Theodor

The military police used the ordinary army uniforms. For the purposes of recognizing the MP staff as such among all the uniformed men, they wore a green armband on the left arm. However there were also secret agents of the MP, who wore just uniform, no armband. Here is an Order of the Commander from June or July 1944 I think, which approves the gorget for the JP Voenna Politsiya, Rail Military Police.

And it is not an order of a state, but an ecclesiastical order, of the catholic church. People in Bulgaria were awarded with it, but its roots are from the Vatican.

The recipient is Dr. Krastiu /the end reads like "you"/ Filipov Shanov - MNZSG or Ministry of the people's health and social care

These are commemorative medals for the Serbia-Bulgaria War, 1885. The first issue of the medals had image of king Alexander I Battenberg. However shortly after the war he was dethroned /a big mistake!/ and the medals with his image was stopped. They are very rare. After these events came the 2nd issue, your medals. The silver ones were for direct participants in the war. The bronze medals were for soldiers, who were in the army, but did not meet direct action, for doctors, officials or civilians which somehow helped the army in the war. The numbers usually quoted are 60 000 for the silver medal and 30 000 for the bronze. The silver medals are common to find, the bronze not so common. But there is a little catch, the medals are very common, but less the ribbon! In fact the ribbon may be called more valuable than the silver medal! Finding one with good ribbon is difficult. I am not sure about the left one, should be white instead of purple? The ring is not fixed, these are that way, flat.

Yes, that is a problem, I hope it will be translated someday, but so far only Bulgarian. Some solution is the Google translation, but of course it is not even close to a real site in English. This photo is from 1909, from the Cavalry School at Saumur, France. Cavalry officers from whole Europe trained there. Three Bulgarians, Dutch, Norwegian, Serbian, two Russians and others. And one US Army officer, indeed! Knowing the year and the place, is there any way to find who he is?

Hello Valter, as far as I know, it was just a group of officers that visited the Alps front between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, there were no Bulgarian troops fighting there. The photos are explained just as visiting some places in "the Alps" and some places at Trento. The album belongs to a collector friend, I will ask him about details, he may know more details. Maybe this picture can show the region they visited, some Austrian unit "5 O.A.K." http://www.lostbulgaria.com/?p=964

You might want to see an interesting update, lots of photos from the WW1, the Southern Balkan front. Great archive from an officer of the 2nd Army Staff.

He may not have any royal orders. As an ordinary volunteer soldier, he may have not gained any awards. He qualified for the veteran medal, invented in the very late 1930s, but may not have received it actually.

Sorry I spotted this late, the meaning of the word is RedCrossman, member of the Red Cross. M.M. are the letters of his names. He's from the Youth Red Cross. I improved the picture a little

Last, not very good quality

Another

Then here you are a couple more. That award is not very common to see on pictures, the EK2 is for sure more common. And probably the TWM, too. The first two are from 1917, the last is not dated, but it's from about the same time.

Hi guys, I found one nice picture, taken in 1938. A Bulgarian NCO with long service, Balkan wars and WW1 veteran, along with the Bulgarian orders and the German one, also has a TWM on ribbon.

Great badges and great photos! :beer:

I had some luck tracing it back! The man who sold it to me, got it years ago from another collector whom I know! And that other collector told me, that he got it directly from the family of the original owner. It was given to the person when he traveled to Germany, he went there for the delivery of Junkers aircraft, he was a technician in the Air Force. From here on, I will try to find out what exactly was the position in the Air Force of that man, possibly when he went to Germany.

Thank you! The hallmark is just 800 for the silver, I think. Can not be seen very clear. For now no known history, but there might be some clue from the collector friend who used to own it, lets hope he will find the information!

it is a little less then 5 centimeters wide.

Hi guys, what do you think about this nice badge, from which decade is it? 1920's? 1930's? I believe it is silver, some small hallmark is hidden by the pin.

Thanks Eric! Spotted it on a local auction, but probably more than a few have spotted it too, so not sure if will manage to get it!

Thanks! :cheers:

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Hi guys, can you please tell me about this one, good or fake?

Just uploaded interesting series of photos, from the Bulgarian medical train at the East Front. That was the country's participation in the East - a very well equipped medical train, which traveled along the whole front line from 1941 to 1944 and delivered numerous wounded to the hospitals in the rear. It was not just a transport, it was a hospital on wheels. Operated under the aegis of the Red Cross, there were doctors and nurses on board and the modern operations room allowed urgent and sophisticated surgeries to be made.

Yes indeed, he is a veteran from the Macedonian-Odrin Volunteer Force. During the Balkan War men, Bulgarians, from the regions of Macedonia and East Tracia /Odrin Tracia/ came to Kingdom Bulgaria and fought in the mentioned unit, as a part of the Bulgarian army. Although Bulgarians, their towns and villages had remained out of the Bulgarian borders, so they could not join the regular army, but formed that volunteer corps instead.

#121 Dear Comrade Ivanov, The official and party leadership and all the employees of the Operative Staff of the People's Militia Management Board greet you most sincerely on the occasion of your 50th anniversary. In your face we greet our colleague and combat comrade, who for nearly two decades gives his powers and creative energy as a communist and employee of the MVR organs for strengthening the security and social order in the country and for endorsing the decisions of the Bulgarian Communist Party in the life and activity of the People's Militia. In connection with your 50th anniversary, wholeheartedly we wish you good health and personal happiness, so you work dedicated as always in the organs of MVR and for the prosperity of our socialist fatherland, People's Republic Bulgaria. Chief of the Operative Staff, LtColonel.......