pieter1012

Here another case by Ch. Galére, this one for commander military of the Leopold order. Pieter

Alex, thank you very much for the link to the Mannerheim collection. Under nr. 82 is a picture of his rare Swedish Sword order, really beautiful. I realize you can choose among many royalty for your avatar, but I have some good memories about king Kalakaua. I visited his Iolani palace in Hawaii many years ago and liked it very much (actually enjoyed my whole stay in Hawaii). I then bought a book about his life which has a nice painting of him on the cover in tropical uniform. Regards, Pieter

Paul, thanks for the beautiful picture, this must be an early 19th century example of this rare class of the Sword order. I wonder if Mannerheim's order is present in the Mannerheim museum in Helsinki. Would be nice to see a photo of it. By the way Alex, I have nothing against women, but I liked your avatar of king Kalakaua better; looked more impressive Pieter

Paul, I checked a bit more and indeed Mannerheim received the Knight of the Grandcross First Class of the Order of the Sword in 1942. He must have been one of the very few who got this in the 20th century. Pieter

Paul, Hieronymussen in his book on European orders writes that the Swedish order of the Sword also had special ranks that were only awarded in war time. One of them was Knight of the Grandcross of the Sword First Class, which wears a neckbadge of the size as the Grandcross badge and a single upright silver sword on the left breast. I guess Mannerheim was awarded this rank, but our Swedish forum members may have more information. Pieter

Earlier posts in this topic have referred to the several medals the Dutch government instituted to reward resistance against the Germans in WW II. A little known medallion of the Netherlans, is the remembrance medal for the members of "Medical Contact", a group of Dutch doctors that resisted the German occupation authorities. End 1941 the German Obermedizinalrat in the Netherlands instituted the so-called Artsenkamer of which all registred doctors had to become member with the exception of Jewish doctors. Of the more than 6000 registred physicians in the Netherlands, 4300 refused to become member and of the medical professors at the universities, only one became member. Doctors refused to execute the sterilisation and euthanasie laws of the Germans and to report wounded resistance fighters who came to them for medical assistance. They also refused to cooperate with medical exams for young Dutchmen who were recruited for the Arbeids einsatz in Germany, or would give statements that the person was medically unfit. At one point in 1943, when the Obermedizinalrat tried to force physicians to become member of the Artsenkamer by arresting doctors who were active in the resistance, withdrawing their doctor's licence and confiscating their clinics (about 300 were sent to a concentration camp), at the iniative of the Medical Contact group, thousands of doctors decided to "renounce" their medical licence by covering their MD title on the nameplate at the frontdoor of their clinic, with a plaster. This "Klebe Aktion" infuriated the Germans, but these few centimeters of plaster were a clearly visible manifestation of mass resistance against the violation of Hippoctratic ethics by the occupier. Seys-Inquart, the Reichscommissar for the Netherlands finally gave in and the physicians were no longer forced to become member of the Artsenkamer, and those who were in concentration camps, released. The coordination of this unique resistance of the Dutch medical sector against the occupation was in hands of the management of Medical Contact. After the war a remembrance non wearable medal was instituted for the members. The front shows a swastica being broken by a snake (the esculapius) with the surrounding words Alleen een vrij man kan een goed geneesheer zijn (Only a free man can be a good physician), and on the reverse Medische Contact MCMXLI-MCMXLV, with the name of the recepient. The medal I have in my collection was given to Dr. W.P. Plate, a gynaecologist who was active in Medical Contact. By the way, he was the gynaecologist who assisted the then princess Beatrix of the Netherlands with the birth of Prince Willem-Alexander in 1967, the present king. I realise the story became somewhat long, but I hope you found it an intersting episode from a little known aspect of Dutch resistance during WW II. Pieter

Paul, you may remember that in those days one could even buy second hand original guards jackets in Carnaby Street (London). Those red jackets were much in fashion with the youth and were sold cheaply. I was then a teenager myself and bought a Cold Stream Guards coat, not to wear, but just for the fun of it. I still have it as a memory to the days of "flowers in your hair". Pieter

Just saw this interesting topic. Here pictures of an Leopold order and case made by C.J. Buls I have in my collection. He was the first Belgium manufacturer of the Leopold order, starting around 1850. Before that the Leopold order was made by Dutalis in Paris. As you can see the maker's mark is not inside the lid of the case, but a sticker on the bottom. Pieter

Paul, even if the Golden Fleeces you examined were not as refined as the St Prince Lazar, I wouldn't mind having one in my collection. Regards, Pieter

As Paul mentioned the presence of Golden Fleece badges, for what its worth, I checked the list of Golden Fleece members since 1800 (both the Spanish as Austrian branch) against the Princely families Dragomir mentioned. in 1863 Ludwig III, Grand Duke of Baden received the Spanish Golden Fleece and in 1878 Friedrich Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Baden also received the Spanish Golden Fleece. No mention of the house of Toerring-Jettenbach. Of course this does not mean much as the jewels could have been inherited from related families, but perhaps a small hint in the right direction.

Alex, feel free to keep the pictures on file. I took them so there is no copyright on them. 922F, both the case and breaststar are completely unmarked, so I cannot tell who the maker is. However, the breast star is very finely made, so I would suspect Kretly, who is known for it's fine work. I have added some more photo's so you can have a better look of the case and star. Pieter

Hi Alex, very nice pictures of king Kalakaua of Hawaii. The coloured picture you made of him is excellent. When I was in Honolulu many years ago, I visited Iolani Palace, which is now a museum, displaying many of the king's orders. As you also collect orders and medals, you might be interested in the only Hawaii item I have in my collection; Grand Officer of the Crown of Hawaii, bestowed to a Japanese official in 1888. Unlike a normal grand-officer class, with neck decoration and breaststar, this grand officer class consisted of a sash (narrower than the grand cross sash of the same order) without sashbadge and a similar breaststar as the grand cross.The document is signed by king Kalakaua himself. Hope you enjoy the pictures, regards, Pieter

On 4 June 1941, tomorrow exactly 75 years ago, former German emperor Wilhelm II died in Doorn, The Netherlands, where he was living in exile since the end of the first WW. Europe, again engaged in a devastating war with Germany, paid almost no attention to the emperor's death. Even in Germany it got little attention. As The Netherlands was then occupied by Germany, and the former emperor guarded by the Wehrmacht, Hitler ordered a funeral for the monarch with full military honours and send a huge wreath. The body of Wilhelm II was placed in a small chapel on the grounds of House Doorn, where it rests till today. After being granted asylum by the Dutch queen in November 1918, Wilhelm II bought a large estate in Doorn, in the center of The Netherlands, where he would be living till his death in 1941. In exchange for signing the abdication document, Wilhelm II was allowed to bring much of his personal belongings, including his numerous uniforms and decorations, to Doorn. In order to stay fit and while away his time, Wilhelm II started a daily routine of felling and chopping up the trees which were abundant in the area where he lived. The chopped pieces of wood were given to the population of Doorn, where, in time, the former emperor got quite popular. With the tree felling, Wilhelm II had the assistance of a number of foresters, amongst them G. van Veenendaal, who worked with the monarch for twenty years. When, on 10 May 1940, the German army occupied The Netherlands, most of the Dutch staff of House Doorn were soon sent away by the Wehrmacht officer responsible for the security of Wilhelm II. Capper Van Veenendaal got a signed portrait from the monarch as small memento. Earlier, on 27 January 1934 Van Veenendaal was awarded the Verdienstmedaille first class of the House Order of Hohenzollern, on occasion of the 75th birthday of Wilhelm II. I have the items of Van Veenendaal in my collection; reminders of a forgotten monarch. As forum members interested in Imperial germany, I hope you enjoy the pictures. Pieter Wilhelm II at tree cutting, in the middle with hat, and Van Veenendaal at the far left with cigar in hand The Verdienst medaiile of Van Veenendaal for some reason, the first picture with the coffin came upside down, sorry for that.

I have only a few American items (mainly regarding the Purple Heart) in my collection, but the recent visit of president Obama to the Hiroshima memorial, reminded me of a poignant Purple Heart document I have that is witness to the tragic loss of the aircraft carrier USS Bunker Hill on 11 May 1945 about 70 miles off the coast of Okinawa. The Bunker Hill was the flagship of the American navy in the Pacific theater at that time, with thousands of crewmen and holding the most sophistcated naval technology. In the early morning of May 11 1945, a young Japanese Zero pilot spotted the Bunker Hill and radioed home that he was going to nose dive into the enemy vessal. The Bunker Hill survived this suicide attack, heavily damaged, with 393 dead and 264 wounded, limping back to Pearl Harbour. One of the dead was 19 year old seaman first class Allan Scott Herring. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart. Hope you enjoy the picture.

Hi pjcampo, the Japanese Emperor uses two kinds of Imperial seals; the Dai Nippon Kokuji, which is the State seal and the Tenno Gyoji, which is his Privy seal. For instance award documents signed by the Emperor would carry the State seal (see picture of Emperor Hirohito's signature below the chrysanthemum mark and above the State seal on an award document). The Privy seal would for instance, be used by personal appointments, such as the appointment of a cabinet minister (enclosed a picture of the Privy seal above which Emperor Hirohito signed as Regent on behalf of his father, Emperor Taisho). A Japanese document, signed by the Emperor and the whole cabinet on 14 August 1945, is often seen in books on the Japanese surrender. However, this is not a Japanese copy of the Missouri document, but the Imperial rescript on the decision to surrender. I am sure there must be also a Japanese translation of the actual surrender document signed by foreign minister Shigemitsu, but I haven't seen one. Should add that this Imperial rescript has the Privy seal of the Emperor below his signature Japan had no bravery medal such as the Congressional Medal of Honor of Victoria Cross. Its highest military award was the order of the Golden Kite, which came in seven classes. Depending on one's rank a different class was awarded for brave or outstanding service during war. Hope this information is useful. regards Pieter

The first class of the Crown Order always had a sash badge,light blue sash and eightpointed breaststar. In case of an award with swords, the sashbadge would have swords between the arms, and on the star as shown in picture one. Here a picture of a civilian first class set of the Crown order I have. I took the sash out of the case so the colour can be better regognized. regards, Pieter

Hi Demir, thank you for your quick response. Yes, I like this set, especially as it comes with the old pre WW1 velvet case, even if the inner lining of the lid is missing. Best regards, Pieter

Hi Demir, I have in my collection a grandcross of the Order of the Medjidie, with velvet case. Unfortunately, the inner lining of the lid is missing.(see pictures) Is there any way this can be repaired? I guess I will need a piece of silk cloth from the Ottoman period, can that still be obtained somewhere in Ankara? Thanks for any advice, Pieter

Hi Demir, Sorry to put this here, but I see you are the host on Turkish orders. I have a question on the order of the Medjidie that I posted in the Turkish section, perhaps you can take a look. thanks, Pieter

Demir, the order was indeed established in 1866, and the last number looks more like a 6 to me; compare it with the 1 in front. The picture shows the reverse side of the order. The front side has the motto MERENTI. Regards,Pieter

Hi Rohleder, the Meiji era golden kites had drooped wings. regards, Pieter

Hi Oamotme, thank you very much for the information on the Iranian medal. I basically bought this medal because I liked the design, without knowing anything of its purpose. Thanks to the input of you and g1usxs the medal has now become a much more interesting addition to my collection. Regards, Pieter

Be assured that I will take good care of the medal. Hopefully, some day I can complete it with its ribbon. Regards Pieter

Hi g1usxs, thank you very much for the useful information on this Iranian medal. Looking at the persons on the medal, I suppose it is for cooperation between the army and civilian population. I checked the ribbon chart and the ribbon of this medal has an elaborate colour pattern, so unfortunately it will be difficult to match. Again, many thanks and regards, Pieter

A bit off topic, but amazing that Napoleon had time for these "trivial" matters. From April till june 1807 he was headquartered in Schloss Finckenstein, East Prussia, engaged in a war with Tsar Alexander of Russia, fighting off remnants of the Prussian army, meeting with his Marshals, managing the Empire with almost daily reports from Paris, and last but not least, taking care of his mistress Marie Waleska, who was living with him in Finckenstein. Pieter