Chris Boonzaier

I think thats all the info nailed. Pity they did not fill out the full battles. Did you get it specifically for the unit?

Surry guys, EUR37 to mail to the states.... Still, it is a great book....

See... what did i tell you!! Robin sent me this with the following message "You smarmy bastard! I suppose you have not seen the Photo of the man in his white summer uniform!!!" ;-)

This is a rather nice Photo... Can anyone identify what he is wearing?

Maybe it is a poorer man who waits until someone has died to speak good of him, than the man who waits until he is dead to speak ill of him. I always hoped that Rick knew how much I appretiated him, but being a guy I never got around to expressing it verbally. I have known Rick for about 15 years. We had some ups and downs, I am happy to say, far more up than down. As a friend and a moderater it did not take long to find out that Rick could throw a wobbly with the best of them, and as a friend and a moderater damage control was sometimes part of the portfolio, but a small price to pay for his presence. In 1950 Japan created a program by which living people could be designated as „national treasures“, an example that has been followed by various other countries. We collectors may live in a world of our own, but we have no own country. As such I cannot say Rick was a national treasure, the highest accolade I can pay is to say that he was an asset at every level. To the collecting community he was an asset. Along with Daniel Kraus he put his nose to the grindstone and produced published works that cost much effort, for little gain, but all was done to doggedly fill important gaps on the Phaleristic bookshelf. To GMIC he was an asset, a gem. Where Rick laid his hat, interesting collectors congregated. Rick and his knowlege were a magnet that attracted questions and collectors like no other. To me, as a collector he was an asset. The amount of times where I was stymied with a detail in a Militärpass, or in a mans career, and Rick had an insperation... das geht auf keine Kuhhaut. To me, as me, he was an asset because it is a good thing to have a person to shame you into following his exapmle and help other collectors out, and accepting that on occasion there will not even be a thank you. Rick was a big man, with a big heart, and on occasion a short fuse ;-) So what legacy does Rick leave? A wise man once said to me, when I was dragging my feet on a project, that 10 000 forum posts does not a legacy make. A single book is infinately more valuable. Rick went about it the hard way, along with Daniel they undertook the seemingly thankless task of transcribing medal rolls. It is a nose to the grindstone job, not many would do it, but what they achieved, putting thousands of Soldiers, hidden in dusty archives, back within reach of researchers and collectors. Each of those rolls save soldiers from oblivion. Identifying medal bars will probably always remain more of an art than a science, but it was an art Rick excelled in. As long as we accept that medal rolls will never be 100% complete, Rick worked with the materials availible and I believe he worked magic. It is possible that for one reason or another, a missing piece of information or a crooked dealer that his success rate was not 100%, but I don't think anyone can do the job without a few misses and I doubt we will see anyone with a success rate like Rick's in the near future. Rick not only helped collectors to "name" their bars, he also brought soldiers long dead, back to life. Every bar identified was a man saved from oblivion. Men whose great grandchilren may not even know their names, live on because a collector does. Rick was not only GOOD at what he did, he did it with a GOODHEART, He identified medal bars, sending the owners away with a big smile on their face, and a more valuable piece in their pocket.... and he basically did it for free. THAT is the reason Nick named this forum after him. The GMIC Imperial research forum was Rick's „Home from Home“, and I am sure he would have liked the thought that his name was on the door, even though he has moved out.....

Welcome!

You are assuming that this kind of pin is not commercially availible to badge makers up to this day.... :-)

Ronins gonna say.... "How do you know they did not have Black skulls!!" :-)

I think he wore Tinnies on the day of an event, to be polite... then binned them?

Maybe it has something to do with that?

This film may be the most important bit of celluloid to come out of the war? http://www.filmportal.de/video/infanterie-nahkampf I am sure some of the stills have been sold for silly money....

It is always a very hard call.... he was involved in 2 and a bit months of positional warfare.... much could happen in that period.... At the end of 1918 things could be chaotic... maybe not his fault that records were chaotic.... How did he land up in a hessen Unit???? and then a bavarian??? A recipe for administrative disaster! I would almost vote for the defendant here.... it is not sure, but certainly possible that he served well for a couple of months... (A couple of months that our generation will never have to suffer through)... then sick for 5 months it seems (Spanish Flu maybe?)... then to a Hessen unit to complicate things, Notice how the Militärpass in an entry from the 31st of December 1918 says he has been missing since 1.10.18...... But his record shows that on the 24.10.18 he was transfered to the 18. Armee, and then on the 20.12.18 to the 1st bavarian infantry regiment.... I think this guy was probably a cork bobbing in a sea of confusion, maybe not even his own fault. It may also be very possible that he DID get an EK... lets not forget, the officer who filled this out had him as "missing" in a period he was in 2 other units! A very confusing book indeed.... :-)

Thanks for the explanation guys. It is a complicated award!!

Ages ago someone posted a catalog page, a fairly modern one, showing where companies making badges could order all kinds of pins and hardware for the badges they make. It is economically not worth the trouble for a company to make every possible part of a badge. I have no idea if the badge shown is good or not, just want to point out that knowing the right people.... and you could have these made for USD5 or less. Best Chris

Did Germans have Flame Thrower tanks??? :-)

It depends where you make it.... If you order the pins wholesale, I am sure you can find someone who could make the stars for a couple of bucks a piece....

Andy, thanks, that is magic. It is the only definate example I know of a "known" posthumous EK Award. I have a few examples of men who were proposed, and then killed in action and the actual approval coming after the death (because the divisionla commander on Tuesday Morning could not know Private XXX had been killed on Monday night)... but this is a case of bending the rules...

Hi, Do you have the texts saved? If you have the texts and Pics saved, consider doing a thread so we can read the details... I am sure it makes interesting reading!

Artillery dudes in a nutshell!!!!

http://www.kaiserscross.com/40029/224301.html There you go....

How big is it?

How does one know if someone got a black and white ribbon or a red and white on? What were the different Criteria? Thanks Chris

Hi, is the Haube marked?

I meant WASp Amries... your left one and your right one ;-)

Very nice. I am more into bavarian, but my wifes great Grandfather was in the 182nd and 101st, so a bit of Saxon interest from my side :-)