I started to write an Ad for Voice Actors.
However, I think it is still a bit premature to post an Ad.
We should try and research the commands and insults more.
I will save what I have written here:
Hi everyone. :)
The Iron Europe Team is hard at work on Iron Europe: 1914-1916, which is mod for Tripwire Interactive's "Game 2" depicting First World War battles between the British and Commonwealth forces and the Imperial German Army.
We need Voice Actors, German, British, and Australian (though if you feel you can imitate these nationalities in their native languages well, you are also welcome to try out) to portray Voice Commands and Insults for our mod.
We have taken suggestions from the RO Community and have also searched through novels, memoirs, and diaries for phrases and words that were used during WWI.
We would like become one of the final Voice Actor candidates,
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
More On The Prussian Guards
It is very difficult to find much information about the Prussian Guards; I have only been able to find fragments on the internet.
The best was this short article written by one of the Moderators at the Axis History Forum.
I wish I was able to find more information, but the Pickelhaube Forum said there are no Prussian Guard histories that are in English.
I imagine there is something about them, somewhere in English. Perhaps a history on some university book shelf, somewhere.
But I will just have to make due with, predominately, this.
And I'm not sure if by August, 1916, if the 2nd Prussian Reserve regiment ranks still included Reservists who had been in the Prussian Guard, or was it now predominately made up of draftees or young men?
Charles Bean, the Australian Official Historian seems to indicate most of the Prussian Guard Reservist POWS were lanky, young men.
However, this regiment, though of Reservists, is credited with maintaining its elite fighting force capability throughout the First World War, by the Germans and the Allies.
The best was this short article written by one of the Moderators at the Axis History Forum.
I wish I was able to find more information, but the Pickelhaube Forum said there are no Prussian Guard histories that are in English.
I imagine there is something about them, somewhere in English. Perhaps a history on some university book shelf, somewhere.
But I will just have to make due with, predominately, this.
And I'm not sure if by August, 1916, if the 2nd Prussian Reserve regiment ranks still included Reservists who had been in the Prussian Guard, or was it now predominately made up of draftees or young men?
Charles Bean, the Australian Official Historian seems to indicate most of the Prussian Guard Reservist POWS were lanky, young men.
However, this regiment, though of Reservists, is credited with maintaining its elite fighting force capability throughout the First World War, by the Germans and the Allies.
Prussian Guards' History
DIE KAISERLICHE GARDE 1914-18
“….a very fine stamp of men,by far the finest Germans I have ever seen; the only troops I have ever seen taller even than our own men….”
C.E.W.Bean,Australian Correspondent,September 1916,observing German Guard prisoners on the Somme.
“Even if these Guard Regiments of ours haven’t got their peacetime cadre any more—those men must all be lying in their graves by now,in France or Russia—the present Guardsmen are still an elite…”
Diary of Herbert Sulzbach,January 1917.
“This is my ninth offensive.Now I’ve had a belly full.”
Guard Oberst, quoted May 1918, in the Muller Diaries.
With a history stretching back to 1688, the Imperial Guard of the Royal Prussian Army was considered the premier fighting force of the German Army in the First World War,effectively maintaining its elite status and fighting prowess throughout the four years of that conflict.
While never greatly expanded from its 1914 base,the general Allied view that the majority of its divisions were“superior and suitable for all attack and defensive fighting” meant this was a force to be reckoned with. Likewise it became something of a badge of honour for an Allied servicemen to state that he had “fought against the Prussian Guard”.
In 1914 the Garde was an exclusively Prussian organization,recruited from the provinces of Prussia,including the Imperial Reichsland region of Alsace-Lorraine.The minimum height requirement was 5 feet 7 inches.of sound physique and bearing. In 1911 around 64% of conscripted recruits for the German Army came from a rural background (including the Garde Corps) so “robust farm youths” formed the majority of the enlisted men.
The officers were traditionally drawn from the Junker class of land-owning families,many aristocrats,even as candidates from the middle class were increasingly being accepted as officers in many other regiments.In 1914 for example all the officers of the 3. Garde-Regiment zu Fuss were entirely aristocratic,highlighting the social distinction,the status (and wealth)required to obtain a sought aftered Garde Officer position.
While a Guardsmen received no special battle training nor carried special weaponary in 1914 to distinguish him from the ordinary infantryman,the “the mystique of their status did result in performances well above the average”.The experiences of the Franco-Prussian War had etched in the popular mind an elite force equivalent to the shock troops of Napoleon’s Guard. Emperor Wilhelm 1’s comments that “My Guard has found its grave in front of Saint-Privat” became a standard quote in German history books after 1870.
The very Prussian martial background of the Corps also must be mentioned.In one British officer’s words these were “a hard lot” of men upholding the honour and traditions of the Prussian state.The ingrained obligation to military service found in these northern Germans,many descendants of hardy families of Germans,Dutch and Huguenots that ‘colonised’ the region east of the Elbe from the 13th Century onwards, also with a strict and prominent Protestant work ethic,made them good soldiers.
Notwithstanding that, one Australian General who had fought against them commented that the toughest opponent he encountered in World War One was the Bavarian 4th Division.
Copyright 2008, Peter H of Australia, Moderator, Axis History Forum
“….a very fine stamp of men,by far the finest Germans I have ever seen; the only troops I have ever seen taller even than our own men….”
C.E.W.Bean,Australian Correspondent,September 1916,observing German Guard prisoners on the Somme.
“Even if these Guard Regiments of ours haven’t got their peacetime cadre any more—those men must all be lying in their graves by now,in France or Russia—the present Guardsmen are still an elite…”
Diary of Herbert Sulzbach,January 1917.
“This is my ninth offensive.Now I’ve had a belly full.”
Guard Oberst, quoted May 1918, in the Muller Diaries.
With a history stretching back to 1688, the Imperial Guard of the Royal Prussian Army was considered the premier fighting force of the German Army in the First World War,effectively maintaining its elite status and fighting prowess throughout the four years of that conflict.
While never greatly expanded from its 1914 base,the general Allied view that the majority of its divisions were“superior and suitable for all attack and defensive fighting” meant this was a force to be reckoned with. Likewise it became something of a badge of honour for an Allied servicemen to state that he had “fought against the Prussian Guard”.
In 1914 the Garde was an exclusively Prussian organization,recruited from the provinces of Prussia,including the Imperial Reichsland region of Alsace-Lorraine.The minimum height requirement was 5 feet 7 inches.of sound physique and bearing. In 1911 around 64% of conscripted recruits for the German Army came from a rural background (including the Garde Corps) so “robust farm youths” formed the majority of the enlisted men.
The officers were traditionally drawn from the Junker class of land-owning families,many aristocrats,even as candidates from the middle class were increasingly being accepted as officers in many other regiments.In 1914 for example all the officers of the 3. Garde-Regiment zu Fuss were entirely aristocratic,highlighting the social distinction,the status (and wealth)required to obtain a sought aftered Garde Officer position.
While a Guardsmen received no special battle training nor carried special weaponary in 1914 to distinguish him from the ordinary infantryman,the “the mystique of their status did result in performances well above the average”.The experiences of the Franco-Prussian War had etched in the popular mind an elite force equivalent to the shock troops of Napoleon’s Guard. Emperor Wilhelm 1’s comments that “My Guard has found its grave in front of Saint-Privat” became a standard quote in German history books after 1870.
The very Prussian martial background of the Corps also must be mentioned.In one British officer’s words these were “a hard lot” of men upholding the honour and traditions of the Prussian state.The ingrained obligation to military service found in these northern Germans,many descendants of hardy families of Germans,Dutch and Huguenots that ‘colonised’ the region east of the Elbe from the 13th Century onwards, also with a strict and prominent Protestant work ethic,made them good soldiers.
Notwithstanding that, one Australian General who had fought against them commented that the toughest opponent he encountered in World War One was the Bavarian 4th Division.
Copyright 2008, Peter H of Australia, Moderator, Axis History Forum
Prussian Guards' History II
DIE KAISERLICHE GARDE 1914-18,cont
Quartered in Berlin,its administrative and Corps sector,the Garde also fulfilled its function of “defending the Kaiser” and providing the pomp of military parades in the German capital.
The relationship between the Kaiser and what he termed Mein Garde is an interesting separate topic in itself.Stories of his outbursts exclaiming that he “should unleash the Guard on the socialist rabble”,while making good reading have never been confirmed.
However enough evidence exists that at least in 1914-18, the Kaiser spent a lot of his time on front line tours visiting the Garde and showing concern for his Guardsmen. This selective interaction with only this part of the Army,and whether opinions on the progress of the war he received from the Garde officer caste he bonded with in anyway coloured his views on the true nature of the crisis facing his regime is another matter.
The Diaries of Admiral Georg Muller ,Chief of the Naval Cabinet throw practical light on some of these visits,and other concerns with the Garde:
1914
7th September—“…the Kaiser suddenly decided to visit the 2nd Army and,if possible,the Corps of Guard..”
5th October---“…the Kaiser returned from the front this evening.He had also visited the Bavarians and the Guard in Bapaume but did not bother to see his son Eitel Fritz,who is laid up there with a sprained knee.Strange!”
25th December---“…with the Kaiser to Douai to visit the Plettenberg Group,Prince Eitel Fritz,and the First Regiment of Guard…the Kaiser made a speech to the regiment and spoke of ‘overpowering the enemy until he bit the dust’…”
1915
15th September---“…afternoon drive to Nasjelsk,where the 2 Guard Division under General von Luttwitz is stationed prior to its transfer to the West. Small companies and pathetically few officers.A very banal speech by the Kaiser which did not touch the men’s hearts…”
4th October---“a letter from Prince Eitel Friedrich reporting appalling losses of the 1 Guard Division at Souchez(4,500 men)…Plessen requested permission from the Kaiser to go and find the truth on the spot…”
1916
6th September---“His Majesty,who had just read a report from Prince Eitel Friedrich on the situation of the 1 Guard Division in the Somme battle,looked very ill…”
1917
26th July---“…Tarnopol…then from the Headquarters of the 1 Guard Brigade,Colonel von der Osten,drove to a hill to the east of the town from where,without risk,we could watch the slow progess of the division—in particular the 2 Guard Regiment—pursuing the Russians.Lyncker said:’Exactly like being on boring Imperial manoeuvres,but far quieter’.
But the subsequent guard of honour outside the cemetery afforded a remarkable picture.His Majesty on the ruins of a still-smouldering house,the picturesque troops with steel helmets…and finally the Russian prisoners against a background of trees…”
1918
21st March---“after lunch we drove in the direction of St.Quentin to the 1 Guard Division…lightly wounded men were on their way down the line…”
7th April—“..the Guard Division has lost 3,000 men in the past few days,and 8 officers were killed from the 1st Regiment alone…”
Muller’s son also served with the Garde(as did Plessen’s), a particular right of passage for many of the sons of the Kaiser’s entourage.
The Kaiser’s second son, the later Generalmajor Prinz Eitel Friedrich, commanded the 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuss in 1914, the 1 Garde Brigade in 1915,and the 1. Garde Division in 1916-18,showing that there was a family connection to the welfare of the Corps as well.
Prinz Eitel distinguished himself early in the war, during the Battle of Guise(St Quentin to the Germans) in August 1914. His Regiment faltering,he seized a drum from a regimental bandsman and lead the renewed attack against the French.When they arrived at the French positions they found that the enemy had already pulled out.
According to the Muller Diaries the Kaiser henceforth "dubbed him the Hero of St Quentin,which the prince in his modesty found embarrassing..."
Copyright 2008 by Peter H of Australia, Moderator, Axis History Forum,
Quartered in Berlin,its administrative and Corps sector,the Garde also fulfilled its function of “defending the Kaiser” and providing the pomp of military parades in the German capital.
The relationship between the Kaiser and what he termed Mein Garde is an interesting separate topic in itself.Stories of his outbursts exclaiming that he “should unleash the Guard on the socialist rabble”,while making good reading have never been confirmed.
However enough evidence exists that at least in 1914-18, the Kaiser spent a lot of his time on front line tours visiting the Garde and showing concern for his Guardsmen. This selective interaction with only this part of the Army,and whether opinions on the progress of the war he received from the Garde officer caste he bonded with in anyway coloured his views on the true nature of the crisis facing his regime is another matter.
The Diaries of Admiral Georg Muller ,Chief of the Naval Cabinet throw practical light on some of these visits,and other concerns with the Garde:
1914
7th September—“…the Kaiser suddenly decided to visit the 2nd Army and,if possible,the Corps of Guard..”
5th October---“…the Kaiser returned from the front this evening.He had also visited the Bavarians and the Guard in Bapaume but did not bother to see his son Eitel Fritz,who is laid up there with a sprained knee.Strange!”
25th December---“…with the Kaiser to Douai to visit the Plettenberg Group,Prince Eitel Fritz,and the First Regiment of Guard…the Kaiser made a speech to the regiment and spoke of ‘overpowering the enemy until he bit the dust’…”
1915
15th September---“…afternoon drive to Nasjelsk,where the 2 Guard Division under General von Luttwitz is stationed prior to its transfer to the West. Small companies and pathetically few officers.A very banal speech by the Kaiser which did not touch the men’s hearts…”
4th October---“a letter from Prince Eitel Friedrich reporting appalling losses of the 1 Guard Division at Souchez(4,500 men)…Plessen requested permission from the Kaiser to go and find the truth on the spot…”
1916
6th September---“His Majesty,who had just read a report from Prince Eitel Friedrich on the situation of the 1 Guard Division in the Somme battle,looked very ill…”
1917
26th July---“…Tarnopol…then from the Headquarters of the 1 Guard Brigade,Colonel von der Osten,drove to a hill to the east of the town from where,without risk,we could watch the slow progess of the division—in particular the 2 Guard Regiment—pursuing the Russians.Lyncker said:’Exactly like being on boring Imperial manoeuvres,but far quieter’.
But the subsequent guard of honour outside the cemetery afforded a remarkable picture.His Majesty on the ruins of a still-smouldering house,the picturesque troops with steel helmets…and finally the Russian prisoners against a background of trees…”
1918
21st March---“after lunch we drove in the direction of St.Quentin to the 1 Guard Division…lightly wounded men were on their way down the line…”
7th April—“..the Guard Division has lost 3,000 men in the past few days,and 8 officers were killed from the 1st Regiment alone…”
Muller’s son also served with the Garde(as did Plessen’s), a particular right of passage for many of the sons of the Kaiser’s entourage.
The Kaiser’s second son, the later Generalmajor Prinz Eitel Friedrich, commanded the 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuss in 1914, the 1 Garde Brigade in 1915,and the 1. Garde Division in 1916-18,showing that there was a family connection to the welfare of the Corps as well.
Prinz Eitel distinguished himself early in the war, during the Battle of Guise(St Quentin to the Germans) in August 1914. His Regiment faltering,he seized a drum from a regimental bandsman and lead the renewed attack against the French.When they arrived at the French positions they found that the enemy had already pulled out.
According to the Muller Diaries the Kaiser henceforth "dubbed him the Hero of St Quentin,which the prince in his modesty found embarrassing..."
Copyright 2008 by Peter H of Australia, Moderator, Axis History Forum,
DIE KAISERLICHE GARDE 1914-18,cont
In July 1914 the regular Garde Corps consisted of the 1.Garde-Infantrie and the 2. Garde-Infantrie Divisions,the Garde-Kavallerie-Division(the only peacetime cavalry division in Germany),and the Infanterie-Lehr-Bataillon (Infantry Instruction/Demonstration Battalion).
Included in these formations were diversified units like the Regiment der Garde du Corps,the Garde-Jager-Bataillon,the Garde-Schutzen-Bataillon(Rifles/Sharpshooters),Garde-Maschinengewehr –Abteilung 1. and 2.(Machine-gun battalions),the 1 to 4 Garde–Feldartillerie-Regiments(Field artillery),the Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment(Foot artillery),the Garde-Pionier-Bataillon,and the Garde-Train-Abteilung(supply train).
On mobilisation the Garde Reserve Corps of the 1.Garde-Reserve and the 2. Garde-Reserve Divisions came into being, but with both divisions serving separately under different Corps command.
The 3. Garde-Infantrie-Division was also formed in August 1914,from surplus peacetime regiments,and with the conversion of the Lehr-Bataillion to a full regiment, the Lehr-Infantrie-Regiment.
The Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment was further split in two, with the 1. Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment and 2. Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment.
The latter included in its ranks many members of the Lehr-Regiment der Fussartillerie Schiessschule, stationed at the Artillery School at Juterborg, near Berlin,since 1912.
The Garde-Pionier-Bataillon was also split into two, with two battalions now in existence. Garde reservists were the key to bringing all formations, including the peacetime regular, all up to numbers and also in the subsequent expansion of those selected units for a wartime role.
The Garde-Ersatz Division, formed from ‘supplementary’, Ersatz reservists also came into being.
Garde Reserve Cavalry Regiments were further deployed,some broken down as Cavalry squadrons to serve in other non-Guard and Reserve divisions.
An estimated 120,000 Guardsmen,including 10,000 cavalry,regulars and reservists,were available for the Field Army in August 1914.
Infantry were distinguished in the field by their tall stature,the litzen on their Feldgrau uniforms (bars of lace worn beneath their cuff buttons and the corners of the collars), and by generally not having regimental numbers on their Pickelhauben covers.
The Garde were ready for war.
The Garde deployed to the West as follows in August 1914.
Garde Corps(General von Plettenberg)
Attached to 2 Army with the following formations:
1.Garde–Infantrie-Division
2.Garde-Infantrie-Division
HKK 1(1 Cavalry Corps)(General von Richthofen)
Preceding 3 Army:
Garde Cavalry Division
5. Cavalry Division
Garde Reserve Corps(General von Gallwitz)
Also with the 2 Army:
3.Garde-Infantrie-Division
1.Garde-Reserve-Division
X Reserve Corps(General von Kirchbach)
2 Army:
2.Garde-Reserve-Division
19. Reserve-Division
Mobile Ersatz
Deployed with the other 4 Ersatz Divisions to Lorraine,under the control of 6 Army:
Garde Ersatz Division
HKK 2(2 Cavalry Corps)(General von der Marwitz)
Preceding 1 and 2 Armies
The Garde-Jager-Bataillon and the Garde-Schutzen-Bataillon were attached to the
2. Cavalry Division
The Garde Fuss-Artillery Regiments(Heavy Artillery) were deployed as follows:
1.Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment
Staff with 1 Army
1/1 Garde Fuss Artillery Regt-Garde Corps
II/1 Garde Fuss Artillery Regt-IX Reserve Corps(Danish border)
III/1 Garde Fuss Artillery Regt-III Corps
2.Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment
With the Garde Reserve Corps
Depot troops and three garrison battalions remained in Berlin. The later three battalions were brought together to form Garrison Regiment Berlin in June 1917.
Acting as the Kaiser’s escort and bodyguard was the Leib-Gendarmerie-Regiment, a select, small size unit of two platoons(zugs), many being line cavalry NCOs.
Copyright 2008 by Peter H of Australia, Moderator, Axis History Forum
In July 1914 the regular Garde Corps consisted of the 1.Garde-Infantrie and the 2. Garde-Infantrie Divisions,the Garde-Kavallerie-Division(the only peacetime cavalry division in Germany),and the Infanterie-Lehr-Bataillon (Infantry Instruction/Demonstration Battalion).
Included in these formations were diversified units like the Regiment der Garde du Corps,the Garde-Jager-Bataillon,the Garde-Schutzen-Bataillon(Rifles/Sharpshooters),Garde-Maschinengewehr –Abteilung 1. and 2.(Machine-gun battalions),the 1 to 4 Garde–Feldartillerie-Regiments(Field artillery),the Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment(Foot artillery),the Garde-Pionier-Bataillon,and the Garde-Train-Abteilung(supply train).
On mobilisation the Garde Reserve Corps of the 1.Garde-Reserve and the 2. Garde-Reserve Divisions came into being, but with both divisions serving separately under different Corps command.
The 3. Garde-Infantrie-Division was also formed in August 1914,from surplus peacetime regiments,and with the conversion of the Lehr-Bataillion to a full regiment, the Lehr-Infantrie-Regiment.
The Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment was further split in two, with the 1. Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment and 2. Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment.
The latter included in its ranks many members of the Lehr-Regiment der Fussartillerie Schiessschule, stationed at the Artillery School at Juterborg, near Berlin,since 1912.
The Garde-Pionier-Bataillon was also split into two, with two battalions now in existence. Garde reservists were the key to bringing all formations, including the peacetime regular, all up to numbers and also in the subsequent expansion of those selected units for a wartime role.
The Garde-Ersatz Division, formed from ‘supplementary’, Ersatz reservists also came into being.
Garde Reserve Cavalry Regiments were further deployed,some broken down as Cavalry squadrons to serve in other non-Guard and Reserve divisions.
An estimated 120,000 Guardsmen,including 10,000 cavalry,regulars and reservists,were available for the Field Army in August 1914.
Infantry were distinguished in the field by their tall stature,the litzen on their Feldgrau uniforms (bars of lace worn beneath their cuff buttons and the corners of the collars), and by generally not having regimental numbers on their Pickelhauben covers.
The Garde were ready for war.
The Garde deployed to the West as follows in August 1914.
Garde Corps(General von Plettenberg)
Attached to 2 Army with the following formations:
1.Garde–Infantrie-Division
2.Garde-Infantrie-Division
HKK 1(1 Cavalry Corps)(General von Richthofen)
Preceding 3 Army:
Garde Cavalry Division
5. Cavalry Division
Garde Reserve Corps(General von Gallwitz)
Also with the 2 Army:
3.Garde-Infantrie-Division
1.Garde-Reserve-Division
X Reserve Corps(General von Kirchbach)
2 Army:
2.Garde-Reserve-Division
19. Reserve-Division
Mobile Ersatz
Deployed with the other 4 Ersatz Divisions to Lorraine,under the control of 6 Army:
Garde Ersatz Division
HKK 2(2 Cavalry Corps)(General von der Marwitz)
Preceding 1 and 2 Armies
The Garde-Jager-Bataillon and the Garde-Schutzen-Bataillon were attached to the
2. Cavalry Division
The Garde Fuss-Artillery Regiments(Heavy Artillery) were deployed as follows:
1.Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment
Staff with 1 Army
1/1 Garde Fuss Artillery Regt-Garde Corps
II/1 Garde Fuss Artillery Regt-IX Reserve Corps(Danish border)
III/1 Garde Fuss Artillery Regt-III Corps
2.Garde-Fussartillerie-Regiment
With the Garde Reserve Corps
Depot troops and three garrison battalions remained in Berlin. The later three battalions were brought together to form Garrison Regiment Berlin in June 1917.
Acting as the Kaiser’s escort and bodyguard was the Leib-Gendarmerie-Regiment, a select, small size unit of two platoons(zugs), many being line cavalry NCOs.
Copyright 2008 by Peter H of Australia, Moderator, Axis History Forum
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Imperial German Forces At Mouquet Farm, August 1916
5th Guard Grenadier Regiment (part of the 4th Guard Division: with the 5th Foot Guards Regiment and 93rd Reserve Infantry Regiment (R.I.R.), however these two regiments deployed closer to Thiepval and were not in the Mouquet Farm sector.
The 7th Company of the 5th Guard Grenadiers held Point 54 (strongpoint), west of Mouquet Farm.
Commanders: Vizefeldwebel (Sergeant-Major) Richter.
Machine-gun Company north of Point 54 Lieutenant von Borcke, MG Company Commander.
1st Guard Reserve Division: 1st and 2nd Guard Reserve Regiments (G.R.R.) and the 64th R.I.R.;
The 2nd G.R.R. held Mouquet Farm and the Fabeck Graben.
The Australian attack on Point 54 is repulsed; Richter is wounded; von Borcke is mortally wounded (later dies).
However, Point 77 falls to the Australians, but Mouquet Farm, is momentarily captured by the Australians, but within several hours is recaptured by the Germans.
Some info from the Great War Forum:
The 7th Company of the 5th Guard Grenadiers held Point 54 (strongpoint), west of Mouquet Farm.
Commanders: Vizefeldwebel (Sergeant-Major) Richter.
Machine-gun Company north of Point 54 Lieutenant von Borcke, MG Company Commander.
1st Guard Reserve Division: 1st and 2nd Guard Reserve Regiments (G.R.R.) and the 64th R.I.R.;
The 2nd G.R.R. held Mouquet Farm and the Fabeck Graben.
The Australian attack on Point 54 is repulsed; Richter is wounded; von Borcke is mortally wounded (later dies).
However, Point 77 falls to the Australians, but Mouquet Farm, is momentarily captured by the Australians, but within several hours is recaptured by the Germans.
Some info from the Great War Forum:
The "Prussian Guards" (as already said, this could refer to several units) were considered even at the outbreak of war to be the toughest, most elite and most feared of German units. Therefore there was a natural inclination both among soldiers and the popular press to cast the enemy in any particular engagement as belonging to the Prussian Guard.
Even some veterans refer to fighting the Prussian Guard in engagements where this couldn't be possible, sometimes this belief is a rational one -based on the fact that the Germans were wearing "litzen", a type of collar and cuff lace worn by senior regiments in the German Army- or sometimes just because the Germans were large, sturdy men or unusually tough.
From a propaganda point of view, if you've just given the enemy a good kicking it's always good PR to suggest that you've beaten the best they had to offer.
All the best
Paul.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
My impression was that the assasination attempt took place in front of a cafe or saloon where Gavrilo Princip had been eating lunch after his earlier assasination attempts had failed.
However, another Blogger who has recently visited Sarajevo said it took place on the bridge, and that there is a marker marking the approximate spot.
However, another Blogger who has recently visited Sarajevo said it took place on the bridge, and that there is a marker marking the approximate spot.
This is the actual pistol used by Princip to murder the Archduke Franz Ferdinand: a Browning 1903 Model Semi Auto Pistol.
This pistol has Fabrique National grips and maker markings with Browning's patent.
It was the standard issue pistol of the Shanghai Municipal Police. This legendary police force and its evil foes were depicted very well by Hollywood in many of it's 1930's Gangster and Gang movies centered around Shanghai, and also by the Indiana Jones movie 'The Temple of Doom'.
The Browning 1903 was also a very popular pistol with the American Gangsters of the 1930s such as Bonnie and Clyde.
This pistol has Fabrique National grips and maker markings with Browning's patent.
It was the standard issue pistol of the Shanghai Municipal Police. This legendary police force and its evil foes were depicted very well by Hollywood in many of it's 1930's Gangster and Gang movies centered around Shanghai, and also by the Indiana Jones movie 'The Temple of Doom'.
The Browning 1903 was also a very popular pistol with the American Gangsters of the 1930s such as Bonnie and Clyde.
It is often forgotten that the Archduke's wife, Sophia, was also killed:
The assasination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand is always the reason that is given in the United States for the cause of the First World War.
National and Colonial rivalries between the United Kingdom and the Kaiserreich and Prussian expansionism and nationalist ambition, are never examined or explained.
I have heard that the Emperor Franz Josef did not even like his nephew the Archduke; I don't know if that is true, but the assasination was one of many factors that caused the war, and the other factors (such as the ones mentioned above) seem, from my amateur opinion, the more important historic causes of war.
The assasination was obviously an affront to the Austro-Hungarian monarchy.
Was it alone enough to cause the Central Powers to go to war with Serbia and the Triple Entente Alliance?
The assasination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand is always the reason that is given in the United States for the cause of the First World War.
National and Colonial rivalries between the United Kingdom and the Kaiserreich and Prussian expansionism and nationalist ambition, are never examined or explained.
I have heard that the Emperor Franz Josef did not even like his nephew the Archduke; I don't know if that is true, but the assasination was one of many factors that caused the war, and the other factors (such as the ones mentioned above) seem, from my amateur opinion, the more important historic causes of war.
The assasination was obviously an affront to the Austro-Hungarian monarchy.
Was it alone enough to cause the Central Powers to go to war with Serbia and the Triple Entente Alliance?
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Please Vote For Iron Europe At Moddb.com's Best Mods Of 2008
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By voting you will help give our WWI first person shooter PC game mod, Iron Europe:1914-1916, standing in the PC modding community and the recognition it really deserves.
It is too bad we are not a little further along in creating Iron Europe, but we needed some more people to work on the mod when we registered at Moddb a few weeks ago, and registering did help a lot, because four new members, Just Conner, DannyCon, Frodo, and invasion101 joined the team, and two of them are modellers.
Moddb is headquarters for all PC game mods being created, and it is a site where modders can post information about their mod and ask for help.
The research and planning of the Iron Europe: 1914-16 has been conducted with meticulous attention to historical detail, including almost every facet of the war on the Western Front, from the uniforms and the weapons to the trenches and villages, even the average height and ages of the soldiers, we have researched and planned this mod with a post graduate level of historical research.
Although I don't expect we will take first place, it would be nice to be in the top 100 Mods of the year.
And please visit our official Iron Europe Forum!
http://z15.invisionfree.com/Iron_Europe/index.php
You just need to register at Moddb.com, and then click the big "Vote for the Mod" logo near the center of the page, and then your vote is registered.
Register and vote here:
http://www.moddb.com/mods/iron-europe-1914-1916
By voting you will help give our WWI first person shooter PC game mod, Iron Europe:1914-1916, standing in the PC modding community and the recognition it really deserves.
It is too bad we are not a little further along in creating Iron Europe, but we needed some more people to work on the mod when we registered at Moddb a few weeks ago, and registering did help a lot, because four new members, Just Conner, DannyCon, Frodo, and invasion101 joined the team, and two of them are modellers.
Moddb is headquarters for all PC game mods being created, and it is a site where modders can post information about their mod and ask for help.
The research and planning of the Iron Europe: 1914-16 has been conducted with meticulous attention to historical detail, including almost every facet of the war on the Western Front, from the uniforms and the weapons to the trenches and villages, even the average height and ages of the soldiers, we have researched and planned this mod with a post graduate level of historical research.
Although I don't expect we will take first place, it would be nice to be in the top 100 Mods of the year.
And please visit our official Iron Europe Forum!
http://z15.invisionfree.com/Iron_Europe/index.php
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