WWII GERMANS
By: Panzercommander


East German Soldier, Friedrichstraße Border Crossing, East Berlin, 1961

A friend from my local club asked me for information on East German border guards for a kitbash. As I was doing some research, I was tempted to throw a kitbash together myself.

The kitbash represents an East German soldier stationed at the Friedrichstraße border crossing overseeing the wall being built and preventing any East Berliners from escaping to the west. (He has shoot-to-kill orders should anyone try.)

This was a really quick kitbash - I would do a few things differently if I was going to make him a permanent kitbash in my collection  and I'd try to make a Mosin-Nagant M-44 carbine as they seem to be much more prevalent in the NVA (Nationale Volksarmee - the East German Army). Also, I'd make more permanent color and insignia changes to the uniform and headgear.














Sign/Barriers inspired by this picture in the Bundesarchiv: Taken from Wikipedia




Wehrmacht Dolmetscher (Translator) with the rank of Captain, Operation Barbarossa, July, 1941

A captain in his late 30s attached to a Signals unit, our translator studied Russian at university and learned it fluently. Though he would have no trouble reading War and Peace or a Hero of Our Time cover to cover, he carries a German-Russian Dictionary for Soldiers in case he isn't quite familiar with the proper Soviet nomenclature - so nothing is lost in translation from a map to a document - or during a field interrogation.







Our translator is based off of Dragon's superb Signals officer boxed figure, Sepp Kiefer with Wehrmacht Dolmetscher's armband and German-Russian dictionary for Soldiers from One Sixth Scale King's EBay store. The detail on the custom pieces from One Sixth Scale King is phenomenal! I highly recommend their work!





Wehrmacht Major, Operation Barbarossa, July 1941

This is my first foray into kitbashing field officers, before this kitbash the highest ranking officers in my collection were a pair of Wehrmacht Captains.

The major is based off a mixture of a photo I found in the Time Life WWII Collection book "Russia Besieged" and Colonel Brandt from the film Cross of Iron.



The field officer with his back truend to the camera in riding breeches (center) and Heinz Guderian (left) confer over maps in Roslavl, August, 1941 - Time Life WWII Series "Russia Besieged" pg. 58.


Colonel Brandt, played by James Mason in Sam Peckinpah's Cross of Iron



Highly decorated as a young Leutnant in the First World War with the Iron Cross in both classes, our major made the cut into the 100,000 strong post-Treaty of Versailles German army of the Weimar Republic. As a Captain when the Second World War broke out in 1939, he once again proved himself on the battlefield, earning accolades, medals (both classes of Iron Cross again and the German Cross in Gold) and a promotion to Major on the eve of Operation Barbarossa. here he is now, several weeks into the largest military campaign in history, as calm and cool as ever, leading his already foot-sore infantry towards Moscow in Army Group Center.

I've had the Toys City von Stauffenberg set for several months now but just got around to kitbashing this figure in the last few weeks. I'm excited to add him to my collection as he's my first field grade officer. (I've wanted a field grade officer in my collection since I first saw Colonel Brandt in Cross of Iron.) Ideally I woul dhave used a DML officer's tunic from Lt. Falkner, Sepp Kiefer, or Manfred Hecht, but since they are nearly impossible to find, I used the Toys City version. It is cut very nicely. The only downside is the scalloped cut to the turn back cuffs on the tunic, otherwise it would be perfect.










Three very sharp looking Germans here my friend. It was definitely hard to pick my favorite, but I think I'm leaning toward that last guy. Great work from you once again Panzercommander. Special thanks for sending these cool projects in and sharing them with us. - GL



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