A set of well preserved, mint, new-old stock, and matching Wehrmacht 44th Artillery Division Enlisted Man shoulder boards; constructed of bottle-green wool blended fabric; edged by bright red “rot” waffenfarbe piping; large “44” embroidered on each shoulder board in bright red threading; measuring 110 mm x 45 mm; mint and unworn condition.
Footnote: The 44th Division was formed on April 1, 1938 just two weeks after the Anschluss of Austria. It first saw action with the Invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 and the Battle of France. It also saw action in Russia starting with Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941, when it was attached to Army Group South. The 44th infantry division suffered heavy casualties in the harsh winters of Russia and at the decisive battle of Stalingrad. Following the unofficial failure of the Invasion of the Soviet Union, the 44th division was forced to take defensive actions near Izum and Krakov. The unit was subsequently destroyed in January 1943. The division was later rebuilt as the Reichsgrenadier-Division Huch-und Deutschmeister, seeing action in Italy, and later, the defence of Austria.