Help Identifying WWI Uniform of German Great-Great Uncle

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garret
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Joined: 17 Jan 2021, 11:31
Location: Munich, Bavaria

Help Identifying WWI Uniform of German Great-Great Uncle

#1

Post by garret » 17 Jan 2021, 11:45

Hello,

I am seeking information on this pictured uniform. Can anyone tell me anything about it, such as rank or role? The man shown is Willi Krüger, a great-great uncle born in Schneidemühl, Prussia on 30.01.1898 (that is certain). He likely died on 22.05.1917 according to the Verlustsliste with the rank of Uffz., as the birthdate and name match what we know about Willi. However, it is not certain. There is also a grave in the German war cemetery in Warmériville, France for a Willi Krüger, which has a death date of 13.05.1917, and the rank of Kanonier. However, we don't know if this is the one and same person.

Since Willi was from Schneidemühl, he maybe belonged to the 6. Westpreussischen Infanterie Regiments Nr.149, but in the book on this regiment's history, the Wilhelm Krüger listed died on 27.05.1918. If you check the loss lists, the birth date also for the person who died on 27.05.1918 also doesn't match.

I'd appreciate any information you might be able to share or can offer based upon the image!

Sincerely,

Garret G.

Image

Ken S.
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Re: Help Identifying WWI Uniform of German Great-Great Uncle

#2

Post by Ken S. » 18 Jan 2021, 07:21

22.05.1917 is the date of the list rather than the date of his death.

Is there any information on the back of the photo?

If you haven't done so already, you could try contacting the "Heimatkreis" for the city:
http://www.schneidemuehl.net/impressum.html


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jluetjen
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Re: Help Identifying WWI Uniform of German Great-Great Uncle

#3

Post by jluetjen » 29 Jan 2021, 19:55

Yes, any photo studio information on the back of the picture would be helpful since chances are it will be from the garrison town of his unit. The picture shows him with a non-commissioned officer rank (Unteroffizier mit portopee) given the sword knot hanging from his belt under his left arm. A higher level zoom into his shoulder boards might be helpful to see how they compare to this one:
149 IR.jpg
149 IR.jpg (82.63 KiB) Viewed 4038 times
Incidentally, in the photographic technology of the time, it's common for yellows to appear black in photographs. I'd have to do some checking to see if it was common for gold to appear as white as the shoulder boards in your picture.

I can't find other information regarding the unit's uniform details while doing a quick internet search. Since you've looked at the unit history, are there any pictures in the book that could be used to confirm the uniform details? Specifically, the should-boards, the style of cuffs and collar design. Incidentally, if I had to guess, I'd guess that the picture was taken in 1914 or earlier since it appears that the uniform that he's wearing is blue. The blue uniforms were largely phased out by the end of 1914 and pictures taken after that time are usually in the field gray uniform, which generally appears lighter in pictures.

Regarding the person with the rank of "Kanonier", chances are he wouldn't have been part of an infantry regiment, but rather an artillery regiment. Did you happen to see any information regarding what unit that Willi Krüger came from?

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