Chris Boonzaier

Yup.... looks like a Napoleonic document to me

Indeed... nice stuff!! Any issued wings in there? Whats the going prices nowdays for Issued and numbered, but not issued? Thanks Chris

Hi, Mine was from 91-92. The Overseas medal was still being awarded in Tchad at the time because Operation Epervier was still going on. The forces there are mainly "presence" forces and much time is spent "on safari" along the borders. It is not really a combat situation, but is still operational, compared to Central africa which was also force of presence, but not an opeation so there was no bar to the overseas medal. Operation baumier in Zaire was very operational, but no bar was issued. Its a complictaed maze...

And that my friends.... is why a researchable piece of paper is worth way more to me than a shiny, unnamed medal ;-)

I am sure Jens or David can supply us with a modern photo of the Albainschlucht... Here is a rare Bavarian silver bravery medal award doc to a Pionier who dug out some comrades during a heavy barage in the Albainschlucht. The passage in the first post is from a man in one of the regiments he was attached to and described the ravines in the week that the action took place...

One of the valleys....

On the 20th of May 1916 we paraded past out Commanding General. We were a lusty, lively column marching in the spring sunshine. A few days later half of the men were either dead or rolling in pain and blood on the terrible battlefield at Verdun. The other half? Well, the next few weeks of hell would take care of them, melting, shrinking their numbers to almost nothing. Verdun! The grave of thousands of our best men! The symbol for the most terrible war. Yet before her altar I go down on bended knees because I love her with all my old soldiers heart... Why? Because there, in the ravines of the dead, while the furious battle raged, we knew a total inner silence, a silence we have never known since, the silence men know when they prepare to die.... when all things purile and ugly fall away and a man becomes a child of his God. Verdun, what a overpowering and violent experience! We had never felt closer to God and we asked him not to save us, but for much more! We asked that he give us an inner strength to do our heavy and arduous duty.... I page through my diary from those times. On each page the horror stares out at me, the horror that grabbed our throats like a wild animal trying to steal our breath, our sanity. I hear the ceaseless explosions of the shells, the whizz and whistle of shrapnel, the drone of shells passing overhead. I see the unending fire, smoke and haze that filled the Chauffour and Albain ravines, see the companies as they advance through the ravines of death, sense the waves of destruction rolling over us, smell the rotting bodies, the stink of explosives and gas, feel the horror in the throat as the explosions cover us in earth and shreded flesh, see the drawn, hard, dirty faces of the living and the pale, unmoving forms of the legions of dead. Stammering, calls, the wimpering of the wounded "Take me back, dont let me die here!" and I see us, exhaused, near collapsing as we carry the wounded back... Leiber, J?ger, Southerners, Northerners, Flamethrower troops, pioneers, ... they ran through the Ravines with us, attacking, being thrown back, attacking again....

I am sceptical about the Patina. I had a silver medal that I silver dipped... a couple of years later it developed an almost black patina, a bit ofa chemical reaction.

Welcome !!! I have absolutely nothing that would be of interest to you, but am very glad we have another specialist collector on board. The diversity of interests here make the forum very interesting and I am sure your items will be interestig!

Hi... see tonys post, he has a WW1 one.

Ahhhhhhhh, what the hell is that 3 barreled monster on the photo !!!

Foul!!! A WW2 ammo clip there !!!! (Thanks ony for telling me the difference....)

Fr in a box under the catch, flat cross

Are you sure thats not WW2 Luftwaffe??

I have found a few online... This one is not bad.... http://video.google.fr/videoplay?docid=689...27424&q=ffl

Am hijacking this thread to continue on with CdG award documents, I just recieved this one today, regimental level, for fighting during the offensive in Picardy, August 1918. He seems to have been a "Volunteer for all dangerous missions" and fought very well in the attacks on the 9th, 10th and 16th of August 1918.

Oooooh!!! Nice!! Any chance of getting a better pic of the EK document? Thanks Chris

Nice stuff Ed !!!

Could be many things.... I have a couple of groups with non com HKs and a regular EK2. Many were given for service in the field. Off the top of my head, one group to a Radia operater at a higher HQ way behind the lines in Belgium. No Combat as such, EK service in the field, non combat HK. Any number of guys on the major railways, etc. etc.

The first one obviously has a bavarian flag, but the 2nd and last have Prussian... and are still filled out to bavarians. I pick them up when I see them cheap, dont have place for them on the walls, but they are decorative. Best Chris

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