Panzerwrecks 18, Front and Rear Gatefolds, 11th Panzer Division

I.

Space limitations prevented us from mentioning a good deal a material relating to the images of the 11th Panzer Division’s surrender. For the reasons why the division appeared when and where it did, readers are hereby referred to:

http://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/the-german-11th-panzer-division-giving-up-the-ghost/

a very fine article by Brig.Gen.Raymond E. Bell Jr., that appeared in the Sept 2005 issue of WWII History.

II.

To show the lengths Lee goes to to nail down a location, here is a “behind the scenes” excerpt from one of his emails:

In the background of Roddy’s 11PD surrender pic in the rear inside jacket there is a ‘pointy’ church spire. This does not match with any of the ‘kostel’ (Czech for church) in Vseruby, but does match one at Zeltendorf. All the Czech church spires have a rounded top as do most of the German ones in the area. Therefore in the absence of a smoking gun I would slap my cash on the table and say Zeltendorf. See grabs.

III.

And from Timm Haasler:

Tanks of Pz.Rgt.15 in Bad Kötzting, Bavaria. The pictures must have been taken after 5 May 1945. On 4 May, what was left of the regiment was ordered by Fieldmarschall Schörner to move to Prague. Knowing about the situation in the Czech capital, the officers of the regiment made the decision to move in the opposite direction during the night in order to save the lives of the survivors. At midnight the column met the first Americans on the road to Rittsteig (the village is located at the German-Czech border, on German soil). The regiment surrendered to the Americans in the morning hours and were then sent to Bad Kötzting (10 km west of Rittsteig). All tanks and vehicles were gathered in a field east of the town. (Information taken from the History of Panzer-Regiment 15.)