78 replies to this topic

[ph0ebus]

healdav, on 10 June 2012 - 04:54 PM, said:

The picture of the aircraft crash at Thiaucourt may be solveable.

In the German cemetery at Thiaucourt there are some French graves. I think at least one of them is of a pilot shot down in 1917. I'm speaking from memory, so will have to check when I'm there next (goodness knows when).

If anyone goes there, to find the graves, go through the entrance and bear left. The ground slopes down and there are a lot of sandstone German crosses. One of them is the pilot (in a line leading down the slope, and facing a an area which is an 1870 cemetery. The strange big concrete block over a mass grave right down at the bottom of the cemetery is a World War Two memorial to Germans who died in a POW camp in the next field.

Do you mind if a take a copy of that photo? It will all ad to something to say when I'm there.

In fact, I think there is another photo of that crash lurking on the internet somewhere, but there may have been several.

I absolutely would not mind one bit.  I would love to be able to identify the plane and pilot and if that would help than I'm all for it!

Daniel

[ph0ebus]

Can you make out what is on this man's shoulderboards?



This is one of the men from the Blinkstation photo.

This is a closeup of the man with the thousand yard stare...what happened to his shoulderboards?  Several of them men appear to have removed them?



-Daniel

[ph0ebus]

Hi all,

Jens over in the Feldgrau recommended this page as a resource for thise interested in Blinkstation equipment...it's great!

http://firstwartechn...rojecteurs.html

Based on the information provided, the rig appears to be a 'Blink M 16 Carl Zeiss Jena', (1916). If correct, the photo dates from 1916 or later.  One question answered...sort of!

Daniel

[ph0ebus]

So, did a rescan of the Blinkstation shouldboard...does this help?



Daniel

[fritz]

This is a closeup of the man with the thousand yard stare...what happened to his shoulderboards? Several of them men appear to have removed them?


The reason was that they wanted to hide their identity. The enemy or spies  should not see their unit.

Fritz

[johnt]

Just to say, as others have, that these are fascinating pictures - thanks for sharing.

John

[ph0ebus]

Fritz,

Naturally that makes sense, but also naturally, being still a relative newcomer to researching the Great War, I didn't even know that was allowed!  Was that officially sanctioned?

John, I am quite happy to share these.  They have sat in a box for the last 90+ years all but lost to the family and I can think of no more fitting way to honor the service and sacrifices my grandfather made (and men like him) than by sharing his story with others.

-Daniel

[ph0ebus]

So far, I have heard from some folks who, in analyzing the high-res scan of the schulterklappe, have indicated they believd the number to be either 190 or 186. What do you think?

-Daniel

[fritz]

ph0ebus, on 18 June 2012 - 11:34 AM, said:

Fritz,

Naturally that makes sense, but also naturally, being still a relative newcomer to researching the Great War, I didn't even know that was allowed!  Was that officially sanctioned?

Daniel,

no, this action was commanded. If possible the soldiers covered their regimental number with textile, like on my pic. If they were unable to manage it they put their shoulderboards off. I heart of an unit that had to stay on their position over a long time with heavy casualties. But there was no chance for replacement. So they tried to cover their weak situation in this way. If the enemy should find a death German his regiment was not to identify.

Fritz

Attached Files

•  Albert und Heinrich Krentel.jpg   21.63K   0 downloads

[TRAJAN]

Fritz, that look in the eyes... Chilling to think what those eyes have seen ... There is that famous photo from the Falklands conflict of a para during active combat with the same look and of course the equally famous Don McCullen's one from Vietnam which I think was actually titled 'The1,000 yard stare'...

 1000-yard-stare1-193x300.jpg   22.28K   0 downloads

A salutory reminder of what all those chaps at the sharp end in WWI and later went through.

Trajan

[fritz]

Fritz, that look in the eyes... Chilling to think what those eyes have seen ...



Hi Trajan,

my grandfather. He made some months before his experience on the Somme. A wonder that he survived. In those days nobody was interested in their psychological state (Arschbacken zusammenkneifen).

Fritz

[ph0ebus]

All,

I have woven these new photgraphs into my website about Emanuel's experiences in the war, here:

Gott Mit Uns: Prussian Field Artillery in the Great War

As always, feedback (additions, subtractions, corrections, etc.) would be great.  It's a labor of love and a work in progress...

-Daniel

[egbert]

Excellent website, we will remember them thanks to Daniel's devotion

[healdav]

ph0ebus, on 10 June 2012 - 09:37 PM, said:

I absolutely would not mind one bit.  I would love to be able to identify the plane and pilot and if that would help than I'm all for it!

Daniel

I was at the Thiaucourt cemetery yesterday. If you could let me have your e-mail address I will send the photo. I keep getting a message that it is too big to post here (which I don't understand at all

[ph0ebus]

healdav, on 17 July 2012 - 10:39 AM, said:

I was at the Thiaucourt cemetery yesterday. If you could let me have your e-mail address I will send the photo. I keep getting a message that it is too big to post here (which I don't understand at all

Hello,

Very exciting!  PM sent, and my sincerest thanks for both your interest in this mystery and your efforts to perhaps get to the bottom of it.

Take care,

-Daniel

[egbert]

egbert, on 09 June 2012 - 07:51 AM, said:

I have several pictures from same tank and they are taken 1916, most likely Somme-Py

You did not note the location of the tank picture in your website, did you?

[ph0ebus]

egbert, on 17 July 2012 - 11:36 AM, said:

You did not note the location of the tank picture in your website, did you?

Hi egbert,

Good point!  I will try and add that informtion this morning.  I have had so many positive developments on so many research fronts in recent weeks it has been hard to keep up with all of it.  I was given a brick of family documents (actually, more like a cinder block) relating to my great uncle Julius Strauß, mentioned in other GWF threads, which is shedding some new light on that branch of the family.  Just getting all of that digitized, labeled and filed is quite a task, especially since it is all in German.  Sadly, no Militaerpass or Soldbuch for Julius in the lot.

Take care,

-Daniel

EDIT:  Somme-Py reference added.

[PFF]

Aircraft picture https://sites.google...site/ph0ebus13/
11.16.1917 Thiacourt

Made query as to ID at http://www.theaerodr...16-1917-id.html

[ph0ebus]

PFF, on 02 November 2012 - 10:30 PM, said:

Aircraft picture https://sites.google...site/ph0ebus13/
11.16.1917 Thiacourt

Made query as to ID at http://www.theaerodr...16-1917-id.html

Excellent!  I will follow that thread with great interest.  I'm crossing my fingers...

Daniel

[egbert]

Daniel-where did all the pictures from page 1 hide away? The thread makes no sense anymore. (I was searching the Blinkerstation photos)

[ph0ebus]

Oh, that's not good.  Will look into it after work.

Daniel

[egbert]

ph0ebus, on 13 December 2012 - 07:00 PM, said:

Oh, that's not good.  Will look into it after work.

Daniel

So Daniel, you read the GWF during work? Tztztz

[ph0ebus]

egbert, on 13 December 2012 - 08:53 PM, said:

So Daniel, you read the GWF during work? Tztztz

We do get an hour for lunch, you know!  

-Daniel

[ph0ebus]

There, should be all sorted now.  Dang site hosting!!!

Daniel

[egbert]

Thanx Daniel