DIE DEUTSCHE WOCHENSCHAU NR 731 [Main Title]

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  • Title: DIE DEUTSCHE WOCHENSCHAU NR 731 [Main Title]
  • Film Number: GWY 232
  • Other titles: DIE DEUTSCHE WOCHENSCHAU NR 1944/38 [Alternative Title]
  • Summary:
  • Description: I. Farmers and young Reichsarbeitsdienst members bring in harvest. Farming community have secured their place in history alongside fighting men at front and toiling workers at home by assuring food for the German nation. In Alpine pastures men and women scythe hay and fork it onto cart drawn by oxen. Three generations of one farming family work together, including the toothless grandmother and her grandson together with the 70 year old "hereditary farmer" (Erbhofbauer) who ploughs. Girls in white aprons and men in white uniforms, members of the RAD, spend free Sunday piling stooks. II. Labour conscription into the armaments industry. Allocation of labour, following decree of 18 July by Reichsminister for Armaments and War Industry (close-up of Gauwirtschaftskammer Berlin form requesting 3 men and 20 women for armaments work) is now fully under way, as administrators are seen reportedly deciding on reserved occupations. Elderly men and women enter room to fill in forms. Elsewhere in Berlin female members of German Film Ballet arrive at 7am outside armaments factory, show passes to security guard and take their places alongside women long employed at the works; newcomers are distinguishable only by their shapely legs and reportedly have discovered their fear of factories to be unjustified. III. Naval midget weapons unit heroes are decorated. Vizeadmiral Heye presents Knights Cross to Leutnant Vetter outside barracks overlooking coast and pins German Cross in gold to uniforms of four one-man-torpedo pilots. Heye inspects two operational Groups belonging to Midget Weapons Unit which has in total reportedly destroyed four cruisers, nine destroyers, two corvettes, one special vessel and thirty-five steamers. Grossadmiral Doenitz also inspects men and shakes Vetter's hand. Vetter and fellow Knights Cross holder Feldwebel Berrer stand recalling their exploits. IV. German withdrawal in Western France. Animated map of Western Front. German forces have reportedly won time and have foiled Anglo-American plan to exploit their numerical superiority in weapons and manpower by engaging Germans in decisive battle. Foliage-camouflaged horse carts and Waffen SS transport make their way along country road; Kübelwagen speeds down dusty lane and other camouflaged transport passes military signpost. Trucks, horses and men cross river (Seine ?) by ferry and pontoon bridge. Elements of a reconnaissance unit including vehicles and Zimmerit-covered StuG III pass through French town; German soldier stands looking at map, with Département de l'Eure visible. German photographer (wearing paratroop helmet) crouches in ruins taking stills with Leica. Two Pzkpfw V Ausf D Panthers with foliage camouflage pass through town and troops engage in street-fighting in smoke-covered suburb, with French wall-advertisement visible in distance. StuG IIIs advance in wooded country and open fire against enemy armoured spearhead, causing explosion in distance, followed by tracking shot past blaze. Two camouflaged Sdkfz 139 Panzerjäger 38s emerge from edge of wood and open fire; allied armour burns in hedgerow. V. Fighter ace Erich Hartmann is awarded Diamonds to Knights Cross. Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of 9/JG 52 taxies on airfield in his Messerschmitt Bf 109 with distinctive ace of spades emblem after achieving his 300th victory and is greeted by his comrades with celebratory placard "The 9th congratulates the 300th victory". General der Flieger Seidemann congratulates the 22-year old, who is later received indoors by Hitler, who pats his hand then sits together with the young ace at a table. Hartmann stands to place his new decoration beneath his lifted collar. VI. Waffen SS dig defences on Narva sector of Eastern Front. Animated map of Eastern Front from Warsaw to Dünaburg. Bolshevik summer offensive has reportedly finally been repelled, as Waffen SS grenadiers dig deep defensive ditch. View of large church perched on far bank of river (Narva ?). Recent recipient of Oak Leaves to Knights Cross and leader of SS Wallonie Panzerbrigade Léon Degrelle sits outdoors with Obergruppenführer and General der Waffen SS Steiner looking at map showing northern sector of Eastern Front and Baltic Sea. VII. German ground and air forces pulverise Warsaw during Uprising. So-called Underground Movement in Warsaw has reportedly now been broken. 60cm self-propelled siege mortar named Ziu fires, causing huge explosion in residential area, and is loaded, fired and elevated again. German soldiers and armour move through ruined streets. 2cm Flakvierling opens fire in ground role across waste ground at blocks of flats. Sdkfz 301 tracked demolition charge layer moves along street between rubble, as soldiers storm pockets of resistance, advancing under cover of smoke bombs. Junkers Ju 87 releases bomb in low dive against building, filmed from ground. Schweres Wurfgerät 40 wooden frame rocket launchers are fired in fours by plunger, making whining noise and adding to devastation and blaze. VIII. Henschel Hs 129s attack ground targets on Eastern Front. Henschels take off and fire rockets at road targets, recorded by camera-gun film; one tank or truck explodes in ball of flame.
  • Alternative Title: DIE DEUTSCHE WOCHENSCHAU NR 1944/38 [Alternative Title]
  • Colour: B&W
  • Digitised:
  • Object_Number: GWY 232
  • Sound: Sound
  • Access Conditions: IWM-GERMAN Attribution: IWM – GWY 232
  • Featured Period: 1939-1945
  • Production Date: 1944-09-06
  • Production Country: Germany
  • Production Details: UFA (Production company) Erlenkämper (Production individual) Fischer, Arthur18721948active 1885 - 1930s (Production individual) Grigoleit (Production individual) Kubesch (Production individual) Lempert (Production individual) Liphardt (Production individual) Martin, Robert William GeorgeDuring his service with the London Regiment R W G Martin was associated with the following Army numbers; 374 when Colour Serjeant; 393167 when Company Quarter Master Serjeant; 6933 when Company Quarter Master Serjeant; 6641503 when Company Quarter Master Serjeant. (Source: Medal card of 'Martin, Robert W G', National Archives reference WO 372/13) (Production individual) Pfiffig (Production individual) Saxinger (Production individual) Schüxe4;fer (Production individual) Selbach (Production individual) Wilzek (Production individual)
  • Personalities, Units and Organisations: Speer, Albert (person) Heye, Hellmuth (person) Berrer, Herbert (person) Vetter, Alfred (person) Doenitz, Karl (person) Hartmann, Erich (person) Seidemann, Hans (person) Hitler, Adolf (person) Degrelle, Leon (person) Steiner, Felix Martin Julius (person) Reichsarbeitsdienst (regiment/service) Film Corps de Ballet (regiment/service) Gauwirtschaftskammer Berlin (regiment/service) German Navy, Midget Weapons Unit (regiment/service) DE.S (regiment/service) German Air Force, Jagdgeschwader 52 (regiment/service) German Panzerbrigade Wallonie (regiment/service)
  • Keywords: agriculture, German - arable: harvesting (object name) industry, German - munitions (object name) recruitment, German: labour conscription (object name) administration, German - civilian (object name) ceremonies, German - event-related: investiture (object name) equipment, German military - camera: Leica (object name) journalism and record, German: photographer (object name) armour, German - tank: Pzkpfw V Ausf D (object name) armour, German - SPG: StuG III (object name) armour, German - SPG: Sdkfz 139 (object name) operations, German - evacuation: amphibious (object name) aircraft, German - combat: Messerschmitt Bf 109 (object name) operations, German air - return (object name) ceremonies, German - event-related: investiture (object name) defences, German - emplacement (object name) aircraft, German - combat: Junkers Ju 87 Stuka (object name) weapons, German - rocket: Schweres Wurfgerät 40 (object name) weapons, German - gun: 60cm Karlgerät Ziu (object name) weapons, German - gun: 2cm Flakvierling (object name) armour, German - funnies: Sdkfz 301 Schwerer Ladungsträger (object name) aircraft, German - combat: Henschel Hs 129 (object name) combat, German air-ground (object name) Germany & Alps (geography) Germany & Berlin, Berlin (geography) Eure, France (geography) Russia & Narva area (geography) Warsaw, Poland (geography) Russia & <Eastern Front> (geography) Age (concept) Children (concept) camera-gun (concept) Warsaw Uprising 1944, Poland, Second World War (event) Poland 1939-1945 (theme)
  • Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W Sound format: Sound Soundtrack language: German Title language: German Subtitle language: None
  • Technical Details: Format: 35mm Number of items/reels/tapes: 1 Footage: 1118 ft; Running time: 12 mins
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    GWY 232

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