Prisoners of War: Wehrmacht Soldiers in U.S.Captivity

During the war, over 400.000 German Prisoners of War were sent to prisoner camps in the United States, mostly in rural areas. Here they were given adequate food, medical care, and humane treatment, often far better than what German soldiers experienced on the Eastern Front or what Allied POWs faced in German captivity. Many were put to work on farms and in factories, receiving small wages and some even developed friendly relationships with American guards and locals. After the war, tens of thousands were held longer to assist with reconstruction efforts in Europe. Some were sent to Britain and France for forced labor before being fully released. The "Rheinwiesenlager" (Rhine Meadow Camps) in Germany, run by U.S. and French forces, had harsh conditions, with some prisoners suffering from malnutrition and disease due to overcrowding and food shortages. By 1948, most German POWs had been released and sent back home.

Source :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlpi8K6WsEA

General Vladimir Kirpichnikov as a POW of the Finns

Major-General Vladimir Kirpichnikov with a packet of Chesterfield cigarettes at the Kyöliö officers’ prison in November 1943. He was the only prisoner of general rank that the Finns captured during the wars! Kirpichnikov was captured by the Finns near the city of Viborg on 1 September 1941. He was first interrogated in the village of Karisalmi and later moved to Finnish Army headquarters in Mikkeli. The Finns wanted to use Kirpichnikov for propagandist purposes since they knew he had some opinions that were critical of the Soviet regime. However, Kirpichnikov did not agree to work for the Finns. In December 1941 he was moved to Sotavankileiri 1 (Prison camp 1), which was located in the municipality of Köyliö in Western Finland. It was a camp for more than 3,000 Soviet prisoners, including 1,000 officers. According to other prisoners, Kirpichnikov was offered the commander's post of the Russian Liberation Army but he refused. The pictures taken of Kirpichnikov were used as a propaganda tool. Most famous are a picture of Kirpichnikov lighting the cigarette of his interrogator, General Lennart Oesch, and this color photo of Kirpichnikov with a newspaper and a pack of Chesterfield cigarettes. He was also seen in a Finnish propaganda film. After the war was over, Kirpichnikov was sent back to the Soviet Union where he was immediately arrested by the SMERSH. Kirpichnikov was held in a prison camp in Podolsk, then later at Lefortovo Prison in Moscow. He was charged with treason and sentenced to death by the USSR Military Collegium on 8 October 1950. Two days later, Kirpichnikov was shot. Some sources report the date of his execution as 28 August 1950, prior to the recorded death sentence.

Source :

 Book "Finland at War: The Continuation and Lapland Wars 1941-45" by Vesa Nenye, Peter Munter, Toni Wirtanen and Chris Birks 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Kirpichnikov_%28general%29

Soviet POW Captured by the Finns

Russian soldier captured by Finnish troops in the Continuation War. Despite the propaganda spread by the Commissariat, the Soviets who surrendered were usually treated very well. Unfortunately, many terrified soldiers fought to the death, believing that this was the lesser of two evils. The soldier in this picture wearing Budenovka, a distinctive type of hat and an essential part of the Communist uniform of the Russian Civil War and later conflicts. Its official name was the "broadcloth helmet" (шлем суконный). Named after Semyon Budyonny, it was also known as the "frunzenka" after Mikhail Frunze. It is a soft, woolen hat that covers the ears and neck. The cap has a peak and folded earflaps that can be buttoned under the chin.

Source :
Book "Finland at War: The Continuation and Lapland Wars 1941-45 by Vesa Nenye
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budenovka

German Infantry Marching during the First Phase of Operation Barbarossa

German infantry from 79. Infanterie-Division marching during the first phase of Operation Barbarossa, June-July 1941. The Russian summer can be hot way above what an average German is used to. The expressions on the faces of the troops tell the story. When the 79. was committed to the invasion of Soviet Union on June 26, 1941, little would the members of the Division realize that they had started the long road to disaster. From June 1941 to September 1942 the 79. fought its way into Russia, encountering strong resistance from Russian forces as well as fierce cold weather during the winter of 1941. The Division participated in actions in the southern portion of Russia via Korosten, Lutsk, Rovno, Piryatin, and Akhtyrka. From November 1941 to June 1942 the Division fought in the Belogorod and Volchansk areas. The Division then advanced from Volchansk via Valuiki, Rovenki, and Serafimovich. By October 1942 the Division was in the marshes between the Don and Volga Rivers, and received orders to the place that was to become the end of the Division's march into Russia, Stalingrad...

Sources :
Book "Die 79. Infanterie Division" by Hans Sänger
http://www.reenactor.net/units/ir226/3-79_hist.html

SS-Sturmbannführer Hans Waldmüller of SS Hitlerjugend

The strain of battle is evident in the face of SS-Sturmbannführer Johann "Hans" Waldmüller (13 September 1912 – 8 September 1944), commander of I.Bataillon / SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 25 / 12. SS-Panzer-Division "Hitlerjugend" while fighting in Normandy, June 1944. He is wearing the Italian M29 Telo Mimetico camo smock. Waldmüller joined the SS at an early stage in 1933. After started the career in SD (Sicherheitsdienst), during World War II he was transferred to the elites, the Leibstandarte-SS Adolf Hitler, in the Summer of 1940. When a new Waffen-SS division was to be formed in 1943, the 12. SS-Panzer-Division "Hitlerjugend", he was selected to be transferred over from the LSSAH as a Bataillonskommandeur. Waldmüller would take part in the fierce fighting in Normandy, where the "Baby Milk" Division would distinguished themselves for their outrageous fighting behavior. An account on one of the fighting: "During the fighting of 8 and 9 June 1944, I. Bataillon lost one NCO and four men killed. Four NCOs and sixteen were wounded. Of them, four NCOs and five men remained with the unit. The following days were remarkable mainly because of the industrious buildings of positions. The numerous fire attacks by enemy artillery forced the Panzer shelters to be constructed like bunkers. They were propped up on the inside with railroad ties from the close-by line Cane-Luc-sur-Mer. Trees had to be cut down to open up fields of fire. Sturmbannführer Waldmüller himself was on his feet day and night, to the point of dropping dead, to supervise and direct the building of the positions. His Bataillon command post, too, was an earth bunker in the open field, just behind the front line. His example, his inexorable insistence saved the lives of many of his men at the time." A second account on the fighting: "SS Major Johann Waldmüller, now the chief of the l. Battalion, stood in the midst of his men, the very soul of resistance," according to Kurt Meyer, his superior. For his bravery and excellent leadership he was recommended and awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernes Kreuzes on 27 August 1944. But he was killed not long after that, gruesomely mutilated by the Belgian partisans. On 8 september, 1944, while driving on his sidecar together with SS-Untersturmführer Karl Marquard, he got ambushed near Basse-Bodeux on the road from Werbomont to Stavelot. The belgian partisans had positioned a rope on the road and when the vehicle neared they tightened the rope. The cycle was brought to a halt - either stopped or caught in the cable - and was immediatly put under fire. Soon later, horse-drawn carriages from Waldmüller's unit discovered the horror. The driver of the cycle was found, seriously wounded, on the left side of the road. In the cycle itself sat SS-Untersturmführer Marquard dead in the rear seat. He was shot in the head. SS-Sturmbannführer Waldmüller was discovered a little further, mutilated and dumped. His belly had been slit open, genitals cut off and dumped in a drainage pipe of a small lake. Both men were buried in Düren and still are. Photo by SS-Kriegsberichter Wilfried Woscidlo

Source :
http://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/showthread.php?t=412640

US Private Jerry Smith

US Private Jerry Smith, on Okinawa during World War II. Jerry served in the Army's 718th Amphibious Tractor Battalion of XXIV Corps. He was a driver and armorer on an LVT-4 amphibian tractor, or "amtrac." Picture taken in Nishihara-Cho, Okinawa Prefecture, June 1945

Source:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/11046337@N07/2306611086