Freiw legion Flandern - Langemarck website

[dEVIL]

Great updates Luc !

[Ruimteaapje]

Well, as I've allready told you through email: I'm glad for you that experts told you that the crusher cap is "100%" original but that does not make it Knittel's crusher cap, the story behind the cap is way to muddy and unlikely for that.

For starters, you stated that it's supposedly Knittel's crusher from his Junkerschule days that somehow ended up in an attic find in the Ardennes and that you and the seller did not know who Knittel was.

Gustav Knittel attended the Junkerschule Tolz from October 1937 to July 1938. But SS-Junkers and SS-Oberjunkers wore Schiffchen and officer-style Schirmmütze. Your cap is an NCO Schirmmütze.

None of the photos I have of Knittel which were taken during his time in Bad Tolz show him with your cap. It's all Schiffchen in Aufsicht A with only their supervisor SS-Obersturmführer Krause wearing a crushed visor.

Knittel is notorious for his role in the Ardennes Offensive but that was six years after his time in Bad Tolz. By then he was an SS-Sturmbannführer and all photos taken of Knittel during the Ardennes Offensive show him with an M43 Feldmütze. Also note that the crusher is said to have been found some 45 km west from where Knittel was during the battle. Your suggestion that Knittel might have taken the crusher with him to the Ardennes is very far fetched.

So in the end we have an original early nco crusher with Knittel's name and SS-No written on the label in block letters thus obscuring any resemblance to Knittel's usual script. We don't know when the name and number were added, we don't know why they were added and we don't know who added them.

updated my website with some new items.. www.military.be

[Kurt Meyer]

What a killer cap
What's next ? The black version of it ?

[Luc]

Thanks for your input.<O</O
<O</O

I made some extra research on the cap of Gustav Knittel. <O</O
<O</O

His son is IMO the only person who can certify that the name in the cap was written by his father Gustav Knittel himself. So I had contact with him and asked him two things:
<O</OIf there still exist pictures of him during his time in Bad Tölz (1937/1938) and <O</O
can he certify that the name was written by his father .
<O</O
<O</O
Today I got this mail from the son of Gustav Knittel...<O</O
<O</O

Sehr geehrter Herr D. B., die Militärbilder sind nicht mehr vorhanden; die Schrift an der Mütze ist eindeutig Seine. Ich denke diese wurde im Dez.44 nach Stavelot entsorgt. Für heute verbleibe ich mit freundlichem Gruss. Dr.Knittel

Some experts saw the cap and it is 100% textbook and now the son also confirmed that the name was written by G. Knittel himself. So I’m very happy with this cap.
<O</O

[Ruimteaapje]

Interesting because I got a different reply. But don't worry, I'll ask him again

[Wim Vangossum]

Love the update, Luc.


Regards, Wim