russian Military archive web-page on documents recovered from there -  http://tsamo.germandocsinrussia.org/ru/nodes/1-germanskie-dokumenty-pervoy-mirovoy-voyny-tsamo-fond-500-opis-12519

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I read the book and took some notes too ( great book by the way) but then again it is the only German Regimental History available in English.

 

here is the report for 

 Bötticher Walter (Hagen i. W.) and

Kroplin

they are both mentioned in the book

http://des.genealogy.net/search/show/4617116

 

Martin

 

Edited by Martin Feledziak
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Of course, your are right. Do you remember "sausage-fingers"? I hit the 4 instead of the 5...

The air raid against the Potsdam archive was April 14, 1945

 

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On 27/07/2010 at 13:03, DaveC said:

Lt of Reserves Botticher, Lt of Reserves Kroplin, Lt, Mener Platoon Comander, 3rd Machine Gun Company,

 

They both appear on page 177 of the book in a strong fortification called Feste Schwaben

it is Lt MEYER of the third machine gun company who describes the events

 

The second assault between St Pierre Divion and Thiepval September 1916.

 

 

Edited by Martin Feledziak
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17 hours ago, The Prussian said:

Of course, your are right. Do you remember "sausage-fingers"? I hit the 4 instead of the 5...

The air raid against the Potsdam archive was April 14, 1945

 

:rolleyes:

 

16 hours ago, Martin Feledziak said:

They both appear on page 177 of the book in a strong fortification called Feste Schwaben

 

Just getting there! Thanks!

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I have only just noticed that the OP was from 2010.

So just 7 years for us to contribute.

 

To be fair the translation was only available at the end of last year so we would not have been able to "Chip in".

Just goes to show that information flow is getting so much better.

 

Martin

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Well, finished that one. The last few pages are quite gripping, and the slow reduction of the regiment as a fighting force in the last days of the GW is quite shocking - down to 150 effectives at one point, from an official strength in 1914 of over 3,000...

 

What I also found interesting - in the sense of how badly prepared the Deutsches Heer was for the GW (on the  9th February 1915, the Prussian War Ministry complained of how the country with the ‘largest arms industry in the world’ found it impossible to supply its own army with the infantry weaponry then needed!) - was the way the regiment had to hand back its Gew.98 when it left the front line 6th-7th March 1915 to help equip the Infanterie Division Nr.8 and a rear-area recruit depot. What came next is that they were re-assigned to the new Infanterie-Division Nr.52, and along with the other regiments in that division, Infanterie-Regiments Nr.169 and 170, were provided with "captured Russian weapons" - assuredly Mosin-Nagant rifles. Then, after returning to the front line on 25th/24th March, they handed these in for Gew.88 on 17th May, and were finally re-supplied with Gew.98 between 13th-17th November 1915.

 

This pattern of replacing new with old and then back to new again, to help Ersatz formations train with the 'modern' Gew.98, was not unique. The Füssilier-Regiment Nr. 60, for example, also had to hand over their Gew.98 for Gew.88 at one point, and - if my notes are correct - the entire Saxon Infanterie-Division Nr.58 as well.

 

I can't, though, recollect any British regiment going through a similar process... They arrived in the front line with what they had, be it SMLE's or Long-Lees!

 

Julian

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  • 6 months later...

I was just having another read through this book. ( The German 66th Regiment in the First World War - Otto KORFES - Translated by Terence ZUBER)

on page 163 there is mention of rewards given to troops for patrols into no mans land and raiding enemy trench positions.

 

 

" the patrol was given a cash reward of 100 marks by the division commander. In addition to Tassler, two other 12/66 patrol leaders deserve mention, Corporals Quast and Gladowski. Their patrols gained them a reputation in the entire regiment. All three earned the Iron Cross 1st class and promotion to Sergeant. Gladowski was decorated with the Military Merit Medal, which was seldom awarded."

 

So was the merit medal a "Higher award" above the EK1 and what does it look like.

I have looked at a number of web sites and I can not make a positive ID.

 

Martin

 

Just had another look and it is most likely this one.

https://www.germanmilitaria.com/imperial/Photos/G007977.html

 

 

Edited by Martin Feledziak
Clarification
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  • 9 months later...

Here is the information for  Bötticher  

 

IMG_3416.JPG.38b3d4c53a6a3b8f31553e7ce582bbb2.JPG

 

IMG_3417.JPG.ee764d27a416c69f1001a56c03dbe5cd.JPG

Edited by Martin Feledziak
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On 05/06/2018 at 10:41, Martin Feledziak said:

So was the merit medal a "Higher award" above the EK1 and what does it look like.

I have looked at a number of web sites and I can not make a positive ID.

 

There's a photo of a Prussian "War Merit Medal" (Krieger-verdienstmedaillehere

232206104_merit1.jpg.1954aba500860486df11401394e5e034.jpg

 

And (apparently) the order of precedence of military medals (Medal Bar mounting) here

1512047749_merit2.jpg.c62f4170769d88629032b54cd618e8c2.jpg

Austria ranking higher than the German states? Interesting list this! (Lots of post WW1 medals, but gives an indication I think)

 

Looks like the Military Merit Medal was "lower" (for lack of a better word!) than the EK1

 

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10 hours ago, JWK said:

 

 

There's a photo of a Prussian "War Merit Medal" (Krieger-verdienstmedaillehere

232206104_merit1.jpg.1954aba500860486df11401394e5e034.jpg

 

And (apparently) the order of precedence of military medals (Medal Bar mounting) here

1512047749_merit2.jpg.c62f4170769d88629032b54cd618e8c2.jpg

Austria ranking higher than the German states? Interesting list this! (Lots of post WW1 medals, but gives an indication I think)

 

Looks like the Military Merit Medal was "lower" (for lack of a better word!) than the EK1

 

 

There are a lot of differences between states and WWI and WWII (your list is WWII).

EK1 and EK2 were always to be mounted first, even though they were not rarer than many other medals.

 

It would be nice if the OP would give the date of the patrol so I can have a look in the original book to see exactly which medal is meant...

 

Mindless translations are a source of misinterpretations...

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1 hour ago, AOK4 said:

date of the patrol

 Greetings.

 

The account dose not actually state clearly the date of the actual patrol for which Gladowski was awarded the Military Merit Medal.

The chapter is headed May - June 1916.

 

I have added the page below.

 

1151116928_TheSomme.JPG.70b8fd9da0e4b66c48256f486a8d7a39.JPG

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Dear All,

The documentation for the Krieger-Verdienstmedaille am Kämpferband (the ribbon similar to that of the EKII) to Gladowski is excellent. 

Quite obviously, this obscure and junior award, was rarely awarded and therefore more coveted than the liberally-awarded IMG_20190308_0001.jpg.9a44ac1455c87077d794832825827f06.jpgEKI or even EKI (both of which Gladowski and the others mentioned, probably earned, in addition)...

Kindest regards,

Kim.

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Hello,

 

It is the Goldenes Militär-Verdienstkreuz (often described as the Pour le Mérite for NCOs and men), as obvious from the regimental history, not a "military merit medal'. A clear case of nonsense translation of German words.

According to the lists of the GMVK, his name was Slatkowski (written as Sladowski in the regimental history, with an S not a G, different spelling of Polish names was not uncommon though) and he was awarded the distinction only on 21 April 1918.

 

This translation has obviously many mistakes (just look at the idiotic translations of ranks) and I will definitely never buy it.

 

Jan

 

BTW: the Krieger-Verdienst-Medaille was only awarded to non-Germans during WWI!

 

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Dear Jan,

Good work! It was Gefr. or Uffz. Slatowski, then (!).

The Goldene Militär-Verdienstmedaille (awarded 1808 to 1917) looked the same as the Krieger-Verdienstmedaille pictured in my previous Post, but was in Gold. (Source: Nimmergut, 2010.) 

Having said that, one cannot be dogmatic on such a subject. I was unaware of the KVM going only to non-Germans, for example.

For all its mistakes, I thought the translation of the war diaries was pretty good...!

Kindest regards,

Kim.

Edited by Kimberley John Lindsay
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On 05/06/2018 at 09:41, Martin Feledziak said:

Just had another look and it is most likely this one.

https://www.germanmilitaria.com/imperial/Photos/G007977.html

 

Wow,

Difficult subject.

 

To be fair I found the book most interesting and without the Zuber translation I would never have known about IR66.

BUT it does promote discussion and learning too.

 

 

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Dear Martin,

That medal with the yellow and black ribbon is a (quite widely-awarded) Wuerttemberg medal, not the KVM we have been discussing.

Kindest regards,

Kim.

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