trenchtrotter Posted 2 December , 2015 Share Posted 2 December , 2015 Here we go. Thanks in advance of any comments. TT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AOK4 Posted 2 December , 2015 Share Posted 2 December , 2015 I have a Gedenkblatt to a soldier in IR 139 and have been trying to find their position at Lille and Loos and up to the first week of October as well as Feldlazarett 7, XIX AK. Does the book cover movements across the border or is it just Belgian Flanders? Tony The book covers Belgian and French Flanders (up to La Bassée). I can strongly recommend it. Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AOK4 Posted 2 December , 2015 Share Posted 2 December , 2015 I have a Gedenkblatt to a soldier in IR 139 and have been trying to find their position at Lille and Loos and up to the first week of October as well as Feldlazarett 7, XIX AK. Does the book cover movements across the border or is it just Belgian Flanders? Tony The war diary of the Feldlazarett still exists, it can be found in the Saxon archives in Dresden. I would say though that the Feldlazarett was probably stationed in Roubaix. Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 2 December , 2015 Author Share Posted 2 December , 2015 Here we go. Thanks in advance of any comments. Beautiful! Fortuitously my far more knowledgeable co-author has seen your post and pointed out the following page to me. The noble house of von Wolf(f)ersdorf(f) from the Vogtland indeed produced many electoral and royal Saxon officers: http://www.wolffersdorff.de/gotha.html I then went back to the Ehrenbuch des Militär St. Heinrichs Ordens and found two entries (attached). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trenchtrotter Posted 2 December , 2015 Share Posted 2 December , 2015 Wow thanks. My limited abilities struggle with German especially Gothic script. Am I right both were casualties? Any translation or a summary would be welcome. TT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 2 December , 2015 Author Share Posted 2 December , 2015 With the aid of the Ranglisten I've now discovered a plethora of Saxon officers from this family, with either three or four 'F's. Your version with two 'F's however is nowhere to be found. Obstlt. z.D. Egbert v. Wolffersdorff (with IR 133 until 20.4.06; retired from Ldw. Bez. Wurzen 22.4.1912) - unclear whether he served in the war Maj. Alfred v. Wolffersdorff (retired from UR 18 on 21.9.1909 as Rittm. a.D.) - served in WW1 as Kdr. / (preuss.) Reserve-Kavallerie-Abteilung 46 Maj. Wolf v. Wolffersdorff (retired from UR 17 on 18.8.1906 as Maj. a.D.) - unclear whether he served in the war Oltn. d.R. Arndt v. Wolffersdorff (reserve officer of the Gardereiter-Regt.) - unclear whether he served in the war Ltn. Adolf v. Wolffersdorff (with IR 104 in peacetime) - IR 104; MStHO 19.9.1916; served post-war in Reichswehr IR 11 (correction - not the uniform he is wearing in the photo on the linked webpage, which is a Wehrmacht one) Ltn. Harry v. Wolffersdorff (not in the peacetime list) - Karabinier-Regt.; later with IR 416; wounded 11.8.1917 and died in hospital at Cinslea in Romania on 15.8.1917. Ltn. ??? v. Wolffersdorf - with IR 179 in the wartime list only Maj. Horst v. Wolfersdorff (on the staff of GR 101 in peacetime) - upon mobilisation, battalion commander with GRR 100; MStHO 11.3.1915; later commander of Jäger-Regt. 10 Hptm. Ernst v. Wolfersdorff (with GR 101 in peacetime) killed in action with GR 101 on 20.9.1914 at La Ville aux Bois Ltn. Julius v. Wolfersdorff (with IR 133 as a Fähnrich in peacetime) - with IR 133 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan Posted 2 December , 2015 Share Posted 2 December , 2015 Nice work Andi The false writing stamp is rather curious. Anyway, some faces of the Wolf(f)ersdorff Clan: 1st Adolf v. Wolffersdorff IR 104, 2nd Horst v. Wolfersdorff, GR 101. Gruß Stefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 2 December , 2015 Author Share Posted 2 December , 2015 Wow thanks. My limited abilities struggle with German especially Gothic script. Am I right both were casualties? Any translation or a summary would be welcome. TT I'll see what I can do a bit later after I've watched tonight's Toast of London. NB: your item is definitely Saxon infantry, so the various cavalry officers I mentioned can probably be discounted (Harry transferred to the infantry, but typical practice would be to carry on wearing the old cavalry uniform regardless after a transfer to the infantry... possibly with the right shoulder board and helmet cover numbers for the new regiment). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 2 December , 2015 Author Share Posted 2 December , 2015 OK, since the Channel 4 iPlayer-equivalent thing won't let me watch from the beginning yet, here is a summary of the citations. Ltn. Adolf von Wolffersdorf of IR 104 (born 23 Sept. 1893 in Erfurt) was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Militär-St.-Heinrichs-Ordens on 19 Sept. 1916 for his performance as orderly officer (Ordonnanzoffizier) on one of the battalion staffs in the periods 10-16 and 18-22 August, when the regiment was fighting at High Wood and Martinpuich on the Somme as part of 40. Inf. Div. His role was primarily to clarify the confused situation for the battalion commander via personal reconnaissance of the battlefield, a task he performed carefully and calmly despite heavy shelling - most notably on 19 and 20 August. Shortly before dawn on the 20th he was in Martinpuich to organise the outfitting of two fresh relieving companies with hand grenades. While this was underway the town was subjected to an intense hurricane barrage (Feuerüberfall - literally '[artillery] fire ambush'), completely scattering the troops. Ltn. von Wolffersdorf is credited with personally regrouping the two companies and getting them forward in good order and on time to make the vital relief. NB: he was not wounded. Major Horst von Wolffersdorff (born 7 Jan. 1872 at Boden near Radeburg in Saxony) was on the regimental staff of GR 101 in peacetime. At mobilisation he was appointed as a battalion commander in Grenadier-Reserve-Regiment Nr.100 (23. Reserve-Division / XII. Reserve-Korps). He was awarded the MStHO® on 11 March 1915. "After the Battle of the Marne on 26 Sept. 1914 at 12:30pm the regiment attacked the pursuing French as part of 23. Res. Div., and fighting developed near Prosnes in the Champagne. Here Major von Wolffersdorff distinguished himself by continuing to lead his battalion in an exemplary manner for many hours until the conclusion of the engagement despite incurring a serious wound." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony N Posted 3 December , 2015 Share Posted 3 December , 2015 The book covers Belgian and French Flanders (up to La Bassée). I can strongly recommend it. Jan Thanks Jan, Roubaix sounds like it good as he's buried nearby. Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trenchtrotter Posted 3 December , 2015 Share Posted 3 December , 2015 Andi many thanks. I guess we won't know who it belonged to but we can now have a informed guess. A distinguished family. I wonder what journey bought the cap eventually to me? TT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AOK4 Posted 3 December , 2015 Share Posted 3 December , 2015 Thanks Jan, Roubaix sounds like it good as he's buried nearby. Tony The German graves at Roubaix were transferred to Lambersart after the war. Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony N Posted 3 December , 2015 Share Posted 3 December , 2015 The German graves at Roubaix were transferred to Lambersart after the war. Jan And Lambersart is where he now rests. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egg Banjo Posted 8 December , 2015 Share Posted 8 December , 2015 Can I just add my tuppenceworth that this is an excellent book and I would recommend it to anyone. A hearty well done to the authors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 11 December , 2015 Author Share Posted 11 December , 2015 Can I just add my tuppenceworth that this is an excellent book and I would recommend it to anyone. A hearty well done to the authors. Thankyou! NB: our website is currently down while moving providers; I hope to get it back up again by early in the New Year at the latest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpacarr Posted 22 December , 2015 Share Posted 22 December , 2015 Hi I got my copy of "Fighting the Kaisers War" The Saxons in Flanders 1914 / 1918 by Andrew Lucas & Jurgen Schmieschek.In May 2015. Due to serious ill health and several stays in hospital it was sometime before being in a position to read the book. However I have now managed to complete it and I have to congratulate the two authors, for what can only be described as an excellent view from the other side of no - mans land. The reasearch for this volume must have taken the two authors months if not years to complete and is extremely well written. The Photographs are brilliant and puts a human face onto the one time enemy. I fully reccomend this book, well done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 24 December , 2015 Author Share Posted 24 December , 2015 Hi I got my copy of "Fighting the Kaisers War" The Saxons in Flanders 1914 / 1918 by Andrew Lucas & Jurgen Schmieschek.In May 2015. Due to serious ill health and several stays in hospital it was sometime before being in a position to read the book. However I have now managed to complete it and I have to congratulate the two authors, for what can only be described as an excellent view from the other side of no - mans land. The reasearch for this volume must have taken the two authors months if not years to complete and is extremely well written. The Photographs are brilliant and puts a human face onto the one time enemy. I fully reccomend this book, well done. Thankyou - I'm delighted to hear that you enjoyed the book, and hope your health has improved. My apologies for my tardiness as a correspondent - I now owe emails to an awful lot of people, with little chance of catching up! The book did indeed demand an immense amount of work (about two years during which it ate up all of my free time and holiday allowance), especially because the research and collaborative correspondence with my co-author were almost entirely in German - my grasp of the language has improved significantly in the process. Fröhliche Weihnachten und ein glückliches neues Jahr! Andi L. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 8 February , 2016 Author Share Posted 8 February , 2016 Our website has now been moved to a new DNS provider, and I have published an update with some news on our activities and plans. We also have a new review on Amazon UK (I won't name the reviewer here as he has posted it anonymously)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trajan Posted 9 February , 2016 Share Posted 9 February , 2016 Andi, Just started the book and was astounded by (a), the number of photographs, and ( the low price! Having just finished Stone's The Kaiser's Army' I am approaching yours slowly on an ad-hoc basis, as otherwise my SWMBO and the boys, lovely as all three are, will moan yet again about 'always having my head in a book'... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmor58 Posted 9 February , 2016 Share Posted 9 February , 2016 An excellent book which I recieved at Christmas. A relly good read and very enlightening. If fact I am at present reading it once again and it is just as interesting second time around! Excellent research and work by the authors. Jasmor58 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 10 February , 2016 Author Share Posted 10 February , 2016 Andi, Just started the book and was astounded by (a), the number of photographs, and ( the low price! Having just finished Stone's The Kaiser's Army' I am approaching yours slowly on an ad-hoc basis, as otherwise my SWMBO and the boys, lovely as all three are, will moan yet again about 'always having my head in a book'... Thankyou! You might find it most accessible by starting with the introduction and 'Royal Saxon at War 1914-1918' chapter, then reading the opening summary page for each of the chronological chapters. After that you'll have enough background to dip into the personal accounts in chapter 9, referring back to the order of battle and maps for the relevant division/year as necessary. NB: I am still offering the incentive of a free copy of 'The Saxons at Zonnebeke' for publishing a (good or bad - but constructive!) review of reasonable length of Fighting the Kaiser's War on Amazon or similar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 10 February , 2016 Author Share Posted 10 February , 2016 An excellent book which I recieved at Christmas. A relly good read and very enlightening. If fact I am at present reading it once again and it is just as interesting second time around! Excellent research and work by the authors. Jasmor58 Likewise, thankyou very much! It's a real pleasure to share my enthusiasm for all things kgl. sächs. with the English-speaking world. Since you've now absorbed the whole book, did it leave you with any unanswered questions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 3 April , 2016 Author Share Posted 3 April , 2016 An update at last... I will be at Zonnebeke again on the weekend of 23rd-24th April for this year's living history event. Sadly I won't be accompanied by Jürgen or my father this time, but I will have a more substantial display. Signed books will be available, and of course there will be ample opportunity to pick my brains on my favourite subject! http://www.royalsaxonarmy.co.uk/index.php/news/47-zonnebeke-2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digbydachshund Posted 24 April , 2016 Share Posted 24 April , 2016 Andi I have just sent my review to Bob Stuart to appear in Stand To. I attach it to this message. A superb work, but definitely one to dip into or use a reference source rather than read from beginning to end. Niall Ferguson (not the Professor of History) BTW is your offer of a reward copy of your Zonnebeke pamphlet still open? WFA Book Review Fighting the Kaiser's War.docx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bierast Posted 26 April , 2016 Author Share Posted 26 April , 2016 Thanks Niall - it'll be a real pleasure to see this in print. My writing career in this field started with Stand To! so it has a particular place in my heart. I'm delighted to know that you are finding the book of ongoing research value as a reference work, which is exactly what we intended, One minor quibble is that I think a careless reader might come away from it with the mistaken impression that our book covers Saxon involvement over the entire Western Front, rather than just the coast to the La Bassée canal. The offer is certainly still on - PM me your address and I'll send you a copy of The Saxons at Zonnebeke. Cheers! Andi L. I have just sent my review to Bob Stuart to appear in Stand To. I attach it to this message. A superb work, but definitely one to dip into or use a reference source rather than read from beginning to end.Niall Ferguson (not the Professor of History) BTW is your offer of a reward copy of your Zonnebeke pamphlet still open? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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