stasi marked visor hats?

[Rev462]

Obviously, they could go almost anywhere to accomplish their goal, but the man (if the theory of DDR being Stasi) would have been a more or less obvious Stasi-member... Would he had have a special task? Would he have worn a LuSK Uniform with MfS stamp?

Questions keep drifting up ^^

Jan,

You raise a very good question. I have never seen a "MfS" marked Navy, Air Defense or Air Force uniform, but our two hats suggest the possibility that such uniforms existed. I guess the jury will be out unless & until such a uniform is seen.

Yes, the situation keeps getting more mysterious. Why the hats were marked "DDR" rather than "MfS" is a mystery in itself. (I have seen "MfS" marked overseas hats & M43's from the pre-1962 era, but never a "MfS" marked visor hat. I presume they existed, but have no proof.)

One piece of evidence that (to me) is suggestive of the "DDR"/MfS connection comes from the color-piped era. All the visor hats piped with MfS Waffenfarbe that I have seen have either been private purchase or "DDR" marked. This includes pre-1962 hats that have been overpiped in white to conform to the 1962 piping regulations.

I have never seen a MfS piped hat marked "NVA". If one surfaces, that would cast doubt on the "DDR"/MfS theory - but to my knowledge there are no known examples.

[Rev462]

I recently saw a DDR marked ushanka that was listed on ebay. It was pretty small, like 55 or 56 so I did not bid on it, but it was pretty cheap. No more than $10

Yes, I forgot to mention the Ushanka. Thanks for bringing it up.

I have one with Army/Grenztruppen wreath, dated 1968. I'll be on the lookout for DDR marked Air Force & Navy Ushankas now.

[Jan Klaassen]

Jan,

You raise a very good question. I have never seen a "MfS" marked Navy, Air Defense or Air Force uniform, but our two hats suggest the possibility that such uniforms existed. I guess the jury will be out unless & until such a uniform is seen.

Yes, the situation keeps getting more mysterious. Why the hats were marked "DDR" rather than "MfS" is a mystery in itself. (I have seen "MfS" marked overseas hats & M43's from the pre-1962 era, but never a "MfS" marked visor hat. I presume they existed, but have no proof.)

One piece of evidence that (to me) is suggestive of the "DDR"/MfS connection comes from the color-piped era. All the visor hats piped with MfS Waffenfarbe that I have seen have either been private purchase or "DDR" marked. This includes pre-1962 hats that have been overpiped in white to conform to the 1962 piping regulations.

I have never seen a MfS piped hat marked "NVA". If one surfaces, that would cast doubt on the "DDR"/MfS theory - but to my knowledge there are no known examples.

Do you have some pictures of the Volksmarine DDR-stamped hat btw? I'm very anxious to see that

As for the theory and questions;

There are examples of GT, MfS and Wachrgt.F.Dzierzynski jackets with MfS stamp, so it would be a reassonable assumption to think that VM and LuSK/LV uniforms could have these as well...

Still I wonder; I understand that a Stasi-member has a good reason to be in the GT and at the borders (like the PKE) and (obviously) in the Wachrgt.FED. But what use is a Stasi-member in LuSK/LV and VM? We should have some literature on this, or an eye-witness from those days!

It would indeed have been very logical to stamp the hats MfS, but then the overcoats (which, as I seem to remember, could have a DDR/II stamp), if they are connected, should need a change too

In fact we should try to find a NVA-marked MfS-piped hat, as that would make us to throw away this theory, but as long as one doesn't surface, it has reason to exist

[Ralph P]

Jan - sorry I missed your earlier posts this past weekend.

I have done some thinking on this and my initial question is this. What stamped markings are found in the LuSK/LV and VM uniforms?

[Rev462]

Ralph,

In my experience I have seen the following markings on LSK/LV & VM uniforms:

"DDR/I" 1956-58

"NVA" 1959 - circa 1963

"TGL" circa 1964 - circa 1970

"NVA" circa 1970 - 1990

Remember that the LV didn't get their own uniforms until 1962, so "DDR/I" does not apply to them (unless they happened to be issued unused stocks of "DDR/I" marked LSK uniforms).

Jan,

Yes, the "DDR/II" marked greatcoats are yet another layer of the onion. I've handled several over the years, and off the top of my head they were all dated circa 1968 - 1977. I've seen both plain collar & dark collar examples.

[Jan Klaassen]

If I were you (= everybody that follows this thread), I would quickly add the pictures from the auction to any database you own, as the seller seems not at all willing to actually sell me this hat... I will try, but chances are it will pop up on ebay in some time again...