Another Andys Rubbish and Ramblings to endure, this time Im into the Pickelhaulbe arena, looking at one specific item from my collection.
This is a humble M1915 Bavarian Infantry Pickelhaube, the M1915 helmets in general are probably one of the most commonly found Imperial German helmets. so as far are overall rarity goes, they are far from uncommon, they however generally exhibit an individual uniqueness. I have always favoured the M1915 helmets, they are the end of the line, they are a final salute to tradition at a time when practicality, utilitarianism, economy and expedited manufacture was more a prerequisite than maintaining any previous finery.
I remember having discussions many years ago with the last of the old timers that were WW1 veterans or close relatives of people that served in the Great War, well before I had a real grasp or understanding of the history as I was still very young at this time, maybe eight or nine years old. I vividly recall being told that Bavarian troops were fierce if not brutal fighters, and well remembered from their many clashes with the New Zealand Division on the Western front. It seems that the Prussians were by far a much better option to go into battle against. At least this was the view of those that remembered and spoke from experience. It was an interesting time and all to soon in my lifetime the front rows of soldiers adorned with their WW1 medals at the ANZAC dawn services were replaced with the Masses of WW2 veterans that always followed behind the WW1 guys (now their ranks are also largely depleted, time waits for no man)
Back to the helmet, the M1915 was the last of the line, they came after the slightly earlier Ersatz type helmets and reintroduced some sort of standardisation to the helmet manufacturers, there is still a lot of variation to be found in the shape of the spike, the helmet plate detail and variation, the liner and general material quality, markings etc. They are indeed a collecting field all of their own. Did the introduction of the M16 see an end to the Pickelhaube? Not entirely and I believe there are numerous examples with manufacturing dates up to 1917 and they were still in use both at the front and behind the lines in tandem with the M16 helmets that were being introduced as stocks came to hand. There were no doubt “traditionalists” that didn’t like the M15 helmet as it was not as eye catching as the previous 1895 pattern, and others that were less than impressed with having to wear the heavy and utilitarian M16 helmet.
This humble Bavarian offering came to me from a collector in the States some years ago, I had been wanting to find a M1915 Bavarian helmet for quite some time when this one became available, it seems these common helmets are not as common as you would like, especially when trying to find one. The helmet its self is in quite reasonable condition and maintains some good clear markings and is named to a Max Senft.
With the help fro a couple of collector friends Im now able to preserve a lot more history with this helmet than I anticipated,
B.D.III marking, Bekleidungs depot III, below this marking is the year 1915 and 147 indicates the type of item being marked/recorded in stores, in this case a Pickelhaube.
6.I.R, this indicates 6. königlich Bayerisches Infanterie-Regiment .
And the Name Max Senft, was the person issued this helmet, Max named his helmet clearly and was no doubt very proud to wear this helmet. Max was born in Volling/Roding on the 28/12/1897. Max was mobilised to the II Ersatz Battalion of the KBJR6 (4th Company) on the 3/6/1916, on the 14/11/1916 Max was moved to the 3/KBJR14. Max was later to receive a shrapnel wound in the abdomen on the 12/12/1917.
Max was 1.69 meters tall, he had blonde hair and survived the war.
Given the time frames and the condition of the pickelhaube I would venture to speculate that Max may not have taken this helmet with him when he was posted to KBJR14 (14/11/16), It was likely not taken to the front and possibly returned to stores of left at home and Max undoubtedly went to the front with the new M16 , we will never know this for sure but the condition of the Pickelhaulbe lends me to believe that this is the most likely scenario