Who's in this picture?

[Ugarte]

I recently stumbled onto a fellow with an interesting trove of pictures taken/collected by his family in Germany during WWII and I've been cleaning them up and trying to find out the who-what-when-where about them. One of the images is a postcard seen in the thumbnail below (click to enlarge).



I'm pretty sure that we're looking at Hermann Goering here. Based on his uniform (Luftwaffe General) and lack of decorations thereon, I'm guessing it was taken sometime after his promotion to CIC of the Luftwaffe in 1935 and 30 Sep 1939 when he was awarded the Knight's Cross after the invasion of Poland. Though the picture could be from as early as 1933 after he was promoted to Major General. Time of year is obviously during warm weather as the trees are in full leaf.

The fellow to Goering's left initially looked to me like Reinhard Heydrich -- tallish, long, thin face. But the more I look into it, the less I can place Heydrich with Goering. I certainly can't rule it out, but it's based on a very sketchy visual impression.

I also have no idea where the picture was taken. These two appear to be exiting a well decorated tent after a meeting of some kind. The sign above the tent is hard to read, but there is a reference to "zu Fuss" (on Foot) which might mean this tent/event was associated somehow with the Hermann Goering Division -- an infantry group under the command of the Luftwaffe.

The postcard appears to have a nice matte finish that makes focus a wee bit fuzzy, but other than that it is in pristine condition. I've played with the contrast levels, but I haven't been able to reveal any further detail.

Anybody else see anything or have any ideas?

Thanks.


Mark
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[Dixon Cannon]

Not Heydrich. Heydrich was SS. This fellow is definitely Luftwaffe as indicated by the cap devices. The fellow to his left (camera right) does appear to be SS as indicated by the Nazi armband. Without comparative photographs, date, location, it's difficult to identify others in this photograph. Do you have any background information at all?

Fascinating find, that's for sure!

-Oberst Dixon von Cannon

 

[Dixon Cannon]

The translation of the sign above the men is roughly, "by foot" or "walk".
"Luftwaffe xxxxxx by foot" A search in that direction might help.

-Oberst Dixon von Cannon

 

[dhermann1]

Just thinking about the gestures, I'd guess this guy is escorting Goering around the premises. He might be the commandant of the unit. If you can get the location, you could look for the personnel based there at the time.

 

[Ugarte]

Yeah, I've got a long list of reasons it isn't Heydrich, but it would be really sweet to find out who it is. As far as more information, there isn't any. This was simply a commercially available postcard that was no doubt purchased just prior to or during the war. It could be anywhere, probably in Gerrnany, possibly during the time frame I have described based on details of the general officer's uniform (assuming that is in fact Goering).

At any rate, there are several other notable images in this lot.



As near as I can tell, this image (another postcard) appears to be of Adolf Hitler and unidentified military personnel standing at 49°26'06.85" North by 11°06'27.93" East on the terrace of the Ehrenhalle WWI memorial on the north-eastern side of the Luitpoldarena in Nuremberg, Germany. (http://stable.toolserver.org/geohac...i_party_rally_grounds&params=49.43_N_11.12_E_) Today the Luitpoldarena is a nice looking park just off Hermann-Böhm-Straße. Seen from overhead on Google Earth, the Ehrenhalle is still there, surrounded by large trees (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sou...35113,11.10773&spn=0.001814,0.00338&t=h&z=18).

Regrettably, the time at which the picture was taken is much less certain. It is very likely that this picture was taken at one of the "Imperial Party Congress" rallies held in Nuremburg during August or September between 1927 - 1938 (the 1939 "Imperial Party Congress for Peace" was canceled due to the outbreak of WWII). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_party_rally_grounds).

My suspicion is that this photo was likely not taken at the 1934 "Imperial Party Congress for Unity and Strength" documented by Leni Riefenstahl in "Triumph of the Will". I've never actually seen "Triumph" but this photo does not seem to fit the description of the event:

"The fourth day is the climax of the film, where the most memorable of the imagery is presented. As the soundtrack plays themes from Wagner's Götterdämmerung, Hitler, flanked by Heinrich Himmler and Viktor Lutze, walks through a long wide expanse with over 150,000 SA and SS troops standing at attention, to lay a wreath at a World War I Memorial" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triumph_of_the_Will).

And the scene from "Triumph" seems to portray the event much differently (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_102-04062A,_N%C3%BCrnberg,_Reichsparteitag,_SA-_und_SS-Appell.jpg) I'm guessing from the crowd standing on the wall around the terrace that the event portrayed here is much more intimate and less formally structured than the monumental rallies on the scale of "Triumph". This would suggest that the rally captured in the postcard might have been closer to 1930, though this is strictly a guess on my part.




This photo appears to be a street scene involving a substantial crowd, bomb-damaged buildings, and officials waiting for a parade. The provenance and details in the photo would place the event somewhere in the city of Pforzheim, which is between Baden-Baden and Stuttgart.

Hanging in the doorway of a building, behind the flags over the crowd is a sign. While legibility is severely compromised, the first word on the sign might be "Auf" ("On"). At the bottom of the sign there appears to be the number "55".

Chronologically, there is no visible ice/snow or moisture of any kind. There is no apparent vegetation. While obviously taken in daylight, there are no shadows visible lending the impression of an overcast sky, but visible clothing reveals no cold or wet-weather apparel, and young women and children in the crowd appear to be wearing short skirts or short pants.

My suspicion is that this picture was taken on or about April 20, 1944. The conjectured parade could be a celebration of Adolf Hitler's 55th birthday. Unfortunately, the timing is just not right. According to my research, Pforzheim was bombed first in November of 1944 and later more heavily in February of 1945. It was believed Pforzheim, a major jewelry manufacturing center, was involved in the production of war material, and the attacks of 1945 were particularly destructive. This picture was almost undoubtedly taken after February of 1945.

This image was heavily stained on over the left-hand side. Restoration was fairly successful.


Finally, there's this:



According to provenance, this picture was most likely taken in or around Pforzheim in the spring of 1940. It portrays the owner's grandfather walking his father (or possibly uncle). I don't think much else is known about the image, but it seems possible that the adult in uniform carrying a suitcase is being accompanied to the train station for deployment.

I thought that image was poignant and kind of endearing. Restoration of this image consisted of restoring some contrast and basic removal of spots, dust, and scratches.

So, that's what I'm working on lately.


Mark
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[Marv]

Looks like Gunther Rall......

but also does look at bit like Erich Hartmann as well so who knows

 

[Cigarband]

I met Gunther Rall at the Wings of Eagles Airshow in Willow Run Michigan five years ago. I had the luck to be able to spend a few minutes talking to him after the banquet. He's a great guy with some fabulous stories to tell.

 

[Widebrim]

I met Gunther Rall at the Wings of Eagles Airshow in Willow Run Michigan five years ago. I had the luck to be able to spend a few minutes talking to him after the banquet. He's a great guy with some fabulous stories to tell.

What's interesting about Rall (besides being the third highest fighter ace ever), is that he actually rejoined the military in 1956, serving with the Luftwaffe der Bundeswehr. He held the position of Inspekteur der Luftwaffe der Bundeswehr, and was a military attache' with NATO, finally retiring in 1975 with the rank of Generalleutnant.

 

[cookie]

Some fascinating trivia here.