WW1 feldmutze Edelweiss

[jusmct]

Hi all
I am new to your forum but here goes.Can anyone describe or picture what an Alpenkorps Edelweiss looks like as to the size,attachment style,markings etc for a WW1 enlisted ranks Feldmutze ? I have a feldmutz that has a Karpathenkorps badge and you can see where there was once an Edelweiss attached on the side and I am trying to find an original to replace the missing one.
Thanks Joe T

[Daniel Murphy]

Joe,
I used to have one, and maybe still do somewhere. They were similar in size to the WW2 version (Probably slightly larger) and do not have the stem and bud the WW2 has. Just the flower itself. They are also sewn on with about 8 holes in the ends of the petals of the flower. I wish I had a picture but I hope this helps.
Dan Murphy

[jusmct]

Thanks for the reply
It sure does help.Were any of them made with pinbacks and about 1 1/8" in diameter ?There is one on Ebay but I am not sure of it and the seller has a horrible feedback. Thanks
Joe T

[Chip M]

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[Chip M]

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[Chip M]

Joe,

May we see the cap? Is the Karpathankorps insignia attached with split prongs or a pin back?

To my knowledge, a German Probe Edelweiss piece does not exist, so we cannot be absolutely sure what one looked like. I would imagine that the original ones were Austrian examples, as I believe that these were granted while the troops were still serving with the Austrian army.

Everyone that I know who thinks they have one, has a different type. I read somewhere that many of the early types worn by German troops were their own examples, which they had worn as members of the German-Austrian Alpenverein.

Chip

[Chip M]

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[Chip M]

Sorry, I have no idea how that happened.

Chip

[Tom Y]

Here's one i believe to be German.

[jusmct]

Wow
Great picture.I don't have anyway to do pictures right now but am working on that.The Karpathenkorps badge is white colored with the leaves being a green color. It fastens to the cap with two bend over prongs on the back.

[epsomgreen]

Hi Joe:

I posted a few pictures of this Mütze at the pickelhaubes.com forum recently.





Hope this helps.

Charles

[Daniel Murphy]

Magificent!
Dan Murphy

[Mac]

here are the two sizes of the edelweissbadges, which were worn by austrian and german soldiers.
both sizes look the same way (sorry i have no front pic of the small one here)
the big one was worn on the feldmütze on the left side
the small one on a cap which looks like a barrett between the cockades

[Gilles C.]

"Everyone that I know who thinks they have one, has a different type"
Chip, I do agree with you (which is not always the case, each Caesar has his Brutus...)
Edelweiss badges/tinnies were already very popular in South Germany and among wanderers' clubs, and still are.
The above examples all look good, the kind of stuff you'd like to have in your collection. Maybe you are lucky enough to get them with other military items, but even though, you'll never be sure to have a "real military period" one. If you look at period photographs, you just see many different patterns, some of them have been produced and worn until now.

Regards
Gilles

[Mac]

the pattern i've shown is the one which was given to the germans (by the austrians) in 1915... (20000 badges were given to the german alpenkorps for the help in fighting, but i think you know the whole story...)