Gollas, Josef (Infanterie-Regiment 106)

Date of birth:: December 12th, 1914 (Eisenbach, Obernburg am Main, Darmstadt - Germany)
Date of death:: December 12th, 1980
Nationality:: German

Biography

Josef Gollas gave first proof of his prowess as a soldier during the French campaign in 1940 when he secured for his regiment the crossings of the rivers Aisne and Marne. He was the first NCO to win the Iron Crosses 2nd and 1st class.
On July 25th, 1941 Gollas was wounded in the left upper arm in front of Mogilev (Belarus). The doctor intended to send him back. Gollas determinedly rejected this and declared that he would hold out until the city was in German hands. His thoughts were on three blocks of barracks that blocked the German advance. With an assault squad twelve men strong Feldwebel Gollas set out at dawn. Despite very difficult conditions he managed to take two blocks. During the attack on the third block which was defended tenaciously, Gollas was hit by a grenade shrapnel in the right hand joint. Blood gushed out from the torn vein. Despite this severe and life-threatening injury he continued fighting the enemy till reinforcements could complete the work he'd started. The attack on Mogilev which carried along first the company, then the battalion and finally the whole regiment could be commenced much earlier than expected and without substantial losses in particular. A breakthrough to the Dnyepr river had thus been achieved. On July 26th, Mogilev was in Germans hands. The regiment took 9,000 POWs. Gollas' name was mentioned in the division's order of the day and in the „Ehrenblatt des deutschen Heeres". Gollas is Truppführer in the Sturm 27/J 2 of SA group 'Franconia'. The SA chief of staff promoted him to SA-Sturmführer.
For his achievements in the battle of Mogilew Feldwebel Josef Gollas was awarded the Knight's Cross on November 18, 1941. The divisional history book "Der Weg der Division 1939-1942" states:
"A special achievement was accomplished these days by Sergeant Golla, who, despite being wounded several times, destroyed out of his own initiative a block of houses that had been converted to a soviet stronghold."
After the war Josef Gollas was a co-founder of the camaraderie of the "former 106's" in Aschaffenburg.
He also belonged to the delegation that after the war in Epernay with the "Revenants et Anciens du 106", the comrade association of the former French 106e Regiment d'Infanterie. The French 106e RI and the German I.R. 106 had fought each other for some time during the French campaign in June 1940.
Josef Gollas had been running a clothing factory since 1958 and so, was known nationally.
He got a serious car accident on November 22, 1980 on one of his business trips and died on his 66th birthday the 12th December 1980 from injuries.

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