Dave Danner

Another Commander's Cross from the reign of Christian X:

I see Ed's thread on Afghanistan. Seen anything on Iraq yet? Here is then-Brig. Gen. Edward Gruszka, former deputy commander of MND-CS (and now a major general commanding MND-CS). I would guess that the red-white-black ribbon is Iraqi. No idea what medal it represents.

It is a Leistungsabzeichen in Gold, the highest of three classes (gold, silver and bronze). The Leistungsabzeichen is a qualification/achievement badge. It is given based on testing in a list of military skills, including marksmanship, general military knowledge and physical fitness. There are a large number of makers.

The lowest class of the Milit?rdienstzeichen f?r Offiziere, as in use from 1890 to the end of the Empire, was for 25 years. The three classes were 1st Class (50 years), 2nd Class (40 years until 1913, and then 35 years) and 3rd Class (25 years). This officer was not likely in long enough to qualify. He probably came in just in time to qualify for the 1908 cross.

August 25, 1807.

Apparently, the only Indian recipient of the U.S. Army's second-highest decoration, the Distinguished Service Cross. Sepoy Sher Ali served with the 1st Battalion, 2nd Punjab Regiment, and was cited for bravery on February 22, 1945 in the campaign in northern Italy. I know there were Indian units such as the 8th Indian Division attached at various times to US corps, but I'm not sure what the circumstances that led to this award were. The 2nd Punjab Regiment became the Punjab Regiment of the Indian Army on partition. The 1st Punjab Regiment, a mainly Muslim unit, went to Pakistan. Soldiers were then transferred to different units, e.g., Muslim soldiers of Sher Ali's unit went to 3rd Battalion, 1st Punjab Regiment while 3/1 Punjabis' Sikh soldiers went to the 2/The Sikh Regiment and its Rajputs went to 4/Rajputana Rifles. Perhaps someone (Ed?) knows what happened to Sher Ali (assuming he survived the war)? His hometown, Ferozepur, ended up on the Indian side of the partition line. Here is the citation for the Distinguished Service Cross:

You will also often see a numeral on the upper part indicating a subordinate unit, such as, for example, a "31" on the 3rd Division patch for the 31st Infantry Regiment (第３１普通科連隊). If you have any Japanese proficiency, or access to someone with same, here is an explanation of the patches and the color schemes: http://www.jda.go.jp/jgsdf/japanese/kaikyu...syou/index.html Below the diagram, on the left, is a clickable menu which shows the GSDF HQ, corps, division, and separate composite brigade patches. The color codes below are generally as Eric outlined above. The menu on the right is of other branches and organizations, for example: P - Military police corps (keimutai, 警務隊) B - Military music corps (ongakutai, 音楽隊) GRD - General research department (kenkyuhonbu, 研究本部) ASF - Tsushima Garrison (Tsushima keibitai, 対馬警備隊) H is for headquarters, C is for chemical protection units, F is for finance, A is for anti-aircraft units, L for logistics, T for training. The ones from AB to PT are schools, such as the GSDF airborne school (AB) and the GSDF Staff College (SC). I think GMC is the GSDF Material Command.

Given the other non-combatant awards, the last was probably orginally a War Honor Decoration (Kriegsehrenzeichen) from Hesse-Darmstadt (see below). Precedence would still be screwy, but it would fit with a non-combatant Saxe-Meiningen and Prussian Red Cross. The Cross for Merit in War on the non-combatant ribbon is pretty rare, though (about 664 awards). I have no idea how these non-combatant awards could fit with a Bavarian LS.

Decorations (as of February 1918): Prussia - Order "pour le Merite " Prussia - Iron Cross 1st Class Prussia - Iron Cross 2nd Class Baden - Military Karl-Friedrich Merit Order Bavaria - Military Order of Max-Joseph Bremen - Hanseatic Cross Hamburg - Hanseatic Cross Hesse - General Honor Decoration "For Bravery" Lippe-Detmold - War Honor Cross for Heroic Deeds Lippe-Detmold - War Merit Cross L?beck - Hanseatic Cross Oldenburg - Friedrich August Cross, 1st Class Oldenburg - Friedrich August Cross, 2nd Class Saxony - Military Order of St. Henry Saxon Duchies - Ducal Saxe-Ernestine House Order, Knight 1st Class Schaumburg-Lippe - Cross for Loyal Service W?rttemberg - Military Merit Order You also received some responses on biographical information here: http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php...highlight=dohna

#9 is a 1997 Oder Flood Medal. I have no idea what the "5" is supposed to mean. Perhaps whoever made this bar is using it as a substitute for an unofficial veteran's association medal.

Another Bronze PAB:

http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/thirdinf.htm http://www.army.mil/oldguard/SpecialtyPlatoons/Tomb.htm Here are the details of the Tomb Guard Badge: http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Badges/G...e%20Unknown.htm Here is the coat of arms and regimental crest of the 3rd Infantry Regiment: http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Inf/3InfantryRegt.htm There is also a black-and-tan "buff strap" worn by soldiers of the regiment on the left shoulder.

NO self-respecting soldier in a special operations unit would be caught dead without his challenge coin, but as noted their main value is winning drinks. They spread outside the special operations community and, like berets, are a device for esprit de corps, of which some are airily dismissive and others take some pride. To each his own. These days, though, Ed is on track that many coins, like the ones BJOW illustrates, are like baseball cards, something made just to be sold to collectors. Many units make a big deal out of ceremonies granting new members their coins, consistent with what I noted about developing esprit de corps, so these shouldn't be dismissed as mere tokens. And regarding coins given by commanders for various deeds, these do function as a form of award without the bureaucracy of the formal awards system. For example, I received the "Commander's Coin of Excellence" from the colonel commanding the 36th Engineer Group (Combat) for work I did developing intelligence on the Sava River bed, which the Group was tasked with bridging when IFOR deployed to Bosnia-Herzegovina. I also received one from the Commanding General of the US Army Training and Doctrine Command for serving as a staff officer for the Army's Senior Leader Training Conference. Not "nothing" but not a really big deal either. My own unit coin, from 11th Special Forces Group (Airborne), is the one I always carry with me. I would place little stock in enameled challenge coins unless there is some provenance (such as coastie's). Because they are meant to be carried, unit coins generally shouldn't have enamel since it tends to break off.

Here is Antonio's Kenya page: http://www.coleccionesmilitares.com/cintas/africa/kenia.gif A few are there, although many are "?". #1 is a Distinguished Service Medal #2 is a Long Service and Good Conduct Medal Second to last, before the UN Medal, is a 25th Anniversary Medal.

There was only one other Hesse at the time, the Electoral Principality of Hesse-Kassel (Kurf?rstentum Hessen-Kassel). Hesse-Homburg's line had died out in March 1866 and passed to Hesse-Darmstadt. The Duchy of Nassau was, with Hesse-Kassel, the Kingdom of Hannover and the city-state of Frankfurt, the other states of north Germany on the losing side. Hesse-Darmstadt did lose territory in the war, though not its independence. It lost the recently acquired Hesse-Homburg and a few smaller enclaves (such as V?hl and Biedenkopf). Ironically, though, it gained as well, as parts of Hesse-Kassel were joined to it rather than the new Prussian province of Hessen-Nassau. Hesse-Darmstadt was not the only state that fought against Prussia but maintained its independence. Baden, Bavaria, Saxony, W?rttemberg, Sachsen-Meiningen, Schaumburg-Lippe and Reu?-Greiz also were all on the losing side and had to pay indemnity to Prussia and/or lose territory, but all remained independent. Notwithstanding its rapid victory over Austria, Prussia could still fear losing if it pushed too far too fast. Allowing the southern states to retain their independence left a buffer running from Saxony to the Saxon duchies to Bavaria to Hesse to Bavaria again (the Palatinate) and down to Baden and W?rttemberg against not only France but also Austria. Internal politics also probably played a role. Elector Friedrich Wilhelm I of Hesse-Cassel was an unpopular reactionary. King Georg V of Hannover (grandson of King George III of England) had opposed his own Landtag's desire to remain neutral in the conflict between Prussia and Austria. This doesn't explain all - Duke Adolf of Nassau was apparently relatively popular in his duchy - but local popularity may have been a factor in helping various rulers retain the loyalty of their subjects and making Prussia think twice about the costs of annexation.

And the medal bar has a Lippe War Merit Cross, not an Anhalt Friedrich Cross. Note the picture has turned the yellow center stripe almost as dark as the red side stripe, but the white edge stripes remain light. Also, on both, the wreath goes all the way around the center, as on the Lippe award. The wreath on the Friedrich Cross only covers the left and right sides.

I believe that is a War Honor Cross for Heroic Deeds (Kriegsehrenkreuz f?r heldenm?tige Tat) from Lippe-Detmold.

... which doesn't matter as the Hawaiian Department patch was not authorized until November 2, 1921, when he'd already left command.

Finding a list is easy; finding good pictures may not be. Interwar commanding generals in Hawaii: Brig. Gen. John W. Heard 1918-1919 Brig. Gen. Henry C. Hodges, Jr. 1919 Maj. Gen. Charles G. Morton 1919-1921 Maj. Gen. Charles P. Summerall 1921-1924 Maj. Gen. Charles T. Menoher 1924-1925 Maj. Gen. Edward M. Lewis 1925-1927 Maj. Gen. William R. Smith 1927-1928 Maj. Gen. Fox Conner 1928-1930 Maj. Gen. Edwin G. Winans 1930 Maj. Gen. William Lassiter 1930-1931 Maj. Gen. Briant H. Wells 1931-1934 Maj. Gen. Halstead Dorey 1934-1935 Maj. Gen. Hugh A. Drum 1935-1937 Maj. Gen. Andrew Moses 1937-1938 Maj. Gen. Charles D. Herron 1938-1941 Lt. Gen. Walter C. Short 1941 I can't find a picture of Charles Gould Morton, Jr. Charles Pelot Summerall, later Army Chief of Staff (1926-1930), had both the DSC and the DSM, so it is not him. It is not Charles Thomas Menoher: http://www.gwpda.org/photos/bin10/imag0940.jpg Edward M. Lewis: http://www.gwpda.org/photos/bin10/imag0963.jpg William Ruthven Smith: http://digital-library.usma.edu/cdm4/item_...SOPTR=882&REC=1

I think in both World Wars, and for that matter in other conflicts and other nations, you see a sort of reverse bell curve. In the initial stages, a large number of awards are given out. There is a novelty to it (especially with the Iron Cross, with the big gap in years from the previous time awards were made) and there is also no perception of how long the conflict will go on. As it sinks in that the conflict will not be over soon, the award criteria are tightened, to prevent watering down. As the war progresses and morale sinks, though, the desire to use these baubles to increase morale increases, and more awards are made. Thus, something that got you an Iron Cross in the Polish or Western campaigns of 1939-40 might have gotten nothing in 1941-2, while something barely considered worthy of a pat on the back in 1939-40 would have led to an Iron Cross in 1944-45.

Also, British royals were colonels-in-chief of several Prussian regiments (1st Guard Dragoons, 8th Curassiers, 3rd Hussars, 5th Hussars), and a number of regimental members had Royal Victorian Orders.

I don't have a copy handy, but when I was doing some research at the National Archives, I came across a list of officers attending the wartime General Staff officer course. Most were majors and captains. The list included awards, and rather a large number of them had Romanian orders and decorations. Mostly Orders of the Crown and Orders of the Star, but also a few Medals for Steadfastness and Loyalty.

Not to step on Rick's toes too much, and he can certainly fill in what I miss: 1. The King of Saxony was the honorary colonel of IR 121, so most W?rttembergers with Saxon decorations, and only Saxon ones, likely passed through that regiment. 2. A lack of W?rttemberg award rolls means you can't trace the one WW1 award other than the EK - the WF3aX. 3. The two most likely candidates still serving in IR121 at the beginning of the war were Maj. Menzel and Hptm. Brummer. Perhaps Rick has some knowledge in his library to rule them out. Part of the problem, I suppose, is the lack of any other WW1 decorations. A serving officer of IR121 in 1914 might have quickly earned an upgrade to swords for his Albert, and many other majors or senior captains with the prewar Albert might have earned more than "just" an EK and a Friedrichs-Orden (which for a W?rttemberg officer would be the equivalent of an EK). But a retired officer brought back into service sometime during the war might not have had the time or the high-profile duty station to earn other wartime awards.

Assuming you have resources to eliminate others because of known wartime awards, there are about a half-dozen possibilities, most in IR121 as Rick notes. You also have Maj. Simon of IR120 and Maj. Bader of IR 124 - both with prewar WF3a and SA3a and no other decorations except the long service.

I was going to add that, as well as something about IMAs, AGR and the like, but I didn't want to get too complicated. IMAs, or Individual Mobilization Augmentees, for those who are interested, are drilling reservists, but they are attached to active units/commands instead of Reserve or National Guard units. Typically, they are attached to higher staffs, since active troop units have little use for someone who only shows up once a month. AGR is the Active Guard Reserve. These are mainly Reserve and National Guard soldiers who are on active duty to administer, recruit, train, etc. Reserve and Guard units. AGR members also serve on the Army Staff and at the National Guard Bureau. These are the "full-timers" in a reserve unit, and are vital to getting soldiers their pay, school slots, etc.