ArHo

Well, the insanity goes on. There is another pair of these reenactment-pictures up for sale (the beard is so clearly glued to the mans face its ridiculous) and bidding has reached 2900 (!) Euros. I just cannot understand it. If anyone is interested to have a look: https://www.ebay.de/itm/2-x-Fotos-Leib-Husar-Offizier-Danzig-Pelzmutze-Totenkopf-Leibhusaren/254713135595?hash=item3b4e1601eb:g:mc4AAOSwGQJfV4d3 By the way @Simius Rex - It looks like the arrows painted on all these pictures are very similar, all from one seller who perhaps got a bunch of these and now slowly sells them a piece a time? Just a guess...

@Dave Danner and @Glenn J Thank you both, I really appreciate your input! Very interesting that he served as Head of the Militär-Strafanstalt! @Dave Danner is this entry from the Stammrollen? I did a little more research and found that he was relieved of this post in march 1917 (Verordnungsblatt p. 884). But there are more questions I hope to solve with your help: Plaß wears an Austro-Hungarian Inhaber-Jubiläumsmedaille in silver for foreigners. As far as I understand these medals were - in very low numbers - given in 1901 to active and former members of the Königlich Bayerische 13. Infanterie-Regiment "Kaiser Franz Joseph von Österreich" by the emperor celebrating his 50th jubilee as chef of the Regiment. But I cannot at all find any mention in the few Militär-Handbücher I have available that Plaß ever served in this regiment. Also in 1897 he received the Zentenarmedaille, which not many other Bavarians of his rank at this time received - so as a non-veteran and a Bavarian, did he around this time serve in the prussian armed forces (commanded?)? Cheers ArHo

Hi to all, here a recent addition to my collection which some of you may find interesting - enjoy. Major Karl Plaß, all data according to Militär-Handbuch 1907 (does not mention his Militärverdienstorden, must have received it afterwards - help appreciated!). In 1907 Major and staff officer in Königlich Bayerisches 18. Infanterie-Regiment Prinz Ludwig Ferdinand, stationed in Landau (picture taken there). He wears from viewer's point of view left to right: Ritterkreuz (2nd class?) Bavarian Militärverdienstorden (received post 1907) Bayerische Rettungs-Medaille (Bavarian lifesaving medal), received as Premierleutnant KB 16. IR for saving a person from drowning in the river Inn on 11.7.1895 Jubiläums-Medaille für die Armee 1905 (Jubilee-medal for the Bavarian Army 1905) Preußischer Roter Adler Orden 4. Klasse (Prussian red eagle order 4th class) China-Denkmünze für Nichtkämpfer / in Stahl (Commemorative medal China expedition 1901 for noncombatants / in steel) Bayerisches Dienstauszeichnungs-Kreuz 2. Klasse (Bavarian long service cross 2nd class) Preußische Zentenar-Medaille (Prussian centenary medal) Kaiserlich und Königlich Österreichische silberne Inhaber-Jubiläums-Medaille (Not sure about which regiment he served in when he received this - 13th?) As always, all corrections or additions are very welcome. Have a nice May Day. Cheers ArHo

Simi, look at the shape of the ears, especially the earlobes - I would say it rather is Meister. Cheers

@ixhs Sounds like you own some too? Feel free to contribute. Cheers ArHo @GreyC Nice one! ? But what kind of badge does she wear? Never seen this one before?! Cheers ArHo

Hi all, looking through my collection once again I realized that Germans obviously liked to keep up morale in ww1 (and before, and later...) by taking or having taken pictures of their girlfriends or wifes in Uniform. So I thought this might be a nice thread in these bad times we live in today. To start, here is my absolutely favourite one. Though she is not a "perfect" beauty, the quality of the picture, the detail of the EK2 and the Uniform ("Goslarer" Hannoversches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 10, I think - it was taken there) and the Grabendolch (though not fully visible) always strike me when I see it. Would love to see any other pictures like this from you other guys. Greetings from Germany ArHo

Very interesting - I never knew that they used the helmet of Skanderbeg as model for a badge (I was for a long time fascinated by this masterpiece of late medieval armour!)! Thanks for showing! Picture from Wikipedia, User Zenit, CC BY-SA 3.0

Hi! Just a question to understand: Were these medals produced - before - approval (which didn't happen later) in anticipation that they would be approved - or - were, and are, they (being) produced - after and even in spite of - their approval had been turned down? Cheers

@Trooper_D Wow, that is a useful tip to try in future research - thanks! Cheers

@graham Wow, that same unexpected - and is just great! I say: Thank you very much! Chagins short bio on Wiki sounds very interesting - I will definitely try to find out more about him. I would love to hear how you tracked this man. Did you already know his face from some research for example? Cheers and thanks again! ArHo

Very nice! I just love these old pulications! But "Silver has a lasting value" - well I guess we see that a little different today? Thanks for showing, both of you. Cheers ArHo

Yep, many people aged "faster" back then, life was not as easy as today, disease, bad food, imperfect medicine, alcohol, it all took its toll (especially true for the bearded ones, I guess?) - and today most good looking men never were on campaign let alone had already lost a war at this age, did they? ? Cheers

Nice! As an only - and light - point of "critique", if it were for me, I would strongly insist on darkening the very white foot of the uniform stand. But again: nice! Cheers

@GreyC not absolutely sure about this (will have to look it up) but I think the contingents of EKs given to the units after battles were fixed portions of royal gratitude based on actual achievement and "lobby work" of commanders in the after action reports (anyone please correct if I am wrong). So there was no way to inflate the numbers afterwards - you had to take what you got and so they invented the way to reaward the crosses of deceased bearers - quite innovative if you ask me! ?

Laurentius - he did, here you go (List 1863)

@Laurentius - it may be that he did not get the Iron Cross immediately but that with his performance he earned the "right" to get the Iron Cross at a later time after one of those who got it immediately had died. This was done when there were not enough crosses to distribute (as far as I remember units got a fixed number of crosses that could be distributed - this meant that not necessarily the bravest got the medals. It was done in the 1870/71 war, too, which is the reason for most Prussian officers having earned the EK2 after the war but a far lower percentage of ordinary men). This is in short what may (!) have happened to Herr Leber (anybody please correct me when I am wrong), so I think he would have received his EK2 some time after 1817 but before 1824 when he is mentioned to have it, already as a captain. Compare S. 136: https://opacplus.bsb-muenchen.de/title/6235182 Cheers

Most interesting, thanks for showing! If I may ask: Is his diary detailed or "just" a collection of notes? And what timeframe does he cover? Background: My interest in the wars 1813-15 :-) Cheers

Well, I think I may have something to add to this old but interesting thread ? @Glenn J: Thanks for the Militärhandbücher! A bearded man - Hauptmann, Nürnberg, shortly after 1866 - I strongly believe to be Carl Harrach. Third from left is the "Denkzeichen für das Jahr 1849". Cheers

Hi all, I know this is not ww1- sorry, sorry, if not wanted mods please erase and I will start a separate thread!, but I would nonetheless appreciate any help on this signature (This one bothered me for some time now). Picture taken in Stuttgart ca. 1885, french officer, veteran of the mexican campaign. All in all an obviously valiant soldier - but, boy, what a messy handwriting! Looking forward tor reading from you. Cheers ArHo

Glad you like it too, Prussian! I almost overlooked it on first sight - but now I like it all the better :-) I had never heard about the Reihenbildzüge before, there seems to be almost no literature available... Cheers

Hi all, being a little sick and bored at home I decided to search through my pictures and found one I'd like to share with you - it is a Feldflieger from the Reihenbildzug 3, dated 25.3.1918. There are no medals, no weapons, no helmets and no death heads, but I like the not too common cloth arm Badge and the overall good quality of the image (a post card to a befriended family, sent with easter greetings). Hope you like it too. Cheers ArHo

Thank you so much - to all of you who participated in this and especially Alex for identifying the badges! This has reached an absolutely new and - for me - unexpected Level as I would never have guessed / searched in this direction! I will give it a try and sift through all the professors / well known artists of the academy (many of them are to be found online with pictures) and perhaps I will find the man... Cheers!

The shoulder board is "Feldflieger" if I remember correctly? So it needn't necessarily be a pilot? I think the text reads "Weihnachten im Felde 1916 Hans Haberstumpf (?)" = Christmas in the field 1916 [name] Hans Haberstumpf" [No idea if H. H. was the - quite talented! - painter or the painted man] Besides that: Very nice portrait - like it! Cheers

Very, very nice - thanks for sharing!

Glenn, I think you are right - this is definitely not him. I have searched for other pictures of the men you named but was, this time, unsuccessful. I am afraid that despite all the input from forum members - thanks again! - for now this man must remain anonymous, like so many others where no one wrote a name on the picture. Anyway, it was very nice and hey: perhaps sometime in the future someone who reads this post will say: This is X, I own a picture of him! Cheers