Histaria

The creature is a mythological griffin (griffon, gryphon), which had the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. It has long been associated with the heraldry of the U.S. Chemical Warfare Service.

It's important to note the first item as the U.S. Quartermaster Center and School. That's the current designation. Earlier it was just for the Quartermaster School. The lamp is the Lamp of Knowledge (and it is sitting on a closed book). The lamp is a common element of many U.S. Army school distinctive insignia. I've never heard that this one was changed to white from beige, and that would be very uncharacteristic of the lineage/heraldry involved. As you've seen, the TIOH site still shows it as beige -- and they are the folks who design this stuff. There were a couple of unauthorized variations with very light beige (one marked "6-D") and maybe that's what you have. Any marks on the back? The other one doesn't look to be U.S. Army, but perhaps a photo will suggest otherwise.

This was misidentified as "Frontk?mpferbund" in the early (1977) booklet by Br?ggemann and Rowedder. The correct "Frontkriegerbund" i.d. appeared in the later membership pin book by Heering and H?sken. Variations are shown as #9604a, b, and c. The award is #27.131 in H?sken's Katalog der Orden and Ehrenzichen des Deutschen Reiches 1871-1945. I have also once had an event badge that had a large "FKB" but which also had the meaning completely spelled out as being for a Franconian war veterans bund. So, not every "FKB" is created equal.

In post #1, RDH was for the Reichsbund Deutscher Hausfrauen. This was the membership pin for this housewive's organization. There was also a version with a wreath that was used as an award. In post #3, BdG is a membership pin for a local branch or sub-group of the DHV; the Deutscher Handlungshilfen-Verband. This was some kind of medical welfare or assistance organization. "50 Jahr" is a long service award for a member of the local baker's association of the town of Pfalz.

The 4-F emblem on the pin bar indicates this was an event of the German Turnverein established by Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in 1811. Jahn is still seen as the founding father of gymnastics and he is credited with introducing early forms of the balance beam, horizontal bar, parallel bars, and vaulting horse. The symbol combines the four letters F found in Jahn's motto, "Frisch, Fromm, Fr?hlich, Frei" (Fresh, Pious, Happy, Free).

Dittmann was from the Neuner Kaserne, if that's any help.

While you are looking up names, a Hauptmann Dittmann was also involved as the leader of a group of volunteers in this action. He and Langer may have been returned veterans who were locals who got drafted back into action. The histories talk about many of the local citizens who "put back on their field gray."

The hollow-back event badge. Appears to be from the same die as the awards. When the German Republic was declared on November 9, 1918 a revolutionary flag already flew over the W?rzburg Residenz (one of the most ornate and famous palaces in Europe and over the years the residence of a variety of German royalty and religious leaders) and a "Red Committee" was installed in its ornate halls. A revolutionary sailor's group occupied the railway station and machineguns controlled other important buildings and streets. To cement their hold, the Committee took sixteen citizens hostage and put up posters that warned that a hostage would be shot for every proletarian comrade who had their hair so much as ruffled. The Residenz today. Note the fountain out front. The standoff lasted for months, until April 8, 1919, when the non-sympathetic citizenry staged a strike that affected farms, the gas and water supply, the postal service, and railway. They also asked for help from the nearby Faulenberg Barracks which housed two batteries of the 2nd Bavarian Field Artillery Regiment. The unit was grossly undermanned and artillery couldn't be fielded. However, the commander ? a Captain von Oelhafen ? decided to try and rescue the hostages. During the night of the 8th and 9th, he gathered reliable members of his unit, veterans, students from a technical school, and a number of civilians for a total force of about 200 men. On their way to the Residenz they managed to arrest Soldatenrat Sauber, one of the revolutionary members. However, the occupiers of the Residenz ? estimated at about 200 ? were alerted and the element of surprise was lost to the poorly armed rescue force. However, after about a half hour of grenade assaults led by Officer Aspirant Langer, the soldiers in the Residenz were routed and the building captured along with a sizeable supply of arms. A scene at the fountain in 1919. In the meantime, troops from the Faulenberg Barracks brought a small number of machineguns and field pieces into play, capturing a radio station at the local airfield, gaining control over an important rail segment, and threatening the revolutionary naval unit holding the rail station. One "Republican Protection Force" called for a truce but was disarmed and sent off to the Barracks as prisoners. Eventually, all the resistance was broken, and, supposedly, the last group of Spartacists was seen escaping through the town's H?chberg gate in a truck. A fuzzy photo of the freikorps collar emblem. From the pre-war Heeresarchiv collection. The Residenzplatz was a favorite parade and meeting site for the Nazis. They burned communist literature there in 1933 and the local Gauleiter, Dr. Otto Hellmuth, was married there in 1936. Unfortunately, both the palace and rail station were burned out during W.W. II. Restoration of the outside of the Residenz was completed about 1965 and interiors have only been opened again in recent years. The rail station was replaced by a modern structure. I'd recommend the W?rzburg section of Geoff Walden's Third Reich in Ruins site for many excellent comparison photos of the W?rzburg of yesterday and today. As you can surmise from the short history above, the April date refers to the freikorps victory. The November 1st date probably refers to the anniversary of the initial date of the conflict in the city. Depending on the award criteria, a number around 300-350 might be close to the number presented. For example, were the students who took part recipients? Klietmann found no award list, criteria, or numbers in the city archives and von Salomon only refers to the "about 200" number who took part at the Residenz.