Balthasar Woll

Balthasar Woll , also called "Bobby", (born September 1, 1922 in Wemmetsweiler ( Saarland ), † March 18, 1996 in Bielefeld-Sennestadt ) was a German gunner under Michael Wittmann ; later himself a tank commander and SS-Oberscharführer of the Waffen-SS during the Second World War .

Second World War

After an apprenticeship as an electrician, he volunteered for the Waffen SS on August 15, 1941 . As a machine gunner he served in the 3rd company of the SS Totenkopf Infantry Regiment 1 of the SS Totenkopf Division , was wounded in the Demyansk pocket and was sent to the home hospital. As an SS-Oberschützen he received the Iron Cross 2nd class on July 23, 1942 and three days later, on July 26, 1942, the black wound badge .

After his recovery he became an anti -tank gunner and at the end of 1942 he joined the Tiger Company of the SS Panzer Grenadier Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler . Then at the latest, since the fighting in the Kursk Offensive in July 1943, he was considered one of the best gunner in the Tiger . On September 16, 1943, he was awarded the Iron Cross First Class and on November 9, 1943, he was promoted to SS Rottenführer . From November 1943 he was successful together with Michael Wittmann . While the driver, loader and radio operator changed more often, the commander stayed with the gunner whenever possible. Balthasar Woll had a considerable share in Michael Wittmann's successes.

On January 16, 1944, SS Rottenführer Balthasar Woll was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross as the first and only armored gunner of the Waffen-SS , and on October 1, 1944, he was promoted to SS Oberscharführer.

Woll was not a member of Wittmann's tank crew on August 8, 1944 (the day Michael Wittmann fell), as he was in the hospital because of an injury on August 2; he survived the war wounded several times.

Individual evidence

↑ Veit Scherzer : Knight's Cross bearers 1939-1945. The holders of the Iron Cross of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and armed forces allied with Germany according to the documents of the Federal Archives. 2nd Edition. Scherzers Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2007, ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2 , p. 797.

personal data
SURNAME	Woll, Balthasar
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Woll, Bobby
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German soldier in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH	September 1, 1922
PLACE OF BIRTH	Wemmetsweiler
DATE OF DEATH	March 18, 1996
Place of death	Bielefeld-Sennestadt

[1] Veit Scherzer : Knight's Cross bearers 1939-1945. The holders of the Iron Cross of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and armed forces allied with Germany according to the documents of the Federal Archives. 2nd Edition. Scherzers Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2007, ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2 , p. 797.