Original Item: One-of-a-kind. This is a fantastic genuine WWII German Soldbuch, issued to Obergefreiter Emil Winkelmann, a Flak NCO in the Luftwaffe during World War II, eventually assigned to Flak Regiment 40. The very front page of the book is unfortunately stuck to the cover, so we cannot read it.
On the interior cover is a photograph of Winkelmann, double stamped and attached with the correct period staples. His Kragenspiegel (collar tab) insignia for Obergefreiter are visible, with three "gull wing" insignia. Date stamps show he used this Soldbuch from the 3rd Quarter of 1943 up until the 3rd Quarter of 1944. He was born on June 18th, 1905. All pages of the Soldbuch are intact minus a section in the back which has become detached, and many legible stamps can be read, like Flak Rgt 40, the unit of the Luftwaffe he was in. The first date in the stamp section at the end is November 16th, 1941.
The Soldbuch is in good shape overall and provides for a great deal of research into the officer’s service during World War II. Comes ready for further research and display.
More on the German Soldbuch:
The Soldbuch served the soldier as a personal identification document in wartime and as an authorization to receive pay from his own or outside pay-stations. In addition, it was identification for rail travel, detached service, leave, and for receiving mail. The Soldbuch was always carried by the soldier on his person in a tunic pocket. Leaving the book in one's baggage or in one's quarters was not permitted. The careful preservation of the book was in the best interest of the owner. The Soldbuch had to be kept in an orderly fashion. The owner must see to it, that all changes in pay due to transfer or promotion are immediately entered by his responsible duty station. The Soldbuch was an official document. Entries were only to be made by a Wehrmacht duty station. Making unauthorized changes is punishable as falsification of official documents. The loss of a Soldbuch was to be reported as soon the loss is discovered to the holders unit or duty station, and the issue of a new Soldbuch will be requested.
