Gustav Klein: W?rttemberg Floating Policeman

[Paul C]

I picked this up several years ago. It was initially traced by Rick to a Gustav Klein, a Lt dR of the W?rttemberg AK. After the war in moved very high up in the customs service and died in Feb 1932. I recently was able to obtain his service record which included a pic of him, his obiturary and death notice. Unfortunately his service record does not list any of his awards. I'll first post his bar and then the additional information. If anyone has any information on this post war police/customs service I would appreciate it.

[Paul C]

Gustave Klein Picture about a year before he died.

[Paul C]

Death Notice

[Paul C]

Obiturary

[Guest Rick Research]

Paul forgot to mention that this identification was ONLY possible because of Daniel's volume "Non-W?rttemberg Awards to W?rttembergers 1914-1918" poublished LAST year (still available in the Books & CDs For Sale Section-- all orders outside North America through him, or in North America through me) and Daniel's PENDING work (hopefully to be published THIS year) on W?rttemberg WW1 award rolls:

Wilhemskreuz with Swords gazetted 14 April 1916 as Oberleutnaant dR, Bodenseeflottille.

?M3K gazetted 16.06.16 Oberlt dR "Austrian-German Bodensee Flotilla."

Bulgarian St. Alexander Order-Knight with Swords (note freakish "on Ring") gazetted 16.02.18 as Oberlt dR (no more units listed)

The Bavarian Ludwig was not gazetted, but virtually none were.

What would have been-- until 2008-- simply a WEIRD medal bar is thus traceable as a quite exotically peculiar one thanks to having the award rolls on hand.

Research, research, RESEARCH!!!!!!!!!

[Guest Rick Research]

1914 W?rttemberg Hof- und- Staatshandbuch shows Gustav Klein as Finanzamtmann in charge of BORDER GUARDS for the Friedrichshafen region:

The secret April 1917 W?rttemberg Home Establishment (stellv. GenKdo XIII. Armeekorps) Rank List shows him as Oberleutnant dR (note dates of rank given for reserve officers ) at Military Police Post Friedrichshafen:

Friedrichshafen.... Friedrichshafen..... :rolleyes:

[Guest Rick Research]

Ricky Magic. The obit writ LARGE (synopsis at end)

[Guest Rick Research]

column 2

[Guest Rick Research]

column 3:

He left his wife of 23 years, Ida Klink, his sister Bertha, married to Regierungsrat Paul Fischer in Weinheim, and his widowed sister in law Bertha Kuhn with 2 sons in Besigheim.

He had planned to retire to Besigheim--and instead was buried there. He died of a stroke (Schlaganfall).

The Reichsfinanzverwaltung, family, and wide circle of friends all mourn his loss. Everybody respected, admired, and loved him (a nice way to be remembered-- at least in public records!!!).

As a Finanzamtmann, he became Director of the Friedrichshafen office doing what amounted to "state security" for the Zeppelin Works there. He was liaison, as border controller, with the army, customs, police, and industrial espionage control. When the war broke out he assumed command of the W?rttemberg military police there (final rank Hauptmann der Reserve) as well as W?rttemberg sector commander of the Bodensee Flotilla. He reported directly to the Chief of Military Intelligence at Great General Staff headquarters.

In 1923 he was appointed a Referent in the Brandenburg Proivincial Customs Office, Berlin. There he was often a guest of his cousin, Reichswehr Minister Otto Gessler (1875-1955). But as a native Swabian, he longed for home, and soon returned.

He was W?rttemberg's representative to the 1925 Police-Technical Exhibition in Karlsruhe in 1925.

Director of the Main Customs Office in Stuttgart since 1 April 1927. Appointed Oberregierungsrat 1 August 1927. This indicates he was a college graduate and in the higher career path where theoretically he could have gone higher (though there weren't many jobs that were at the time) in the civil service-- this is the same pay grade as a Lieutenant Colonel.

So: chief border guard, secret policeman, guardian of vital national industrial secrets-- and all around Nice Guy.

:cheers:

[Ulsterman]

What! Excellent sleuthing chaps! Bravo.

By the way, RR may I have one of daniels book?

[Guest Rick Research]

Paul mailed me xeroxes of his service records, so here is more detail from that paperwork:

Born 17 December 1876 in Ludwigsburg. Catholic. Son of Oberamtsdiener (!) Jakob Klein (? 12.03.06 in Stuttgart) and Marie Ge?ler (? 27.07.02 in Stuttgart). Married Ida Klink in Besigheim 03.10.08

Educated in parents? home, Ludwigsburg Lyceum, and Eberhard-Ludwig Gymnasium in Stuttgart?receiving an Abitur. Graduated from University of T?bingen and passed first and second Finance Service Examinations.

One Year Volunteer 1 October 1902 (!!!) in 9. / Grenadier Rgt 119. Unteroffizier 13.08.03. Vizefeldwebel 08.05.05.

Leutnant d.R. 18.11.07 D4d

Oberleutnant d.R. 26.03.15 E

Hauptmann d.R. on 24.04.18 with Patent of 18.02.18 X49x

Detached from E. / GR 119 from 01.11.17 Leader of the Military Police Post Friedrichsort. Transfer made permanent 30.06.18.

Demobilized 31.01.19.

Died in Stuttgart 7 February 1932.

The inclusion of a civilian obituary was impressive. Thanks to that long ago W?rttemberg archives gnome!

There were TWO Kriegsranglistenausz?ge and NEITHER listed his awards. It is plain that his purely nominal affiliation with GR 119 was to blame, but I'd have thought they'd have had his Milit?rpa? to copy that data out of. Rather odd.

Equally odd are his EXTREMELY humble beginnings. It would be inetresting to find out what his government building orderly father had--if anything--for awards from old Hof- und- Staatshandb?cher. To have gotten a college prep high school diploma and then goenn through university with tht background is rather amazing. That may also explain why he was the world's oldest One Year Volonteer-- it may have taken him three years on the job to save up enough cash to afford that status. That also explains the lack of a WLD2 in his awards-- he didn't have enough time in before the war started, nor the calendar "XX" years afterwards for the WLD1 Cross. This was the last little clue in ID'ing this medal bar after finding out when he was born. Normally he'd have gone in as a 1YV right out of high school, so in 1895. Instead he was SEVEN years late!

[Paul C]

Thanks Rick, Interesting info.

[Claudio]

Excellent research and detective work!!!

Such a great feeling to see how also small but very interesting medal bars can tell about someone's career and life... That is what collecting is about!

Congrats!!

Ciao,

Claudio