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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

Georg Hofbauer


Ian C

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Hi

Can anyone help me with any information on this man. All I know apart from his name and regiment is that he was killed on 24.03.18 aged 20.

I know that there is a German equivlilant of the CWGC, but as I do not speak or read German I can't learn anything from it.

Regards

IanC

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IanC

Where is the German site ?

maybe someone can translate it if you post a link

Grant

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His rank was Infanterist - Private Soldier and he is buried in the German cemetery at Neuville St Vaast near Vimy: Block 2 Grave 1185. You cannot read too much into this because the huge concentration cemetery at NSV has reburials from as far away as the Somme. I am not sure how he was killed or died. On the date in question Bav IR 12 (Prinz Arnulf) - part of Bav 4 Brigade, 2nd Bav Infantry Division was en route to moving into OHL reserve in the area of Cambrai, prior to advancng over the wrecked Somme battlefield and resuming the offensive on 4 April 1918.

Jack

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I will be in the area in 3 weeks time if you would like a photograph of the cross Ian.

Jim

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IanC

That looks like your man in Bavaria, despite the unit difference. That could be your next port of call for information, looks a nice place to visit!

http://www.waging-am-see.de/version_englisch.html (long way - bit far for me on a day trip)

Do you want me to email the place and find out if they have local information on the man - you never know, maybe even Hofbauers still living there.

Jim

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Hi Ken

Thanks for that.

Did you notice that the man listed below Georg, Peter Hofbauer, died only seven weeks after Georg, and has what appears to be the correct unit details for Georg, I wonder if they have these listed the wrong way round?

Regards

IanC

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IanC

I have sent an initial email. If they reply wanting some reason for the information what can I tell them.

Jim

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Faire attention, guys: In Bavaria, Georg Hofbauer is a name like John Smith in the UK. There could have been 2 or 3 of them in the same regiment.

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Hi Jim

Its for general research inspired by the fact that I have just acquired a memorial card for him.

A work colleague has done a quick translation of the card for me and other clues are that it seems his father was a farmer named Zeinacher, it also mentions a village called Erschlecht and a Vicars district called Seeon. He also thinks that it was printed by Gebrueder Erdl in Trostberg.

Regards

Ian

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No reply form Waging-am-See as yet but I have noted a Hofbauer Hof holiday place near the village. Farms are often called after the original family owners so there might be a connection. I agree the name is common but not in the 'John Smith' league. Present owners are not Hofbauer.

Seeon is a large monastic place near the Chiemsee about 50Km away and is therefore probably the religious seat for the area. Erschlecht does not exist as a town or village but I have found it as another parish - rather strange.

The Zeinacherbauerssohn is a mystery. It would be strange for a name and Bauerssohn to be written as one word, more likely the whole word means something but I cannot find a translation. Various spellings of Acher mean field so acherbauer makes sense even if it is not found in a modern German dictionary. The Zein at the beginning - no idea. I even looked in a Bavarian specialist dictionary!

Finally, I would rather trust the card for details than the memorial. I think you are looking at the units on the memorial being put the wrong way round and your research is on the 12th I.R. and not the 21st.

Jim

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Erschlecht is the name of the plateau northeast of Seeon between Rabenden and the Alz, around the villages of Burghüb, Elsterer, Lochen, Grilleck etc.

One of our German pals is bound to prove me wrong, but I'd say that Zeinacherbauerssohn probably means "son of a farmer from Zeinach" (i.e. the father was from Zeinach) - as distinct from Zeinacher Bauerssohn, which would mean "farmer's son from Zeinach" (i.e. the son was from Zeinach).

I can't find Zeinach as a placename, but there are several Zainachs in Bavaria. One is a suburb of Rott am Inn, another is a hamlet outside Osterhofen and a third is near Eggenfelden - where the airport is now. But they're all quite far from Seeon. It may have been the name of a local farm at one time.

Adrian

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  • 3 years later...

Hi

I just thought I would be really cheeky and bring this back up to the top to see if anyone could spare a few minutes to have another look at it. My reason for doing this is that Ancestry are currently making some records available for free and today it is the Bavaria WW1 Personnel Rosters and they will be free to look at until 15/10, but of course they are in German, which I don't speak or understand.

So, if any of our German speakers could spare a few minutes to have a look for me I would be very grateful.

You have to go to the Ancestry main page and half way down, click on the 15 Free Record Collections, on the next page click on the 'see all the free collections' link, on the next page, halfway down click on the link for today's date. If you then enter the name, Georg Hofbauer with a birth location of Waging am See and search it brings up four records, of which three seem to be for the same man and I think this is 'my' Georg. The middle of the three entries looks the most interesting and certainly mentions the date 24.03.18.

I realise that this is asking a great deal, but would be very grateful if anyone can help.

Regards

IanC

Ps I now think that maybe he was 21st & not 12th Infantry

Edited by Ian C
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Ps I now think that maybe he was 21st & not 12th Infantry

He was both! There are four documents for him (easiest just to enter his surname and select his DoB 22/2/98 from the dropdowns in the Advanced search). He's listed under Feld-Rekruten-Depot 5. Reserve-Division, II.Ers.Batl./12.bIR, and twice in 21.bIR. From the image #170 under "1885. Kriegstammrolle: Bd. 4" you also need to go forward one page to get his campaign details without the flap of paper from the man above!

Georg Hofbauer, born 22 Feb 1898 at Schalkham, Bezirksamt Traunstein, farmer's son resident in Zainach, son of Peter and Therese (nee Stadler), farmer in Zainach, Bezirksamt Wasserburg.

"Bei Beugnâtre am 24.3.18 Nachm. 5 Uhr 30 durch I.G. [infanterie-Geschoß] (Brust) gefallen. Beerdigt 1 km nordöstlich Beugnâtre - Vaulx-Vraucourt."

Killed in action at Beugnâtre on 24 March 1918 at 5:30pm by rifle fire (chest). Buried 1 km northeast of Beugnâtre [?near] Vaulx-Vraucourt.

Lots more info on his transfers, movements etc.

Adrian

Note: This Schalkham is a hamlet near Obing (Google Earth/Maps 48.0143 12.4408), NOT the Schalkham outside Vilsbiburg near Landshut! Still quite a way from Waging though - about 24 km.

Zainach (Wasserburg) is the one near Rott am Inn (47.996 12.150)

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Adrian

Can I be really really cheeky now, Georgs brother, Peter, was killed a few weeks after Georg, would you mind doing the same search in the Bavarian records on Ancestry for him for me?

Regards

IanC

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10 documents for Peter! DoB 16/4/93 at Schalkham.

Am 11.6.18 vormittg. 3 Uhr infolge Berührung mit dem elektr. geladenen Hindernis am Reichackerkopf b/ Münster, Kreis Colmar, Oberelsaß gestorben.

Died on 11 June 1918 at 3am after coming into contact with the electrically charged obstacle [?electric fence] at Reichackerkopf near Münster, Colmar district, Upper Alsace.

He was serving at the time with 2.Kp., bay. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr.12.

Hope this helps!

Adrian

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