Chris Boonzaier

Here is an interesting group, from the Congo... to Fort Bragg... to Zaire....

When one reads about how difficult the Kaiser was with other badges.... and the small amount that were approved, mainly just for the duration of the war.... I must admit I am veeery spectical, to the point of disbelief, that the FW wore a skull on their Pickalhaube... You can pin a badge on a cloth hat, or collar... but the Spiked helmet is strongly rooted in Tradition, pomp and ceremony... a whole dirrent league of uniform item to mess with... That there are helmets floating around with skulls on, there is no doubt, but I would be curious to know how and when the skully made it onto them... I have never ever seen any period references to the Minenwerfer having any skull connection?

You know... I missed that! But you are right... they are cleats....Well spotted.... now I like the photo twice as much....

Unfortunately I think you are right :-(

oes not seem to correspond with either Yugo or US 60mm rounds......

... for they shal inherit the earth... (I think that was the monty Python line??) Men of the 22nd bavarian reserve regiment

Indeed... Ulsterman once calculated that a Gefreiter with an EK1 was rarer than an officer with a PLM !

The Captian is dead...... Long live the Captain!!!

The captain dies tonight.....

For some folks thats probably their best chance at getting a job :-)

Hi Kerry, unfortunately the pics are too small to read the text, best Chris

A rather nice pic... looks like an ersatz on the right... any guesses as to which bayonet on the left?

A photo of some men of the 2nd Komp. Bavarian leib Regiment .... With a notice on the side....

If a bit short... :- From IR106....

A tough call, but I dont think Alpenkorps with the collar badges. On th other hand, didnt most Freikorps remove the Bavarian/Prussian/Saxon cockade after the war?

I am guessing this South African crew was stationed with or near the Americans ? Came from this article....

... the 6th Armoured division. A Very interesting article... http://www.henrileriche.com/2013/01/20/south-africas-forgotten-italy-war/

Men of the Machine Gun Company of the I.R. 144 visit the monument to the M.G. Schützen of the XVI Reserve Corps

Many of you know him.... now he has some breathing space after getting his GREAT book out on the Iron Cross Documents 1939-45... he has joined us here to help in the Iron Cross forum. Welcome!! :-)

Or this Regimental level Stosstrupp......

Hi, The SA on the divisional level (not only the late ones) can be found more or less from 1917 onwards... They are no fixed size and it seems basically to have been up to the division as to how it was composed.. the 204th called theirs the Sturmtrupp Kompagnie... It was taken from units within the division... their denomination was also not official as they were not really recognised outside of their division.... Unlike the orginal "Sturm Abteilung" and the Sturmbataillons that followed...

I think You Can check DNW online?

Yeah, but there is no hospital entries, many if these early 1918 wound badges Are for mich earlier wounds

Just picked this up.... In April 1918 the 6th Company left the battlefield with just 10 men standing.... one of this was this Gefreiter.... on the 6th of April there was a medal parade....very scarce to find a Gefreiter with an EK1.... and especially with a nice bit of history behind it ....

There are also "unit specific" things with the WW1 docs, it is always fun to pick up on specific trends....