Ustasha army - Ustaška vojnica

Ustasha army - Ustaška vojnica : FELDPOST

Feldpost from Ustasha army is very  rare compared to feldpost from Domobranstvo . Ustasha army was much smaller and more heavily involved in fighting hence scarcity of mail . Also I suspect that much of the mail was destroyed after the war to avoid persecution by new Yugoslav communist authorities. 

I have seen only packet cards addressed to Ustasha members and official mail, i guess personal mail is extremely rare.

 07.12.1942 packet card  from Šid to Ustasha member of 4.satnija(company) 29.bojna(battalion) in Srebrenica.
On 01.12.1942 -  29.bojna was part of 1.Stajaći djelatni zdrug. Its Headquater ,  headquarters company , 3rd and 4th company were stationed in Srebrenica . Average Ustaska Bojna had around 700 members, number varying from 500 to 1000.

24.02.1945. packet card from Vinkovci to member od 5.sat(company) 1.Novačka bojna of 1.Ustaški Obranbeni Zdrug in  Vrapče (Zagreb). Official stamp at the back of the card is not clear but i think reads 2.novačka bojna  which ic correct  as 1.novačka bojna had 1.2.3 and 4. sat. while 5. 6. 7. and 8. sat were in 2.novačka bojna which had 888 members.

02.03.1944 Packet card from Oriolik to a  Bojnik (major) of  Poglavnikov tjelesni sdrug (PTS). 6.sat ,2.bojna(batallion)  1.pukovnija(regiment) in Varaždin. Official cancel at the back reads 13.sat(stožerna sat) (13.headquaters company), 1.pukovnija PTS. Arrival cancel Varaždin.
13.sat was locted in Varaždin,  2.bojna with 6.sat was located in Novi Marof near Varaždin.

21.01.1944 packet card from Slavonski brod (or Brod n/S as in label) to member of  27.sat!(probably incorrectly written).Novački sklop PTS  stationed in Karlovac. (Novački sklop: meaning recruiting(training) unit)
Official cancel reads Novački sklop PTS - 2. (2. probably means - 2.novačka bojna-battalion)

Novački sklop was based in Karlovac  , it had :
Headquarter and headquarters sat.
1.novačka bojna with its headquarter and headquarters sat, 1. 2. and 3.novačka sat ,
2.novačka bojna with its headquarter and headquarters sat, 4. 5. and 6. novačka sat.

Chemical cenzorship pics

09.03.1943 Letter from Fp.41000N : Kroat.Infanterie Ersatz-Regiment 369. Nachrichten kompanie , to Zagreb NDH .  Visible chemical censorship, blue line on the back of  cover . On the paper with text blue and pale white lines of chemicals are visible.

1944.(exact date unreadable) Cover of a letter sent from Krapina, NDH to Fp 56925E:  4.Kompanie,  IV.Ausbildungs-Bataillon ,  Kroatische Ausbildungs Brigade. Chemical censorship lines visible on the back of the cover.

06.09.1943 folded official German issued  letter-sheet ,sent from Fp.59875  Stab u. Einheit gemischte Ausbildungs-Abteilung, Kroatische Ausbildungs Brigade to Zagreb NDH.
On the front and back of  cover  are visible pale and blue line of  chemical censorship. When letter unfolds chemical censorship lines are even better visible on the both sides of paper.

Chemical cenzorship

Occasionally letters mailed between  Croatia and Kroatische Ausbildungs brigade carry marks of chemical censorship which was performed by German censors who were looking for hidden texts written in invisible inks. Croatian censors didnt posses  materials for chemical censorship.

Chemical censorship was fully developed during WWI, when mail circulated between warring sides via Netherlands and Switzerland. During both wars people tried to send  secret messages to the opposing side written in invisible ink. Ordinary materials like: milk , urine , starch solution or citrus fruits juices were used as well as specially developed invisible inks made by military and intelligence agencies. During WWI Germans used invisible ink such as lead-acetate hidden in toilet water and soap made from potassium ferrocyanide but they were discovered by the french scientists using electrolysis with silver nitrate or  were detected  with solutions of silver , like solution Protargol( silver proteinate). As French developed a way to detect German invisible inks they developed their own invisible inks , one of them  needing 4 developing reagents in set order, and it  was so successful that it has not been made public yet , over a 100 years later.

In 1941 Germans spies caught  in USA and Bermuda used diluted solution of Pyramidon (Aminophenazone) which was antipyretic readily available in any Pharmacy  and is still in market  today. In wasnt detected using modern kits of the time but by using old fashion  iodine solution.
 Such readily available but hard to detect compounds were best candidates for invisible inks.

In my opinion on letters from Kroatian Ausbildungs brigade mailed to Croatia  German censors were looking for simple ordinary materials and not for special inks.
On letters, often blue lines of various intensity are visible which  are most probably from diluted solutions of copper sulphate , also much more pale lines can be seen possibly from diluted iodine solutions.

Mail with chemical censorship sent to and from Croatia during WW2 is  rare.

Registered Letter sent from Stockerau-Lager 8.1943 to Podravske Sesvete ,Croatia.  Blue lines of censors solution are visible on the cover and on the page of text . Often stamps were removed by censor to check for hidden message on the back of the stamps. All mail from Stockerau Lager to Croatia was censored ,but registered mail was rare as Feldpost cards were mailed for free unlike registered mail. German censors applied regularly same censor number on the envelope and on the sheet of text , here we  can see   number 565671 on the top and bottom picture.

Cover of a registered letter mailed 5.1944 to Osijek ,Croatia from Stockerau Lager
Blue line of censors solution is visible on the back of the  cover and on the edge.
German stamp was not removed which is exception to the rule. Nice Ag censor mark , means it was censored in Wien ( Vienna)

Registered mail from Stockerau Lager to Croatia is rare .

Kampfgruppe Engelbrecht - German units training Croatian forces inside NDH

Feldpost card 23.01.1945 to Reich from Fp.02873B which is schwere Kompanie Kampfgruppe Engelbrecht,
  
Fp.02873 :
 (1.8.1943-23.3.1944) 21.12.1943 Stab u. 1.-4. Kompanie Deutsches Ausbildungs-Bataillon 1 bei 1. Kroat. Jäger-Brigade,
(7.11.1944-Kriegsende) 17.1.1945 Regimentsstab u. schwere Kompanie Kampfgruppe Engelbrecht, 

Kampfgruppe Engelbrecht  was formed at the end of 1944 or beginning of 1945 from German forces that were training Croatian army in NDH , it had stab and 3 batallions and fought in NDH :

Stab from   Deutsches Ausbildungs-Bataillon 1 bei 1. Kroat. Jäger-Brigade,
 Fp: 02873 Regimentsstab u. schwere Kompanie Kampfgruppe Engelbrecht,

I. batallion from Deutsches Ausbildungs-Bataillon. 4. der 4. kroat.Jäger-Brigade.
Fp.04450 Stab I u. 1.-4. Kompanie Kampfgruppe Ingelbrecht
 
II. batallion from Deutsches Ausbildungs-Bataillon. 4. der 4.kroat.Gebirgs-Brig.;
Fp 05173 Stab II u. 5.-8. Kompanie Kampfgruppe Ingelbrecht.

III.batallion from Deutsches Ausbildungs-Bataillon. 3. der 3.kroat.Jäger-Brigade
Fp 07571 Stab III u. 9.-12. Kompanie Kampfgruppe Engelbrecht

  It is possible that  Sturm-Brigade Südost  is formed in  3-4/1945 from  Kampfgruppe Engelbracht. (or  maybe gruppe Fischer? at the end of the war a lot of "ad-hoc" fighting groups were formed that are poorly documented and it is impossible to reconstruct their origins completly)

ORG. TODT SARAJEVO

An interesting item mailed by feldpost to Vicenza Italy on 31.10.1943 
Feldpost number Fp. 05386
(27.1.1942-14.7.1942) OT-Leitstelle Sarajewo,
(24.3.1944-6.11.1944) 12.7.1944 OT-Oberbauleitung Mostar.

Following Italian capitulation Italian  soldiers in NDH had 3 options, a) to go on collaborating  with German forces (around 10% did so and almost all of Blackshirts),  b) become prisoners - and  become forced labor in Reich or  c) join Partisans.
There were around 430 000 Italian soldiers stationed in  Balkans , a large part of it was in NDH.
Most of them choose to become prisoners, some joined Germans and very few joined Partisans.
This letter is probably from an  Italian man who joined Germans and worked in Org.Todt. Letistell Sarajevo , NDH
German and Italian  censorship visible

Polizei-Panzer- Kompanie 16.

22.1.1945 cover mailed to Reich from Fp.23769 - Polizei-Panzer- Kompanie 16.

16.Polizei-Panzer company was formed in 06.1944 in Croatia and  stayed there until the end of War.
Iz was stationed in Samobor near Zagreb and unlike other Polizei panzer kompaines  it was manned mostly by Croats under German command staff.
Kompanie was made up of  3 platoons.
1.platoon had 2 tanks  Panzer 35 or 38 type and 2 Italian L6 tanks.  
2. and 3. platoon each had  4  Italian L3 tankette 

verstärkte Infanterie-Bataillon 939

07.08.1943 card to Zagreb NDH from Fp.57538 verstärkte Infanterie-Bataillon 939, 

Battalion was formed on  25.06.1943 in Stockerau to serve under  "Befehlshaber der Deutsches Truppen in Kroatien" . 

On 17.08.1943 batallion was disbanded and soldiers  added to 392. inf .div.(kroat.). 

Extremly rare Feldpost card as unit was active less then 2 months ( 52 days)

German Feldpost to NDH -pics 3

11.1941 letter to  Zagreb from Fp.06109 Stab Korps-Nachrichten-Abteilung 451, part of Korpstruppen of LI (51.) corps   

2.1942 letter from Fp.07764E , 9.Kompanie, II-Batallion , Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 137. 2.Gebirgs Division in Lappland, sent  Poste Restante to  Kaptol, near Požega Slavonia , NDH . Arrival cancel at the back .Letter was not collected and  after 7 days it was forwarded  from Kaptol,(cancel at the front )  to Reich.

11.1942 letter from Zagreb to Borovo, from Passierscheinstelle Sud-ost 1. des Oberkommando des Heeres .Ausenstell Agram . Letter is marked Dienstsache -official but was not exempt from charges by Croatian post  and Porto was charged at Borovo, see stamps. Recipient is Croatian Volksdeutsche , maybe going to work to Reich.In 7.1943 around 4500 Volksdeutsche from Croatia were working in Reich   

7.1943 letter to Beška  in Srijem , NDH  from 2.komp. SS-Gebirgsjäger-Ausbildungs- und Ersatz-Batallion 6   (10.5.43 formed in Hallein / Salzburg). I  also have letter from this Volksdeutsche soldier sent from 13. Waffen-Gebirgs-Division der SS Handschar (kroatische Nr. 1)..This letter is from training and formation period of 13.SS division.

8.1943 letter written in Croatian from SS Pionire Ersatz Batallion 1 , Dresden to Osijek ,NDH. In text soldier writes he was in Croatian army and transferred to train for SS-Pionire  , probably to serve in 13.SS Division as it was only unit where Croats could serve as SS-Pionire in 8.1943.

8.1944 Cover sent by civilan post from Varaždin to Fp.40043H Deutscher General in Agram,via 

Fp.58496 -Feldkommandantur 1038 ,(Varaždin)

2.1945 Letter written in Croatian ,to Zagreb from Fp.04858  Kraftfahr-Schule 105 (V. SS-Korps).  V.SS korps is in NDH  from its formation in 01.07.1943  until 2.1945 and had many Volksdeutsche soldiers . When korps was  transfererd to Reich, this Volksdeutsche soldier went with korps from NDH to the defence of Berlin.

German Feldpost from NDH - pics.2

23.12.1943 Christmas card ro Reich sent  by Croatian ciliv postal service, cancel Slavonski Brod. with Feldpost mark Fp.43370 - Truppen-Übungsplatz-Kommandantur Slav.Brod    

Interesting cover without date , but before Italian capitulation as it has Italian censorship.
German cancel: Erholungsheim Hotel Regina Abbazia. Meaning: Rest place Hotel Regina.
Hotel was opened in 1885 as Hotel Princess Stephanie renamed Hotel Regina by Italians after 1918 , it  is still opened today - Hotel Imperial ,Opatija ,  Croatia

10.1943 official registered letter from Fp.44733D  3.Komp. Reserve-Bataillon II./133,  187. Reserve-Division , mailed via Fp.48500 Kommando 187. Reserve-Division . Kenn number in R-sticker and feldpost cancel  is 182 - which means letter was taken for registration by FeldpostAmt-114, of 114 Jager-Division which had branch from 1943 that uses Kenn 182, primary Kenn number  being K-418 .  187 division did not have own FeldpostAmt ,it used mostly FpAmt 530 Kenn 176 or in this case neighbouring units Fp.Amt.   

6.1943 official registered letter from Fp.44733,  Reserve-Bataillon II./133,  187. Reserve-Division,  Kenn 176  , latter was mailed via FpAmt 530 located in Zagreb.
  187 division did not have own FeldpostAmt 

1.1945 letter from Fp.36811E 4.Kompanie Landesschützen-Bataillon 925.Battalion was in NDH 1941-1945 , based in Zagreb and mostly did railway guard duty. 

9.1943 letter from Fp.34531E -12.Kompanie SS-Grenadier-Regiment Danmark
11.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenad.-Div. "Nordland"  in  NDH:08/1943-11/1943  

Letter from Fp.30420G - which is  6. Kompanie Wehrmacht-Wirtschafts-Sicherungs-Bataillon Kroatien.  Cancel date is unclear , but Battalion had 6th kompanie from 22.10.1943 till 01.02.1944 when 6th kompanie gets own Fp.number.Fp.56567 - 1.2.1944  6. Kompanie Wehrmacht-Wirtschafts-Sicherungs-Bataillon Kroatien. 29.1.1945 gestrichen

7.1944 letter from Fp.40963F ,  5. Kompanie I.Battalion  Jäger-Regiment 738,
118.Jager division in NDH