Rare WW2 Nazi German NSDAP Third Reich SS Übungslager Dachau Hospital Training Camp Photo Postcard

Rare original period postcard from the SS Übungslager Dachau (SS Training Camp Dachau), showing buildings within the training complex at Dachau, including the prominent round tower visible in the background.

The printed caption on the front reads:

“SS Übungslager Dachau – Lazarett”

Translation: “SS Training Camp Dachau – Military Hospital.”

This is an especially desirable Dachau postcard because it specifically depicts the Lazarett (hospital/infirmary) area of the SS training camp, rather than one of the more commonly encountered general Dachau views.

Photographer / SS Camp Marking

The reverse carries the important printed photographer’s credit:

“Aufnahme H. Kreutterer, SS. Übungslager Dachau”

Translation:
“Photograph by H. Kreutterer, SS Training Camp Dachau.”

This attribution directly identifies the photograph with the SS Übungslager at Dachau and is an important feature of the card.

The front also carries the printed SS runes immediately before the words Übungslager Dachau.

Postal History

The postcard was genuinely mailed and retains its original:

• 6 Pfennig green Hindenburg definitive stamp
• Dachau postal cancellation
• Period handwritten address and correspondence
• Addressed to a recipient in Austria
• Printed card number 463

The combination of the Dachau cancellation and the postcard’s own printed SS Übungslager Dachau identification gives the piece particularly strong provenance as period mail originating from Dachau.

Message Translation

The handwritten message begins:

“Liebe Mutti!”
“Dear Mother!”

The writer then says approximately:

“I arrived safely in Dachau. We have good weather here and we have already gotten somewhat settled in. At the moment we have leisure/free time and are waiting to see what we will receive. Greetings to everyone, Karl.”

Some individual words in the old German handwriting are difficult to read with complete certainty, but the message is clearly personal correspondence informing his mother that he had arrived safely in Dachau and commenting on his situation there.

Historical Significance

The SS Übungslager Dachau was the extensive SS training and barracks complex established adjacent to the Dachau concentration camp. It was used for the accommodation and training of SS personnel and developed into an important center associated with the SS military training establishment at Dachau.

It is important historically to distinguish the location pictured here from the prisoner compound itself: this postcard depicts the SS training-camp Lazarett complex, not the concentration-camp prisoner barracks.

Period postcards explicitly marked SS Übungslager Dachau, particularly examples that were actually mailed from Dachau and still retain their original stamp, cancellation and correspondence, are considerably scarcer and historically significant pieces of SS and Dachau postal history.

Condition:
Original period postcard with scalloped/deckled edges. Shows expected age and handling wear, including toning, scattered foxing/spots, edge and corner wear and writing to the reverse. Stamp and Dachau cancellation remain present. Please examine all photographs carefully for exact condition. You will receive the exact postcard shown.

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