K.u.K Gebirgs Artillerie Abteilung 36

 

 

 

8.1918 letter from 36.GbAA via Fp.634 (36.Inf.div) to Požega Croatia ,arrival cancel at the back, content written in Croatian.

K.u.K  Gebirgs Artillerie Abteilung 36 (36.GbAA) or in Croatian 36.gorsko-topnički odjel.

was formed in 1918 from Gebirgsartillerie Regiment Nr.13. It used following Fp.numbers:

1918:  Fp.634(36.ID)  Fp.365(42.HID), Fp.425(39.ID)

The only reference to the unit I found was that it returned to Zagreb at the end of the war.

This is first and only letter from the 36.GbAA that i have seen.

 

Croatian feldpost from Italian "Regia Accademia di Artiglieria e Genio" 1943.

 

2 letters from  1943 sent  from Italian "Regia Accademia di Artiglieria e Genio"( Royal Academy of Artillery and Engineers) from Lucca to  Zagreb Croatia .

Croatian soldiers/officers were trained in Italy as well as Germany , an unknown number of officers was training with "Regia Accademia di Artiglieria e Genio"  in Torino  In November of 1942 due to intensive aerial bombardment , Accademia was moved from Torino to Lucca. This Croatian soldier Zvonko Barić writes to fellow soldier Ivo Košutić.

1st.letter is from 3.1943 (two lower pics) mailed to Zastavnik(Fähnrich) Ivo Košutić in Zagreb, Academy cancel  and Italian censor cancel at the back of envelope.

2nd. is from 5.1943 (two upper pics) mailed to Zastavnik(Fähnrich) Ivo Košutić a member of 3.bojna 2.Gorskog zdruga (3.battalion, 2nd Mountain brigade) in Zagreb, letter  was redirected to Jablanica, last post office Konjic in Herzegovina.  Academy cancel  and Italian censor cancels are at the back of envelope,as well as Zagreb arrival cancel.

Mail from Italian military academies to Croatia is very very rare.

I have seen another cover mailed to Ivo Košutić by same sender, there his name is written Ivan Košutić. It is possible that this is Ivan Košutić(1921-1998) author of books about Croatian Domobranstvo in NDH, he served in Domobranstvo as well. Interesting thing about covers is that on the back of envelopes are written details from senders Croatian passport. He is from Đakovčka Satnica , a village near Đakovo , Ivan Košutić was from Punitovci a village near Đakovo maybe 2-3 km away from Đakovačka Satnica..  this could easily be letter mailed to him from a local friend...

Croatian Feldpost 1944 , II Doknadna Opkoparska Bojna, Brčko.

 

07.06.1944 parcel card mailed from Osijek to Brčko ,to a Domobran, member of 2.sat. II Doknadna Opkoparska bojna.( 2nd company of 2nd Pioneer Replacement  Battalion). Arrival cancel Brčko , and units cancel at the back of the card, with archaic spelling Obkoparska bojna.

 Certificate by prof.Ercegović from 1983.

VII.Gorski Zdrug (373. inf div. Tigar) card

 

15.12.1942 card from member of VII. Gorski Zdrug in Bruck an der Leitha  to Đakovo, NDH . VII.Gorski zrdug was disbanded during its formation and training in Austria at the end of 1942.   Men were used to from a core of a new 373 kroat.inf.division(Tigar division) in  early 1943.  OKW censorship. Sender is member of Dojavna sat(Signal company)- as he writes it Nachrichten kompanie in Gebirgs(mountain) brigade. 

Croatian Feldpost 1945 - Croatian fieldpost number H-1243/5

A small collection of extra  rare Croatian Feldpost . 4 letters in quite poor condition but still very interesting  as all have contents . Mailed from Brod n/S (today Slavonski Brod) to Zagreb in 1945
All were mailed from Marica Halgaš to Razvodnik(Obergefreiter) Emil Huzjak serving with Fp.1243/5 in Zagreb. 2 letters carry Postal cancel Zagreb it is probable they were carried in person from Brod to Zagreb and then mailed (letters contents confirm this).  

Dates on covers are: a)30.01.1945,  b)14.02.1945, c)26.02.1945, d)20.03.1945 

Covers were censored , all carry white sticker "GLAVNA STOŽERNA BOJNA POŠTA / OTVORENO-PREGLEDANO" in place where letters were open. These stickers are much rarer then stickers that carry abbreviations G.S.B.P  Three covers  also carry  purple straight cancel PREGLEDNO/Glavna sabirna bojna pošta . Letter from 20.03.1945 has round  censor cancel Glavna sabirna bojna pošta 2 applied on the content. Such censor marking applied on text was usual with Reich services but is almost unknown with Croatian censors, they  applied censor marks on the cover.

Text is interesting, in first letter writer describes terrible air raid(with 7 waves) on Brod n/S with many people killed and describes town in ruins , in later letters she is asking how are things in Zagreb as it was bombed as well.

   THIS IS  EXTREMELY RARE CROATIAN FELDPOST !

Croatian Air Force Legion Fp.36384 (15. Staffel Jagdgeschwader 52.)

 

05.07.1942 letter to Zagreb NDH from Fp.L36348 which is 15. Staffel Jagdgeschwader 52. or more commonly known as Croatian Air Force Legion,  fighter wing. Feldpost cancel on the front is unclear, but text says "greetings from the most beautiful city in Russia from Kiev". Sender is Stjepan Puzar, war reporter(kriegsberichter) with the unit. OKW censorship marks, german folding feldpost letter was used. 

Mail from Croatian legion, especially Air force legion(Hrvatska zrakoplovna legija) is very very scarce.

Croatian Feldpost - rare Military card

 

 09.05.1944 rare Croatian Feldpost card (Dopisnica za bojnu poštu) . These cards written in three languages( Croatian,German and Italian) were issued shortly before Italian surrender in 9.1943. They were disliked by Croatian soldiers and rarely used, just a couple of them are known to be postally used. This one was used by Domobran stationed around Hum Poljice ,a railway stations on old railway line running parallel to the adriatic coast in Dubrovnik hinterland in Herzegovina. Mailed  to a small village Trsteno with postark Orašac.

392. Kroatische Infanterie Division - Fp.06692 , Chemical censorship

 

16.11.1943 card from Fp.06692 E ,   8.company. II.Battalion, 846 Regimente, 392. Inf. Kroat.division. to Podravske Sesvete, Croatia. OKW censorship.

At the back of the cover blue line of german chemical censorship, which is rare on feldpost to Croatia.

Kroatische Ausbildungs Brigade - Reserve lazarett Hollabrunn - Fp.57364

 

 

28.06.1943 letter to Podravske Sesvete , Croatia from Kroatische Ausbildungs Brigade. Sender writes his adress as Fp.57364 E which is 4.company III.Ausbildungs Bataillon Kroat. Ausb-Brigade that was located in Hollabrunn. Letter was mailed from hospital - cancel Reserve Lazarett Hollabrunn, in text soldiers writes that he is ill and is in a hospital.

With usual Censor marks present on the cover and on the text page , chemical censorship marks are present as blue lines at back of the cover and across the text. Such letters with chemical  censorship marks mailed from Kroat.Ausbildungs Brigade are very rare.

392. Kroatische Infanterie Division - Fp.06692

 

14.06.1944 card from Fp.06692 E ,   8.company. II.Battalion, 846 Regimente, 392. Inf. Kroat.division.

Very curious thing about this letter is that it was mailed to outside of Croatia to Vizvar, Hungary (Magyarország). Mail posted to countries other then Croatia and the Reich is extremely rare from any of Croatian divisions in Wehrmacht. This soldiers mail is regularly found , he writes to his family in Podravske Sesvete. This letter is to Vizvar a Hungarian place on the border with Croatia and  which is just a few kilometers away from  Podravske Sesvete. Censor marks are on the cover and on the text as was usually done by OKW censorship.

Kroatische Ausbildung brigade - Fp.41700G (Kroatische Ersatz Regiment 369.)

 

 

 04.12.1942 card to Zagreb from Fp.41700G , Kroatische Ersatz Regiment 369. 

Three things are very interesting abut this card:

 It uses feldpost cancel(Briefstempel) with text 1.battalion Kroat.Ersatz Regiment 369.  although Fp cancels with number Fp.41700 were already in use at that time.

Text in Croatian is very interesting, soldier describes in detail to his family how to mail him a special Christmas parcel . A special card and parcels were issued in 1942 and 1943 to be mailed to soldiers for christmas , they are extremely rare.

Arrival cancel 08.12.1942 Zagreb ,this means that card passed through Feldpost cancel without being censored, which is very rare, also  it gives us time it took for mail to arrive from Stockerau, around 4 days.

 

Fight against Bolshevism card - Fp.56756 Kroat.Ausbild.Brig.

21.08.1944 card to Osijek, NDH  from Fp.56756 B,   Artillerie Ausbildungs Abteilung,  Kroat. Ausb-Brigade. Censor marks at the back. This card was issued in Stockerau to Croatian soldiers  stationed there .  The card is extremely rare, postally used cards are rarer then blank cards.

Card was made from a single piece of paper to be written inside  and then folded for mailing,  on the outside one side  was printed for filling mailing details,  on the other side was anti Bolshevik emblem.

Emblem has a message:

 " EUROPA POZNAJE BOLJŠEVIZAM I BORI SE PROTIV NJEGA DO KONAČNE POBJEDE"

" EUROPE KNOWS BOLSHEVISM AND FIGHTS AGAINST IT UNTIL THE FINAL VICTORY"

Kroatische Ausbildungs Brigade - Fp.41700 B

 

04.03.1942 letter from Fp.41700B -  1.company Kroat.Infanterie Ersatz Battalion 369. in Stockerau to a Croatian soldier(officer) who was training with Academy of infantry, Modena Italy (Accademia di fanteria).  Some Croatian soldier were trained in Italy but their number is much smaller then those trained in the Reich. At the time of Italian surrender there were 30 Croats in Academia di fenteria in Modena, while at the same time there were hundreds of soldiers in Kroatische Ausbildungs Brigade in Stockerau (one source states that up to 100 000 Croats were trained in Stockerau during the whole war). 

Mail from Croatia to Italian military schools  is very rare due to a small number of Croats in those schools, but mail from Kroat.Ausbil.Brig. to those soldiers is exceptionally rare.