Congratulatory Letter to SS winner Max Seela "Knights Cross" "Totenkopf division“ from the NSDAP Kreisleitung Berlin Köpenick

This is a fantastic are rarely found letter congratulating Max Seela on the award of his Knights Cross Addressed directly to him by Party Headquarters in Berlin and signed by the Berlin NSDAP leader ! Together with the letter (which was hidden in the frame) is a part map of an area in Russia dated 1941 Max Seela was commander of 3. / SS-Pionier Batallion 3 Totenkopf He had a long and varied Military Career His SS service number was 257,323 and his NSDAP number was 147,126. His citation for the KC is well documented ** Seela's award of the Knight's Cross was in May 1942, while he was a Hauptsturmführer, and in command of 3.Pioneer Battalion "Totenkopf." Despite severe losses and meager supplies, his unit defended the Russian village of Korowitsch, east of Staraya Russia, in the Demyansk Pocket for over one month, without support. Seela and his men prevented the village from being captured, denying the Soviet Army access to the crucial bridge over the Lowat river. Had Seela and his men given up their positions, the entire pocket would have crumbled. When the men from SS-Totenkopf finally broke out of the encirclement at Demjansk, the first TK troops to make contact with outside German forces, were members of the 3.SS-Pioneer-Battalion, with Max Seela in command. **

*in September, 1941, SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 3, including four successive battalion commanders, had been killed. The entire battalion had less than 150 survivors still in action. The division was desperate, as it's anti-tank guns were too small to destroy the Soviet tanks, but Theodor Eicke had a plan. He organized several "tank annihilation squads", which consisted of an officer, and ten men armed with satchel charges, mines, bundle grenades, and gasoline bombs. They were to attack Soviet tanks on foot, as the tanks assaulted German positions. Max Seela led one such squad, and on the 26th, his squad destroyed 7 Soviet T-34's tanks by hand, using satchel charges. To set an example for his men and demonstrate proper finesse in hand-to-muzzle combat with armour, Seela destroyed the first tank by himself, by crawling up next to it, placing a satchel charge against the turret, and detonating the explosives with a grenade. He then personally led his men as they tackled the remaining six tanks in the same manner. After setting the tanks ablaze, Seela and his men shot down the Soviet crews as they tried to escape the blaze. Seela is most famous for his part in the defense of the Demjansk Pocket, or perhaps for the goatee he had during that period. However, given the actions of Seela, he earned the right to have a goatee His Awards were impressive Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (3 May 1942) German Cross in Gold (26/12/1941) Iron Cross of 1939 1st Class (22 June 1940) 2nd Class (31 May 1940) General Assault Badge (1941) Wound Badge of 1939 in Black (1941) Anschluss Medal (1938) Sudetenland Medal (1938) with "Prague Castle" clasp (1939) Service Award of the NSDAP in Bronze and in Silver German Reich Sports Badge in Bronze (1 December 1938) SA Sports Badge in Silver (1 December 1936) Sword of honour of the Reichsführer-SS (1 December 1936) SS Honour Ring (1 December 1937) Julleuchter of the SS (16 December 1935) Honour Chevron for the Old Guard (February 1934)

D.O.B.: 15. Juli. 1911

D.O.D.: 31. Jul. 1999