Karl Lauerer was enlisted in the summer of 1944, and sent to a Marine replacement unit. Issued – MP44 in September 1944, Helmet and Fat Dish He was sent to Grenadier Regiment 404 (246 Volksgrenadier Division)  They took part in the Battle of Aachen. The 246th Volksgrenadier Division was a German Army infantry division formed on 15 September 1944 from the partially formed 565th Volksgrenadier Division during the final stages of World War II, primarily tasked with bolstering defenses along the Siegfried Line as part of the Wehrmacht’s desperate efforts to halt the Allied advance into Germany. Composed of a heterogeneous mix of undertrained personnel—including reclassified sailors, Luftwaffe ground crew, older reservists, and remnants from other shattered units—the division numbered approximately 4,600 to 6,000 troops at its activation, equipped with limited heavy weapons such as a handful of Mark IV tanks, 105 mm howitzers, and anti-tank guns. Under the command of Colonel Gerhard Wilck from October 12, 1944, it was rapidly deployed to the Aachen sector as part of LXXXI Corps, relieving the battle-worn 116th Panzer Division just weeks before the U.S. First Army’s assault. The division’s most notable engagement was the Battle of Aachen from October 2 to 21, 1944, where it formed the core of the garrison defending the city’s urban core and surrounding fortifications against encirclement by elements of the U.S. 1st, 30th, and 26th Infantry Divisions.  Employing improvised tactics such as basement-to-basement tunneling, sniper fire from cellars and bunkers, and sporadic counterattacks with assault guns, the understrength unit inflicted significant casualties on the attackers while holding key strongpoints like the Hotel Quellenhof and Lousberg Heights. Despite relief attempts by adjacent formations such as the 3rd Panzergrenadier and 116th Panzer Divisions, supply lines were severed by October 16, leaving the garrison isolated with dwindling ammunition, food, and medical supplies.[2] Wilck, under direct orders from Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt to fight to the last man, surrendered the remaining 1,100 defenders on October 21 after 11 days of intense house-to-house combat, marking the first capture of a major German city by Allied forces and resulting in approximately 2,500 German killed or wounded and 3,473 captured from the division. Following Aachen, the division’s remnants—reduced to battalion strength after heavy losses in the Hürtgen Forest fighting—were refitted and redeployed to the Ardennes sector for the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944, where it supported the German offensive but suffered further attrition against U.S. defenses at Elsenborn Ridge. By early 1945, the shattered formation was absorbed into other units or disbanded amid the collapsing Western Front, exemplifying the Wehrmacht’s reliance on hastily raised Volksgrenadier divisions to counter overwhelming Allied superiority in manpower and firepower. Since there is not many entries after the Battle of Aachen, he was not listed as KIA/MIA but it is safe to assume he was taken POW.

Hartwig was born in 1899. A seasoned veteran of WW1. Serving with: Infanterie Regiment 172 – 75. Infanterie-Division From 1939 till 1942 The 75th Infantry Division was formed on August 26, 1939, as a second-wave division from the 12th Infantry Division. Following its formation, the division became the army reserve of the 1st Army and in October 1939 was transferred to the Saar-Palatinate region for border security, later moving to the Saarbrücken area. The division remained there during the first phase of the Western Campaign. During the 1st Army’s attack against the Maginot Line in June 1940, the division broke through the fortifications and advanced into the area south of Baccarat and northeast of Épinal. After the French surrender, the division was transferred to Poland in July 1940. On October 8, 1940, one-third of the division (Staff/222, I./172, I./202, I./222) was transferred to the 302nd Infantry Division, and these units were replaced. From June 22, 1941, the division participated in the invasion of Russia. From the area west of Sokal, the division crossed the Bug River, fought its way through Ukraine via Dubno and the Teterev River to the combat zone around Kyiv. After the Battle of Kyiv, the division turned towards the Donets River in the area south of Belgorod. The division fought in this area until June 1942. Subsequently, the division participated in the German offensive to the Volga River. From the area around Stari Oskol, the division advanced to the Don River near Korotoyask and entrenched itself there. From September 1942, the division participated in the positional and defensive battles around Voronezh, which lasted until February 1943. Infanterie Regiment 482 – 262. Infanterie-Division From 1942 – 1943 During the German attack on Moscow, the division advanced into the area between Yelets and Yefremov. After the start of the Russian counter-offensive before Moscow, the division had to retreat to the Orel area. It established its new position between Novosil and Orel, where it remained until July 1943. After the German offensive at Kursk, Operation Citadel, was called off, the division became army reserve for the 9th Army and, from August 1943, was deployed to defend against the Russian breakthrough between Orel and Bryansk. The division suffered extremely heavy losses, so that its strength dwindled to that of a battle group. Only remnants of the division managed to withdraw as far as the Orsha area. On November 2, 1943, the division was disbanded and formed Division Group 262. Feld Ersatz Btl 232 – 232 Infanterie Division 1944 – End The 232. Infanterie-Division was formed in June 1944 in Wehrkreis V (Stuttgart area) and was sent to northern Italy shortly thereafter. It was assigned to Army Group C, which was responsible for defending against the Allied advance up the Italian peninsula. In late summer and autumn 1944, the division took part in defensive operations along the Gothic Line (Linea Gotica) — Germany’s major fortified defensive line across the northern Apennines. The Gothic Line became the focal point of heavy fighting beginning in August 1944 when Allied forces (primarily the British Eighth Army on the Adriatic side and the U.S. Fifth Army on the western side) launched major offensives to break into the Po Valley. The 232nd operated in the central Apennine sector, engaged in defensive mountain warfare characterized by: Static defensive positions, Counterattacks to regain lost ground, Intense artillery exchanges, Difficult terrain and supply conditions. The division faced sustained pressure during the autumn Allied offensives, including attacks aimed at breaking through toward Bologna. Although the Allies achieved local penetrations, German forces—including the 232nd—managed to delay a full breakthrough before winter weather halted large-scale operations. By the end of 1944, the division had suffered attrition but remained in defensive positions in northern Italy, continuing to hold sectors of the Gothic Line as the front stabilized for the winter. The 232nd Infantry Division surrendered to American forces in the area between Brescia and Milan. He was wounded in April oof 1945, 31b – shrapnel. Medals  Westwall Medal – 1940 Clasp for the Iron Cross Second Class – 8.1940 Iron Cross First Class – 11.1941 Eastern Front Medal – 8.1942 Wounds Badge in Black – 14.5.1945 Wounds Badge in Silver – 23.5.1945      

Dylla was sent to training with: Sturmgeschutz Ersatz und Ausbildungs Abt 300  This was a German Army (Heer) unit during World War II responsible for training and supplying replacement personnel for Sturmgeschütz (StuG) units of the Wehrmacht. It was not primarily a frontline combat unit, but part of the Ersatzheer (Replacement Army), which trained soldiers and provided reinforcements to field units. He finished his training in February of 1945, and was assigned to: Heeres Sturmgeschütz Brigade 311 Following the start of the Russian winter offensive on January 12, 1945, from the Baranow bridgehead, the brigade was forced to withdraw. It was transported by rail to Upper Silesia and deployed near Ratibor, Zobten, Breslau, and Neisse. The brigade engaged in heavy defensive fighting near Ziegenhals and Bautzen. After the formation of a grenadier escort battery, the brigade was renamed Army Assault Artillery Brigade 311 on April 3, 1945. At the beginning of May 1945, the brigade was deployed north of Dresden. It was taken prisoner near Olomouc at the end of the war. Condition – loose but all there.