A token offering

[Tony & Kaiser]

In a sad attempt to prove that I do in fact, have a few awards and not just piles of Dunkelblau tunics, here is an EK1 plucked of the breast of one of those tunics. It is 800 marked, and scratched into the back is (what appears to be) "Hervlog". (?) However, nothing will convince me that this was "scratched onto the cross with a bayonet" as some dealers are fond of claiming. Yea. Right........ Tony
<img src="http://www.kaisersbunker.com/stuff/ek1.jpg" border="0" alt="" vspace="8" hspace="4">

[Newlyn]

Inscription

Tony, ye of little faith, I reckon somebody with a steady hand, wielding a Butcher Knife could have spent a happy half hour hacking away in his trench ! Nice cross though. Cheers, Newlyn

[RoyA]

Hey Tony,
You're right....a very sad attempt
Sorry, I couldn't resist.
Very nice EK old boy.
Still waiting for a pic of Nina, wearing a pickelhaube, nothing else
Roy

[Bill M]

--Nice cross, nicer fantasy!
{I'd take Tommy's second wife, though! }

[Dez H]

Looks like a very nice Wagner & Sohn cross.

[Tony & Kaiser]

But.......

Its a nice EK, but look at the tunic it is on. Riesenflugzeugabteilung 501 (Giant
Aircraft Detachment 501) a Sergeant's Model 1910 Flieger tunic. The flash tends to brighten-up decorations. Tony
<img src="http://www.kaisersbunker.com/flieger/f01.jpg" border="0" alt=""

[Rick Research]

Ooooooooo, that is FINE!!! Is that a Saxon St Henry Medal ribbon peeping out under the EK ribbon?

Great "England bomber" tunic!

[Tony & Kaiser]

I don't know?

I thought it was a 1910 Saxon Cross of Merit ribbon? I have no-idea, so I just took this picture. Gotta love digital cameras! Tragically, and typically, the tunic has no name. Tony
<img src="http://www.kaisersbunker.com/flieger/f01e.jpg" border="0" alt=""

[Rick Research]

Nooooooo... that is a Saxon St Henry Medal, probably in Silver, beccause there were so few in Gold.

Unfortunately, Neal O'Connor's Saxon volume (pre-Autengruber award rolls books) lists the recipients as they were at the time... with security "with a flying unit" and not specified.

Now if Stogie-Rick (The Collector Formerly Known as "Saxonfreak" ) STILL has his Autengruber Silver St Henry roll, he could run down looking for 501, or for a "Bogohl" bombing connection.

What the heck-- it's going to be snowing again for days!!!

[Tony & Kaiser]

St Henry you say?

Thank you Rick, shows you how little I know of medals. I changed the tunic page on Kaiser's Bunker to reflect that the ribbon is for a Saxon St Henry Medal (in Silver).

I think it would be very hard to track a soldier down to a specific Flying Unit, they tended to move around considerably more than soldiers in other arms. There were also high fatalities. Not a single Staaken was shot down over the UK, but 11 were lost in Rfa501 alone during landing accidents with high casualties. Peter Grosz author of the "The German Giants" was kind enough to give me a list of all R-Plane casualties by name, and there are pages of them.

Coincidentally, in the book is a picture of the crew of Staaken R IV after the war standing by the bomber (Pg 234). Detail for detail the man on the right is wearing my tunic.
<img src="http://www.kaisersbunker.com/flieger/f01r.jpg" border="0" alt=""

[ccj]

Hey Tony,

I tried to tell you a year ago that the ribbon is the St Henry medal in Silver. I guess you gotta be an expert before people will listen.
All is forgiven though as long as you sell me that tunic when the day comes to part with it.

[Tony & Kaiser]

Oops!

Charles, I must have missed that somehow and I would never ignore advice from someone who is more knowledgeable than me. I strive to correct errors. If it had registered with me, I would have changed it immediately. When it comes to medals and ribbons, you have to be specific, I see the uniform but sometimes it has a colored ribbon of some sort. (?) I'll pay attention next time. Tony

[Tony Farrell]

Staaken Crewman

Wow! A tunic from a Staaken crewman? Being an 'aeroplane head' & an aircraft engineer by trade, I find this particularly interesting, as the Staakens were truly amazing feats of engineering for their time. Even by today's standards they were huge.
If that picture is of 'yer man', then that's brilliant. The use of individual unit badges making the whole thing easier than trying to pin down an RFC tunic to a unit. Excellent stuff! Here's a webpage on the Staakens, with some belting shots:
Zeppelin Staaken Site

[RoyA]

Tony,
That stunning tunic is the centrepiece of your collection (except perhaps for your GKR helm)!
Tell me it's not true that you want to be buried with it.....

[Rick Research]

Putting a name to this tunic is not entirely hopeless. There were only three aviation recipients of the Gold Medal--none of whom match... and 55 of the Silver.

Of those 55, 3 can get chucked out right away (A naval Petty Officer, a Gefreiter in mid 1918, and a Feldwebelleutnant). Four more got theirs in "fighter" units (no other unit ID)--we're down to 48.

Other than a few Unteroffiziere (and this could be a "Sergeant" tunic), all the rest were Vizefeldwebels or Vizewachtmeisters.

I've got the roll for Saxon Honor Cross with Swords recipients, which may winnow a few more out. And I THINK Stogie-Rick still has the St Henry Silver Medal Roll, a speedy perusing of which would reveal what actual units the "48" were in.

Those are good odds for "getting lucky."