Original WWII German Wehrmacht soldier photograph grouping of 12 photos, all originating from the same soldier, and dating primarily from 1939–1941. This is a particularly nice cohesive grouping because several of the photographs retain handwritten period captions on the reverse, allowing portions of the soldier’s wartime movements and activities to be reconstructed.

The photographs show the soldier and his comrades in a variety of settings, including field exercises, map reading/orientation work, marching and field movements, barracks life, a military installation, vehicles, group portraits, and scenes associated with the 1940 campaign in France.

Several images are especially interesting:

• Multiple large photographs show groups of uniformed Wehrmacht personnel working with maps and documents in the field, apparently during training or field exercises.
• Several show soldiers gathered in open countryside, including what appear to be field instruction/orientation exercises.
• One photograph shows the soldier standing alone in uniform outside a building.
• One shows a group posed beside a period military/civilian vehicle.
• Another shows a substantial military barracks or installation, complete with balconies, exterior ladders and utility structures.
• One excellent indoor image shows a uniformed soldier seated at a desk working with papers and equipment, with numerous document binders visible behind him.
• Two photographs show groups of men in more relaxed clothing, apparently during off-duty periods.
• The photographs include both straight-cut and deckle-edge photographic paper, typical of the period.

Handwritten Captions / Translations

A number of the photographs are dated 1939/40, 1940 and 1941. The inscriptions provide particularly useful provenance.

One caption is clearly dated:

“Krieg 1939/40 – 8.9.40”

and appears to identify the location as Mülhausen / Els. — Mulhouse, Alsace. This is especially interesting because Alsace was an important area during the 1940 campaign.

Another reads approximately:

“Bei einer kurzen Rast auf dem Vormarsch in Frankreich. Sommer.”

Translation:

“During a short rest on the advance in France. Summer.”

This is an excellent period caption directly associating the photographs with the German advance/campaign in France in 1940.

Another caption dated 15.8.41 begins:

“Die Sondertruppe …”

and continues with a reference to comrades; portions of the old German handwriting are difficult to decipher with certainty.

Another photograph is dated:

“Krieg 1939/40 – Paris – Vincennes – 5.9.40”

indicating Paris/Vincennes, France, September 5, 1940.

Another is marked approximately:

“Unterkunft (Batterieheim) in Kriegs…”

with the date:

29.5.41

The reference to a “Batterieheim” is noteworthy and suggests the soldier was associated with a battery-level unit, very possibly artillery or another branch organized into batteries.

Several of the other photographs carry abbreviated period notations with dates during April–May 1940, while others reference 1939/40.

Taken together, the captions appear to trace this soldier from training/field activity through the 1940 Western Campaign and France, including Paris/Vincennes and Alsace, and into 1941.

Condition

Original period photographs with normal age-related wear, handling, minor curling, surface marks and occasional edge/corner wear. Some exhibit glossy reflections in the listing photographs. Several have handwritten period inscriptions on the reverse. Please examine all photographs carefully for exact condition.

A very desirable single-soldier WWII German photograph grouping with excellent field scenes and, most importantly, identifiable wartime captions connecting the group with France, Paris/Vincennes, Alsace and the 1940 campaign.

You will receive all 12 original photographs shown.

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