Feldgrau.net

Hello Peter, Thank you very much your reply was most helpful. I am translating some pages from a book called MINESCHIFFE 1939-1945 by Karl Kutzleben, Wilhelm Schroeder and Jochen Brenneke. My particular interest is an incident on the night of the 31st August 1940 off the Dutch Coast near Texel when ...

I suppose this is a translation request really, still if anyone can help here goes. I've been attempting to translate a couple of pages from a book on German Minesweepers and although reference is often made to 'minen' another word 'Sprengbojen' is often used. Now, is this just another name for a na...

Thanks everyone for some interesting comments. I'd heard the story many times and when I read the old newspaper article it just made me wonder if there was a grain of truth in it after all. I do take the point made that it was the Brandenburgers who used such ruses and not the fallschirmjager. Inter...

This is an old piece of WW2 folklore which originated during the invasion scares of the Summer of 1940. However while recently doing some reseach at the British Library Newspaper Archive I came across the following article from THE TIMES, tuesday May 21st 1940. The column is headed THE PARACHUTE INV...

Hello Sid Yes, the involvement of the Royal family in the JTR affair has never been proved positive and I only mentioned it as an example of why the PRO, or National Archive as it is now, keep certain files closed for long periods. I think the early release of certain JTR files, ( they had initially...

Hi everyone I can't really help with the contents of the closed file other than to say it must contain names and/or something pretty contentious. Atrocities committed by the German occupying forces would not come into this category, that is to say they would have been well publicised by now. 80 year...

Hi everyone, I may be able to help because I' researching this topic at the present time. In general terms the British equivalent of the ENIGMA machine was the TYPE X. This machine had been developed by an RAF officer, Wing Commander Lywood, in the early 1930's. Although a private venture Lywood did...

As to why Dowding was sacked aftter the battle of Britain was over ! He'd earlier disagreed with Churchill. Churchill wished to commit more fighters during the Battle for France but Dowding refused to send them over the Channel. Wisely he realised that soon Britain would be fighting for its existenc...

Hello
I read an article somewhere about a particular design called an Eschner Chute.
I will see if I can locate the article and give you the details.

Best wishes Ron C.

Hello John, Yes the Royal Navy did recover torpedo parts and therefore they were of the conviction that the sinking had been carried out by a U Boat. I believe some fins and part of what is described as a torpedo motor were found by Navy divers. The nameplate on the motor was Siemens, of cousre a fa...

I came across this officer and mention of this unit in a book by Peter Schenk.
Can anyone give me further details about the officer or the unit ?
Many thanks, Ron C.

Hi John In between my other research I thought I'd check out what the Official Kriegsmarine History has to say. To be honest it intrigued me! Planning for Prien's operation and intelligence gathering had been carried out by aerial recconaisance and the submarine U 14 between the 13th and 29th of Sep...

Hi everyone, I don't know if this is the right place for this but here goes: The German Army must have had special operations units. Is there any evidence that raids were carried out on the British Coast. For example there is a recent theory that a raid may have been carried out against the Radar st...

Hi John. Glad you found the information of interest. I found the basis of it in an article I read long ago and I've just dug out the magazine in question.Where you'd get a copy I don't know, but this is the reference: The title of the article is, THE DEATH OF THE ROYAL OAK, there is a subtitle as fo...

I've heard this story before and, as already stated in one of the previous posts, the story is in all probability a fabrication. However, like all the best myths there is probably a grain of truth in it. While the Royal Navy at the time, and since, have been prepared to admit that the Royal Oak was ...