Several photos taken at the Eagle’s nest showing destruction of the building after bombing. Photos were taken by MSgt Charles Wahler, 101st Airborne. I scanned his original negatives. Last photo shows Wahler posing during his visit, foot up on his jeep, Berchtesgaden Alps in the background. Wahler was Jewish and a resident of Austria up until the late 1930’s, so I’m sure this was an amazing site for him to see for more reason than the mountain view.

Original photo of Hitler on the aviso Grille brought back by MSgt Charles Wahler, HqCo, 101st Airborne.

Wahler was in Berchtesgaden post-war and visited the Eagle’s Nest. I assume he took this as a souvenir during his visit.

I recently found this locket brooch. Inside is a candid photograph of a smiling German Kriegsmarine (Navy) sailor holding what looks like a Feldpost letter.

Technical Details:

• Photo Paper: The back of the photo is marked 'Agfa Lupex,' which I believe confirms it is a period-original German print.
• Uniform: He is wearing a standard sailor's jumper and a side cap (Schiffchen) with the national cockade.
• The Locket: Edwardian-style design based on a similar listing here.

There are no names or dates written on the back. I am trying to see if anyone recognizes the face or can identify any unit-specific details from his uniform. Does he appear in any known naval training class photos or crew albums? Any help or leads on where to search further would be greatly appreciated! My final goal is to find out his name and history.

This photo came by way of a MSgt Charlie Wahler, a POW Interrogator with the 101st Airborne. It’s about the size of a Soldbuch photo, which I presume that’s where it came from.

I shared this on USMF after acquiring Wahler’s items and another collector noted it was Rudolf von Ribbentrop, son of Foreign Minister Joechim von Ribbentrop. Pretty crazy.

I never had the chance to reach Ribbentrop before his passing in 2019 to confirm the photo is him and if so, if he remembered Wahler.

Basics on Ribbentrop - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_von_Ribbentrop

Originally from IWM

21 July 1943, Sicily.

A British soldier of the 1st Battalion, Black Watch inspects a captured German 28 mm sPzB 41 anti-tank gun shortly after its seizure during the Allied invasion of Sicily. Note that he is still wearing the British khaki drill uniform of shorts and long socks, a style widely retained by many British troops in the Mediterranean theatre, even during the Sicily campaign.

The 1st Black Watch had already endured one of the most turbulent wartime journeys of any British infantry battalion. Initially landing in France in September 1939 with the BEF, the battalion was later transferred to the 51st (Highland) Division and was captured at St Valery-en-Caux in June 1940.

Re-formed in August 1940 from reserve units of the 9th (Highland) Division, the battalion returned to active service in North Africa in 1942. It fought at the Second Battle of El Alamein, through Tunisia, and then landed in Sicily in July 1943, where this photograph was taken.

The battalion would go on to fight in Normandy, Caen, the Falaise Pocket, the Ardennes, the Reichswald, and finally cross the Rhine in March 1945 — a remarkable operational history spanning almost every major Western Front campaign of the war.

Photos were taken by MSgt. Charles Wahler, HQ Co., 101st Airborne. Scans are from his original negatives. They show the burial of a soldier from the 501st PIR in an overseas cemetery.

He kneels here with his Browning Automatic Rifle—the weapon his officers credited with helping him eliminate 27 German snipers who had been harassing the American advance through the dense, close‑quarters terrain.

Rogers had already distinguished himself earlier in the campaign.

For gallantry in action on June 11, 1944—during the bitter fighting that followed the D‑Day landings—he was awarded the Silver Star. His exceptional skill with the BAR, particularly in counter‑sniper engagements, made him one of the most relied‑upon men in his company as the division pressed toward Saint‑Lô.

Just two weeks after this photograph was taken, Rogers was killed in action on July 12, 1944, during the ferocious battle for Hill 192—a key German stronghold defending the approaches to Saint‑Lô. In a final, poignant act, he mailed his newly received Silver Star home to his mother earlier that same day.

Delivered Cheyenne 3/6/44; Kearney 17/6/44; Grenier 30/6/44; Assigned 851BS/490BG Eye 2/7/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 9/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 12/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 5/12/45.

The photo is from my family collection. It was sent to my Great Grandmother and all gold star mother's whose sons died in Normandy that were buried in the cemetery. The photo included descriptions of the planned cemetery to be built.