Original Item: One-of-a-kind. This is a fantastic genuine WWII German Soldbuch, issued to Oberschütze Johann Oppenheuser, also a Zahlenmeister d. R., which is Paymaster, in the 435th Infantry Regiment, 215th Infantry Division. The book is in rough shape with the pages loose and tape holding the book cover together. There is a stamped photograph of Oppenheuser under the front cover, which is retained by the correct staples with stamps over two corners, as is correct.

Oppenheuser was born on 29.07.1905, and the book indicates he was issued the soldbuch on 29. Juni 1940. He was initially part of 1. Sch. Ers. Komp. 435, as of 23.7.1940, but the next month was transferred to L. Sch. Batl. 822 on 16.8.1940. Later information in the book shows that he was assigned the administrative position of Zahlenmeister der Reiches, and was assigned to Heeresverpflegungs - Magazin Kiew (Army Food Magazine Kiev). We also see references to the Heeresverpflegungsamt (Army Food office) and various other food supply areas, so Oppenheuser looks to have been a high ranking administrative official in food procurement, which is separate from his military rank.

Overall condition is rough but all pages are intact and many pages have handwriting or ink stamps, meaning this has some excellent further research potential. These are exceptionally rare and difficult to find with this much information!

Of note: the persons filling out the book and the service record wrote using Kurrentschrift, an older form of Germanic script writing, which is why the all the "u" letters are written as "ŭ". In this script the lowercase "n" and "u" are identical, so the latter gets the arc shaped mark over it. This is not indicative of an umlaut or other diacritical marking.

The 215th Infantry Division was mobilized in September 1939 as a division of the 3rd wave in military district V. Its personnel was composed mostly of older men, many who were veterans of the First World War, and reserve troops with limited training.

The division was almost immediately sent to the west and took up defensive positions in the dank and damp bunkers of the west-wall, in winter temperature that sunk to below freezing. After some weeks it was withdrawn into training areas behind the front for further training and reorganization and many of the older troops and junior offices were replaced by younger men. By Mid March 1940 it was returned to the front in the Saar where it set about improving defensive positions under desultory French artillery fire.

The division only took part in the later stages of the invasion of France, when the campaign had essentially already been decided, attacking the Maginot line on 19 July 1940.

More on the German Soldbuch:
The Soldbuch served the soldier as a personal identification document in wartime and as an authorization to receive pay from his own or outside pay-stations. In addition, it was identification for rail travel, detached service, leave, and for receiving mail. The Soldbuch was always carried by the soldier on his person in a tunic pocket. Leaving the book in one's baggage or in one's quarters was not permitted. The careful preservation of the book was in the best interest of the owner. The Soldbuch had to be kept in an orderly fashion. The owner must see to it, that all changes in pay due to transfer or promotion are immediately entered by his responsible duty station. The Soldbuch was an official document. Entries were only to be made by a Wehrmacht duty station. Making unauthorized changes is punishable as falsification of official documents. The loss of a Soldbuch was to be reported as soon the loss is discovered to the holders unit or duty station, and the issue of a new Soldbuch will be requested.