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    Gordon Williamson

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    Posts posted by Gordon Williamson

    1. Thanks for the feedback guys.

      I have "theatre-made" British Military Police badges made in India and South Africa Military Police badge made in-theatre during the campaign in North Africa. All are cast and relatively crude with mediocre quality fittings, certainly nowhere like the quality of officially manufactured die struck badges.

      So, assuming that what I have read about a limited number of RCMP badges being made locally (in England)for No.1 Provost Company (RCMP)are correct then I'd expect these badges to be better than the cruder "in-theatre" badges but not so well made as the official Canadian made die struck pieces.

      Love to see a verified example of one of these for comparison.

      Anyhow, this one wasn't expensive so I'll be happy to have it for now as a space-filler with a question mark over it.

    2. I've had an interest in getting a KC badge for a while due to the association with the early WW2 Canadian Military Police.

      I know the official Canadian made pieces were die struck but have been told that some were made locally in the UK at the time. I also know that these have been faked.

      Didn't pay a lot for it so even if it is duff it will be OK as a temporary space filler, but I'd be interested to know if what I've got here is good or bad.

    3. Dear Gordon,

      Nice photo. The young Major the RF is talking to is also a Gendarmerie officer as you can see his orange piped boards and collar trim. He is probably the MG commander in the field. I think this photo was taken early in the Polish campaign when the Army FG had not yet been deployed.

      Regards,

      Bill Unland

      Hi Bill,

      You are absolutely right ! My eyes were drawn to the armband and I didn't even notice what was staring me in the face in the foreground. He is indeed almost certainly the commander of the MG troops acting as Feldgendarmerie.

      I have a sneaking suspicion that, like the Gorget, the armband may only have been worn by NCOs on duty, and that the MG officers may not have had any particular additional badges over and above their regular MG insignia.

      By the way, I am not sure if you ever noticed this image when I posted it some time back in another sub-Forum here on GMIC.

      It shows a senior NCO of Army Feldgendarmerie whose heart obviously still belonged to the Police rather than the Army. Note that the dress tunic he wears for his wedding day is his converted Polizei tunic with dark brown cuffs, but with full Army insignia. He carries the Police Sword too, and notice that the cuffband is the embroidered type on the same brown wool base as the MG cuffband rather than the Army style machine woven rayon cuffband.

      I am convinced that this is the earliest style Feldgendarmerie cuffband made around 1939 in this period when these guys were being transferred over from the MG and before the Army really began fielding its own MPs. By the invasion of France this all seems to be gone and regular Army gear is being worn. This "transitional" period which I find so fascinating was really short lived and only seems to have extended from the Anschluss in 1938 until the end of the Polish campaign.

      The photo itself must date from no earlier than 1942 (he has the ribbon of the East Front medal) so well after the "transitional" period, but he was obviously proud of his Gendarmerie roots.

    4. Beautiful tunic Bill !

      I have never seen a priod photo of an MG Officer in Feldgendarmerie service. Of course they existed, but given the tiny number involved - (the Feldgendarmerie itself was very small at this stage so the number of officers would have barely exceeded double figures) - that isn't suprising.

      The chap centre background in this 1939 dated "L:ife" photo can be seen to be a Gendarme wearing the green "Feld=Gendarmerie" armband.

    5. nice chapeau!

      do you have an example of the armband?

      joe

      Joe,

      Here it is with the typical insignia it would be worn with by a member of the Motorisierte Gendarmerie at that time ( circa 1938).

      Later ( around the outbreak of war,) they would typically wear the same original Police uniform but often with the Police shoulder straps replaced by Heer types and with a Heer breast eagle added. If serving outside the Reich ( i.e. during the invasion of Poland, they would wear a black on yellow Deutsche Wehrmacht armband in addition to the Feld=Gendarmerie armband, one of the few occasions two armbands were worn at the same time.

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