Nice original items, directly form the veteran during a reunion event. Schlaefereit, Heinz  1939-1941: Zugführer, Radfahr-Abteilung 1 – Hildesheim Polish, French and Russian campaigns Winter 1941-1942: Radfahr-Abteilung 1 converted to Kradschützen-Abteilung 4 – 24. Panzer-Division promoted to Leutnant 28.07.1942: WIA Survived Stalingrad 1943-1944: Chef, 4./ Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 24 – 24. Panzer-Division Promoted to Oberleutnant Promoted to Rittmeister 1945: Chef, 3./ Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 24 – 24. Panzer-Division Survived the war and was still alive in 2001.    Comments:  More photos and accounts about him can be found online, this a rare opportunity to own an actual attributed tag, which made it out of Stalingrad. A silent witness of great feats of bravery. He won the German Cross in Gold and had the Honor Roll Clasp. And last posting was as Schwadron Commander of a Panzer unit.  

This set belonging to Unteroffizier Prahl:  Set of Reiter Regiment 4 shoulder boards  One Uffz Reiter Regiment 22 shoulder board One Uffz Reiter Regiment 3 shoulder board KVK 2nd Class with Swords Document Reiter Regiment 22 – Signed by:Kurt Feldt (22 November 1897 – 11 March 1970) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross. He was the German commander in the Battle of the Afsluitdijk on 12-14 May 1940. Shooting Award – Awarded by Reiter Regiment 22  Photo of Prahl on horseback Comments: A desirable little grouping to early Cavalry units and very desirable shoulder boards. 

Zoubek was from Vienna, born in 1926 he was enlisted into the German Army in May of 1944.  Point to note before looking at the action reports for the Bulge, is that the 506th Easy Company fought this unit which is super cool…  Serving with the 2nd Panzer Divisions Stab (HQ), he was at some point during the battle assigned to:  Stabs Kompanie, Panzer Grenadier Regiment 304 (2 Panzer Division)  For the Ardennes Offensive 2. Panzerdivision was attached to the XLVII. Panzer Korps commanded by General der Panzertruppe Freiherr von Lüttwitz. In addition to 2. Panzerdivision, the Korps consisted of the Panzer Lehr Division and 26. Volksgrenadierdivision. As soon as the Volksgrenadiere of 26. Volksgrenadierdivision had secured crossings over the Our and Clerf Rivers, 2. Panzerdivision was tasked to breakthrough the American lines, bypass Bastogne to the north and race towards the Meuse and capture the bridges there. Only one day before the start of the offensive Oberst Meinrad von Lauchert took command of 2. Panzerdivision, so he was unable to meet all his commanders before the start of the offensive. In the pre-dawn hours of 16 December, Pioneers and a battalion of Panzergrenadiers crossed the Our river in rubber boats in order to capture the village of Marnach. This was meant to clear the road from Dasburg towards Clerf and further towards Bastogne, but the soldiers of the US 28th Infantry Division entrenched there held the village stubbornly. Only in the evening, when Pioneers finished a 60-ton bridge, were the division’s tanks able to cross the Our and join the fight. The defenders were then slowly pushed back. In the morning hours of 17 December an advance guard reached the town of Clerf, less than two miles west of Marnach and headquarters of the US 110th Infantry Regiment. The advance guard was stopped by Shermans of the 707th Tank Battalion. They lost four Panzer IV tanks in the fight, but destroyed three Shermans in return. The defenders of Clerf were furthermore reinforced by a tank company of the US 9th Armored Division, but in the evening all the American Sherman tanks were either destroyed or forced to retreat.  Clerf was finally captured. On 18 December what was left of the 110th Infantry Regiment was forced to withdraw to the west. However, the stiff resistance of the 28th Infantry Division had played havoc with the German timetable. Meanwhile, CCR, US 9th Armored Division established two roadblocks east of Bastogne, the northern one near the village of Lullange, where the road from Clerf entered that leading to Bastogne. The second roadblock was further south near Allerborn. In the morning hours of 18 December the forward elements of Kampfgruppe Böhm reached the northern roadblock. With the tanks of Panzer Regiment 3 close behind, the roadblock was soon surrounded and annihilated. The southern roadblock was overrun shortly after dusk. Oberst von Lauchert now turned his Division to the northwest so as to swing past Bastogne in the north and maintain the momentum of the westward drive. All the delays allowed the American reinforcements to reach Bastogne before the Germans. One of these was Team Desobry from CCB of the US 10th Armored Division which deployed at Noville. The little village north of Bastogne was directly in the way of 2. Panzerdivision. Covered by the morning fog, the tanks of 2. Panzerdivision manoeuvred for an attack on the village. When the fog suddenly lifted, more than thirty tanks were revealed to the defenders of Noville. Accurate fire from the American tanks and tank destroyers caused the attack to fail. At midday the 1st Battalion of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, under Lieutenant Colonel James L. LaPrade reached Noville and immediately counterattacked. However, the paratroopers were unable to reach the ridge lines due to the withering German fire. Elements of 304. Panzergrenadier Regiment infiltrated toward the south of Noville. Threatened by the prospect of being surrounded and short of ammunition, the defenders of Noville finally retreated towards Bastogne on the afternoon 20 December, but they held up the advance of 2. Panzerdivision for nearly two days and caused heavy casualties. The Highwater Mark Shortly after midnight Kampfgruppe Böhm, which had bypassed Noville to the north, captured a bridge over the Ourthe River at Ortheuville. This opened the road to Marche and Namur invitingly, but 2. Panzerdivision did not move, as their tanks had run dry and they had to wait for fuel. This allowed the advance elements of the US 84th Infantry Division to occupy Marche. When the advance finally resumed at nightfall 22 December, stiff resistance was encountered at Marche. Lüttwitz ordered Lauchert to turn the bulk of his division west towards Dinant and the Meuse, and to leave only a blocking force towards Marche. Kampfgruppe Böhm raced up the highway towards Dinant, followed by Kampfgruppe Cochenhausen, finally reaching the woods near Celles before daylight on 24 December. The advance elements of the division were only 9 km away from the Meuse crossings. The remainder of 2. Panzerdivision was stretched all the way back to south of Marche with the dual mission of continuing the westward advance and of protecting the northern flank. Meanwhile, the American 2nd Armored Division began to arrive northeast of Celles. Their CCA moved south into Buissonville, while the 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron occupied Humain, blocking 2. Panzerdivision route of advance. The leading Kampfgruppen were cut off. In the meantime Kampfgruppe Böhm had reached the village of Foy-Notre Dame were it encountered several tanks of the British 29th Armoured Brigade. Losing several vehicles to British fire and running out of fuel, the reconnaissance battalion went to ground. 2. Panzerdivision was stopped less than 5 km short of the Meuse crossings. On 25 December CCB of the 2nd Armored Division launched its attack on the cut off German Kampfgruppen. It was a clear day, and the attack received excellent air support. Kampfgruppe Böhm was soon destroyed. Lauchert ordered a relief attack to be conducted by Kampfgruppe Holtmeyer. The attack began on…