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  2. SDub SDub joined the community
  3. leon21
    Extra info and images added 26.06.19.
  4. Yesterday
  5. Fritz
    "Change of Rules", claims she, would never admit being wrong.
  6. kenny andrew
    Yes I agree Fritz, they also underestimated the British Prime Minister.
  7. Last week
  8. Fritz
    Beisetzung von Kapitän z. See Langsdorff, Buenos Aires, 1939
  9. Fritz
    Another film about U-Boot and Blockade in WW1 (1929)
  10. Fritz
    Original video could no longer be found. In it's place, "Morgenroth...", an old song in memory of the fallen:
  11. Fritz
    pictures and text updated
  12. Fritz
    This short film gives a vague impression of the overcrowding and the conditions of the camps, here said to be over 50.000
  13. Fritz
    After the Battle of Vionville (17.August 1870), painting by Theodor Rocholl Nach den beiderseits sehr verlustreichen Grenzschlachten am 6. August 1870 bei Spichern und Wörth, gingen die getrennten Französischen Heeresteile entmutigt auf Chälons sur Marne und Metz Zurück. Angesichts des tastenden Vormarsches der drei deutschen Armeen an die Mosel (die Feindfühlung war verlorengegangen) fand das Oberkommando, das Kaisers Napoleon III. am 12 August, dem Marschall Bazaine in die Hand gab, keinen festen Entschluß. Durch den weiteren Verlust kostbarer Zeit beherrschten die Deutschen drei Tage später die Verbindungslinien von Metz nach Westen, so daß für die im Festungsraum versammelte Hauptmacht nur noch der Abmarsch Richtung Verdun übrigblieb. In stockender Ausführung dieses Vorhabens entwickelte sich am 16 August die Mörderische Schlacht von Vionville-Mars la Tour. Deutscherseits traf nur die Flankensicherung der 2. Armee (zwei Armeekorps und zwei Kavallerie-Divisionen) auf die Franzosen, da der Oberbefehlshaber Prinz Friedrich-Karl entgegen Moltkes Weisung, die Masse seiner Truppen zur Überholung weiter gegen die Maas marschieren ließ. Unter furchtbaren Opfern (16000 Mann!) konnten die Angreifer das Kampffeld behaupten, denn Marschall Bazaine wußte von seiner Großen Überlegenheit keinen rechten Gebrauch zu machen. An diesem Tag ritten Preußische Kavallerie-Regimenter todesmutige Entlastungsattacken, bei Vionville die Brigade Bredow (7. Kürassiere und 16. Ulanen), von der nur die Hälfte der Mannschaften zurückkehrte. Ihren Einsatz bedingte die äußerst kritische Gefechtslage und ihr bitterer Ruhm bleibt unbestritten, doch war beides nur die Folge mangelhafter Feindaufklärung vor Beginn und während einer äußerst gewagten Schlacht, wozu die Kavallerie nicht besser geeignet schien. Am 17. August führte Bazaine seine ebenso verlustgeschwächte Armee auf die starke Höhenstellung westlich der Festung Metz zurück, um hier den Entscheidungskampf aufzunehmen. Gleichen Tags in früher Morgenstunde stieß Rittmeister von Möllendorff von den 15. Husaren auf einem Erkundungsritt bis zur Ferme Mogador in der Nähe von Gravelotte vor, wo gefangene Kürassiere und Ulanen der Brigade Bredow als Verwundete erste Versorgung erhalten hatten. Auf dem Dach wehte weithin sichtbar die Rote-Kreuz-Flagge; davor stand ein Wagen, zum Weitertransport nach Metz bereit. Blitzschnell die Lage erfassend, entschloss sich der Rittmeister zur Überrumpelung, die auf fast unglaubliche Weise gelang. Der Husaren-Trompeter Fersch hob Rittmeister von Heister aufs eigene Pferd, als Letzten zogen zwei Husaren Wachtmeister Oechelhäuser nach, worauf die seltsame Kavalkade ungehindert davontrabte und heil zu den eigenen Vorposten gelangte. Dieses Ereignis hat der Maler in seinen Bild Festgehalten (Picture and text via Herr Koelewijn, u.V.d.R.)
  14. Fritz
    More detailed information and pictures added. Memorial of the expulsion in a cemetery in Chemnitz
  15. Fritz
    Deutsche Wochenschau Normandy 1944 - Counter Offensive Measures
  16. Fritz
    Archive photos, 1998/9 Tschapka with Rabatt, Parade Plume and Cap Lines (Cordons / Fangschnur) Full Parade Dress Uniform, Ulanen-Regiment 6
  17. Fritz
    Part 2
  18. Fritz
    Theodor Bohnenberger, later Major der Reserve Theodor Bohnenberger (* 25. Juli 1868 in Stuttgart; † Oktober 1941 in Bad Tölz) war ein deutscher Maler und Kavallerieoffizier. Bohnenberger studierte an der Stuttgarter Kunstschule bei Jakob Grünenwald und Carl von Häberlin, sowie seit dem 30. April 1887 an der Königlichen Akademie der Künste in München bei Johann Caspar Herterich und Carl von Marr. Er unternahm Studienreisen nach Italien, Frankreich, Spanien und England. Nach dem Studium war er in München als freischaffender Künstler tätig. Bohnenberger war auch Kavallerieoffizier im Dienstgrad eines Majors der Reserve. Theodor Bohnenberger nahm seit 1895 an zahlreichen Ausstellungen in München, Düsseldorf und Wien teil. Er wurde Mitglied der Luitpold-Gruppe in München und später der Münchener Künstlergenossenschaft. Bohnenberger beschäftigte sich mit der Blumen-, Genre-, Porträt-, Landschafts- und Aktmalerei. Theodor Bohnenberger, born: Stuttgart, 25.7.1868, died: October 1941 in Bad Tölz, was a German painter and cavalry officer. Bohnenberger studied in the Stuttgart Art School under Jakob Grünwald and Carl von Häberlin, and also since 30. April 1887 in the Royal Academy of Art in Munich under Johann Caspar Heinrich and Carl von Marr. He undertook study travels to Italy, France, Spain and England. After his studies, he worked as a freelance artist in Munich. Bohnenberger was also a cavalry Major of the Reserve. Theodor Bohhnenberger took part in many exhibitions in Munich, Düsseldorf and Vienna. He became a member of the Luitpol-Gruppe in Munich and later in the Munich Association of Artists. Bohnenberger's main themes were Flower, Genre, Portrait, Landscape and Act painting. (Pictures and text by courtesy of Herr Koelewijn) self portrait as a Reserve Officer self portrait
  19. Fritz
    Die Flucht - The Escape, dramatic account of the escape of an aristocratic family from their home in East Prussia in early 1945. They had to leave everything behind, some stayed to await their fate. The Countess organises and leads the Treck from the family estate with some of her family and many of the local population, the Russians in close pursuit. The Treck was over 1.200 km and took over 9 weeks. Millions were on the move, thousands never made it to the West and either perished on the way or disappeared without trace. The leading role of Lena Gräfin von Mahlenberg is played by Maria Furtwängler, the granddaughter of Wilhelm Furtwängler, the famous orchestral conductor in Bayreuth, Wagner admirer and a controversial figure in the 3. Reich. The story is based on the experiences of Marion Gräfin Dönhoff, the story on which the film script was based, was written by her great niece. Originally a TV co-production by ARTE for the ARD around 2007, some of the scenes were filmed in Lithuania, others at Schloss Bothmer in Klütz/Mecklenburg. Part 1 - Schloß Bothmer, Klütz/Mecklenburg, some of the scenes were filmed here Scenes from the film Gräfin Lena greets her relative, Graf Ferdinand returning from the Front at the nearby station. Berthold Graf von Mahlenberg sees his granddaughter Viktoria for the first time. He is too old and sick for the Treck, he is determined to take his own life when the Russians arrive. A last family get together with the Ortsgruppenleiter as a guest Heinrich Graf v.Gernstorff with his mother Sophie - Sophie Gräfin v. Gernstoff with her son, Graf Ferdinand. The last great family event before the end came... Graf Ferdinand is absent without leave from the front, and shortly after, commits suicide following a family dispute. Graf Rüdiger and Gräfin Sophie v. Gernstoff totally shocked over the loss of their youngest son, discuss the situation and ponder over the bleak future, but not openly Gräfin Lena and Francois Beauvais, the French prisoner of war, who worked on the estate Trecks fleeing from Lituania and Latvia arrive on the Estate Graf Heinrich is Oberstabsrichter (a military judge), here with his staff in the area near the Estate The prisoners of war have to make their own way to the West to escape the Soviet advance, they run into a Feldgendarmerie patrol Gräfin Lena with Babette On the long and difficult journey, death was constantly present, the old, the very young, the weak and the infirm were the most frequent victims under the severest conditions. The refugee treck makes it's way through snow and ice and temperatures of around 30 degrees of frost Crossing over the frozen Kurisches Haff, they are attacked by Soviet fighter bombers New arrivals of refugees in the West are not welcome, the local populations have enough problems with acute shortages and accomodation. The Allied zones forced their accomodation wherever they could. Arrival at the estate of a befriended family in Bavaria The end of the road in the American Zone in Bavaria. They encounter Francois, the former French prisoner of war, who is now in US officer uniform Happy end, but only for some.
  20. Earlier
  21. Fritz
    Quite apart from the fake helmets, I have now updated the passages on Dr. Barbro Eberan with a few critical but truthful comments. I see from the title of her book that she is very critical towards "Hitler's Swedish Soldiers" (Nordic volunteers). Sweden is such a nice country, but the left-wing leanings I find quite appalling. Sweden took a neutral position during the Cold War, due to the nearness of the Soviet Union. During the first phase of the Second World War, Sweden was more than sympathetic to Germany and supplied important quantities of iron ore to Germany via Narvik. As the war progressed, Sweden's attitude changed, and especially after Stalingrad, the cooperation gradually faded. At the end of the war, those who had sought refuge in Sweden were deported and handed over to the Soviet Regime. This included Germans, Russians, Ukrainians, Lithuanans, Estonians and Latvians. Here, apart from the controversial work about "Hitler's Swedish Soldiers", some of the works of Dr. Eberan. Frau Eberan bringt überall krasse, totschlagende Argumente, Beispiele und Bilder, sowie viel Ideologie in ihre Werke hinein.
  22. kenny andrew
  23. kenny andrew
    Thanks to Buster for finding Toms medal card, pity the VC is not mentioned, it seems to be in another section which we can't access at the moment.
  24. kenny andrew
    Thanks Buster
  25. Fritz
    Wandsbek - Events aktuell New "Schützenkönig" in Wandsbek, Herbert Brust also known as "Onkel Hebbi" (centre of first photo), has made his comeback and regained his status again after 41 years - a marksman with an air rifle He has been a member of the "Wandsbeker Schützengilde von 1637"for well over 40 years.
  26. Fritz
    text of article completed
  27. Fritz
    Prinz Friedrich Karl von Preußen, 1893-1917 Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia was forced to land his green Albatros D1 after being attacked by a Royal Flying Corps aircraft in March 1917. His subsequent shooting and capture sparked a war of words between two Australian units, both of which took credit for his capture. Prince Tassilo Wilhelm Humbert Leopold Friedrich Karl of Prussia (usually known as Prince Friedrich Karl or Frederick Charles) was born on 6 April 1893. He was an all-round sportsman, competing in football, tennis, and athletics. He took part in English tennis tournaments under the pseudonym F Karl, and was an accomplished rider, winning a bronze medal for show jumping with the German men's equestrian team at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. During the First World War, Prince Friedrich commanded and flew with Fliegerabteillung (Artillerie) 258, an artillery observation unit. He was not allowed to join a fighter squadron but did manage to fly with one, Jasta 2 (also called Jasta Boelcke) on occasion. On 21 March he was flying with Jasta 2 near Lagnicourt, over the Australian lines when he became separated from the other aircraft in the squadron. He was attacked by Lieutenant Charles Edward Murray Pickthorn, a pilot with 32 Squadron Royal Flying Corps. Although his engine was shot through and he was wounded in the foot he managed to land in no man's land about 200 metres in front of the Australian front line. Prince Friedrich tried to run across no man’s land to the German lines, but unfortunately for him, members of B Squadron, 13th Light Horse Regiment were patrolling on foot in the area, and men of the 26th Infantry Battalion were in forward posts nearby. Realising they could not catch him, the Australians opened fire. He was shot in the back and fell into a shallow trench before being captured and taken away by stretcher for treatment. Both the 13th Light Horse Regiment and the 26th Infantry Battalion laid claim to capturing the prince and even today there is no agreement on who shot and captured Prince Friedrich Karl. The 13th Light Horse Regiment claimed that Sergeant Robert Henry Tuff was responsible. Tuff recorded his experiences in letters to his family, which were later published in Australian newspapers. Tuff claimed he shot the fleeing German in the back before following him out into no man’s land. Although other Australians were still firing, Tuff continued to advance and found the German lying in a shallow trench. Tuff remained with him until a stretcher arrived and took a statement where the German revealed his identity. While they waited, Tuff recalled Prince Friedrich gripping his hand tightly due to the pain and that the prince feared being further wounded by shells bursting nearby. When the stretcher arrived, Tuff handed the prince over to a major from the 26th Battalion and returned to his patrol. In 1919 Tuff was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for his work during the Bapaume operations in March 1917 and his work in September 1918. The former includes the period when the prince was wounded. Firmly believing he shot and captured the prince, and recognising its potential significance, Tuff handed his rifle in to the Australian War Records Section in December 1917 so that it could be added to the National Collection. In the late 1920s he donated a photograph of Prince Friedrich he acquired as a reminder of the events of the day. Concerned that the 13th Light Horse was receiving the glory for capturing a German prince, the 26th Battalion sent their account of events to Australian official war correspondent C.E.W. Bean. They claimed that Corporal Edward Powell had shot the prince and that Private Clare Hall had captured him. Interestingly, while Tuff makes no mention of another soldier remaining with him and the prince while waiting for the stretcher, Hall’s account does mention an unnamed light horseman being present through much of the event (Tuff), although Hall is adamant that he reached the prince first and captured him, not “the light horseman”. After greeting the wounded German, Hall took his hat and gloves and, when Tuff arrived, left the prince in his care while Hall walked a few metres away to “pump ship” (urinate). Hall did not believe Tuff when he said the prisoner was a prince and replied that "No matter what he is, he is a Fritz & the S.bs. [stretcher bearers] are coming & will take him in if worthwhile", which they eventually did. The 26th Battalion’s account gained currency with Bean and he used it when writing about the event in the Australian official histories of the war. Prince Friedrich’s aircraft was dragged back behind a small copse during the evening and the next day was handed to 32nd Squadron Royal Flying Corps, who dismantled it and took it away. Although badly wounded, the prince was courteous and friendly throughout his captivity and the general opinion of the medical staff and Tuff was that he was a "good sort". This opinion was repeated in the press when the news of his capture was reported. The prince was initially treated for his wounds at a British casualty clearing station at Edgehill, where he was operated on by the 5th Army Consulting Surgeon, Sidney Maynard Smith. He appeared to be healing but a week later suffered a secondary haemorrhage from his kidney and was operated on again and later evacuated to Rouen to continue recovering. However, he did not recover and on his 24th birthday on 6 April 1917, Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia died of his wounds at the military hospital at Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray and was buried nearby. Attempts were soon made from Germany, via a neutral nation (possibly Spain, as the Spanish king was keeping Prince Friedrich’s family updated on his condition), to return his remains to Germany. This was deemed impossible at the time, but was one of the issues raised during the Armistice Commission’s negotiations in 1919. His body was later exhumed and reburied at the family cemetery at Schloss Glienicke, Potsdam, where it remains today. Sources, various via AWM - Australian War Memorial: 14 May 2018 by Dianne Rutherford https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/blog/Prince-Friedrich
  28. Fritz
    Saw this nice DJ - Deutsches Jungvolk buckle online, so I have now purchased it. Now very hard to find. They were usually nickel plated around the contrasting gold coloured "S". The buckle took over a week to arrive. Condition is slightly battered and with a couple of dents more pronounced than the original impression, sides towards one end slightly bent. This is a typical feature of items used by the HJ and DJ. There is an RZM mark and "36" to the rear. Nickel plated brass with an iron roller bar with some old corrosion, patina and wear. Rare to find nowadays compared to the normal HJ buckle. Two HJ enamelled badges, to the left is the version for attaching to the cap with double flat prongs - M1/101, the other version is a simple member's badge with a safety pin fitting to the rear - M1/150, both RZM marked, some remains of silver finish.
  29. Fritz
    If you use water, make sure it dries properly, otherwise more rust will be caused. I could also suggest a further alternative, using petroleum - not car petrol!!! But as known as "lamp oil", sometimes referred to as parafin oil, used to be for small heaters etc., not so much in use today. Soaking and rubbing the helmet surface (using a clean soft cloth or wadding) with parafin oil and letting it dry naturally will also loosen up and remove rust to a certain extent and will also brighten the paintwork a little. If using this, be sure to place in a well aired area (free from dampness) and avoid inhaling any vapours, as these can be harmfull! This would have to be repeated several times, this is the best method of gentle and gradual rust removal without harming the originality of the piece.
  30. Fritz
    That must be a very valuable badge. I had a beautifull copy nearly 50 years ago, it didn't cost much and was a superb re-strike.
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