Photo of SS-Standartenführer Hugo Kraas – “LSSAH” & 12. SS-Panzer-Division “HJ” (Wartime Signed!)

Original wartime ID-size portrait photograph of SS-Standartenführer Hugo Kraas, Knight’s Cross recipient and later commander of the 12. SS-Panzer-Division “Hitlerjugend”.

The photograph is personally signed “Hugo Kraas” on the reverse and additionally carries a contemporary handwritten annotation referring to his service with the Leibstandarte and the award of the Oak Leaves to the Knight’s Cross on 24 January 1944.

Kraas received the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross on 28 March 1943 as commander of the I./SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 2 “Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler”. On 24 January 1944, he was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Knight’s Cross. He was promoted to SS-Standartenführer on 30 January 1944, only six days later.

Later in the war, Kraas became the last commander of the 12. SS-Panzer-Division “Hitlerjugend”, taking command in November 1944. The Bundesarchiv preserves original wartime documentation relating to Kraas and his command of the division.

The combination of the original wartime photograph, personal signature, contemporary handwritten annotation and specific reference to his Oak Leaves award makes this a particularly interesting piece for collectors of Waffen-SS personalities, Knight’s Cross recipients and original wartime signed photographs.