Wehrpass & Award Doc Grouping (Nice Variants!) – Sanitäts-Feldwebel – Feldzeug-Bataillon 16

A very interesting original Wehrmacht Wehrpass and award grouping belonging to Sanitäts-Feldwebel Reinhold Kupka, born 25 February 1913 in Kiel, with an extensive wartime service record, Eastern Front combat entries and several original award documents.

The Wehrpass contains an original mounted portrait photograph and Kupka’s handwritten signature, together with extensive entries documenting his military career from the pre-war period through the Second World War. His recorded civilian occupation was Kaufmann / Verkäufer.

The service entries include:

• Sanitäts-Ersatz-Abteilung 10, Neumünster
• 1. Kompanie/ Feldzeug-Bataillon 16
• Ortslazarett Neumünster (June 1945!)

The Feldzeug-Bataillon 16 was a Heerestruppe unit responsible for the maintenance, repair and distribution of military equipment. It was formed in Hamburg in October 1940 and served on the Eastern Front from 1941, including operations in southern Russia.

Eastern Front service

The Wehrpass contains particularly valuable combat entries.

• Abwehrkämpfe im Donetzbecken
• Durchbruch und Verfolgung im Donezbecken und gegen den unteren Don
• Schlacht um Rostow und Bataisk
• Verfolgung über den unteren Don und Einnahme von Krasnodar
• Durchbruchskämpfe im westlichen Kaukasus und Eroberung von Noworossijsk
• Stellungen vor Winterstellung bei Noworossijsk

These entries place Kupka’s service firmly within the major 1942 Southern Front campaign, including the advance through the Don basin and into the Caucasus region. The 16. Infanterie-Division (mot.) was operating in the southern sector during this period, advancing through Voronezh and subsequently toward the Caucasus.

Award documents

Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse

Awarded to Unteroffizier Reinhold Kupka, serving with 1./Feldzeug-Bataillon 16, on 22 April 1942 at the Divisional Command Post. The certificate is signed by the divisional commander and bears the original divisional seal. The document represents Kupka’s first-class combat decoration from his service on the Eastern Front.

Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42

This original certificate records the award of the Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42 (Ostmedaille) to Sanitäts-Unteroffizier Reinhold Kupka, dated 5 February 1943. The certificate carries the original period unit stamp and certification signature, and documents Kupka’s participation in the 1941/42 winter campaign on the Eastern Front.

Kriegsverdienstkreuz 2. Klasse mit Schwertern

Awarded to Sanitäts-Feldwebel Reinhold Kupka of 3./Sanitäts-Ersatz- und Ausbildungs-Abteilung 10, this certificate is dated Hamburg, 30 January 1945. It was issued under the authority of the Stellvertretenden Kommandierenden General des X. Armeekorps und Befehlshaber im Wehrkreis X, General der Infanterie Wilhelm Wetzel, and carries the original certification of the responsible medical officer. This late-war award adds an interesting second phase to Kupka’s military career, following his earlier Eastern Front service.

Condition: Original period condition with age toning, handling wear, staining and some wear to the Wehrpass cover and individual documents. The Wehrpass remains very well populated, with the original photograph, handwritten entries, stamps and signatures retained. The award certificates show normal age-related toning and minor handling/storage wear.