General's tropical peaked caps

[Lodsworth]

I've been looking into the WW2 German Generals' tropical peaked cap and wondered if any members had any clear photos of these which might help move the topic along. Here're a couple of mine — not really high enough resolution to do much with.
Mike
Karl Böttcher first

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

Wather Nehring
They don't show too well on these photos but both these caps sport a wide soutache similar to that often seen on Generals continental sidecaps

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

Walter Neumann-Silkow with Ludwig Crüwell (wearing the squashed cap). Neumann-Silkow's cap does not have the wide soutache.

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

And some other people's photos.
Böttcher again and Ulrich Kleemann (if anyone has higher resolution versions of these or knows who might, I would be greatful if you would post them, or put me in touch with their owners.

[Lodsworth]

g

I think this might be Kleemann as well — from a colourized movie.

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

Georg Bismarck, Alfred Gause, Hülsen (I think), and Hülsen and von Vaerst (with hands in pockets). Gause and Hülsen seem to have the wide soutache — Bismarck and von Vaerst, probably not.

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

And elsewhere in the Mediterranean, Muller, Kreipe and Hube. Both Muller's and Kreipe have the wide soutache. And you'll notice that Muller's cap has a sweatband, like a Kubach, and doesn't Hube's cap look like a Kern?
I've also looked at photos of caps worn in the southern Soviet Union, but generally these appear not to be General's caps.
Comments please.
Cheers
Mike

[OSS]

A thorough and excellent study of tropical field caps worn by General Officers! They clearly appear to show the use of gold piping and gold soutache on many examples. I don't recall ever encountering an original one in many years of looking.

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

Nehring again — from a well known postcard (this image cropped from that shown in Bender and Law). As you can see, Generals' caps with a wide soutache worn in the desert are all pretty similar, and have standard, not fancy tailor-made tropical insignia. This is the only photo I've seen, which gives a hint of insignia attachment. I'd be particularly interested if someone has a higher resolution scan of the original postcard. Some of you will have seen the photos posted by John Hodgin of a tropical tailor-made for von Hülsen — it is utterly different (and utterly different from the cap worn by him in the previously uploaded photos), as is the photo of the thin-soutached cap worn by Von Vaerst.

[Lodsworth]

General's tropical peaked cap

These caps are worn by Generals commanding in the Kuban or Crimea: Erwin Jaenecke, Jaenecke and Allmendinger (cropped from a photo posted on WAF, labelled PK archives), and Emil Vogel. Jaenecke and Vogel are wearing other ranks/enlisted mens' caps. Allmendinger's is an officers' cap with a sweatband but who knows if its a Generals' cap or not. In Africa, von Thoma also seems to have worn an ORs cap.

The last photo shows a Generals' continental sidecap with a wide soutache similar to those on the tropical caps worn by Nehring, Kleemann etc.

[pauke]

Nehring

During a visit with Nehring on 6 Aug. 1982 (the date is in the book he signed for me) I did asked him a unjform question but his reply was that he wore whatever he was given and it was no particular concern for him. He had a very pleasant personality and was totally into the moment (3 hours) when talking about the Panzerwaffe. He certainly wasn't a dandy when it came to dress. The only souvenir of his time in Africa he had was an engraved silver platter from his staff officers' corps. His birthday was about to be celebrated and the special guest was to be his "Bursche" or orderly. His delightful wife was considerably younger and it was a most interesting visit.

[Lodsworth]

I did asked him a unjform question but his reply was that he wore whatever he was given

One could read a lot into that.
Thanks
Mike

[BenVK]

Interesting subject, cool photos.

Here's a well known photo of Hans Cramer wearing a cap with bullion kokarde and I think flatwire eagle.

[billbert]

A very elusive beast..another I’ve never seen but exists is a bahnschutz bergmutze
Billbert

[Lodsworth]

Generals' tropical peaked caps

Here are a couple more of von Vaerst after capture (from Newsreel footage). Ordinary tropical insignia, hand-sewn cockade, no extra stitching for sweatband, but a narrow soutache. In this photo the officer with the wide soutache that I've been calling Hülsen, looks more like Fritz Krause.