Exceptional Named Panzer Army General Staff Officer Uniform by Wilhelm Holters for a German Cross in Silver Recipient

The uniform is a superb example of the piped army tunic and trousers worn by a senior officer of the German Army General Staff. The owner of the uniform was Herbert Neckelmann,  whose service in World War II included that of an Operations Officer of the 5th Panzer Army when that unit played a major role in the Battle of the Bulge in December of 1944. The uniform tunic and trousers were tailored for Neckelmann by the prestigious form of Wilhelm Holters of Berlin.

The tunic is of high quality field gray wool. The collar carries the distinctive bullion “corn stalk” collar tabs that were worn only by staff officers. The shoulder have sew in boards for the rank of Major (Neckelmenn rose to the rank of Oberstleutnant, or Lieutenant Colonel). Both the collar tabs and the shoulder boards are on a carmine base, and the collar, cuffs, and front placket are all piped in the carmine branch of service color of the General Staff. The tunic interior has the Holters label in the collar and the tunic shows the quality of workmanship that was characteristic of the tailor that was used by Adolf Hitler. An example of this is the interior of the lower front placket, where a set of three snap closures was sewn to enable Major Neckelmann to securely close the front of the tunic and to wear it without unsightly gaps on the front line of buttons. The upper left front of the tunic has three loops for a ribbon bar (it apparently had four loops originally) and a set of loops on the upper right pocket (research has shown that Neckelmann was a recipient of the 1939 Iron Cross, First Class, in November of 1939. He had received the 1939 Iron Cross, Second Class, on September 21, 1939). On the right side of the tunic is a set of loops for the German Cross in Silver, which Neckelmann was awarded on March 20, 1943. Research has shown that Neckelmann also received the Eastern Front Medal in July of 1942. Within the interior tunic pocket is a Holters label which bears Neckelmann’s name as the owner and the date of April of 1938. Underneath the right shoulder board is a button for wear of the dress aiguillette. The tunic shows wear to the outer edge of the right shoulder board, and a few very minor “pulls” to the tunic fabric, with a few very small holes and a stitched repair of 3/4 of an inch long at the bottom of the right front of the tunic, but overall the tunic is very clean and makes an exceptional appearance.

The trousers are a high quality slate gray wool, with the wide carmine stripes of an Army General Staff officer. The front has a small stitched repair below the front fly, also approximately 3/4 of an inch long. The interior of the trousers has a Holters label that bears Neckelmann’s name and the date of February of 1935. The trousers make an excellent appearance.

Research indicates that Herbert Neckelmann was born in on March 28, 1908. As an army officer he attended the General Staff course from January to April of 1940. He served as a staff officer of the 14th Infantry Division from April of 1940 to June of 1942. He served as a Staff Supply Officer and Staff Operations Officer of the XXXXI Panzer Korps from June of 1942 to May of 1943. He then served as Operations Officer for the 17rth Panzer Division from June of 1943 to October of 1944. He was then Operations Officer of the 5th Panzer Army from October of 1944 until, apparently, the end of the war. There was found online a history of the 5th Panzer Army in the Ardennes Offensive that was written in 1946 by the Army commander, General Hasse von Manteuffel, for the United States Army Historical Branch. That history by General von Manteuffel contains the following statement: “After the fail of Aachen on the 21 Oct the combat activity decreased in this sector, but from the 16 Nov it increased violently between Geilenkirchen and the wood of Huertgen along almost the entire front, of the Army (cf. also II, 1).
For this reason the withdrawing of the Army Staff, foreseen to take place in the middle of November, was delayed. It took place finally on the 23 November. For reasons of
camouflage the withdrawal was carried out by sections. On that very day the Operations Staff moved to Eanscheid, a place selected by the staff itself, in order to be able to devote all its energy  to the preparations for the offensive planned. The G3 (Obst. Lt. Neckelmann of the General Staff) had already been sent there two weeks before” (pages 11-12, with typographical errors corrected).

In summary, the uniform is quite impressive in appearance and it is a superb piece of military history, worn by a German General Staff officer whose undoubted abilities led to the award of a scarce military decoration of the Third Reich, the German Cross in Silver, and who was also involved in the panning of the Ardennes Offensive, one of the critical battles of the Second World War and, to this day, the largest battle ever fought by the United States Army.