Arnim

I found the information I need.

One of my associates has come across the tunic which he believes to be that of Oberst Ernst Seifert. The probable date of the tunic is 1936 or 1937 and the loops indicate a seven-place ribbon bar. Unfortunately there is vertially no information about this officer other than photographs. Can anyone tell me what awards he had? A photo of him as a general with his ribbon bar indicates the Iron Cross, the Albrechts-orden Knights Cruss 1st class with swords and 2nd class with swords, the Honor Cross and two Wehrmacht long service ribbons, probably the 1st and 3rd class. Did Seifert serve in the Reichswehr? What did he do after the war? Thanks for looking!

I have posted these questions on another forum. There seems to be no interest here. Cheers

My German friend's response regarding the requirements for an Austrian commemorative: Das ist schon möglich, österreichisches Gesetz war allerdings man braucht eine Kriegsauszeichnung als Grund für die Erinnerungsmedaille. für die Schwerter musste man eine Tapferkeitsauszeichnung oder eine Auszeichnung mit der Kriegsdekoration und / oder den Schwertern vorweisen können.

Thank you for that information. I have asked my friend for clarification. On the issue of the first ribbons, here is a "blow up" which clearly shows three stripes on the second ribbon. Numbers three and four can also be seen more clearly. Also, it was not uncommon for awards to be awarded much later. I am told that some WWI medals were in fact awarded after the war had ended. Given the confusion after the war and during the Weimar period, I am not sure whether later Ranglisten could be considered 100% accurate in every case.

I hate to keep replying to my own post, but the more I look at the close-up photo the more I am convinced that the second ribbon is not the East Front ribbon. It has a light colored center stripe and two light side stripes. The center stripe is not blurry, bor are the other light colored stripes. The adjacent EKII isn't blurred and the center stripe of the second ribbon is almost as wide as two white stripes of the EKII ribbon. The white center stipe of the East Front ribbon is very thin and it is bracketed by black stripes of the same width.

I was reminded by a German friend that in order to qialify for the Austrian WWI commemorative, Schopper would have had to have earned an Austrian war decoration, which he did not.

On second thought, I don't think foreign WWII awards are the answer. The general already had 9 or 10 ribbons on his sew-on bar by the middle of 1943. The last two are likely Austrian and Hungarian WWI commemoratives as you have suggested. Were these "applied for" like the Ehrenkreuz? By the way, only my paternal grandfather applied for the medal. My great uncle and maternal grandfather did not. They were both disgusted with the "Great War" and they were both Social Democrats!

It is hard to say. Based on regulations, the Ostfrontmedaille would be in second place, but many "higher ups" placed the ribbon further down the line. Being a "sew-on," the ribbon bar moves up and down like a roller-coaster so the angle on the second ribbon is not "head-on." I am familiar with the photo you posted. Yes, the other possibilities would include WWI commememoratives. If he had received other WWI combat / service awards, they woud have appeared on your Rangliste. The ribbons towards the end of his bar seem to be lighter colors, so the Austrian and Hungarian commemoratives would seem logical. His WWII service included Army Group Central and Army Group South, did it not? Perhaps he received a couple of Romanian awards like the Crown Order and/or the Crusade medal. Where would I look to research this possibility?

That was my first conclusion too, but as you can see from the attached photo, the second medal does not look like the Ostfront The center stripe is too wide.

Thanks, Dave. Yes, he was born in Zeulenroda which is now in Thüringen. I have seen a photo of him taken in 1943 with a rather long ribbon bar so he must have recived other WWI awards, possibly the Hamburg Hanseatenkreuz which appears to be the second ribbon on the bar. I am hoping that someone has the actual refernce book which might help to indentify the other awards.

I have been trying to find information about this officer. He was a lieutenant of artillery during WWI and served in the Reichswehr between the wars. By the end of WWII he had attained the rank of Generalleutnant. There seems to be very little information about this officer. I am trying to determine his WWI awards but I do not have access to a ranglist. I would also like to find out more about his Reichswehr service - my father was in the Reichswehr also. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Many thanks!

What is the significance of the swords / bayonets? Are these added if the award was for combat? Do they come in "colors?"

Did the bar ever arrive? Who is the staff officer who earned these awards?

I have noticed that there are a number of different sizes to the 1939 Spange. It comes as a pin-on to be mounted above the EKI. It comes as a ribbon bar device to be mounted on top of the 1914 EKII ribbon. It comes as a larger device to be pinned to the buttonhole ribbon, and there seem to be at least two sizes for parade bars. Are there others? How many 1939 Spangen versions are there and what are their dimensions?