| Hans Alan Land | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 9 June 1922 Berlin, Germany |
| Died | 29 May 2021 |
| Nativity | Germany |
| Religion | Jewish |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| ASN | 31316107 |
| Rank | First Lieutenant |
| Rank at Ritchie | Private |
| Camp Ritchie | Class 8 (17 May – 16 July 1943) |
| Section | 5A |
| Enlisted | Hartford, Connecticut |
| Specialty | Military intelligence |
| Unit / division | 5th Infantry Division |
| Teams | IPW 2, MII 430-G |
{{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.
Hans A. Land (1922–2021) was a Berlin-born refugee, Camp Ritchie graduate, and intelligence soldier with the 5th Infantry Division. He served during the final drive into Germany and later became an attorney and legal adviser in the U.S. Department of State.
Biography
Hans Alan Land was born in Berlin on 9 June 1922, to Gustav and Martha Bud Land. Gustav, a Danzig-born astronomer who had served in the First World War, worked in Germany during the unstable interwar years. As Nazi antisemitism narrowed the family's future, Hans's parents sought a safe education for their son outside the country.
From 1937 to 1939 Land attended Ackworth School, a Quaker school in England. The school gave him safety and an English-language education while his family worked to escape Germany. The Lands eventually made their way through London to the United States, where connections with Swarthmore College and Yale University helped the family begin again.
Although a refugee from Nazi persecution, Land was initially classified as an enemy alien and questioned by the FBI. Once inducted into the Army, he first trained as a medic at Camp Pickett. His German language, education, and intimate knowledge of Germany led to reassignment to Camp Ritchie for military intelligence training.
Land was sent to Britain, where he worked with British military intelligence, and then assigned to the 5th Infantry Division after the Battle of the Bulge. He crossed the Rhine and advanced into Germany, including Frankfurt. His duties included examining German school textbooks for evidence of Nazi indoctrination and helping evaluate records useful to the occupation and denazification effort.
Among the records Land encountered were files associated with the ADAC motor organization that could help identify SS affiliations. His command of German institutions and language allowed him to interpret material that was obscure to soldiers without his background. In this work, the country from which his family had escaped became the object of his intelligence analysis.
After the war Land studied at Yale and earned his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1949. He served in the Office of the Legal Adviser at the Department of State and later entered private legal practice. He married Erika Feldmann in 1958 and died on 29 May 2021.
See the full story.
Gallery
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Photograph of Martha and Gustav Land (formerly Deutschland), undated -
Photograph of Erika Land, undated -
Photograph of Vivian Baylor, Hans Land, and Lorrie Fereday, 2 Dec 2012, Maryland
Technical record
| Field | Imported value |
|---|---|
| Nara ASN | 31316107 |
| Nara Name | LAND HANS A |
| Nara State | 11 |
| Nara County | 9 |
| Nara POE | 1143 |
| Nara DOE | 130243 |
| Nara Grade Alpha | PVT |
| Nara Grade Code | 8 |
| Nara Branch Alpha | BI |
| Nara Branch Code | 0 |
| Branch | Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA |
| Nara Term or Enlistment | 5 |
| Term of enlistment | Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law |
| Defer. Date | 0 |
| Nara Source | 0 |
| Nara Nativity | N1 |
| Nara Year of Birth | 22 |
| Nara Race | J |
| Nara Race Description | White not yet a citizen |
| Nara Education | 8 |
| Nara Civilian Occupation | 68 |
| Nara Marital Status | 6 |
| Nara Height (inches) | 69 |
| Nara Weight (lbs) | 127 |
| Class_ASN | 31316107 |
| Class_Name | LAND, Hans A. |
| match_method | asn_exact_name_exact |
| row_source | both |
Timeline
- 9 June 1922 — Born in Berlin (as Hans Alan Deutschland).
- 13 February 1943 — Enlisted in Hartford, Connecticut, as private (ASN 31316107).
- 16 July 1943 — Graduated Camp Ritchie with Class 8 (IPW Ge – Assistant Interrogator).
- 20 July 1943 — Became a naturalized U.S. citizen.
- 6 August 1943 — Promoted to master sergeant.
- 1944–1945 — Served with MII Team 430-G, attached to the 5th Infantry Division.
- 29 May 2021 — Died.
Sources
- Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data
- Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records
- NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
- 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)
- The Stories essay
- Dan Gross, Timeline of Hans Alan Land for Camp Ritchie (private research document; 1 source documents reviewed)
- Dan Gross, Timeline of Land, Hans Alan for Camp Ritchie (private research files; selected non-private narrative findings; 1 source files: HANS A. LAND.doc)