Germany’s First Bad Medal Bar: A Ghastly Warning!

W McSwiggan · December 10, 2010

Would YOU buy this shambles of a medal bar? Well, wouldja, punk?

(((Insert Hügel Foto Scan 01)))

Let us just COUNT the ways this… BARON (oh yes) AND retired General (oh my) has screwed up his medal bar… royally!

At the neck: Württemberg Friedrich Order-Commander (Commander 1st Class star below medal bar, awarded on retirement 1872, replacing Knight grade bestowed in 1856), with Württemberg Crown Order with Swords beneath that (awarded 1870).

Slap-dash under the medal bar—Württemberg 1889 Jubilee Medal, messily stitched on, loose. Ugh.

And that medal bar… yi yi yi:

Enlisted men’s style (OK, much favored by ancient Kaiser Wilhelm I)—

1870/71 War Medal, followed by (say what?) Prussian Iron Cross 2nd Class (no NOT 1813—his 1870 is backwards, yikes!) followed by Württemberg 25 Years Service Cross followed by

Württemberg Military Merit Order-Knight (awarded 18.08.1866) saaaaaay whaaaaaat ???? !!!!!

Finished off by Württemberg Campaign Medal.

Uh. Yeeeeeeeaaaaaaah!

And before anybody makes fresh remarks about pre-school amongst the dinosaurs or cleaning up after the Last Supper, this fellow was a contemporary of my grandfather’s grandfather. There have only been four generations in my own family since this messy fellow was born, as his “General im Ruhestand” photo boasts

(((Insert Hügel Foto Scan 02)))

on 28 October 1811 in Rottenburg am Neckar.

He inscribed this photo in a quavery hand 10 Yourguessisasgoodasmine 1892. On 28 May 1893 he died in Dorlisheim, Alsace.

He was… K.W. Generalmajor aD Hermann Freiherr von Hügel. Entered Württemberg military service 8 April 1827 but was not commissioned Unterlieutenant (as then was) until 6 September 1830. After serving in K.W. Inf Rgts 5, 1, and 3, he was promoted to Oberlieutenant (as then was) 4 February 1837. Served in K.W. Inf Rgt 7 and as Adjutant of K.W. 4. Inf Brig before being promoted Hauptmann 20 July 1846 in K.W. Inf Rgt 7.

Promoted Major 25 January 1858 as a Battalion Commander in K.W. Inf Rgt 1 before transferring to command of K.W. Jäger Bn 2 on 29 July 1859. Promoted Oberstlieutenant (as then was) 11 June 1860. Commander of K.W. Inf Rgt 5, promoted to Oberst 11 September 1865—as which he received his bizarrely placed WM3.

Assigned command of K.W. 3. Inf Brig 7 September 1869 and as such advanced to Generalmajor 17 January 1870. Decorated with that backwards Iron Cross 12 January 1871, and retired 15 April 1872 after 45 years in uniform.

Why-oh-why did he have such a hideously NASTY UGLY jumble of medals? Hopefully he didn’t appear like that as a General, so why fling together his decorations like this afterwards?

We’ll never know, now. Shudder.

Shared courtesy of a faithful member of the Traveling Museum on the mainlanders’ last foray over to The Island before ice-in (or ice-out, depending) and posted for your horrified reactions by WEM since I’m not online. Rick Research