Sword, Stein and Print - Kurmärk Drag. Regt. Nr. 14

[Stephane]

Dear Forum Friend,

I'm quite excited about my new acquisition and I thought I would share it with you guys! It a Kavallerie-Degen Modell 1889 (KD 89) with engraved blade and blue panel; a beer stein named to Einj. Frein. Wahl; and a print featuring a picture of the original owner, carrying a KD 89 and holding a beer stein. All these item reportedly belonged to the same man who served with the Kurmärk Dragoon Regiment Nr. 14, which was garrisoned in Colmar. This town is located in Alsace, France. The French provinces of Alsace and Lorraine were annexed to Germany after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71 and returned to France after the First World War. They were annexed to Germany again in 1939.

[Stephane]

A close up of the blue panel. Do any of you guys know when the scabbard of the KD 89 was changed from two suspension rings to one ring, and when the black painted finish replace the nickel finish?

[Stephane]

A picture of the Stein. It is named to Einji. Frein. Wahl. Unfortunately, I do not know what the abbreviation Einji. Frein means. Anybody knows?

[Stephane]

Finally the print, it has a few humidity stains, However, I consulted with someone who does book and paper conservation and these can be removed. Notice that the face of the trooper is actually a picture of the original owner.

[gregM]

That looks like a very nice grouping.

[90th Light]

A picture of the Stein. It is named to Einji. Frein. Wahl. Unfortunately, I do not know what the abbreviation Einji. Frein means. Anybody knows?

Excellent grouping, I have no problem believing that all those items are to one Dragoon. The photo type is very hard to find and would have cost big money when new/ ordered.

"Einji. Frein" means "one year volunteer". In most cases, this type of conscript had to pay for his own uniform/ equipment. They were usually from well to do families which had the money to afford this. Probably why he could buy a sword, stein and photo. He may also have purchased other remembrances also such as a flask, pipe, cup/sauce for his mother & father.

The reason for the one year volunteers is so they could return and complete their studies to join the professions or they went into officer training after only one year as a conscript. They were often off-spring from positions of wealth, power and connection in society,

Chris

[Stephane]

Thank you Greg and Chris for your kind words and excellent information. I was wondering why the stein showed a time of service from 1903 to 1904, when the usual lenght of training in the cavalry was three years. A one year volunteer would have served for one year instead of three, say from the fall of 1903 to the fall of 1904.

[teckman]

Rosters

Would you put on pics of the two rosters?

[bobgee526]

VERRRRY nice Imperial grouping. It has been well cared for through the years. Congrats! Bob

[Stephane]

Thanks again for the nice comments. As requested I'm posting pictures of the two rosters. There are two "one year volunteers" and there names are written in a darker ink by a different hand than the Gefreiters and the Reservists. Perhaps the name of the "one year volunteers" were written by hand and the others names are part of a transfer.

[teckman]

The other interesting thing to note is the small cross after the name that I believe is Koberstein. That is an indication that he died during service.

[pzrwest]

Just curious did a one year volunteer go home after the one year period or did they remain for the rest of the war? Or did the one year volunteer only apply to peace times?

[ROBB]

Very impressive grouping , congratulations . Rob

[xxGDxx]

Very nice grouping.

I like it a lot!

GD

[90th Light]

The other interesting thing to note is the small cross after the name that I believe is Koberstein. That is an indication that he died during service.

Good observation, I failed to see that. Not an easy thing to find on a stein and only adds to the interest of the item. It is sad that soldier did not make it. I wonder what happened to him.

These old Imperial steins are real time capsules with what they reveal. In this case a 112 year old time capsule,

Chris