Original German WWII 15th & 18th Panzer Div. Commander Generalleutnant Erwin Menny Uniform, Photo & Document Set – Formerly Part of the A.A.F. Tank Museum Original Items

Original Items: One-of-a-kind set. Erwin Menny (18 August 1893 – 6 December 1949) was a German Staff Officer and General in the Heer Army during World War II, who commanded several different divisions during his WWII service, eventually rising to the rank of Generalleutnant (Lt. General). He was a recipient of the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross, as well as several other prestigious awards. His service during WWII ended when he was taken prisoner with his 84th Infantry Division in the Falaise Pocket on 21 August 1944, after which he was taken as a prisoner of war by Canadian Forces. He was then transferred to British Captivity, before eventually being sent to the POW camp in Camp Forrest, Tennessee.

This wonderful German WWII Named Uniform Set came to us from the American Armoured Foundation, Inc. Tank and Ordnance Memorial Museum. The AAF Tank Museum was a living memorial dedicated to the Tank and Cavalry soldiers of the world. Before 1981 some of the artifacts that make up the AAF Tank Museum was a private collection belonging to Mr. William Gasser. Mr. Gasser felt that his collection would be beneficial in educating present and future generations to the sacrifices made and the technologies gained during war. Therefore, in 1981 the AAF Tank Museum was established as a non-profit charitable organization, and Mr. Gasser’s donated his private collection to the Tank Museum. Mr. Gasser is still active as Volunteer Director and Curator of the Tank Museum and his knowledge of military history has been a great asset to the museum. Unfortunately after 20 years of operation it had to close its doors, which is when this set was acquired.

Born 18 August 1893, Erwin Menny began his military career during the first world war, and later was a member of the Reichswehr under the Weimar republic. He was a career soldier, and continued his service after the NSDAP takeover of Germany. He was well-decorated, and the following are just the highlights of his many decorations:

● Iron Cross (1914)
– 2nd Class
– 1st Class
● Knight’s Cross Second Class of the Order of the Zähringer Lion with Swords
● Cross of Honor
● Iron Cross (1939)
– 2nd Class
– 1st Class
● Commander of the Colonial Order of the Star of Italy
● Officer of the Military Order of Savoy
● Ärmelband Afrika

Most notably, he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross on 26 December 1941 as Oberst and commander of 15. Schützen-Brigade. It should also be noted that due to his long service he would have qualified for the Wehrmacht Long Service awards, and many other awards not listed. We were unfortunately not able to find a complete list of what awards he was given. Some of these awards are attached to the uniform in this set, while the Knight’s Cross was pictured separately, but could probably be secured around the neck above the Star of Italy if desired.

Looking at the list of commands he has held, it is easy to see why Menny was included in the AAF Tank Museum collection:

15. Schützen-Brigade
15. Panzer-Division
90. Leichte Afrika-Division
18. Panzer-Division
333. Infanterie-Division
123. Infanterie-Division
72. Infanterie-Division
84. Infanterie-Division

The uniform in this set is most likely the one that he wore in 1942, after he was promoted to Generalmajor and made commander of the 18th Panzer Division. It is a lovely bespoke example with a clear maker label inside of the left inside pocket, which reads:

Hans Schwenkmaier
München • Glückstr. 11
——————-
HERR Oberst E. Menny
15.1.42          31/42

This would indicate that he first got it in January 1942, and then when he was promoted to Generalmajor in April 1942, he had the staff officer insignia removed, and replaced with the correct General grade collar tabs, eagle, and shoulder boards. The tunic is really a great example of a private purchased Wehrmacht Heer Dienstbluse. It is constructed from a fine quality field-gray wool woven exterior, with a silk-rayon blended interior lining. The collar is constructed of flaschengrün (dark bottle-green) wool, and is adorned by a set of General grade collar tabs, known as alt-Larisch or Arabesque style, which were used for all General ranks below Feldmarschall. These have the correct red backgrounds with gold bullion embroidery.

Each shoulder is decorated with the sew-on style Generalmajor rank shoulder boards. They are both constructed out of a row of interwoven silver and gold bullion strands in the typical Russian braid style in an interlocking weave pattern ending at a pebbled gilt metal (magnetic) button. There are no rank pips installed, correct for a Generalmajor. On the right breast is a fine quality gold bullion eagle, constructed of rolled, twisted, and flat hand embroidered gilt stitching, placed onto a dark green wool backing. Additional decorations include a lovely medal bar, a WWI 1914 Iron Cross 1st Class with a WWII 1939 Clasp above it, and a silver grade Panzer Assault Tank Badge. There also a lovely Afrika armband on the right sleeve.

Finishing out the uniform is a lovely set of Generals trousers in the correct stone gray (steingrau) color, with red stripes on the side, which come with the correct suspenders. They are in very good shape, and definitely period correct, though they do not have any markings on the inside. Also included with the pants are a pair of shoes, as well as gloves and an officer’s belt.

Along with the uniform are some great additional items that really flesh out this fantastic set, and add lots of wonderful research and display potential. These include:

● Several Portrait Photographs of Edwin Menny in uniform, displaying several different uniforms, as well as showing him as an Oberst, Generalmajor, and Generalleutnant. There are also some photographs from the WWI era, and one with what we assume is his wife.

● A lovely small photo album, containing numerous personal photographs from the WWII time period.

● An original POW correspondence letter sent by Menny from Camp Forrest, Tennessee, addressed to FRAU HERTHA MENNY, who we assume was his wife. The envelope is post marked March 29, 1946.

● Various newspaper clippings from the period in German.

● Numerous other documents from the WWII period, most likely official orders and correspondence. Some are also dated during the immediate post ware period around 1947, not long before Menny died in 1949.

There are also numerous handwritten letters and envelopes from the 1950s and 1960s addressed to Hertha Menny, which we assume are related to the items in the collection. There is some other documentation that suggests that the items may possibly have been sold at auction at one point, however these are all in German and hand written, so we are not able to decipher them. We leave these as a great research project for whoever purchases this excellent set.

We very seldom get uniform sets with such great provenance and research potential. This could become the centerpiece of your WWII collection. Ready to research and display!

Approximate Measurements:
Collar to shoulder: 9″
Shoulder to sleeve: 26”
Shoulder to shoulder: 15”
Chest width: 19″
Waist width: 17.5″
Hip width: 22″
Front length: 29″

Pants
Waist: 18″
Inseam: 31″

More Detailed Biography of Erwin Menny:

Erwin Menny was a son of the administrative officer Max Menny . He joined the 3rd Baden Dragoon Regiment “Prinz Karl” No. 22 of the Prussian Army in mid-1912 and was promoted to lieutenant on February 17, 1914 with a commission dated February 21, 1912. He took part in the First World War and was awarded both classes of the Iron Cross and the Knight’s Cross, Second Class of the Order of the Zähringer Lion with Swords.

After the end of the war he moved to the Reichswehr, in 1932 in the 18th Cavalry Regiment. In the Wehrmacht , as a lieutenant colonel since 1937, he worked as a commander in various units, including being promoted to colonel in 1939/40 of the newly formed Schützen-Ersatz-Regiment 81 and in 1940/41 of the also newly formed Schützen- Regiment 69.

Menny then became commander of the 15th Rifle Brigade in the 15th Panzer Division. This was under the command of the German Afrika Korps . After Lieutenant General Walter Neumann-Silkow was fatally wounded, Menny was also tasked with leading the 15th Panzer Division for a few days. He was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross on December 26, 1941 and subsequently took part in Operation Theseus and the conquest of Tobruk . At the beginning of April 1942 he was promoted to major general . He returned to Germany in July 1942.

From mid-September 1942 until probably the end of 1942 he was commander of the 18th Panzer Division. As commander of the 387th Infantry Division, he worked as a substitute for Major General Eberhard von Schuckmann from May to mid-July 1943. He was then commander of the 333rd Infantry Division until it was disbanded in early November 1943. He commanded the division’s withdrawal to Zaporozhye on the Dnieper. In October 1943, at the beginning of October 1943, he was promoted to Generalleutnant, he was also commander of the 123rd Infantry Division in place of Generalleutnant Erwin Rauch and then again commander of the 72nd Infantry Division for less than a month. On November 20, 1943, he handed over command to Oberst Hermann Hohn. Between September 1942 and November 1943 he was deployed on the Eastern Front. 

From February 10, 1944, he was commander of the newly formed 84th Infantry Division, with which he fought on the Western Front. In this position he was captured in the Falaise pocket on August 21, 1944 and became a Canadian, later British, prisoner of war. In British captivity he was taken to Trent Park . He was released from captivity in 1947/48 and died in Freiburg in 1949.