Today in World War II History—January 19, 1940 & 1945
Sunday, January 19, 2020 by Sarah Sundin
German Volkssturm troops at Königsberg, Germany, Jan 1945 (German Federal Archive, Bild 183-R98401)
80 Years Ago—January 19, 1940: Isolationist leader Sen. William Borah of Idaho dies of a stroke in Washington, DC, age 74.
75 Years Ago—Jan. 19, 1945: Soviets take Lodz and Krakow in Poland, and cross Polish-Silesian border.
German Adm. Karl Dönitz cuts naval manpower to release men to the army.
The rifle in the photo is a G88, which had been superseded in 1898. They show up a lot in photos of the Volksturm which demonstrates the degree to which the Germans had managed to hang on to a lot of old equipment after World War One, as well as how strained their resources really were in the latter stages of WWII.
Königsberg was an east Prussian city. It’s now Kalingrad, Russia. These men were likely dead shortly after this photo was taken.
Thank you for the additional information! Much appreciated!