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High Quality WW1 Photos - Central Powers


Gildwiller1918

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Photo of a German raiding party, of interest is the man on the far right with a captured French semi-automatic, gas-operated RSC (Ribeyrolle, Sutter, Chauchat) model 1917, or F.A. 17 (Fusil Automatique 17). It had a capacity of 5 bullets, but as it was semi-automatic, it is claimed to have a rate of 30 shots per minute. It was not especially popular with the French troops as they though it too heavy and unwieldy for trench warfare. 

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Photo of Bulgarian troops posing with captured and collected weapons/ordinance. Of note is the Chauchat on the left and Kugel grenades on the right.

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Image of a Krupp 420mm gun, the Big Bertha. Note the size of the men byt the breech. It was a beast to be sure, weighing in at 42,000 kilos with a range of 9300 meters. This gun could fire a shell weighing anywhere from 400-1600 kilos. The shell craters made by this gun were 9 meters wide and 6 six deep if set for impact detonation. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

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Not a photo, but an iconic picture: Prisoners of War in Dinan, France, 1914

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It is still very nice and detailed Fritz, good representation of the early war uniforms.

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Captured Mk IV British tank, a good view of the field gear on the troops. Typically you do not see this view of their gear in period photos. 

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Here is a post war image of street fighting in Berlin in 1919. Germany was in a state of upheaval after the war, and scenes like this were common for a time. Of particular note are the helmets by the soldiers on the left and right, they have a distinctive look, which are called the M18 cut-out helmet by collectors. These helmets were made by Eisenhuttenwerke and all are marked "ET64". Nearly 100,000 were made and also had a heat lot stamp in the dome which usually started with the letter "R" and had 6 characters following. These helmets are very rare today and some examples have gone over $10,000. Copies and fakes are very common for this helmet. 

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Nice view of the Bergmann MG15 n.A. which was designed in 1910, it was modified to make it lighter for aircraft and infantry use and was in service from 1916-1919. This light machine gun could fire about 500-600 rounds per minute, and weighed 28 lbs. These guns were supposed to be used as a stopgap until the MG 08/15 could be fielded in large numbers, however most of these guns actually wounded up in the Eastern and Palestine Campaigns. It was a fairly decent weapon, but it tended to overheat after sustained fire of over 250 rounds. Its biggest limitation was that only around 6,000 were made, so it did not make a huge impact on the war effort. 

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The second image shows the Mg 15 behind the soldiers in the foreground. Note the 20 round magazine extensions on the Mauser rifles. 

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Good view of assault troops, they have the grenade sacks around their necks, as well as the long handled shovels which are attached to the shoulder straps. The center man also has the long handle wire cutters which was hung by a metal clip that hooked to the belt. The second image shows detail of this. 

(image source, internet)

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Image of a MG08 crew, but what is rare about this is the MG badge on the sleeves of the crew, these are very rare today and heavily faked. Below is a image of the badge as well. 

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Photos, Langemarck, 1915-1917

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That's a beast of a gun! I can't imagine how loud that must have been when it went off. Bet most of those guys had some hearing loss. 

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Some of the former WW1 participants with whom I spoke many years ago were indeed hard of hearing, and that was not just old age.

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German observation balloon being inflated by men in the foreground. While providing a good view of the surrounding area, balloon crews were vulnerable to enemy fire and initially did not have much means of escape. Also communications between the balloon crew and the ground was rudimentary at first, but along with most things became more advanced as the war went on. 

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Nice view of troops with what appears to be a 10cm, Kanone 17 which were often used in the counter-battery role, often paired with the 15cm gun. Note the various instruments that the troops have. 

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Schneekanone!

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Quite possibly Fritz, got to keep ones self entertained! 

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Another often overlooked piece of equipment, the delousing wagon. Troops coming off the line would deposit their clothes into the wagon to get rid of lice, it worked fairly well until the soldiers went back into the areas loaded with lice, which was pretty much anywhere near a battlefield. However it was a good psychological boost, just be clean if only for a short time did wonders for morale. 

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Detailed photo of troops sheltering underground. The Germans by far had much more extensive underground structures and protective areas than the allies. Often, when captured allied troops were in shock at the level of protection and comfort their opponents enjoyed. 

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Image of GeneralFeldMarschall Anton Ludwig Friedrich August von Mackensen. He gained notariety for his actions in East Prussia/Russia, especially for the battles at Tannenberg and the First Battle of the Masurian Lakes, in which he led the led the XVII Corps. He was awarded Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest military order, for successful battles around Łódź and Warsaw. He also served in a joint campaign with the Austrians. Mackensen was awarded oak leaves to his Pour le Mérite on 3 June 1915 and promoted to field marshal on 22 June. He also received the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking order of knighthood, as well as numerous honorus from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph, the highest military honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on 4 June 1915. He was described as a very aggressive commander with the instincts of a hunter. He was one of nearly 900 accused or war crimes after the war, but was never tried. 

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Nice image of a WW1 sniper, with a 3 power scope made by C.P. Goerz. You can also see the leather carrying case for the optic on his hip. 

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On 15/07/2020 at 02:24, Gildwiller1918 said:

Image of GeneralFeldMarschall Anton Ludwig Friedrich August von Mackensen. He gained notariety for his actions in East Prussia/Russia, especially for the battles at Tannenberg and the First Battle of the Masurian Lakes, in which he led the led the XVII Corps. He was awarded Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest military order, for successful battles around Łódź and Warsaw. He also served in a joint campaign with the Austrians. Mackensen was awarded oak leaves to his Pour le Mérite on 3 June 1915 and promoted to field marshal on 22 June. He also received the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking order of knighthood, as well as numerous honorus from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph, the highest military honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on 4 June 1915. He was described as a very aggressive commander with the instincts of a hunter. He was one of nearly 900 accused or war crimes after the war, but was never tried. 

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Notoriety? He was not a criminal

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The Leipzig War Crimes Trials were a series of trials held in 1921 in which only 12 alleged criminals were brought before the courts. Article 228 allowed the allied powers to try any German accused of war crimes, even the Kaiser was charged and the allies wanted him to be extradited. The trials were seen sort of as a joke as the sentences were very light and others saw it as a disservice to justice. In 1922, these trials were abandoned.  Although Mackensen was a decorated and respected leader, I suspect that some of the victors wanted revenge of sorts. 

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Interesting device that supposedly enhanced the sound of enemy artillery and muzzle flashes, no idea on how effective this was. Airplanes typically made items such as this obsolete for reconnaissance purposes.  

Photo source, internet

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Speaking of aerial recon, here is another interesting endeavor. Time release camera strapped to a pigeon, in the hopes of catching some images of enemy emplacements. 

Photo source, internet

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