Over the years there have on many occasions been suggestions of Deumer manufacturing the Knight’s Cross. One of my acquaintances, a fluent German speaker actually phoned them on one occasions and was able to speak to someone in senior management, who confirmed that the Knight’s Cross was not amongst the items they had manufactured.
The existence of an RK with a crude L/11 mark was explained as an RK which had probably been bought in from another manufacturer for use in a company display along with their own firms EKs and marked with their LDO mark as a kind of “property” stamp.<O
I’m pleased to say that thanks to new member Dave Bloor and I have been looking at some new evidence on the Deumer connection.The RK I am about to show is in a UK regimental museum, and its provenance has been logged in museum records.Museum records show that this piece was donated by a Major General WFH Kempster having been acquired at Bremen on the 16 April 45 from a General von Kramer who had the piece (exactly as it is here, mounted on this card ) amongst his belongings.Kempster certainly existed and his record is well documented
(KEMPSTER, Walter Francis Herbert (1909-1952), Major General
Service biography-Commissioned, King's Shropshire Light Infantry 1929; North West Europe and Palestine, World War II 1939-1945 )
There is no suggestion that this mystery German General was a Ritterkreuzträger or why he would have this in his baggage. The name may also have been mis-spelled, or he may have been General-Staff rather than an actual General.
Okay, here is a teaser shot to get things started. Note the Deumer mark on this display card, and the typical shortened and folded piece of ribbon. Compare with the photo of the Brit soldier posing with a chest-full of looted medals including the RK with Steinhauer “big” Swords, and the way the ribbon is cut and folded for display
The existence of an RK with a crude L/11 mark was explained as an RK which had probably been bought in from another manufacturer for use in a company display along with their own firms EKs and marked with their LDO mark as a kind of “property” stamp.<O
I’m pleased to say that thanks to new member Dave Bloor and I have been looking at some new evidence on the Deumer connection.The RK I am about to show is in a UK regimental museum, and its provenance has been logged in museum records.Museum records show that this piece was donated by a Major General WFH Kempster having been acquired at Bremen on the 16 April 45 from a General von Kramer who had the piece (exactly as it is here, mounted on this card ) amongst his belongings.Kempster certainly existed and his record is well documented
(KEMPSTER, Walter Francis Herbert (1909-1952), Major General
Service biography-Commissioned, King's Shropshire Light Infantry 1929; North West Europe and Palestine, World War II 1939-1945 )
There is no suggestion that this mystery German General was a Ritterkreuzträger or why he would have this in his baggage. The name may also have been mis-spelled, or he may have been General-Staff rather than an actual General.
Okay, here is a teaser shot to get things started. Note the Deumer mark on this display card, and the typical shortened and folded piece of ribbon. Compare with the photo of the Brit soldier posing with a chest-full of looted medals including the RK with Steinhauer “big” Swords, and the way the ribbon is cut and folded for display
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