Les

After two too many in the old sticky pubes reading impairment can set in, and all of those things can happen -after- last call. Ok...sorry for the regression. The same can happen in or out of a German Raathaus,Stuben or elsewhere.

You need to know a little about what enamel is before doing anything. Enamel originally meant melted glass or silicates, but later came to include various paste materials that resemble hardened glass, but are not. Prior to WWII, Gerrman medals were usually made using glass or silica beads to make enameled medals. Metals for cooking and so on, were often coated with "enamel" paints that didn't contain glass or silicates, and then baked at high temperatures.Plastic compounds in recent years have been used as a replacement material for actual glass/silicate based enamels. Determining if your medal is real enamel, or some other material is the first step. True glass compounds are impervious to most acids and related compounds, with the exception of hydrofluoric acid...which will etch glass. That's why it's used in the chemical industries for items such as test tubes, beakers, condensers, tubing, etc. Brian has pointed out that tobacco is an organic compound, which can be removed by solvents. If your medal is true enamel, the glass will not be effected providing it is not rubbed or cleaned with anything abrasive. The metal parts of the medal are another matter. If your "enamel" is a plastic material, the tobacco will have chemically bonded with the plastic, and the color change will be difficult to impossible to remove. The same thing happens in households were people smoke. Computers with off-white plastic monitor covers and the like, turn yellow when exposed to smoke. Try a small spot with something along the lines of an alcohol solution and wet/soften the tobacco. Let the solution stand for a minute or so. Most of the alcohol will evaporate quickly and not harm the metal part of the medal. Then use a soft cotton cloth to wipe it. Try it once or twice more to see if that helps. If all else fails, rumor has it that sandblasting using cement grit at 200psi works wonders and can turn that thing into something looking like Mount Rushmore. (kidding...) Les

There is a place name of Kadewere in Malawi. That suggests he was probably from there, or neighboring Northern Rhodesia which is not all that far away. Years ago, I worked in Zambia and on a flight between Livingstone and Lusaka shared a seat with an old German ex-pat who served with the KAR during the Ethiopian campaign. I asked him if he knew a former university professor I studied under, that also served with the Northern Rhodesian bunch that was there. He did, and told me a story or two about him. During one attack on an Italian position, my former prof was running full bore and suddenly hit the ground. Some of his men came up to him to see where he was wounded, and found him picking up stone age artefacts that were lying on the ground. He realized what he was doing, continued on with the attack and when it was over, went back to the spot where he found the stone tools to see what else was there. Les

Joe is correct, men were often sent home for short periods of time for critical factory work, or during peak agricultural work periods to work on farms. A man did not have to be wounded to be sent home, although being used as part of the labor force while on convalescent leave was not uncommon. Karl Liebknecht, an elected Reichstag (SDP) member was conscripted, sent to the front, and was intermittently recalled to Berlin whenever the Reichstag was in session.

"Upper Former Confederacy"? There you go again with places that were never recognized by any legitimate nation.

That last sentence can be construed more than one way and is not entirely clear. If you mean is an writer or author prohibited from self-publishing, and must rely on a publisher to have something formally published, there is nothing in German law that specifically prohibits self-publishing. The laws require a contractual understanding between the author and publisher, and spell out how the basis for contractual agreements between writers/authors and publishers and respective duties, obligations, and prerogatives. What is not specifically stated is whether the publisher and printer are one and the same, or if publishers do the actual process of printing the work, or contract with another business to do it. The current German laws were first enacted in 1902, re-written in 2002, and apparently are being re-evaluated even though only a few years have passed since the laws were last updated. Should someone self-publish, or rely on professional publishing houses? That's akin to whether Americans who have the option of representing themselves in a legal setting should find a legal counselor to represent them, or do it themselves. The courts are not happy when "non-professional" represent themselves, but the law does not prohibit it. The outcome largely depends on the knowledge and abilities of the person representing themselves, and whether they know how and when to avoid potential pitfalls. The "ask a friend" or someone whose been there routine is at best arguable. I suggest consulting a German attorney who specializes in publishing and copyright related legal issues instead of asking a friend or someone who has been there approach. Paraphrasing "Fatty" Arbuckle, the American comedian from the 1930's, you can get what you paid for, or instead you can pay for what you get. Les

Is your understanding based on a legal opinion coming directly from a German lawyer who specializes in publishing and copyright issues, or from someone else who is not a lawyer? If you or anyone else is interested, the German Federal laws governing publishing within Germany can be found here: http://transpatent.com/gesetze/verlagsg.html Les

Paul, Don't expect the Republic of Austria to provide any funding, support, or more than a token nod of the head towards the "Habsburg situation" either in or out of Austria. The reason for that centers on what the Habsburgs owned personally, or had an interest in, prior to the end of the monarchy and formation of the Republic after WWI. Any recognition of the family after 1918, has potential legal, political, and especially economic implications that the Republic would like to avoid entirely. That is part of the reason, the Habsburgs are never publicly or formally invited to state visits within Austria, etc. The Habsburgs could argue much if not everything that was confiscated by the Austrian Republic was personal property of the family or family members, and should either be returned or compensated for their loss. It's doubtful that any Austrian court would rule in favor of Habsburg claims, which could ruin the country financially if artwork, land, jewelry, and so on were returned or had to be paid for at current values. Could the Habsburgs try going to an international court? Perhaps, but then the family would also have to include lands and possessions that were part of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire also. For a variety of reasons, neither the Republic of Austria (or any of the inheritor states of the former A-H Empire) are inclined to formally recognize the Habsburgs, or any potential claims, the Habsburgs have more or less come to terms with the political and economic realities of a post-1918 world. Les

"Confederacy"? The "Confederacy" was never recognized by any sovereign nation during the period of armed rebellion (1861-1865) against the United States, or afterward. Not one. That said, nice bar.

Chris, Additional information on the 78th R.D. for the spring of 1918: 78.Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 258 Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 259 Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 260 2.Eskadron/Husaren-Regiment Nr. 16 Artillerie-Kommandeur 78 Reserve-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 62 Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 378 Reserve-Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 79 Reserve-Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 80 Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 278 Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 478 Les

Chris, A memo written by a gas officer from the US 26ID after the war mentions the "78th Reserve Division" being involved in the attack at Seicheprey. I have a pdf file that I can send you, which mentions the Ia op order written on 18 April 1918, and a few other details you might find interesting. A short footnote mentions "Order Ia 929" of the 78th Reserve Divisions, subject "Cherry Blossom" (Kirschblűte), approx 40 page war files extracts of the 78th R.D., Box 202. The paper goes on to mention on page 16, that the week before the attack, the French reported the presence of the "14th Stosstruppe" at Heudicourt (sp?) training for a raid, which was confirmed by "artillery intelligence." The 78th RD artillery had 55 batteries, fired over 20,000 rounds (77mm, 105mm, 150mm, and 10cm yellow cross shells aka mustard, on the front from Xivray to Remieres Wood east. Most of it was concentrated on the 32 French and American batteries the Germans located back of the front (near Beaumont, Raubicourt (sp?), Bois de la Hazelle, Voisgoine, and Lironville. Some of the gas was fired during and after the raid, to maintain the gas screen, along with 42,000 HE rounds, and 6,000 t.m. rounds. A few excerpts from the report: 26th Div officers estimated roughly 4-5000 gas shells (all sizes) and a small amount of HE mixed in with the gas (including Blue Cross rounds). page 12:.... The raiders left their trenches opp Seicheprey and rushed Sybille Trench in front of the town, enveloped and occupied it, destroying all dugouts and defenses, then withdrew. They captured most of Co. C, ten heavy and fifteen light m.g.s and destroyed 10 more in circa one hour. The next four pages discuss US responses but no specific mention of German units after the initial attack started. Any of this useful for what you need or want? Les

A bunker in the woods of Stafford County, Virginia would be where to look.

Obit from the Guardian: 18 July 2009 Henry Allingham First world war veteran and world's oldest man Henry Allingham, who has died aged 113, maintained naval aircraft during the Battle of Jutland in 1916, the greatest sea battle of the first world war, and was later transferred to the western front in time for the last Ypres offensive. He was Britain's oldest man, reportedly the oldest man ever to have lived there, and for the last month of his life Guinness World Records claimed him to be the oldest man alive. Allingham was born in Clapton, east London, the son of an ironmonger, a year before Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee of 1897 and three years before the Boer war broke out. The Klondike gold rush was just starting and Kitchener was campaigning in the Sudan. On leaving his local council school, Allingham started training as a surgical instrument maker at Bart's hospital in central London, but found the work too dull and soon moved on to learn to make bodywork for cars. Allingham had just turned 18 when the first world war broke out and wanted to volunteer for the army as a dispatch rider. Instead he continued to support his ailing mother until her death in 1915. Captivated by the sight of an aeroplane circling a reservoir ? the Wright brothers' powered flights had come only a dozen years earlier ? he then applied to the rapidly expanding Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) and qualified as an air mechanic in September 1915. Posted to the naval air station at Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, he helped maintain a wide range of fragile aircraft, and flew in some. In May 1916 he was posted to the armed trawler Kingfisher to help maintain its single seaplane. The vessel was attached to the British Grand Fleet at the end of the month, when the great naval clash both sides had been hoping for finally came about. The German High Seas Fleet had left its North Sea harbours in the hope of destroying British ships and a sprawling and confused engagement ensued. Nowhere near as destructive as it could have been, it was named the Battle of the Skagerrak by the Germans who won the first day's action on 31 May when the British lightly armoured battlecruisers clashed with their heavy guns: the British lost three to the Germans' one. The British claimed victory in what they christened the Battle of Jutland on 1 June, when the two main bodies of battleships chased each other. Kingfisher was involved in shadowing the German heavy ships. Tactically it was a German victory. The British Grand Fleet lost 111,000 tonnes of warships, or 8.84% of its strength, while the German High Seas Fleet was reduced by 62,000 tonnes, or 6.79%. But strategically the British won because their surviving ships were significantly less damaged than the enemy's. Admiral Jellicoe, the British commander-in-chief, reported his fleet ready for duty 24 hours after the battle; the Germans needed three months for repairs. In fact the High Seas Fleet never came out in strength again. As air activity at sea declined, many RNAS units were transferred to the western front in 1917. In June, Air Mechanic First Class Allingham was assigned to No 12 squadron, training other transferred RNAS units. After five months he was posted to a depot at the port of Dunkirk on France's border with Belgium, where he experienced aerial bombing and shelling from land and sea as his unit struggled to repair and recover damaged aircraft. Casualties were high when the airmen were covering the Third Battle of Ypres in the latter part of 1917, frequently taking refuge in shell holes and filthy trenches. On 1 April 1918, Allingham and his comrades swapped their naval uniforms for the grey-blue kit of the brand new Royal Air Force, an amalgamation of the RNAS and the army's Royal Flying Corps. Allingham was sounded out about taking an RAF commission after the war but decided instead to marry his sweetheart, Dorothy, whom he had met in Great Yarmouth in 1915. Their marriage in 1919 lasted more than half a century until her death in 1970; they had two daughters, who also predeceased him. He was formally discharged from the RAF in April 1919, when he joined the Ford motor company, and later Rolls Royce, working as a coach builder for the rest of his employed life. Already too old for active service when the second world war began in 1939, Allingham undertook important war work as a mechanic, including helping to protect ships against magnetic mines (degaussing). He lost his 1914-18 medals in the blitz on London in 1940 and received a replacement set at a special ceremony in Eastbourne, where he lived in retirement, over half a century later. He was admitted to the French Legion of Honour in 2003 and awarded a special medal and the freedom of the French town of Saint Omer. In 2004 he was one of four centenarian veterans who laid a wreath at the Cenotaph to mark the 90th anniversary of his war. It was only in the following year that he gave up his independence and moved into a home. Concerned that the world should not forget the sacrifice made by the millions who died in the first world war, he turned out again with two other veterans, Harry Patch and Bill Stone, at the Cenotaph in November 2008; Stone died last January. Allingham's memoir, Kitchener's Last Volunteer, was written with Dennis Goodwin and published in 2008. He is survived by five grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, 14 great-great-grandchildren, and one great-great-great-grandchild. Henry William Allingham, first world war veteran, born 6 June 1896; died 18 July 2009 About this article Henry Allingham This article was first published on guardian.co.uk at 15.01 BST on Saturday 18 July 2009. It was last updated at 15.01 BST on Saturday 18 July 2009. Most viewed on guardian.co.uk * guardian.co.uk ? Guardian News and Media Limited 2009

There are plenty of photos showing guys going off to war, or home on leave, but not that many showing studio shots of a man who was heading home at the end of the war. Les

The closer to the frontier areas, the less people relied on currency which was not always easy to acquire, some items literally became a form of "hard" currencies, such as "hard apple cider" (the apples grown at home), "hard whiskey" made from distilled corn mash (the corn grown at home), and other items that could be measured or were in constant demand. Hand made nails and spikes were often necessary or irreplaceable when wooden pegs wouldn't do, and were an item that could also be bartered, traded for, or used in payment for something else. Schulyer may have wanted nails that he could use in lieu of accepting script for his needs. On the western fringes of Pennsylvania, home of the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794, hard cider and whiskey were frequently used for payments of all kinds. On some property sales agreements and recorded deeds, all sorts of items (including whiskey) were used in addition to, or in lieu of cash payments. Les

Some fighting on a small scale took place in the Karoo around Colesburg and the lower Zeekoe Valley. I stayed in a house in the area built by a one-time partner of Cecil Rhodes prior to the war. When the Britis and Cape forces started moving north towards the Orange, a British unit was camped in the area where the house is. One bright morning, a British officer went out on the porch to urinate and was plugged in the head by a Boer located on a small kopje about 200 meters away. Unlike the region around Natal and NE of "PE", up north towards and across the Orange River the former civilian camps, remains of former railway blockhouses, and so on, have their own archaeological materials of a far different sort. Those items tell a very grim side of the war. Several farmer in the area (at least before the laws were changed) kept standard or sporterized Mark I and Mark III Enfield rifles for use around the farm. 303 brass and spent rifle bullets could be found in the fields, not left over from the Boer War, but from farmers hunting or thinning out Springbok herds and other small game animals. Les

That last post of mine was more about fakes and how to learn about them on your own. It wandered a tad. The Hammerle firm,maker of orders for the Wittelsbach dynasty, and whose marks appears on many Bavarian medals and order is still in existence. The firm was and is located in Munich, and survived WWII. They still have all of the same dies used to make medals and orders they produced during WWI. However, I have never heard that they have made re strikes. If they did, the Max Joseph's desirability would take a real beating. If you want to start collecting Bavarian medals on a learn as you go basis, consider collecting ribbon bars with Bavarian medals taking precedent over all other states. Ribbon bars are less costly than fully mounted medal bars, and you can build a large collection relatively quickly with far less money than individual medals or mounted bars will cost you. That doesn't mean you won't have a fake ribbon bar palmed on you. If it does happen, you won't have spent as much as a mounted bar, or medal. Use the learning curve to build up confidence and knowledge, and pick up some simple mounted medal bars with two or three mounted medals to get your feet wet in that area of collecting. Go slowly at first. Les

Look, read, ask questions, search the archives for pictures and discussions on every forum you've joined. Don't be in a hurry to buy. Buy a few items, study them closely and consider how they were made. Think about the differences between stamped, and cast items. Also, read a little about some of the art techniques such as "precious metal clays" which are metals mixed with a compound that allows the "clay" to be finely molded and then fired in a low temperature kiln. The additive burns off leaving an almost 99% pure silver or gold metal shaped like the original. If you don't know about this technique and others, pick up a book on jewelry making and learn to recognize the traces of specific manufacturing characteristics the originals should have. Also get either a good camera, or as Rick R will tell you an Epson scaner and learn how to make copies of medals. Study struck medals for die flaws that originals either should or should not have. Learning to develop an "eye" for these and other details will save you money, and grief. Ask people if they mind offering you high resolution photos or scans of items that you like. Study individual medals for features, etc that they should and should not have. Then read Rick R's pinned thread on this forum, about ribbon bars, the order in which ribbons (and mounted medals) should be placed on a bar. Look at how mounted medals are put on a back, not only the front, but the pin back arrangment, cloth used, stitching patterns, etc. Some attached devices for particular makers will tell you who mounted a ribbon or medal bar. The label if present, may or may not be real, but there are ways to tell. Rule number one: Pay close attention to the Cat-java man, and buy an Epson. If he says something, 999 times out of a thousand, he's right on the money.....as long as the subject is directly related to medals, identifying former owners, etc. If "Bear" or someone else tells you a Kodak or some other brand is ever bit as good or better, tell that person, "But Rick says you're on drugs and shouldn't be trusted...." (kidding Barry, kidding....) Rule number two: don't forget rule number one. There's more, but that's enough out of me for now. Let's let some of the others chime in. Les

Speaking against the Mighty Epson-eers will result in: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1csr0dxalpI Be warned.... L.

Ok. You were commenting on KGL medals, but didn't say it would be limited to MGS relateld groups or awards. In case you're (or anyone else for that matter is) interested, Beamish's history of the KGL is on-line, at "google books" and can be downloaded for free. Might be of interest from time to time perhaps? http://books.google.com/books?id=AL98VGnPq...lient=firefox-a Les

Rick, "Double" awards may represent two separate acts, in different categories of the award. What if the Doctor(s) in question did two separate actions that a higher ranking officer felt deserved recognition. Assume at one time he is awarded a non-com EKII for treating a general who cut himself shaving and needed bandaging. Later same Doctor is serving in a capacity where he might be much more might be going on and he treats severely wounded, etc. The Prussian awards system at that time, didn't differentiate between a first or second act that qualified for an EKII, but -someone- might have felt that a "heroic" act by an officer in a non-combatant situation, and another heroic act -in- a combat situation should be differentiated by two separate awards. The "Occam's Razor" principle applied to the awards system did not prevent a double award in the event of two separate acts, one for a non-combatant award with it's special ribbon, and a combatant award with it's war ribbon. Granted, the system could also be illogical. Particularly when officers are involved. The Prussian class system paid far more attention to the wants, needs and vanity of officers than enlisted men. A titled officer serving as a doctor got far more deferential treatment than members of the great unwashed classes who served as "common" stretcher bearers bringing in gun shot and artillery wounded men. Whatever "confusion" seems to be present, is the regulations governing the award(s) and how the officers entitled to make the awards understood those regulations, classified the act, and their interpretation of the regs. Les

Rick, That figure may only be off more than a tad. The Waterloo medal was supposed to be awarded to every soldier who fought at Waterloo -and- Ligny. That would mean each KGL member who served at Waterloo was eligible for at least -one- medal. The KGL was a fairly large organization, and for Waterloo alone, there would be a large number of names (and theoretically a medal or bar for each of them). The Waterloo medal roll (which should include those who fought at Ligny, Quatre Bras also) might be a good to look over, and to think over the direction of the project. Les

Look Ma', no bars! Monsieur Rickee....this photo is for you. Note that every last man in the photo has one of those neck thingies on, but nary a ribbon bar in sight. You -know- they had more to get that thingie, but these guys didn't seem to be part of the flaunt if you got it mentality. It's almost as if these guys were thinking "yeah we know you're highly decorated but how few medals can you wear and still get respect." These guys are easy to identify, and when others emulate the dress it down look, figuring out who they are gets harder if not impossible to do. Les

Hallelujah, and amen from the peanut gallery. Use and pass the large format box cameras, Rolleiflexes and Nikon's along ! Those old medium and large format cameras were able to capture amazing amounts of detail, depth of field, and image clarity because of the type of lenses used then, but not no mo regarding the new stuff. Camera lenses ain't what they used to be. Les