UBB.threads Forums General Interest Period History Forum My interview with Leibstandarte SS Oberscharf?hrer Kurt Schmidt - April 2015

This interview was recorded on Wednesday , 23rd April 2015. It was done in Hamburg , Germany and the person whom I interviewed was , Kurt Schmidt. And how I got to know him was though his granddaughter who is one of my good friend, Anna Lina.

He held the rank of SS Sturmann in 1941 and rose up all the way to SS Oberscharf?hrer in 1944 until he was captured by the Russians in Berlin. His commander at that time was SS Brigadef?hrer Wilhelm Mohnke. And his unit was the premier fighting unit of Germany , The Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_SS_Panzer_Division_Leibstandarte_SS_Adolf_Hitler

My previous meetings with veterans were members of the Kriegsmarine who were part of the Monsun Uboot submarine group , http://monsun-uboats.blogspot.sg As a side note - How I met her granddaughter was very amusing !! While at a party in Singapore, a good German friend of mine introduced me to another German woman who married an Indonesian and living in Bali. We met again for my birthday dinner at Canggu Beach, Bali after a good surfing session and she found out about my interest in history. Later, a couple of weeks when she was back for a short holiday , she phoned me and told me that her Opa, grandfather was a soldier too , and was a member of the Leibstandarte. She didnt know what this means until I gave her a brief introduction and my interest. She was really surprised and very proud of her Opa .... By the way, even though hes turning 95, he is smart enough to use skype via the iphone 6+ to speak with his granddaughter !!

Here is the full audio interview
Part1 - https://soundcloud.com/ibrahim-ahma...rt-schmidt-audio-interview-13-april-2015
Part2 - https://soundcloud.com/ibrahim-ahma...rt-schmidt-audio-interview-23-april-2015
Part3 - https://soundcloud.com/ibrahim-ahma...rt-schmidt-audio-interview-13-april-2016
Here is the full gallery of pictures from his photo album that he scanned and saved into a thumbdrive for me - https://www.flickr.com/photos/48284705@N08/sets/72157650686523374#
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And these are the interview questions I asked him in German language
* Wann sind Sie der Waffen-SS beigetreten ?? War das ihre freie Entscheidung oder wurden sie daf?r ausgew?hlt??
* Was war Ihr erster Gedanke, als Sie erfuhren, dass Sie in dieser Elite Division kommen werden?? Was haben ihre Eltern, Familie und Freunde dar?ber gedacht?? Um Zugang zu dieser milit?rischen Einheit zu erlangen muss man k?rperlich sehr fit sein.
* k?nnen Sie sich an ihren erste Kommandant erinnern?? Wie war Ihr erster Eindruck von ihm?? Und ihren kammeraden??
* Wo hat ihre milit?rische Ausbildung stattgefunden?? Wie hart haben sie das empfunden?? sch?tzen Sie etwas besonders an dieser Erinnerung??
** Wo hat Ihr erster Einsatz stattgefunden?? K?nnen Sie mir Ihre Erfahrungen genauer erl?utern??
** waren Sie im Kampf um Polen, September 1939 beteiligt ?? K?nnen Sie mir bitte Ihre Erfahrungen erl?utern Dazu werde ich ihm eine milit?rische Koordinierungs Karte zeigen
** Haben Sie sich in der Schlacht um Frankreich von Mai bis Juli 1940 beteiligt ?? K?nnen Sie mir bitte erkl?ren, welche Erfahrungen sie gemacht haben Dazu werde ich Ihnen eine milit?rische Koordinierungs Karte zeigen
** Haben Sie sich Im Kampf um den Balkan und Griechenland von M?rz bis April 1941 beteiligt ?? K?nnen Sie mir bitte erkl?ren, welche Erfahrungen sie gemacht haben?? Dazu werde ich Ihnen eine milit?rische Koordinierungs Karte zeigen
** Lina zeigte mir ein Bild von Ihnen mit dem Eisernen Kreuz von Sepp Dietrich in der Ukraine eingerichtet Juli 1941. K?nnen Sie mir sagen, wodurch Sie diese Auszeichnung erhalten haben?? K?nnen Sie mir dazu mehr ?ber ihre Erfahrungen in der Ukraine berichten?? Bitte lesen Sie diese milit?rische Koordination Karte
** Haben Sie sich in der R?ckeroberung von Charkow Januar bis M?rz 1943 beteiligt ?? Wie haben Sie sich nach diesem Sieg gef?hlt?? Der die russische winteroffensive endlich beendete. Bitte lesen Sie diese milit?rische Koordination Karte
** Was halten Sie von dem nachfolgenden Verlust im Juni auf Juli 1943 in der Schlacht von Kursk?? In milit?rischer Hinsicht, was das eine gro?e Niederlage. Die Wehrmacht ist nicht mehr in der Offensive und wird sich von der Ostfront zur?ckziehenden. Bitte lesen Sie diese milit?rische Koordination Karte **,wie wurden sie behandelt als Sie von den Sowjets gefangen genommen wurden ??
** Wann erfuhren Sie ?ber den Verb?ndeten Angriff an der Westfront?? Was haben Sie gedacht und gef?hlt??
** wie war ihr Leben nach dem Krieg, als Sie entlassen wurden und zur?ck nach Deutschland kehrten??
** kam es zu treffen mit ihren Kameraden nach dem Krieg ??
** Was sind Gedanken ?ber: -
Oberstgruppenf?hrer Josef "Sepp" Dietrich, Brigadef?hrer Theodor Wisch, Brigadef?hrer Wilhelm Mohnke, Brigadef?hrer Kurt Meyer,
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(English translations)
* when did you joined the waffen ss ?? Did you volunteer or were you drafted ??
* what was your first impression when you found out that you were in this elite division ?? What did your parents , family & friends think ?? To qualify entrance to this military unit you have to be the best above everyone else in physical fitness
* who was your first commander of your unit ?? What did you think of him and your unit comrades ??
* where was your military training ?? How tough was it ?? What do you most remember about it ??
* where was your first deployment ?? Can you please tell me your experience
* Were you involved in the battle for Poland , September 1939 ?? Can you please tell me your experience , I will show him a military coordination map
* Were you involved in the battle for France , May to July 1940 ?? Can you please tell me your experience , I will show him a military coordination map
* Were you involved in the battle for the Balkans & Greece , March to April 1941 ?? Can you please tell me your experience , I will show him a military coordination map
* Lina showed me a picture of you being decorated with the Iron Cross by Sepp Dietrich in Ukraine , July 1941. Can you tell me how you received that award ?? Can you tell me your experience in Ukraine ?? Please see this military coordination map
* Were you involved in the recapture of Kharkov , January to March 1943 ?? How did you feel of this victory after finally stopping the Russian winter offensive. Please see this military coordination map
* What do you think of the subsequent loss in June to July 1943 at the battle of Kursk ?? In military terms , after this huge military defeat . The Wehrmacht is no longer on the offensive and it is retreating from the eastern front. Please see this military coordination map
** when were you captured by the soviets ?? How were you treated ??
** when did you know about the allies attack at the western front ?? What did you think and feel about it ??
** after the war , when were you released and returned back to Germany ?? How was your life after that ??
** did you meet up with any of your comrades after the war ??
** what are thoughts on :-
Oberstgruppenf?hrer Josef "Sepp" Dietrich, Brigadef?hrer Theodor Wisch, Brigadef?hrer Wilhelm Mohnke, Brigadef?hrer Kurt Meyer,
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**Update - Just days before my birthday on 21st May 2017 , he surprised me by sending 7 signed autographed of himself and a nice greeting postcard Thank you

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Looking for all relevant info & items on WW2 German U-boats in Singapore and Asia for my research.
http://monsun-uboats.blogspot.com

Greetings Ibrahim,,,.

Looks like a very interesting interview.. Always weird to read that these guys didn't know anything about the camps! Him being in Berlin for so long certainly had to at least know about Dachau! it was something like 300 miles. OK maybe a little far,,but Buchenwald was only less than 150 miles [please correct me if I'm way off here]. That too, ok 150 miles,,,but Sachsenhausen was only 25 miles away. !
One of my Uncles was stationed in Germany after the war. Had a German girlfriend. He even helped with the Berlin airlift.. He said out of all the Germans he's spoken to he never met one that knew anything about the camps

Well, we all remember things in our own ways.. He must have had a tough time and was lucky he wasn't sent to a gulag or worse! Anyway,, interesting interview, good work!!.,Gaspare

Trully an amazing story and a rare priviledge to be interviewing an SS vet, thanks for the story Ibrahim.