Bavarian Military Merit Order Paperwork: Not Just Pretty Blue Enamel

[Rick Research]

While shiny, bright, twinkling gold and translucent enamel may be pretty to look at, these awards were won by officers for bravery in combat. The paperwork tells the real stories.

Here is an award document for the 4th Class with swords awarded to Hauptmann Julius Bielke 8 January 1915 per 29 December 1914 authorization:

Julius Bielke was born in Strassburg 16 April 1878, and served in the Bavarian army 15 July 1898 to 31 March 1920 as a Foot Artillery officer. Leutnant 7.3.00, Oberleutnant 25.6.10, Hauptmann 20.10.14 (later backdated to 18.10.13 to achieve parity with the more rapidly promoted Prussian officer corps), and brevet Major aD 27.12.20.

Note that the award document calls him "Hauptmann and Battery Chief in the 3rd Foot Artillery Regiment." As it happened, he did command the 6th Battery of Bavarian Fssa. Rgt 3 from June 1914 to the end of 1915.

However, an oddity of ALL Bavarian award documents for Bavarian awards (all used standard printed forms like this) was that the reference to unit and position was for the PRE-WAR affiliation of the recipient!

These awards were gazetted throughout the war in the public "Personal Nachrichten," and this was apparently considered a "security" measure. For military personnel without any pre-war unit affiliation, the designation would be "in a Reserve Infantry Regiment" or whatever, not actually identifying the unit. Rather bizarre!

Bielke received this MMO4X for exceptionally important action by Bielke's mortar battery on 19 August 1914 (note the time delay in processing), when he destroyed the entire 1st Battalion of the French 37th Field Artillery Regiment, which had itself knocked out the 1st Bavarian Infantry Division's field artillery unit by counter-battery fire. 12 French guns and 15 ammunition carriages were captured.

On 26-27 August 1914, Bielke's battery pounded the French Fort Mannonviller into surrendering.

Bielke's battery was also crucial in reducing the French Fort Camp des Romans, which surrendered with 500 prisoners of war.

Between 16-18 November 1914 Bielke's mortar fire caused the surrender of 4 French officers and 200 African troops at Chauvoncourt.

For these actions, he had also received a Prussian Iron Cross 2nd Class per order of 4 October 1914.

[Rick Research]

But pretty blue enamel and precious metal Orders cost the National Treasury money. They were not GIVEN to the recipients--they were merely "loaned" for their lifetimes.

Here we have the receipt for the MMO4X above, acknowledging that he had received his decoration.

Notice that some clerk back in Munich has "thoughtfully" underlined in bold red the little section which states that the recipient promises to take good care of his Order and "after his death" see that his heirs return it. When signed and dated "At the Command Post east of St. Mihiel," such thoughts of mortality would not have been welcome, much!

but there is more to this than that macabre thought. If an officer received a higher grade, he was obligated to return the lower before the new decoration was placed in his hands.

At the bottom see the notation from the Orders Chancery in Munich 17 July 1918 that they HAD received the pretty blue MMO4X back, so Captain Bielke could therefore be given his NEW decoration--and this receipt back as proof of return.

[Rick Research]

And here is Hauptmann Bielke's award document for his Military Merit Order 4th Class with Swords AND CROWN, issued 14 June 1918 per 30 May 1918. Notice that it STILL calls Bielke "Captain and Battery Chief in the 3rd Foot Artillery Regiment"--his PRE-WAR assignment:

He had, in fact, been the commander of IInd Battalion, Bavarian Reserve Foot Artillery Regiment 2 since 7 April 1917--a position he held until 13 January 1919.

All Foot Artillery units were chopped up and dispersed willy nilly throughout the wartime Imperial German army, often individual companies from various units being assembled into composite units. None ever functioned at higher than battalion level. Because they were the heavy frontline guns, these units were often assigned a permanent sector, and remained at that part of the front continuously, while Corps and even Armies came and went.

Bielke had received an Iron Cross 1st Class in 1916 while a Bavarian foot artillery battalion commander under the Prussian sector heavy artillery "regimental" equivalent command then subordinated to the 1st Bavarian Infantry Division.

This Order was granted for action around Armentieres 9 April-23 May 1918, where Bielke's battalion suffered heavy losses due to open terrain and having no prepared positions to fight from in the fluid advances and retreats of 1918.

He himself, miraculously, was never wounded during the war. After service in the Provisional Reichsheer, he became a Reichsbank inpector in Stuttgart, which is where I lose his paper trail in 1938 (40 Years Civil Service Cross). Presumably he was recalled for WW2 service and would have been an Oberstleutnant zV in either the army or perhaps Luftwaffe.

He was a contributor to the book "Bavaria's Heavy Artillery in the World War," and personal details are from his Auszug aus der Kriegsrangliste in the Bavarian Military Archives.

[Daniel Cole]

Here's the decoration with crown and swords. Marked "J.L. 950". Jacob Leser

[Rick Research]

Ahh! Early war with gold centers! Leser made the best MVOs, in my opinion.

[stogieman]

And of course, here it is cased!

Nice cased one with crown and sords:<br>
<img src=http://www.imperialorders.com/collectionpix/bmvo4cs1.jpg>
<img src=http://www.imperialorders.com/collectionpix/bmvo4cs2.jpg>
<img src=http://www.imperialorders.com/collectionpix/bmvo4cs3.jpg>
<br>
Nice cased one, no crown:<br>
<img src=http://www.imperialorders.com/collectionpix/bavmmo41.jpg>
<img src=http://www.imperialorders.com/collectionpix/bavmmo42.jpg>
<img src=http://www.imperialorders.com/collectionpix/bavmmo43.jpg>