Show your Feldbinde

[Deruelle]

Hello everybody,

I will start a new thread with Feldbinde. The first one is from Baden (and the same for Oldenburg).

Regards

Christophe

[Deruelle]

The second Feldbinde is from Bavaria

[Deruelle]

Feldbinde from Prussia

Christophe

[Deruelle]

Another from Prussian but with leather belt

[Deruelle]

The last one, Feldbinde from Saxe.

Don't hesitate to show the variantes of all your Felbinde. I want to see, if someone has got it, the Feldbinde from IR Nr. 94 and IR Nr. 95. Thanks per advance.

Regards

Christophe

[Les]

Christophe,

This is one of mine. It was taken from the body of a German officer killed on 26 September 1918, during the first day of the Meuse-Argonne offensive and brought home by the American soldier who killed him. Also taken from the same officer (and now part of my collection) was his pistol (m1910 Browning semi-auto), holster, canteen, and steel helmet (marked with the Hohenzollern crest seen on some Garde helmets). Based on the location of the American unit, the German unit(s) opposite them, and a description of where the officer was killed, the man was Leutnant Freiherr von der Goltz of the 1te. Garde zu. Fuss. He was the only officer from the 1te Garde zu Fuss killed that day.

Freiherr v.d.Golz and his men were spotted by American troops outside of a bunker. When his men ran inside, he tried to rally them and was shot and killed outside the doorway. When the Americans surrounded the bunker, his men surrendered and when leaving the bunker had to step over (not on) his dead body.

I try collecting items that can be identified to individuals, but in this case didn't realize how grim the details of who it was worn by, and it's history would be.

Les

Edited October 3, 2005 by Les

[Deruelle]

Hi Les,

Beautiful !!! Nice story. Thanks for sharing with us

Christophe

[Rendsburg]

Hi Christophe and Les,

Great thread, great items.

Les, can you post the rest of the dead soldier's collection?

Thanks,

Otto

[Les]

Hi Christophe and Les,

Great thread, great items.

Les, can you post the rest of the dead soldier's collection?

Thanks,

Otto

Otto,

Yes, I'll post the rest of the items as a group within the next 24 hours.

Les

[Les]

Otto,

Here's the grouping that belonged to Leutnant Freiherr Eberhard von der Goltz of the 1te Garde zu Fuss. The Felsbinde you've already seen. I'll post two details of the helmet showing the Hohenzollern crest on the side, and a company number on the back of the helmet.

Les

[Les]

The steel hemet really isn't part of this thread, but is part of the von der Golz group. The lining is missing. If you look at the Hohenzollern crest you'll see there was an earlier crest that's been painted over. If you refer to Ludqig Baer's book on the German steel helmet, you'll see this crest type does not have a line running around the outside edge of the crest. It's my opinion, but I think the type of crest with the outside edge/line is not original to the period, and were added by collectors or dealers long after WWI. The company number on the back of the helmet, and crest are both the same aged color (a cream color).

Les

[Les]

The canteen is painted/covered with a brown lacquer, and a brown corderoy cloth covering.

The holster is missing the securing strap and is very worn.

All of these items have paper tag/labels that were tied to them and in the handwriting of the American soldier that took them from von der Goltz's body after killing him. Not included in the photos is a history of the American's unit during WWI, and a copy of a map showing where he (and his unit) encountered von der Golz and his men. The American after the war became a commanding officer of a Pennsylvania State Police barracks/unit. Intersestingly, it seems he couldn't read a map because his notations of where he thought his unit was on the first day of the Meuse-Argonne offensive, was not were he and his unit actually were, and he had north and south reveresed!

Les

[Deruelle]

Very nice group Lens, a special mention to the helmet.

Christophe

[Rendsburg]

Hi Les,

Thanks, magnificent group, congratulations!

Otto

[Guest Too many forums]

Outstanding Les. Sad, but what a grouping. But back to the belts; a rather difficult to find Preu?en Model 1915 subdued Officer's Brocade Belt.

[Guest Rick Research]

What an ill-fated tribe!

Eberhardt Frh vd Goltz, born Strassburg 23 May 1897, KIA at V?ry in the Champagne as you have noted.

His older brother Joachim (b. 1893) was KIA in 1914 as a Vizefeldwebel in Inf Rgt 143.

His mother (!) Gertraud n?e von Schulze-G?vernitz (b. 1870, married 1892) died 2 January 1917 in Strassburg of lung failure brought on by exertions as a volunteer at the Strassburg railroad station aid center and director of a "Christian Soldiers' Home" in Strassburg.

His father, Dr. h.c. (Evangelischer Konsistorialpr?sident, Provinz Westpreussen) Hans Frh vd Goltz (1864-1941) was a Hauptmann dL aD, also involved in war relief in Strassburg 1915-18-- ejected from his home by the French on 24 hours notice in December 1918.

Sister Hildegard (b. 1895) and Hermann (b. 1910).

Eberhardt and Joachim are omitted from "Adelige H?user" entry for their family-- apparently just ignored in the 1950s as dead bachelors-- but ARE confirmed in relationships in the 1921 Helden-Gedenkmappe.

[Chip]

Les,

I was very interested to see your Garde trench helmet. I have three of them myself, which I got back in the late 1970s, before it became generally known that these were not Weimar markings. Of particular interest is that one of my helmets is painted in a fashion very similar to yours, in that the first shield was painted over the original paint finish and the second shield slightly offset over the first. I think that the original shields were done some time in the spring of 1918. Later in the summer the orders came down for helmets to be camouflaged. When this was done, both the shield and the rear number(s) were repainted. The original numbers were painted in dark red. The second paint color for the numbers tended to be white, as the red numbers were hard to see from a distance. Like your helmet, you can easily see where the original shield and number were on mine. You did not mention it, but it does look like your helmet has also had two numbers painted on the back.

All three of my helmets were made by "Bell L", which I think must have been the original issue to the Garde division. All of mine have company numbers, but I have seen original examples without any number, which I attribute to non-infantry units. There was an article published in the "Zeitschrift f?r Heereskunde" back in the 1980's, which showed an example marked inside the rear skirt to the 1.Garde Feldartillerie and it had no number on the back.

I would be interested to know which manufacturer made your helmet and which U.S. division the soldier, who brought it back was from. Thanks for sharing this unique grouping.

Chip

[Les]

Les,

<snip>

I would be interested to know which manufacturer made your helmet and which U.S. division the soldier, who brought it back was from. Thanks for sharing this unique grouping.

Chip

Chip,

The helmet is a "W.66" (Weissenberger). The inside crown has a light layer of rust covering the batch number (if it's there...). The American (Pfc. Robert Hanna) that brought it home was in the III Btl, 112th Infantry, 28th Division. Later in life he became a Captain (barracks/troop commander in the Pennsylvania State Police). His unit was all the way on the right hand side of the 28th's sector, very close to Varrenes and Chappy.

You're quite right that there appears to be another number under the 7 on the back side of the helmet. A considerable amount of paint is missing around the rivet hole, however best guess was the previous number was also a 7 (although much larger than the one currently "on top"). There are -no- signs of red paint or pigment around the worn/damaged areas near the shield(s) or number(s).

RicK,

I'm amazed how you seem to pull proverbial bunnies out of the hat on some of these guys! Von der Goltz in some ways is typical of many of his generation. Dead at a young age, and almost entirely forgotten...even by geneological sources. Thanks for the information on someone who seems to have been written off as "one more dead bachelor." On 11.11 this year, I'll add his name to the list of the fallen (and all of the others who have since gone "West") I'll "remember" privately.

Thanks guys, for the additional information, comments, and those who complimented the items. I didn't do much except be at the right place and at the right time when the veterans newphew brought them to a gun show to sell after his bachelor uncle died and left the items to him.

Les

Les

[dwmosher]

To add to the topic, a hessian officer's feldbinde.

[Deruelle]

What a beauty .

Thanks for sharing

Christophe

[joe campbell]

Les-

very interesting and moving circumstances...

my grandfather, LT Henry B. Davis, was a battalion surgeon

with the PA 28th division, and i would expect was in the

same general vicinity, as he came over early in the war

and stayed until after the war.

i have his WW 1 victory medal with the Muese-Argonne

clasp on it , as well as a cane carved for him by a german vet

when he went back in 1928 to dedicate a memorial to the

vets of the 28th Div.

a small world???

thanks for your excellent info!

joe

[Kurt Donch]

Hi all,

A great thread and about time to show some of these beauties. As my first post in this forum, I thought I would a picture of the special Sch?rpe for Naval medical officers, to my mind one of the most striking designs around.

Regards, Kurt

[dwmosher]

Kurt

A beautiful and rare Scharpe, considering it was only used from 1914 on....

Regards

Dave

[Deruelle]

Welcome Kurt,

Very nice Feldbinde

Christophe

[Rendsburg]

Welcome aboard Kurt,

Great item!

Otto