EK 1914 unusual EK2 Certificate

[andy]

Hi

Have not come across one like this before and would appreciate your comments on originality and also help with the wording.

It is A4 size with a spare blank A4 piece attached.

many thanks

andy

[andy]

2

[andy]

3

[andy]

4

[andy]

5

[Chris Boonzaier]

Very nice.

Many people will automatically say "Begleitschreiben!"...

There are however such letters that actually serve as the EK doc, and for me this is one.

Depending on the unit, there may never have been a document.

For some Higher ups there was just a "Letter from the Boss" saying an award was made.

Nice Doc indeed!

[Chris Boonzaier]

P.S. I have about 5-6 of these.

[speedytop]

Hi,

this is definitely not a "Begleitschreiben", not a letter of transmittal.

It is only a congratulatory letter, and it has nothing to do with the award document(s).

"Wie gemeldet worden ist ..." = It had been reported ...

Uwe

[Chris Boonzaier]

Hi,

this is definitely not a "Begleitschreiben", not a letter of transmittal.

It is only a congratulatory letter, and it has nothing to do with the award document(s).

"Wie gemeldet worden ist ..." = It had been reported ...

Uwe

Agreed, but as there I think we can agree that there was no standard Award document. Up Until 1918 it was supposed to be that the award documents would be issued after the war.

For that reason some units did not give out documents, and msot units had documents printed or bought generic ones.

It can also be assumed (I think) that men in "obscure" units, had to make do with a letter telling them that the award had been approved. Whereas a regular infantry Regiment had the habit of issuing them, a base depot in XX may not and as such a letter confirming the award may have been the "award doc".

My doc for the 1870 Spange is similar, the guy was in a depot somewhere... there was definately no established process for awarding 1870 Spange to old guys in this depot... so he was given a letter confirming his award and an auszug from the award list.

Best

Chris

[Chris Boonzaier]

Lets assume you are a postal inspector in XXX.

You are serving with the XYZ A.K.

Your Postal inspector boss back home has an EK approved for you.

There is no official document and you are no longer under his direct command.

He can write and inform you of the award .... but it may be that a postal inspector seldom has to do with awards and does not have a drawer full of blank documents.... in fact, and and all documents are the private initiative of the unit commander... so you may just have to make do with a letter... until after the war, when you get a Final doc.

[speedytop]

We are in 1916.

And it was normal and usual, in 1916 and later, to have a document for the award.

"Vorläufiger Ausweis"

and

Uwe

[Chris Boonzaier]

Hi Uwe,

Agreed, in part.

This is the 2nd Generalstab des Feldheeres from March 16, filled out for early 1915 awards.

March 1916 seems to have been a catch up date for units that had not been issuing awards.

The IX Reserve Korps for instance.... seems to have not issued any award documents until March 1916, then gone into overdrive to retroactively do it. I have a number of documents from the IX Reserve Korps issued in March 1916 for awards that had been made in 1914.

This must have been a significant date of some sort. Maybe the order had gone out that V.B. s should be issued. That all these catch ups start in march 1916 seems to be meaningful.

The Alpenkorps seems to have done the same, also have almost all late war docs, even for early war awards.

So, supposing that in early 1916 the order came down from the Generalstab that VBs should be issued.... would it have reached all units?

Once again, I think regular units, yes. They would have made out documents to their people.

But soldiers who are detached from their unit are often "Herrenlos", with noone feeling responsible for them. I contend that if someone was from something like the Postdirektion, who probably did not issue documents.... then the recipient would have had to go looking for someone to issue a dokument for him.

Along the lines of "Hey, I am from the Postdirektion, am attached to you guys, just got a letter that I have been awarded an EK2.... Could someone do me a document "i.A." "?

I also think that by mid 1916 things were still not up and running as wanted. Many units were still issuing documents in 1917 and 1918 for awards made 2 years earlier... and I bet the soldiers had to nag and nag to get them.

I have one group where the guy has 3 documents... (Also an obscure unit that probably had no preprinted ones). I think the guy kept writing for a document and kept getting a typewritten VB.

Lets also not forget, 1916 was a pretty hectic time... and with German troops heavily involved all over Europe, how succesfully could a new Vorschrift about paperwork be implemented uniformly?

I still believe... if the guy in the first post was unlucky... this may have been the only written document he got. I do admit he could have recieved other docs... but we cannot be sure.

[andy]

Very interesting indeed. thanks for the replies

regards

andy