Freikorps collection to date

[dante]

Collecting Freikorps is like pulling teeth.....so here is the collection to date........

[dante]

Badges, photos, will collect most things....

[dante]

few more

[Bernhard H.Holst]

Hello:

Thank you for showing this. As you know the Freikorps subject is still today a much disputed matter, Patriots or merely for hire , no good for anything else ...

Bernhard H. Holst

[Chris Boonzaier]

Very nice start!!

I did not remember you were into this!

[dante]

Hi Chris, just a side line.........

[Robin Lumsden]

No prizes for guessing what my favourite item is ................

[dante]

No prizes for guessing what my favourite item is ................

I only show it to tease you.........

[Robin Lumsden]

You are a BAAAAAAAD man ................... ;)

[Deruelle]

Hi,

Very impressive collection, thanks for your sharing it with us.

Christophe

[bolewts58]

You have some very nice pieces. I especially like the medal bar, for obvious reasons and the Malplaquet Star.

However, I have some concerns about the Grezschutz Bromberg badge. I've seen these copper badges with almost identicial vert de gris patina before and generally don't like them. There's always been some doubt about this badge with a pinback, because it was supposed to be a sleeve badge. But, all of the badges I've ever seen had a pin back and were oxidized brass. Back in the late 70s, I had a conversation with Verkuilen Ager about these and he told me that they had been reproduced in the late 60s along with a handful of other Freikorps badges as some sort of 50th anniversary commemorative item. I do know that at the time of my discussion with him there was only one type of this badge up for discussion: made of oxidized brass with a separately attached safety pin assembly with a flat, rectangular base for attaching to the badge. He was never definitive about these being fake. But, he simply said that a pin-back would preclude it being a sleeve badge. My suggestion at the time and my belief now is that it was actually worn as a breast badge. The sleeve badge idea came from von Salomon. But, he only showed a drawing of the badge with the label of 'Armelabzeichen'. This was the only contemporary reference for this badge anyone has ever had and it could be wrong, as there were other errors in his otherwise excellent book.

However, I suspect your badge is one of those that has a hinged pin attached directly to the top of the badge. These have only shown up on the market whtin the last 15 or so years and tend to have slightly softer details particulary on the reverse compared to the ones that I saw 35 years ago and which I consider plausable.

Could you please show the reverse of the badge? Thanks.

Edited September 6, 2013 by bolewts58

[Brian Wolfe]

Hi dante,

This is a period of history I find very interesting and I do have a small number of badges in the German section of my collection. However, I must say that you have rekindled my interest in the Freikorps.

Thank you for posting your fine collection.

Regards

Brian

[dante]

Could you please show the reverse of the badge? Thanks.

Hi sorry for the delay, all in storage at the moment, but agree with you regards the pin, still I have not seen any other type so will go with it being ok for now...........

[bolewts58]

Hi sorry for the delay, all in storage at the moment, but agree with you regards the pin, still I have not seen any other type so will go with it being ok for now...........

Here's the type to which I referred along with the original 1938 illustration from von Salomon's book.

There's been some lengthy debate about this badge on Russian forums with some siding with my POV and others believing the badge like yours is real. The overall opinion is that nobody really knows and many collectors think all of the badges are fake because there's also a strong possibility that the badge was never manufactured, but only proposed. Nobody has ever found either documentation on the badge or a photograph of someone wearing it. This likely explains why even von Salomon, who was contemporary to the period doesn't have a photo of the badge in his book.

While I started collecting Freikorps in 1969, I don't have one of these badges in my collection, largely because of the dispute. I've handled the 3 known types, including yours. But, at anywhere from 250-450 Euros, I wouldn't buy any. There are enough other guaranteed items to collect, without sinking money into a badge that may be complete fantasy.

[dante]

Excellent piece of research, I am on the fence with this and as an example it fills the gap, (I paid nothing like that price) but as always appreciate your comments as someone who has collected for a long time.....