Karl Lessig.

This Website is made because of my own curiosity to the “mystery” which hangs around the death of my Grandfather (Karl Lessig) who died in 1943.

My mother did not know anything about her Father because my Grandmother (Olga) never told her anything about the man with who she had a relationship prior to the Second World War. In 1941 Olga (17) and Karl (18) got a child without being married. In 1943 Karl dies on the battlefield in the area of Rzhev.

Because most details about his life and military history were missing we started an Investigation to determine the missing parts. Mainly with German sources. In the course of time I gathered a lot of information about the unit in which he fought, the 11th Infantry Regiment.

Because of all the information I had I decided to bundle it on this Website.

The 11th I.R. was involved in the German occupation of the city of Rzhev. This occupation and the Soviet attempt to retake it lasted more than one year.

Why my Grandmother never wanted to tell anything to my Mother about the War and pre War period we will never know but I think the circumstances tell enough. Unfortunately my Grandmother passed away so she never can tell here story again.

Here are the details we knew about the life of Karl Lessig.

At the breakout of the Second World War on September 1 1939 Karl is 16 years of age

Karl Herman Lessig was born on May 25 1923 in Zeitz (Germany) his father was Franz Robert Lessig and his mother Emma Ida Tretner Karl was the last child from a long row of 4 brothers and 4 sisters (for further details click in the link).

Olga was born on February 14 1924 her Father was Johann Otto Uthe and her Mother Lima Selma Diezmann

On November 19 1941 my mother (Karla) was born Karl and Olga then were 18 and 17 years old and not married, they never will. On April 14 1942 Karl was drafted in to the army He was placed in the 11th Infantry Regiment in Leipzig in the de Prinz-Johann Georg-Kaserne his registration number: -2790- 1./I.E.B. 11.

There he was trained from April 14 until July 6 1942 in the 1st battalion of the 11 Infantry Regiment.

From September 2, 1942 he was assigned with the 6th platoon of the 1st Battalion of the 11e Infantry Regiment. On that moment this Regiment was a part of Army Group Centers 9th Army which was caught in a defensive position around the area of Rzhev approximately 250 KM West of Moscow.

According to the documents I received from the German institution “Wast” Karl was wounded on November 26th 1942 and later wounded again, he died a few days later on February 20, 1943 in a field hospital in Russia. He was buried near the Hospital which was in the small town of Skrjabino.

So he does not return home and Olga is left with a child of one year and three months.

After the occupation of the Netherlands in 1940 thousands of forced laborers were transported to Germany to work there in factories. Also mister Dirk Starreveld from the town Waddinxveen. He was forced to work in a factory in the town called Nonnewitz near Zeitz. Olga works there in the kitchen. There they meet, and after the War, when Dirk goes home he managed to take Olga and Karla with him to Holland.

The end.