House Order of Hohenzollern - info needed

[Daniel Krause]

@Gunnar, do You refer to Fischer or to Ammon?

In my files I do not have an Albrecht for Ammon, but I have some "suspects" units for Mr. Fischer.

 

Best,

Daniel

[Soderbaum]

Hi Daniel,

I refer to Gotthard Ammon.  In his file there are no notes on any Hohenzollern award. He had a very short front line servicing time so any Hohx award is "impossible", also his EKI award is probably from 1919.  The awards given in his file are : EKII, EKI, Meckl.V.Kr, Sächs.Albr.Kr, Baltenkreuz, ErrAbz, Silb.vwAbz.

Dont knew if the Sächs. Alb.Kr was given out during 1919

Gunnar

[Daniel Krause]

Hi Gunnar,

thanks a lot!

Albrechts were indeed handed out during the end of the war without being properly published.

 

All the best and stay safe!

Daniel

[Mattyboy]

Thank you Gunnar & Daniel for the information. 
Hi Vince, there must be at least a half-dozen of us in total !!!

[Mattyboy]

Hi Daniel, 
Ok here is another late entry - Hptm dR Fritz Kraus from IR 118 (although the 1914 rank list shows his regiment as IR 117). 
The webpage is https://sammlungen.hebis.de/zeitungen-hlbrm/periodical/pageview/305286 

 

Edited April 6, 2020 by Mattyboy

[Daniel Krause]

Wow! 

Never heard of posthumous awards like that!

Will check if I have anything more about him.

I think it is possible, that the award was already done as he was still alive but the procedure took too long that that nice cross reached him in lifetime.

BTW, 117 and 118 were both Hessen  regiments and in the very same brigade, so a transfer was quite thinkable.

 

Best,

Daniel 

[Dave Danner]

Fritz Kraus, born 27.2.1882 in Homburg vor der Höhe, was the commander of III./Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118. He was promoted to Leutnant der Reserve on 19.12.1907, Oberleutnant der Reserve on 22.3.1915 and Hauptmann der Reserve on 20.2.1918. He was in LIR 118 when he was promoted to Oberleutnant in March 1915, so he apparently spent most of the war in that regiment. I don't know if that regiment had a regimental history.

Kraus was a Reichsbank-Beamter in Oldenburg according to the 1911 rank list for reserve officers and the 1917 address book for Oldenburg. He was apparently not senior enough in the Reichsbank to have an entry in the 1918 Handbuch für das Deutsche Reich.

Given his regimental affiliation, he would doubtless have received the Hesse Allgemeines Ehrenzeichen "Für Tapferkeit". The Oldenburg connection might have gotten him a Friedrich-August-Kreuz. Unfortunately, both of these are awards for which no rolls exist.

[Mattyboy]

Hi Daniel, 
Yes it certainly seems probable that the award was approved either just before or just after his death. 
Hi Dave, 
Thanks for the extra career info. You are correct in your assumption regarding his other awards. 
I found this in another newspaper dated 31st October 1918:-

 

[Daniel Krause]

thats great!

Thank you!!

 

Best,

Daniel

[Deruelle]

Hi Daniel

I have found may be one another Saxon officer who received the HOH3X.

Found in the Riesaer Tagesblatt of 4 november 1918

It's the best I can do, sorry

Christophe

 

 

 

[Mattyboy]

Hi Christophe, 
We discussed this mystery man briefly on page 16. 

Here is a snippet relating to Lt dR Adolf Motsch, but I'm not sure if the award should be the HOH3x or the HEK3x. I couldn't find his name in the Militär-Wochenblatt. 

Best Regards, 
Matt. 

Edited May 4, 2020 by Mattyboy

[Deruelle]

Hi Matt

Adolf Motsch received the Ehrenkreuz 3. Kl. mit Scwertern (The Princely Honour cross of Hohenzollern)on 8 August 1917. This is not the House Order of the Hohenzollern.

 

The Chief of the FR 40 was the Prince Wilhelm of Hohenzollern

 

Christophe

Edited May 4, 2020 by Deruelle

[Mattyboy]

Hi Christophe, 
Thanks for the confirmation! Ok here is a list of HOH3x recipients from IR 75. Unfortunately I don't own the book.

[David M]

On 22/07/2012 at 01:38, Dave Danner said:

I found this picture of Oberstleutnant a.D. August von Avemann in a magazine for veterans of 1. Nassauisches Feld-Artillerie-Regiment Nr.27 Oranien. Unfortunately, all I have is this grainy scan, but below the photo is my best guess/reconstruction of the ribbon bar, using Lukasz Gaszewski's ribbon images. I would guess the one unidentified ribbon is the Hessen-Darmstadt Tapferkeitsmedaille. I base this on the pattern and the proximity of the Frankfurt-based regiment to Hesse, though it could be something similar like the Hamburg Hanseatenkreuz.

 

The neck decoration is an Ehrenritterkreuz of the Johanniterorden, by the way. Very similar to a plM, especially in a black & white photo.

 

Avemann was born in Weimar on 18 March 1869. He served in 1.GFAR from 1890 to 1893, and then went to FAR 27. He served in FAR 27 from October 1893 to February 1917, when he became commander of LFAR 15 and Art.Kdr. of 15. Landwehr-Division. He also briefly was detached to command an Austro-Hungarian brigade, and then returned to FAR 27 as regimental commander on 19 October 1917. He remained in command of the regiment through the end of the war.

 

Is it common practice to wear the HOH3X double? Both on the ribbon bar and seperately in the buttonhole 

[laurentius]

Probably just a small mistake. He most likely quickly popped it on for a picture and forgot it's also on his ribbonbar. Perhaps a picture for the 'Mistakes in Wear'-thread.

Kind regards, Laurentius

[Deruelle]

Hi everybody

Here is a new owner of the knight cross with X of House Order of Hohenzollern :

Generalleutnant FRANCKE Franz  who received it on 24 September 1916.

Christophe

 

[Daniel Krause]

Hi Twin,

 

thanks!!

Franz Francke is a period mistake - actually not himself, but this award listing...

He's got a Red Eagle 2nd class with cutlery in 1916.

 

Best,

Daniel

[Mattyboy]

Hi all, 
Just found this in the Bergsträßer Anzeigeblatt dated 30th October 1918:- 

[Daniel Krause]

Thanks!!

Very interesting additional info. I did not know his 1st name and the Hessen connection.

Arnolds Hohenzollern was gazettet in the Staatsanzeiger 7th November, never made it in the Militärwochenblatt.

 

Best,

Daniel

[Dave Danner]

Ernst Theodor Arnold was born on *4.9.1888 in Lorsch, Bensheim and died on 31.5.1978 in Darmstadt. He was a Dipl.-Ing. and Fabrikant in Bensheim, later Direktor of the Papierfabrik Euler AG.  He already had the EK1 as of the 5 June 1915 issue of the Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung. 

I am not sure what was the Kontrollbezirk for Bensheim, but the only Lts.d.R. Arnold I found for Darmstadt, Worms and Erbach were:

• 8.8.14 Lt.d.R. (II Darmstadt) d. LGIR 115
• 8.5.15 Lt.d.R. (I Darmstadt) in d. Fest.Masch.Gew.Abt. 9 d. Gouv. Straßburg
• 22.8.16 Lt.d.R. (I Darmstadt) d. PB 25

The only HOH3X listed for an Arnold in the LGIR 115 history is that of the later Wehrmacht Oberstleutnant Karl Arnold, so that one can be ruled out. As a Dipl.-Ing., the pioneer connection seems possible. I've no idea how to trace a Festungs-MG officer further.

[Daniel Krause]

thanks a lot, Dave!!!

Best,

Daniel

[Mattyboy]

Thanks Dave and Daniel. It's always nice to see the extra info you have on these men. 

Ok I have another late entry - Lt dR Wilhelm Kotthoff. This is from the Oldenburgische Volkszeitung dated 26th November 1918 :- 

 

[KIR]

6 hours ago, Mattyboy said:

Thanks Dave and Daniel. It's always nice to see the extra info you have on these men. 

Ok I have another late entry - Lt dR Wilhelm Kotthoff. This is from the Oldenburgische Volkszeitung dated 26th November 1918 :- 

 

Hi, Verlustliste Febr. 1919: Ltn. d. R. Wilhelm Kotthoff,, * 2. Nov. 1895, Paderborn, 7. Komp. RIR229 - vermisst.
Best regards,
Jens

[Mattyboy]

Thanks KIR.  

[Daniel Krause]

Thanks for the Kotthoff-Info!!!

Best,

Daniel

his Hohenzollern was not published anymore in the Militärwochenblatt, but he is mentioned as well in the Regimental History of the RIR 229.