WW1 / WW2 / 20th Century
An Original, WW1, German Kaiserliche Marine Vickers-Maxim I Pounder Pom Pom Shell
Imperial Kaiserliche Marine Stamped. A superb fuzed shell head fully stamped and marked. With a 37mm calibre the water-cooled, belt-fed Maxim-Nordenfeldt (among others, with variants produced as Vickers-Maxim and Hotchkiss-Maxim) was the smallest item of artillery used during that war and boasted a firing rate of 60 rounds per minute, utilising a belt of 25 one-pound shells, each shell covering a distance ranging up to 3,000 yards. In World War I, it was used as an early anti-aircraft gun in the home defence of Britain. It was adapted as the Mk I*** and Mk II on high-angle pedestal mountings and deployed along London docks and on rooftops on key buildings in London, others on mobile motor lorries at key towns in the East and Southeast of England. 25 were employed in August 1914, and 50 in February 1916. A Mk II gun (now in the Imperial War Museum, London) on a Naval pedestal mounting was the first to open fire in defence of London during the war. However, the small shell was insufficient to damage the German Zeppelin airships sufficiently to bring them down. The Ministry of Munitions noted in 1922: "The pom-poms were of very little value. There was no shrapnel available for them, and the shell provided for them would not burst on aeroplane fabric but fell back to earth as solid projectiles were of no use except at a much lower elevation than a Zeppelin attacking London was likely to keep"
Nevertheless, Lieutenant O.F.J. Hogg of No. 2 AA Section in III Corps was the first anti-aircraft gunner to shoot down an aircraft, with 75 rounds on 23 September 1914 in France.
The gun was experimentally mounted on aircraft as the lighter 1-pounder Mk III, the cancelled Vickers E.F.B.7 having been specifically designed to carry it in its nose.
Hiram Maxim originally designed the Pom-Pom in the late 1880s as an enlarged version of the Maxim machine gun. Its longer range necessitated exploding projectiles to judge range, which in turn dictated a shell weight of at least 400 grams (0.88 lb), as that was the lightest exploding shell allowed under the St. Petersburg Declaration of 1868 and reaffirmed in the Hague Convention of 1899. Dated 1905. Not suitable for export, empty inert and safe. read more
95.00 GBP
A Superb Group of Four Medals WW1 Trio, and Third Afghan War, 1919 Afghanistan Bar, India General Service Medal
The North Staffordshire Regiment served with heroism and distinction in WW1, and the 2nd battalion served in Afghanistan after WW1 in 1919.
In May 1919, as the world recovered from the First World War, Afghanistan invaded British India. A daring move, the invasion took the British and Indian governments by surprise. To repel the Afghans, they launched a massive land and air campaign, mobilising a third of a million troops. Despite facing this military might, the Afghans - aided by the North-West Frontier tribes - almost won the war.
Frontier Assault tells the story of the Third Anglo-Afghan War through the eyes of the men who fought it. The North Staffordshire Regiment was one of the first units dispatched to halt the Afghan advance. They defeated the enemy vanguard in a tenacious mountain assault in the Khyber Pass. After, they led the British counter-attack into Afghanistan.
In WW1 the regiment were part of the Staffordshire Brigade,
Private Sidney Richards, who came from West Bromwich and had been employed as a clerk before the war, served with the Machine Gun Section of the. He recorded his experiences in his pocket diary:
2nd April Rifle inspection. Marched to trench at Messines. Took trenches over from 3rd Monmouths.
3rd April On look-out. Duty man in my trench had his brains blown out by a sniper. Raining very heavy.
4th April Raining heavy. Had no rations brought to us. Shortage of water. Up to our knees in mud.
5th April Simply awful. Raining all day and night. Shells bursting all over the shop. All I have to eat is 1 biscuit - would give a fortune for a dish of tea.
6th April More shells. Plenty of mud. Weather a little better. Relieved at 10 p.m. Got to camp 2 a.m. Wed.The threat posed by snipers was a constant feature of trench warfare. Initially at least, the units of the Brigade were woefully ill-equipped to conduct sniping from their own lines, as they had neither specialist rifles or telescopic sights. Several men had lucky escapes, such as Sergeant C. F. Rose, a soldier from Stone serving with the 1/5th North Staffords:
"I had a narrow shave of getting blinded in both eyes. I was looking at the German trenches through a periscope, when a German sniper hit the top glass with a bullet, and the glass falling in small pieces filled my eyes. I thought I had been shot, for it was sharp work for the eyes. I am getting on all right now, but have been pretty bad."
Captain William Millner of the 1/5th South Staffords also narrowly avoided being killed while sniping on 5th May. One of the best shots in the country at that time, Millner was an excellent candidate for the role. While observing German movements from the barn of one of the farms close to the front line, he too was wounded by an enemy sniper. The bullet hit the cap badge of his service dress cap and creased his skull. Luckily, his injury was not serious and after a brief period of recovery returned to his battalion.
German snipers were also quarry for the Staffords, patrols being sent out into "No-Man's Land" to hunt them down. Sergeant Sydney Norton, a member of "C" Company, 1/6th North Staffords, reported the results of one such patrol in a letter to his wife in Tamworth:
"...me and another Sergt. the day before found a sniper. We watched his antics for two hours and I placed the rifle at him, bowled him over the third shot and then got back to our trench. It's clinking sport like looking for game. They are very smart. We saw a dead cow in front of our trench. We fired a volley into it and the next day the Sergts. went out and found a dead sniper inside it, so you can tell the antics of war craft they get up to."
The last photo in the gallery is of Frontier Assault by James Green not included with group, just a suggestion. This might make a nice North Staffordshire Regt. Afghan War history book accompaniment for the medal read more
A Very Rare, Original, 1913, Silver Medal Of The Crash of Imperial German Naval Airship L2 in Johannisthal
Silver medal 1913. (Lauer) On the crash of the naval airship L 2 in Johannisthal. Icarus lying on the ground, phoenix rising above it burning, falling airship. Hallmark: silver 990, 33.3 mm, 17.5 g. Coll. Joos a. 293 Kaiser 397. Very rare. Matted, small scratches, extremely fine The Johannisthal air disaster was one of the first multiple-fatality air disasters in history. It involved the Imperial German Navy's L 2 airship manufactured by Luftschiffbau Zeppelin as LZ 18. Its test flight resulted in the death of all 28 passengers and crew on board. On 17 October 1913, at approximately 10:30am local time, hydrogen gas which was being vented was sucked into the forward engine and ignited causing the airship to explode and burn. It crashed near Johannisthal Air Field about 10 miles southeast of Berlin. This accident occurred a little over a month after the Helgoland Island Air Disaster.The "Almanac and Year-Book for 1914" reported that the airship "was destroyed by the explosion of a gasoline tank, which occurred as the ship was making a trial trip above the city of Johannisthal, near Berlin. All except one of the twenty-seven military men on board, including the entire admiralty trial board, were killed.
Thousands, who had been watching the evolutions of the L-2, which, if accepted, was to have been the flagship of Germany's new aerial fleet, heard a heavy detonation and saw the craft suddenly become enveloped in flames and drop to the ground from a height of 900 feet.
On reaching the spot in the highway where the airship fell the spectators found nothing but a mass of crumpled aluminium and twisted wreckage. The only man found alive was Lieut. Baron von Bieul, a guest on the trip, who was fatally injured. The passengers of the centre gondola were blown through the sides of the car by the explosion and their bodies fell a quarter of a mile away from the wreck of the dirigible.
The pilot of the airship was Capt. Gluth, who had been in Count Zeppelin's employ for a long time.
The admiralty trial board consisted of seven officers, including Lieutenant-Commander Behnish, and Lieut. Freyer, both personal friends of Emperor William, Naval Constructors Neumann and Pietzler, Naval Engineer Busch, Lieut. Trenk and Chief Engineer Haussmann were among the others killed." read more
365.00 GBP
A Very Attractive Pre WW1 German Military Beer Stein of the 46th Artillery
Souvenir of service for a WW1 volunteer.An Imperial Prussian stein for 4 Battery, Niedersachs Feld Artillery, Regt. 46, for the years 1904-1906. Lower Saxony Field Artillery Regiment No. 46. The recipient then volunteered back into the regiment and served in WW1. Superbly decorated. Transfer glazed with hand painted highlights with scenes of the field artillery in combat. Personally named 'in memory of my service' to the recipient 'Kanonier Bahrwald', and further named with every man's name from the regiment 47 names in all Souvenirs of service were purchased by reservists once there service was finished, in this case 1906. Steins seem to have been the most popular purchases. The period of popularity extended from the mid 1890s until the onset of World War I. Examples exist from the 1850s on, but were few in number and individually purchased items. Almost all early examples came from Bavarian units. Steins with wartime dates also exist but the demands of the war in terms of men and material effectively ended the manufacture of regimental steins as we know them.
Steins were ordered from military shops in the area around the garrison town or through the representatives of stein manufacturers. Normally ordered in the spring, they were delivered in early September, just prior to mustering out. The average cost approximated a month?s salary for a German private of that period. The base shows when lit internally the hidden factory 'watermark' in the porcelain. The base also has two old damage areas where the base has been penetrated and in other one area fixed see photo The lid's artillery cannon has the barrel lacking. The Regiment was part of the 20th Infantry Division in WW1. Their actions in WW1 were as follows Calendar of battles and engagements
20th Infantry Division (Western Front)
08.08.-08.16.1914 Conquest of Li?ge
23.08.-08.24.1914 Battle of Namur
29.08.-08.30.1914 Battle of St. Quentin
06.09.-09.09.1914 Battle of Petit-Morin
12.09.-09.13.1914 Fighting at Reims
13.09.1914-18.04.1915 Fighting at the Aisne
21.04.-04.30.1915 Transport to the east
20th Infantry Division (Eastern Front)
05.05.-05.23.1915 Pursuits after the Battle of Gorlice-Tarnow
16.05.-05.23.1915 Crossing over the San
24.05.-05.26.1915 Fight at Radymno and San
27.05.-04.06.1915 Fight at the bridgehead of Jaroslau
12.06.-06.15.1915 Breakthrough battle at Lubaczow
17.06.-06.22.1915 Battle of Lviv
22.06.-07.16.1915 Pursuit battles on the Galician-Polish border
16.07.-07.18.1915 Breakthrough Battle of Krasnostaw
19.07.-07.28.1915 Fighting after the breakthrough battle of Krasnostaw
29.07.-07.30.1915 Breakthrough Battle of Biskupice
31.07.-08.10.1915 Pursuit battles from Wieprz to Bug
12.09.-09.26.1915 Reserve of OH-L. and transport to the west
20th Infantry Division (Western Front)
27.09.-10.18.1915 Autumn Battle in Champagne
31.10.1915-16.05.1916 Fighting at the Aisne
03/10/1916 Storming of the mountain at La Ville aux Bois
18.05.-01.06.1916 Transport to the east
20th Infantry Division (Eastern Front)
14.06.-07.15.1916 Fights on Stochod
16.07.-07.27.1916 Fighting on the upper Styr-Stochod
28.07.-04.11.1916 Battle of Kovel
05.11.-11.18.1916 Positional fights on ob. Styr-Stochod
20.11.-11.25.1916 Transport to the west
20th Infantry Division (Western Front)
26.11.1916-05.01.1917 training
06.01.-02.03.1917 Fighting at the Aisne
10.04.-05.08.1917 Battle of the Aisne
15.05.-04.07.1917 Positional fights in Champagne
05.07.-07.12.1917 Transport to the east
20th Infantry Division (Eastern Front)
13.07.-07.22.1917 Fighting on the Lomnica near Kalusz
23.07.-07.30.1917 Pursuit battles in eastern Galicia
31.07.-02.08.1917 Fighting for Zbrucz, between Zbrucz and Sereth
03.08.-08.16.1917 Position fights between Zbrucz and Sereth
30.08.-08.31.1917 Position fights before Riga
01.09.-05.09.1917 Battle for Riga
09/02/1917 Fights on the Big Jail
09/03/1917 Wholesale Kangern
09/04/1917 Conquest of Bh. Hinzenberg
09/04/1917 Pursuit battles towards the Riga-Wenden road
06.09.-09.10.1917 Positional fighting north of the D?na
10.09.-09.20.1917 Transport to the west
20th Infantry Division (Western Front)
27.09.-10.10.1917 Battle in Flanders
20.11.1917-17.02.1918 Positional fights in the Artois
20.11.-11.29.1917 The tank battle at Cambrai
30.11.-07.12.1917 Attack Battle at Cambrai
18.02.-03.20.1918 Training and march to the "Great Battle of France"
21.03.-04.06.1918 Great battle in France
21.03.-03.23.1918 Breakthrough Battle Monchy-Cambrai
21.03.-03.23.1918 Fight for Morchies and Beugny
24.03.-03.25.1918 Battle of Bapaume
22.04.-05.25.1918 Fighting positions between Maas and Mosel: on the Maashohe at Lamorville-Spada and St. Mihiel
25.05.-06.25.1918 Reserve of OH-L. at Arlon
18.07.-07.26.1918 Defensive battle between Soissons and Reims
27.07.-03.08.1918 The mobile defensive battle between Marne and Vesle
03.08.-08.17.1918 Reserve Army Group German Kronprinz or Boehn
28.08.-02.09.1918 Battle of Monchy-Bapaume
06.09.-09.26.1918 Fighting in front of the Siegfried Front
27.09.-08.10.1918 Defensive battle between Cambrai and St. Quentin
03.11.-11.11.1918 Defensive battle on the Maas
03.11.-11.11.1918 Defensive battles between Maas and Beaumont
12.11.-12.23.1918 Clearance of the occupied territory and march home 12 inches high overall read more
255.00 GBP
Battle of the River Plate, HMS Ajax Miniature Wooden Barrel Made From Teak from the Ship
One of the most desirable of the miniature pieces made from salvaged parts from British warships, HMS Ajax is in the premier division of maritime collectables.
A wooden miniature barrel made from wooden, teak parts of HMS Ajax, With a name plate thereon. The Battle of the River Plate.
The battle in 1939 was how 3 battleships, 3 aircraft carriers and 14 cruisers in seven Hunting Groups searched for a German raider that was the the Admiral Graf Spee and how the weakest force of three cruisers found her and the action which led to her destruction.
The Second World War against Nazi Germany had been waged for three months. At sea Britain had lost the passenger liner, Athenia, the armed merchant cruiser, HMS Rawalpindi, the battleship HMS Royal Oak and the aircraft carrier HMS Courageous. There was very little good news for Britain and France.
In the South Atlantic Captain Langsdorff in the German pocket battleship, Admiral Graf Spee had been sinking British merchant ships since September 1939. Commodore Harwood, commanding Royal Navy Hunting Group G, had studied the area and knew the attraction to a German raider of the rich pickings of British merchant ships leaving the River Plate estuary between Argentina and Uruguay in South America. The Germans claimed that their pocket battleships could out-gun any ships faster than them and outrun any ship with heavier armament.
In early December 1939 Harwood received enemy reports from the British freighters Doric Star and Tairoa as they were captured and sunk. He calculated that if the raider chose to head for South America she would probably arrive in the area off the River Plate on the morning of the 13th December. With this in mind, Harwood ordered the cruisers, HMS Ajax, Achilles and Exeter to concentrate there the previous day (12th December). They met at the pre-arranged time and exercised their action plan. On the morning of 13th December HMS Exeter was ordered to investigate smoke that was spotted on the horizon. She soon signaled, “I think it is a pocket battleship”. The three ships had finally met Admiral Graf Spee and at 0617 they went into action, following Harwood’s orders, “Attack at once, by day or night”. At first Graf Spee concentrated her fire on Exeter. Ajax and Achilles then closed on Graf Spee at speed, drawing her fire and causing significant upper deck damage and loss of morale. Graf Spee's Captain Langsdorff later said, “They came at me like destroyers”. At 0636 Graf Spee about-turned to the west, from where she started her retreat. With 66 of her crew killed, Exeter later retired from the battle badly damaged and made for the Falklands.
By 0725 Ajax and Achilles had closed to within 4 miles from Graf Spee. Harwood then decided to open the range and shadow her. However Graf Spee steadied and concentrated her fire again on Ajax and Achilles. Ajax fired a salvo of torpedoes to encourage Graf Spee to maintain her westward course, which she did, but shortly afterwards Graf Spee obtained a hit on Ajax which put her two after-turrets out of action. Achilles also suffered severe damage to her director control tower from a near-miss. This was Graf Spee's chance to turn on the pursuers and regain the initiative but it was not taken. Captain Langsdorff chose to break off the action and head for port in Montevideo, the capital of neutral Uruguay. Whether this was the result of a confused state because of wounds and concussion, a sense of defeat or to preserve the lives of his men we do not know.
On return home the men of HMS Ajax and HMS Exeter were feted in London by King George VI and Winston Churchill (First Lord of the Admiralty at the time). HMS Achilles' crew were similarly feted in their home town of Auckland, New Zealand. read more
125.00 GBP
A Fabulous, Huge, & Very Rare Original 1909 Poster For Schichtl's Marine-Theater. Depicting Germany’s Military Might In The Air, and Sea. Produced by the Showman Known at the Time as Germany’s P,T. Barnum The Greatest Showman on Earth
An extraordinarily beautiful original theatre poster from the turn of the 1900’s, and as far a we know, it may well the the only surviving example outside of a museum collection. In Excellent plus condition.
This spectacularly beautiful piece would grace any home or office surrounding, from contemporary modern to classical. The vibrant colours, artistry and the subject are a unique combination in antique poster art
A most rare collectors piece in that it covers the areas of interest of numerous fields. Such as, original theatrical production advertising posters, the rare artwork associated with the centuries old art of puppetry, early Imperial German propaganda of their military might, as a direct taunt to the British Empire of the Kaisers cousin King Edward VIIth, a rare poster of early German airships, and last but not least a beautiful surviving example of the very specific form artistry that appeared in the late 19th century and up to WW1.
Schichtl's Puppet Theater - The Original Marine Spectacles.
Museum of Adolph Friedländer. A variety theatre that put on a production depicting Imperial Germany's Maritime and Aeronautical might for the amazement of the viewing public.
Set's and artists provided a theatrical view of Germany's Grand Fleet and Airships using clever sets, backdrops and marionettes.
A little like America's P.T.Barnum's circus and curiosity side shows, but more typically Germanic, having a greater militaristic perspective.
Schichtl's Marine-Theater
Werbeplakat, feine Farblithographie, Hamburg 1909, 71 x 95 cm,
gemarkt "Lith. Adolph Friedlender, Hamburg", selten. read more
1250.00 GBP
Very Rare Aeronautical Stamps. Canada: 1918 (Aug) Aero Club of Canada 25c "flaming Zeppelin" Stamps
label CLP2 tete-beche pair, perfectly centred, one stamp very lightly mounted, the other unmounted, one with surface tear. A scarce collectable stamp from the very earliest Canadian Airmail service. We have seen good single stamps of this type achieving prices up to $1100. We are pricing as for a single stamp with it's matching companion free. read more
365.00 GBP
A Most Rare Original, Nazi Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei Serving Platter From the Graf Zeppelin
The platter has the German Zeppelin Co. logo, of the Third Reich Zeppelin, flying across the globe, the Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei. Manufactured by GEBRUDER HEPP PFORZHEIM, in 90 grade. In March 1935, the South Atlantic flights became the responsibility of the Nazi controlled Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei, after this company had been set up jointly by Luftschiffbau Zeppelin, the German Air Ministry and Deutsche Lufthansa. The DZR was created at the instigation of Air Minister Hermann Goring as a way to increase Nazi control over zeppelin operations, and can be see as part of the larger policy of Gleichschaltung, or coordination, which affected all aspects of German life in the years following Hitler?s assumption of power.
Consistent with Nazi ideology, the airship was expected to be more than just a private commercial venture; it was to be a public symbol of the new German nation. In a speech marking the founding of the DZR, Goring commented: ?I hope that the new ship will also fulfil its duty in furthering the cause of Germany? The airship does not have the exclusive purpose of flying across the Atlantic, but also has a responsibility to act as the nation?s representative.?
The even larger airship, the LZ 129 'Hindenburg' joined the 'Graf Zeppelin' in 1936, and, in addition to South Atlantic flights with its partner, inaugurated a service over the North Atlantic, between Frankfurt and Lakehurst in New Jersey, in the summer. Also in 1936 the South American route was extended to Rio de Janeiro. Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei ceased operations as the commercial use of airships came to an abrupt end on 6 May 1937, when the 'Hindenburg' exploded at Lakehurst.
This large silver tray is made of German silver plate, 90 grade, and was the product of the same silver company that made the Third Reich military cutlery and other silver objects for the Third Reich hierarchy - Gbr. Hepp. His company alongside his rival, Wellner, was a maker of much of the Fuhrer's formal dinnerware, and the Reich chancellery dinnerware pieces. Many items by were used in several of Hitler's residences, the Hotel [Der Deutscher Hof] personally used by Hitler, and numerous state offices. The Zeppelin Corps became one of the shortest-lived German service branches of World War II. After the German invasion of Poland in 1939, the Luftwaffe ordered the last two Zeppelin airships moved to a large Zeppelin hangar in Frankfurt. In March of 1940, Goring ordered their destruction and the aluminium fed into the Nazi war industry. In May, a fire broke out in the Zeppelin facility which destroyed most of the remaining parts. The rest of the parts and materials were soon scrapped with almost no trace of the German "Giants of the Air" remaining by the end of the year. 49cm x 32.5cm read more
700.00 GBP
Solid Silver Hallmarked L.Z.127 Graf Zeppelin Airship Aerospace Medal 1929 World Flight Issue
FRIEDRICHSHAFEN, STADT Medal 1929 (stamped by Josef Bernhart) on the 1st world flight of the LZ 127 "Graf Zeppelin". Busts of Zeppelin and Eckener l. Rev: Zeppelin. Beautiful patina. 36mm; 25g excellent condition Edge stamped hallmark: PREUSS. STATE COIN. SILVER 900
The around-the-globe flight of the German-built and -operated hydrogen-filled airship began in August 1929 at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey, where it ended 21 days, five hours and 31 minutes later after covering some 20,651 miles in four legs.
Sponsored in part by Newspaper baron William Randolph Hearst, one of the worlds most influential newspaper owners and also one of the richest men in the world, in his day. His notoriety was also subject to a biographical movie loosely based on his life, Citizen Kane, directed by Orson Welles. The result of which caused W.R.Hearst to spend many years trying, and in many ways succeeding, to destroy Orson Welles' career.
Costs for the flight were subsidized by the transport of souvenir mail to and from the stops in Lakehurst, Friedrichshafen, Tokyo, and Los Angeles, and these pieces are highly collectible today. 1929. it was originally owned and run by Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktiengesellschaft German Airship Transportation Corporation Ltd But in 1935 Reich Minister of Aviation, Hermann Göring insisted that a new agency be created to extend Party control over LZ Group. A personal rivalry between Göring and Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels also played a role. Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei was therefore incorporated on 22 March 1935 as a joint venture between Zeppelin Luftschiffbau, the Ministry of Aviation, and Deutsche Lufthansa.
LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin was a German passenger-carrying, hydrogen-filled rigid airship which flew from 1928 to 1937. It was designed and built to show that intercontinental airship travel was practicable. Its operational history included several long flights, such as a polar exploration mission, a round-the-world trip, trips to the Middle East and the Americas (operating five years of regular passenger and mail flights from Germany to Brazil), and latterly being used as a propaganda vehicle for the ruling Nazi Party. The airship was withdrawn from service following the Hindenburg disaster.
Although to most this piece looks like a coin, in Germany and also in France, medals could come in the table medal variety, not ever meant to be worn but for display in a table cabinet or mounted and framed. Awarded for the same reason as a medal made to be only worn on the person, as all British medals are.
Photo in the gallery of the medals with the armband of the Ortsgruppenleiter, from whom the medals came from all sold seperately read more
225.00 GBP
Solid Silver Hallmarked L.Z.127 Graf Zeppelin Airship Aerospace Medal 1928 Issue
Zeppelin Aerospace medal in solid siver.
Silver medal 1928 (J. Bernhart) Airship LZ 127 "Graf Zeppelin". Half-length portraits of Zeppelin and Eckener side by side to the left / Airship over ocean. Edge stamped hallmark: PREUSS. STATE COIN. SILVER 900 FINE. 36 mm, 24.37 g Fine patina,
L.Z.127 Graf Zeppelin airship medals, one awarded in 1928 the other 1929. Sold separately, acquired with the Ortsgruppenleiter's armband taken as war souvenirs in 1945, sadly the name of the NSDAP Ortsgruppenleiter and his medals was not noted at the time.
LZ127 it was originally owned and run by Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktiengesellschaft German Airship Transportation Corporation Ltd But in 1935 Reich Minister of Aviation, Hermann Göring insisted that a new agency be created to extend Party control over LZ Group. A personal rivalry between Göring and Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels also played a role.Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei was therefore incorporated on 22 March 1935 as a joint venture between Zeppelin Luftschiffbau, the Ministry of Aviation, and Deutsche Luft Hansa.
LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin was a German passenger-carrying, hydrogen-filled rigid airship which flew from 1928 to 1937. It was designed and built to show that intercontinental airship travel was practicable. Its operational history included several long flights, such as a polar exploration mission, a round-the-world trip, trips to the Middle East and the Americas (operating five years of regular passenger and mail flights from Germany to Brazil), and latterly being used as a propaganda vehicle for the ruling Nazi Party. The airship was withdrawn from service following the Hindenburg disaster.
Photo in the gallery of the medals with the armband of the Ortsgruppenleiter, from whom the medals came from all sold seperately
Although to most this piece looks like a coin, in Germany and also in France, medals could come in the table medal variety, not ever meant to be worn but for display in a table cabinet or mounted and framed. Awarded for the same reason as a medal made to be only worn on the person, as all British medals are. read more
160.00 GBP