How to earn medals and order decorations

[medalnet]

Did you guys see this picture at the upcoming Hermann Historica auction?

Lot No. 6159

Geschenkfoto

des Bahnhofsvorstehers 1.Klasse Kr?ger im Berliner Hauptbahnhof. Uniformbrustbild mit angelegten Ordensdekorationen (21 Orden). Im vergoldeten Stellrahmen mit geschliffener Glasscheibe. 14,5 x 25 cm.

[attachmentid=33197]

Mr. Kr?ger must have run a tight shift at the main train station in Berlin. Certainly a very popular travel destination those days.

[Ed_Haynes]

Run a train station that visiting Royals arrive in and collect hardware??

[medalnet]

Run a train station that visiting Royals arrive in and collect hardware??

You got it. I guess there is a lot of bowing involved, too.

[David Gregory]

You got it. I guess there is a lot of bowing involved, too.

... which would have been an almost natural consequence considering the weight of those orders on his chest.

[MattGibbs]

I work in the railways here in the UK and I bet he's not got anything on my old boss....

[oooooh now now - bitchy! ]Still thanks for drawing it to my attention, nice job to have had I bet, and nice photo too!

Regards

Matt Gibbs

[Daniel Murphy]

You sure he's not a retired Field grade officer who needed a second job to supplement his pension. Its all about being in the right place at the right time. Is there any chance we can get a run down on the orders displayed? J

Dan Murphy

Edited April 4, 2006 by Daniel Murphy

[medalnet]

Stay tuned for the list of his decorations tonight !!!! Paul was able to find him. Based on his comment Mr. Kr?ger should have worn his full medal bar in a full circle arround his chest

[Paul C]

Per the German Orders Almanac 1908/09 (if you don't have this book for researching German officers and civilians then you are at a lose (just PM me)) here is a list of Frdr. Kreuger's awards:

Frdr. Kreuger

Anhalt - Albert the Baer Knight 2nd with Crown

Baden ? Zaehringer Lion Knight 1st

Braunschweig ? House Order Henry the Lion Knight 2nd

Hessen-Darmstadt ? Philip Order Knight 2nd with Crown

Lippe-Detmold - Cross 4th class

Mecklenburg - Merit Cross 2nd class

Oldenburg ? House Order PFL Knight 2nd

Prussia ? Red Eagle Order 4th class

Reuss older Line ? Civil Honor Cross 3rd class

Saxony Kingdom ? Albert Order Knight 2nd

Saxe Weimar? White Falcon Knight 2nd

Saxe Coburg Gotha? Ernestine House Order Knight 2nd

Schaumburg ? Honor Cross 4th class

Schwartzburg ? Honor Cross 3rd class

Waldeck ? Merit Cross 3rd class

Wuerttemberg ? Friedrich Order Knight 2nd

Foreign Awards:

Britain -Victoria Order 4th class

Bulgaria ? Civil Merit Order Commander Cross

Denmark ? Danebrog Order Knight Cross

Greece ? Order of the Redeemer Commander Cross

Japan ? Order of the Rising Sun 5th class

Italy ? Order of the Italian Crown Knight Cross

Luxemburg ? Order of the Oaken Crown Knight Cross

Portugal ? Order of Christ Knight Cross

Rumania ? Crown of Rumania Officer Cross

Russia ? Order of St. Anne 3rd class

Russia ? Order of St. Stanislaw 3rd class

Sweden ? Order of Wasa Knight 2nd

Serbia ? Order fo Takowo Officer Cross

Turkey ? Medschidie Order 4th class

If anyone sees any translation error please correct them. I will post his actuall listing when I get home.

Edited April 5, 2006 by Paul Chepurko

[Deruelle]

Very impressive medal bar. It's strange that the others medals are not under the medal bar. Does anyone have an explanation.

Regards

Christophe

[Les]

You got it. I guess there is a lot of bowing involved, too.

That among other things. This is the guy who would have to arrange for baggage to be forwarded to the correct hotel on time (or receive it), smooth ruffled feathers if there were delays, missed connections, and all that can go wrong on a trip or vacation. If things went went smoothly the guy probably got rewarded by some of the lesser beings in an entourage, and if things went badly...he probably got to face the wrath of others directly.

I don't know if this guy deserved the medals he's wearing, or what he was given. Any of his brothers in arms who worked with and ran the trains for the military however, had a very important role in the scheme of things, and if they wore military awards, chances are they did something far more important than shovel another load of gravel for ballast under a railway sleeper.

In the German military, the guys who oversaw building and functioning of trains and making schedules work were often "invisible" in the greater social context, but for making things work and on time....these were the real movers and shakers.

Starting with the Schileffen Plan and it's dependancy on the trains running on time and keeping a tightly timed schedule for mobilization, the Army used it's best and brightest "brains." The glory boys might ride horses, and fancy uniforms, but without the trains moving troops and hauling supplies, the drive into France (and Russia) would have been far different than things turned out.

This guy and his brothers running the military trains were what made the Germans army able to do what it did in WWI.

Les

[medalnet]

I just realized that our friend made a mistake by filling out those forms send back to the publisher of the Ordensalmanach (We know that they send out a questionnaire in order to create this book?!). He only claimed to have the Oldenburg House Order P-F-L knight 2nd class (OldV3b), but actually had the Knight second class with CROWN (1st position on medal bar). Yet his knight second class of the Hessian Order of Philip is not with but rather without Crown (3rd position on medal bar)

Also, it is hard to see, but his Knight Cross 2nd Class of the Saxe-Weimar Order of the White Falcon is this type:

[attachmentid=33311][attachmentid=33312]

Edited April 5, 2006 by medalnet

[medalnet]

Looking at this even more...he is wearing a knight cross of the Anhalt Order of Albrecht the Bear (pretty much on the very right side), but claimed to have had the knight 2nd class with crown. Well, maybe he got it after 1902?!

[Claudio]

Interesting thread...

What is one of the decoration worn as "Einzelbandsspange" (see picture)?

[medalnet]

That is his Mecklenburg - Merit Cross 2nd class, the silver one.

[Guest Brian von Etzel]

Shouldn't he also have at least an EKII or EKI for dodging the bullet of angry travelers missing bags?

[Guest Rick Research]

This is one of my favorite "Field Marshal" ribbon bars:

[attachmentid=33379]

Only, of course, he wasn't:

[attachmentid=33380]

Hmmm.... Oberleutnant der Landwehr in 1914 with

Mecklenburg Griffin-Knight

W?rttemberg Friedrich-Knight 1st

Baden Z?hringen Lion-Knight 1st

Saxon Albert-Knight 2nd

Bunswick House-4th

Prussian XX

Austro-Hungarian Franz Joseph-Knight

[Guest Rick Research]

Dr. Karl Beutin was Ministerialsekret?r of the Mecklenburg-Schwerin Ministry of Extrnal Affairs and...

Secretary of the Mecklenburg-Schwerin ORDERS CHANCERY

[attachmentid=33381]

He got HIS

for processing OTHER PEOPLE'S awards!

[medalnet]

It is quite amazing how many decorations those Landwehr or reserve officers got. Basically every war game with a friendly state was like "medal-Christmas"

[laurentius]

On 04/04/2006 at 15:03, medalnet said:

Lot No. 6159

 

Geschenkfoto

 

des Bahnhofsvorstehers 1.Klasse Kr?ger im Berliner Hauptbahnhof. Uniformbrustbild mit angelegten Ordensdekorationen (21 Orden). Im vergoldeten Stellrahmen mit geschliffener Glasscheibe. 14,5 x 25 cm.

 

Did anyone here end up buying this lovely picture?