Silly Old Buggers Pretending To Be Wehrmacht Generals

[Guest Rick Research]

When was a "Wehrmacht General" NOT a Wehrmacht General?

[Chris Boonzaier]

I think that is one of the Ricks dressing up at their last meeting.

Give them a bit of a shave, stick him under the shower... then hang medals on his pajamas...

And this is what you get!

[Guest Rick Research]

How about when the "Träger" of a Wehrmachtrock had retired when Emperor Karl was on the Hapsburg throne?

These two flashlight-in-the-cellar portraits of retired K.u.k. General der Infanterie Alfred Krauss were obviously taken after the 1938 Anschluss.

He had won the Prussian Pour le Merite 12 November 1917 as commander of the Austro-Hungarian Ist Corps.

He already held General der Infanterie rank at that point (my last K.u.K. Army Rank List of 1917 still showed him as a Feldmarschalleutnant with rank date of 10 November 1913), so seems to have been skipped for the usual GERMAN one rank up "bump" on Tannenberg Day 1939 for other Pour le Merite holders.

One year younger than God, Krauss did not actually SERVE at all in the Wehrmacht, nor was he carried "on the Rolls" as a nominal courtesy like a select number of geriatric GERMAN retired Generals.

Apparently, Krauss decided that "retired with permission to wear the uniofrm of..." meant he could simply "modernize" himself. :whistle:

[Glenn J]

Rick,

Alfred Kauss was awarded the right to wear German uniform with the insignia of a General der Infanterie on 1 April 1938.

Regards

Glenn

[Guest Rick Research]

Appropriate date.

What was he, about 80? Where and when would he have WORN the new Nazi uniform?

Those muttonchops must have looked nice among all the Charlie Chaplin mustaches...

These are pencilled on the backs of prints glued down on a black construction paper album page, so I could barely see his name there.

:beer:

[Glenn J]

Rick,

he was born on 26 April 1862. He would not have been wearing his new uniform long; he died on 29 Sep 1938. He was a pretty sharp cookie; a very talented staff officer and field commander. He played a decisive role as a corps commander in the caporetto offensive in October 1917 and ultimately commanded an army at wars end.

Regards

Glenn

[Guest Rick Research]

That sure narrows down the time frame for thes portraits then!

Difficult to believe anyone clever could have worn such monstrously goofy facial shrubbery. :cheeky:

[Steve P]

Bless 'em!