Starting in the autumn of 1943, the Germany army transferred large number of Osttruppen, which were units recruited largely from former Red Army POWs. While some were volunteers, others were far from willing recruits. The 709th Infantry Division, which was responsible for defending Utah Beach, in keeping with many other divisions manning the Atlantic Wall, had Osttruppen, in this case including a Georgian battalion, comprising one sixth of its numbers. On D-Day plus 1, many Georgians were in a pocket inland from the invasion beach and after resisting initial US attacks, were swayed by a Russian speaking American solider to surrender.

Contents

This set contains four figures in the act of surrendering. Two men are standing with raised arms, a third also with raised arms is kneeling and the fourth man is wounded lying on the ground with his upper body propped up by one hand and the other touching a bullet or shrapnel wound on his left shoulder.

The main sprue is all new tooling and contains all the parts required to make the figures. Each figure is sculptured to Dragon’s current high standard as seen in the accuracy of the uniforms, which are in keeping with war-time photos of Ostttruppen and regular Wehrmacht infantry in Normandy and that the jacket pockets have folds consistent with their containing small items. The men’s faces are all unique and suitably expressive. The wounded man’s head is uncovered and his haircut is appropriate for the period. The hair on the back of his head is realistic, however one spot on the side is seam line is flat. This sprue is free of flash and has the normal seams to remove. A small decal sheet contains four “Georgien” shields, which were worn on the right sleeve by the Georgian units serving in the Wehrmacht.

All men wear uniforms typical of Wehrmacht infantry, German or Eastern, fighting in the summer of 1944. Three of the men wear the M1942 tunic as evident by the lack of pleats on the tunic pockets, but presence of curved pocket flaps. The other man wears an M1935 jacket as seen by the pleated pockets. All men have collar patches indicating they belong to the Wehrmacht and not the Waffen SS. The shoulder straps and lack of rank insignia indicates they are enlisted men. None of them have Y-straps, but their waist belts have rifle ammunition pouches, M1931 canteen and cap, and bread bag attached, which was a common arrangement in 1944 and in keeping with their deployment in a static role. All men wear canvas anklets and ankle length lace up boots, with hobnails detail when the sole is visible.

Two sprues from early Dragon figure sets (6005, 6002) contain a hefty collection of weapons including three Kar98k carbines (standard German infantry rifle), two MP 38/40 submachine guns, an MG42 with spare barrel and choice of belt or drum ammunition, Sturmgewehr 44 assault rife, Gewehr 43 semi-automatic rifle and two panzerfaust. A few small bits of flash were present.

The impressive box art by Ron Volstad depicts the men at a trench position on a Normandy beach and provides a clear painting guide. These figures are well suited to use in a vignette or diorama. Possible uses would be emerging from a field fortification or building or alongside a small model such as a 75mm Pak 40 or a kubelwagen.

Recommendation

Many modellers have long wanted a set of Wehrmacht infantry surrendering and this well reseached set definitely meets that need. The figures are typical for the summer of 1944 when the Wehrmacht suffered large losses and offer considerable flexibility in how they can be used in dioramas. Definitely recommended.

Historical Reference

“D-Day 1944 (2) Utah Beach & the US Airborne Landings” by Steven Zaloga, Osprey, 2004 includes details on the Georgian battalion on Utah beach, Normandy.

Thank you to Dragon Models for the review sample.

Review and photos by Neville Lord.

User Contributed Notes