Sgt. Paul Ernst Kaess in Batterie Sturm-Artillerie-Abteilung 190

  • My Grandfather Paul Ernst Kaess (1921-2002) served in the German Army in WWII. Paul Ernst Kaess military record from the German Army in WWII was obtained from Deutsche Dienstelle Berlin in Feb 2017 by Brian Paul Kaess, his Grandson.
    Paul’s entry date for the German Army was June 17 1940. He attended Field Artillery training in Batterie schwere Artillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung 61 in Pilsen (June 1940) and Schwabish Gmund (Sept 1940). He also trained with Batterie Artillerie-Lehr-Regiment Juteborg in Sept 1940. He was assigned to Batterie Sturm-Artillerie-Abteilung 190 from Oct 1 1940 to Feb 4 1944. He also served in Sturmgeschutz-Brigade 190 from Jan 14 1944. From Feb 24 1944 to his discharge (his discharge date is unknown), he served in Genesendenbatterie Sturmgeschutz-Erzatz- und Ausbildungs-Abteilung 200 in Schweinfurt.

    Paul was in the hospital three times:
    1) June 22 1942 in Kreigslazarett 2/610 Simferopol
    2) Jan 30 1944 to Feb 9 1944 in Reservelazarett I Warschau, C1, Salzstrasse
    3) Feb 2 1944 in Reservelazarett III Hannover, Abteilung Clementinenhaus
    Von Reservelazarett I Warshau.

    Paul Ernst Kaess was promoted to Gefreiter (Corporal) in June 22 1942 and promoted to Unteroffizier (Seargent) on Jan 30 1944. His final Discharge date is unknown but is believed to be around late 1944-45.
    Sincerely,
    Brian Paul Kaess

    Edited once, last by briankaess (February 6, 2017 at 8:41 PM).

  • Per family accounts, Paul Ernst Kaess served in France?, Russia, Yugoslavia, Greece, Rumania, Lithuania, and perhaps Poland. It is possible Paul served in France during the Vichy period, after the '40 Campaign for France had ended. Paul stated he had a French girlfriend in occupied France. It is known he married a Silesian girl in 1944, his 1st wife Dorothea Dorschke (1922-1951), aka 'Doris.' His 2nd wife was Hildegard Louise Golz (1924-2004).

  • Hi Brian,

    it would be very helpful if you give us an insight in the documents of Deutsche Diensstelle, may you scann it. Please blacken the personal data of the staff member of Deutsche Dienststelle.

    Regards

    Paul


    G-W-G'

  • Below is the Order of Battle for Sgt. Paul Ernst Kaess' unit:

    Sturmartillerie-Abteilung 190Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 190 (Feb 41)
    leichte Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 190 (Apr 43)
    leichte-Sturmgeschütz-Brigade 190 (Jan 44)

    Oct 40 - formed at Jüterbog with three batteries
    Nov 40 - declared ready for combat
    Nov 40 - transferred to Lure, France
    Jan 41 - arrived in Balaci, Romania
    Apr 41 - XXX Corps, 12th Army, the Balkans
    Apr/May 41 - participated in the invasion of Greece
    15 May 41 ordered from Athens to Romania
    Jun 41 - arrived in Bucharest, Romania
    Jun 41 - 11th Army Reserves, Army Group South (less 1./ XI Corps, 11st Army)
    Jul/Aug 41 - assigned to IX Corps, 11st Army, Army Group South
    Jul 41 - XI Corps, 11th Army, Army Group South (less 1./ assigned to XXX Corps)
    Sep 41 - XXX Corps, 11th Army, Army Group South (later LIV Corps, 11th Army, Army Group South, less one battery assigned to XXX Corps)
    Oct 41 - LIV Corps, 11th Army, Army Group South
    Apr 42 - assigned to XXX Corps, 11st Army, Army Group South
    Apr/May 42 - 6 long-barreled StuGs received and participated in the attack on Kertch
    Jun 42 - LIV Corps, 11th Army, Army Group South, conquest of Sevastopol (6 StuGs with L/43 guns)
    Jul 42 - refitting in the Yalta area; transferred to the Kursk area and assigned to 2nd Army
    Aug 42 - 14 long-barreled StuGs arrive
    Sep 42 - 12 more long-barreled StuGs arrive; 27 StuGs operational
    Jan 43 - refitting in Treuenbrietzen, reorganized with each batterie having a section of StuH 42s
    Mar 43 - 3./ attached to 168th Infantry Division, Corps Raus z.b.V., with one StuG
    Jun 43 - returned to the East, Army Group Center reserve (22 StuG III and 9 StuH 42 operational)
    Jul 43 - reached Karachev and assigned to 4th Army, Army Group Center
    Sep 43 - XXVII Corps, 4th Army, Army Group Center
    Nov 43 - transferred to the Vitebsk-Nevel area under 3rd Panzer Army
    Feb 44 - transferred to the Kovel area
    May 44 - transferred to the Mogilev area, 4th Army, Army Group Center
    Sep 44 - XX Corps, 2nd Army, Army Group Center
    Oct 44 - XXIII Corps, 2nd Army, Army Group Center
    Nov 44 - ordered to the rear for refitting
    Jan 45 -ordered back to the front near Danzig under the Second Army

    No longer have paper copy of service record in possesion. What has been mentioned is a faithful translation/copy.

  • Paul Ernst Kaess may have been awarded the Crimea Shield for his actions during the Sevastopol campaign. Over 250,000 German soldiers (including German 11th army) were awarded this shield for the conquest of Sevastopol.

    Edited once, last by briankaess (February 10, 2017 at 6:06 PM).

  • While looking for Carpentry Guild records for my Paternal Grandfather Paul Ernst Kaess (1921-2002), I managed to find his Denazification file in the Staatsarchiv Ludwigsburg,a branch of the Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg in SW Germany. I inquired with Hartmut Obst and he said It was filed under signature EL 902/15 Bü 10835. He said they had a total of 24 pages for the file.

    On March 7 2019, Brian Paul Kaess received a reply in Mexico from the Ludwigsburg archiv in his inbox with a zip file full of 17 pages of documents related to his Grandfather Paul Ernst Kaess. Jackpot! I found ten that I thought were valuable and loaded them onto familysearch community to be translated. I gave the documents various names: Annual Pay Rate, Arbeitsblatt, Associations, NSDAP/HJ statement, Party History, Foreign Travel, Unit location History, Personal Info, Paul Kaess statement & Spruckkammer.

    Probably, the most valuable document at first glance to myself personally was ‘Foreign Travel.’ This confirmed that he had traveled (during wartime) to France (Frankreich), Rumania (Rumanien), Bulgaria/Greece, and Russia (Russland). For Rumania, her served there from Jan 20 1941 to Mar 1 1941. For Bulgaria and Greece, he served from Mar 5? 1941 until Jun 14 1941. For France and Rumania, he was just training. He served in France from Dec 1 1940 to Jan 1 1941. This evidence about service in France helps lend credence to the family yarn that he had a French girlfriend. For Russia, he stated he had been there from June 22, 1941 until July 3 1944. June 22 1941 was the start of the Barbarossa campaign. We know from other sources that Paul was in the German Army from 1940 until 1944 (at least). Also, Paul stated in 1990 that he had been wounded in Vilnius, Lithuania, in 1944 when a Russian soldier had thrown a grenade into his armored vehicle. July 3 1944 is right before the opening of the Russian Vilnius Offensive, during Operation Bagration, the Soviet’s Great Summer Offensive of 1944. This July 3 1944 date could easily have been the date Paul was wounded and evacuated from Russia. This would not have been the first time Paul was wounded. Medical Records also place him in Warsaw, Poland in early 1944. He was also in hospital in Crimea in 1942.

    There was also a list of Medals/Awards at the bottom of the Military Service section. They read as follows:

    1)      Ostmedalie 1942 (Eastern Front Medal)

    2)      EK.II. 1943 (Iron Cross 2nd Class)

    3)      EK.I. 1943 (Iron Cross 1st Class)

    4)      Sturm abzekhev I.u.II.Stuffe (General Assault Badge)

    5)      Erwundstewabzeichen mit Schwarz Grunde und Tapfer Keit 1944 (Wounds Badge)

    There was also an ‘Arbeitsblatt’ form, dated 27 Aug 1946. This form showed he had been in the HJ or Hitler Youth from 1934-1939. It also demonstrated that he had been a member of the NSDAP or Nazi Party from 1940 until 1945. One of the most revealing documents was his personal info, confirming much of what I had gathered over the years from other sources. His name is mentioned as Paul Kaess, born Feb 6 1921 in Benningen. His occupation is ‘Sitzmobiltischler’ or seating furniture maker. His religión was Evangelisch or Lutheran. His citizenship is mentioned as ‘Deutsch’ or German. His address is Wilhelmstr. 17 in Heutingsheim, Germany. His hair color is Brown with his eyes Grey-Green. Even his weight is mentioned- 120 pf., whatever that is supposed to mean.

    The unit location history is a chronological record of employment and military service/before/during the war, he had been first an Apprentice (from 1934-1939) and then a Journeyman Carpenter (from 1939-40). He had been a member of the RAD or Reich Labour Force from March 17 1940 until June 10 1940. He entered the German Army on June 17 1940. His Ober Leutnant from 1940 to 1944 was named Naether or something similar. This could easily have been his friend ‘Chef’ who he had talked about. Chef was a generic name for commander, but that is how Paul referred to his friend. His unit is mentioned as ‘Sturm Gesch. Lehr Brg 190’ . This is also what Deutsche Dienststelle has on Paul for a unit. This was an Artillery unit that wore the uniforms of the Panzer troops. It also mentions he was in the Hospital or Lazarett' from Jan 3 1944 to March 1 1944. His last date in the German Army is probably June 14 1945. The file also revealed he had been captured from May 8 1945 until June 14 1945.

    From July 10, 1945, he worked as a Journeyman Carpenter as a civilian. The war was over for him.

    Edited 4 times, last by briankaess22 (March 9, 2019 at 6:23 PM).

  • Correction to previous post. Paul Ernst Kaess last date in Russia was likely January 3 1944, NOT July 3 1944. There was some confusion in reading the dates in the documents of his Denazification File which led to this error.

  • See the following article by Brian Paul Kaess, "Finding the Denazification File for Paul Ernst Kaess in the Staatsarchiv Ludwigsburg," in Sept 2019 issue of Das Posthorn, Newsletter for the SW Florida Germanic Genealogy Society.

  • Hi Brian,

    please, be so kind and write not only in English

    but give us as well a translation into German -

    even that might be not perfect.

    A lot of people here don't speak English.

    There's something else:

    we always start and end our posts with "Grußformeln".

    I don't know the correct translation - you will find it.


    Habe ihm geschrieben, er möge bitte auch auf Deutsch

    schreiben, selbst wenn das nicht perfekt ist.

    Und ebenfalls habe ich mir den Hinweise auf

    unsere Gepflogenheiten hier bezügl. Grüßen erlaubt.

    Grüße Kordula

    Slava Ukraini! In Memoriam A.N.!