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Remembered Today:

German soldier, unknown regiment


Pilipala

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Thank you for this. I'm going to have to spend a little while deciphering the process for requesting information. It's a bit confusing.

 

I'm also curious to find out how (Jakob) Heinrich Führen came to be a Sanitäts Unteroffzier rather than just an ordinary soldier. He would have been 22 at the start of the War but so far I have been unable to find out what his profession/calling was . He came from a working-class family - his father and one brother were smiths in a local steelworks and his other brother was a carpenter. Do you know if there were the equivalent of "conscientious objectors" in the Prussian army who might have been put into a medic role or was the allocation of roles more or less random?

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Well, I don´t know about that. Just more or less quoted the information on the offical WAST page.

Best,

GreyC

Edited by GreyC
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Pilipala,

 

I would advise you to write to WASt asking for more information about your ancestor giving them birthadate etc. I would be most interested to know whether the service is operational as there may be more people interested to find out more about their ancestors.

 

Jan

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I've done some research on 42. Inf. Div. due to it being opposite a British unit of interest to my father (9th East Surreys) at Lens later in 1918, and also because it attacked immediately to the left of Saxon 32. Inf. Div. on the Lys in April 1918. This is of course the operation in which the gentleman in question was wounded. Pilipala - please feel free to PM me.

 

In the Lys offensive 42.ID initially had the relatively easy task of overrunning the hapless Portuguese - IR 131 was on the division's left at Laventie. By the 18th they were involved in much tougher fighting against British troops.

 

 

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I've checked the history of IR 138 (also of 42.ID). By mid-April the division was exhausted. IR 138 was relieved near Merris on 17th April and withdrawn into reserve, apparently together with other elements. However IR 131 remained between the Platebecque and the Hazebrouck-Armentieres railway line as flank protection for another division to their right (which was still attacking toward Strazeele). With the exception of IR 131 and the artillery, the rest of 42.ID was withdrawn further into army reserve on 19th April. It began taking over a new sector at Lens around 25th April, by which time IR 131 presumably rejoined themm.

 

Therefore it looks like the gentleman under discussion had the misfortune to be wounded during the regiment's last few days in Flanders, while they were performing the above-mentioned frank protection duties.

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7 hours ago, bierast said:

I've checked the history of IR 138 (also of 42.ID). By mid-April the division was exhausted. IR 138 was relieved near Merris on 17th April and withdrawn into reserve, apparently together with other elements. However IR 131 remained between the Platebecque and the Hazebrouck-Armentieres railway line as flank protection for another division to their right (which was still attacking toward Strazeele). With the exception of IR 131 and the artillery, the rest of 42.ID was withdrawn further into army reserve on 19th April. It began taking over a new sector at Lens around 25th April, by which time IR 131 presumably rejoined themm.

 

Therefore it looks like the gentleman under discussion had the misfortune to be wounded during the regiment's last few days in Flanders, while they were performing the above-mentioned frank protection duties.

 

No he was not. His being wounded was published on 18 April 1918, so he must have been wounded at least a few weeks earlier. It took some time before it was published. I don't know whether there were any delays in the publication because of the large amount of casualties from the various spring offensives.

 

Jan

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5 hours ago, AOK4 said:

No he was not. His being wounded was published on 18 April 1918, so he must have been wounded at least a few weeks earlier. It took some time before it was published. I don't know whether there were any delays in the publication because of the large amount of casualties from the various spring offensives.

 

Quite right, my bad. I had the date in my head and hadn't checked further up the thread again where it shows this date is that of the published Verlustliste. The delay would undoubtedly have been significant.

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  • 7 months later...

Final update for anyone who is still interested.

In October I wrote to the Bundesarchiv in Berlin and today they sent me what information they have about Heinrich Führen. His record is incomplete due to damage to the archive in WW2 but it seems that he signed up for the army before the Great War started and was wounded in Tourcoing (I think Tonrcoing is a mis-type) on 10th April 1918. The family story is therefore corect that he was wounded in France, though the nature of his wounds is not documented.

 

-F ü h r e n, Heinrich, geboren am 08.06.1892 in Röhe- 
   
 Heimatanschrift:   Eltern: Franz und Henriette Führen geb. Schneider,        Aachener Straße 63, Eschweiler 
 
Diensteintritt:   15.10.1913 
 
Truppenteil:    6. Kompanie Infanterie-Regiment 131 
 
Dienstgrad:    Sanitäts-Unteroffizier 
 
Lazarettaufenthalte: 
 
04.09.1917 - 10.10.1917  Heimat-Kraftfahr-Bezirk Kriegslazarett Abteilung 33      (2/VII) Schloßstr. 530, Mitau      Erkrankung      Zugang: Krankentransportabteilung      Abgang: zur Truppe 
 
10.04.1918 - 04.05.1918  Heimat-Kraftfahr-Bezirk Reservelazarett 4  Hannover Verwundung      Zugang: Kriegsfeldlazarett 310 Tonrcoing      Abgang: Reservelazarett I Abteilung Städt.           Krankenhaus Hannover            04.05.1918 - 23.10.1918  Heimat-Kraftfahr-Bezirk Reservelazarett I  Städt. Krankenhaus Hannover      Zugang: Reservelazarett 4 Hannover      Abgang: verlegt zum Reservelazarett IV           Schloßgarten Hannover 
 
23.10.1918 - 11.11.1918  Heimat-Kraftfahr-Bezirk Reservelazarett  „Versorgungskrankenhaus IV“ Hannover Erkrankung      Zugang: Reservelazarett I Hannover      Abgang: 3:30 Uhr nachmittags verstorben 
 
Laut dem Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e.V. in Kassel ruht Ihr Angehöriger auf der Kriegsgräberstätte in Hannover-Limmer-Fössefeld im Grab 770.  
 

Thank you to all who helped me with this quest, I appreciate it.

Cheers

Pilipala

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Hello,

 

He was not wounded at Tourcoing, he was treated there in Feldlazarett 310 (not Kriegsfeldlazarett).

 

They don't know at all what they are all writing about. The abbreviation H.Kr.B. doesn't mean Heimat-Kraftfahr-Bezirk but Haupt-Kranken-Buch.

Jan

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3 hours ago, AOK4 said:

They don't know at all what they are all writing about.

I wonder who they make answer these letters. Interns?

GreyC

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Probably the worst thing is that most people would be happy with the answer from WAST and treat it as gospel.

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  • 7 months later...

Feldlazarett 310 was Saxon, and originally designated Feldlazarett 7 / XIX. Armeekorps. I checked this splendid specialist website for further information but couldn't find anything beyond the naming of one of the doctors under 'Personalia'.

 

https://feldlazarette-sachsen.jimdo.com/organisation/

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