WH Feldgendarmerie Peaked Caps

[SARGE]

Gents,

 

I thought I would show a very nice Heer Feldgendarmerie (Army Field Police) peaked cap that I picked up this week.  This regulation NCO cap is the post 1936 standardized Schirmmutze fur Heer Feldgendarmerie.  While recruiting NCOs wore a similar peaked cap with orange piping the top of the recruiting NCOs was Army field grey whereas the Feldgendarmerie cap top was generally rendered in police green. 

 

This Army NCO cap has a police green top and a dark green band with orange piping.  It was made as a soft cap without a stiff saddle shape and the top is stuffed with material around the edges and particularly in the front which gives it a very nice jaunty shape.  The cap has the standard aluminum German Army insignia, in the form of an eagle and an oak leaf wreath, on the front peak.  The cap has a very raked visor surmounted with a black leather chin strap secured with black buttons.  The interior has the usual NCO orange cloth lining and a plain celluloid sweat shield.  This cap was made by a Munich cap maker, whose name I cannot quite read, in 1937.  The brown leather sweatband is sewn together on the left side of the cap instead of in the back.  

 

 

[shemp h.]

Very nice Sarge, I like the steep rake 👍

 

       Bill

            

[SARGE]

Thanks Bill.  This tailor made cap has a very nice "soft" shape as there is no wire stiffener in the top.  Quite unlike the normally seen stiff round top "Tellermutze" (plate shaped) issue enlisted caps that we normally see.  

 

Regular Gendarms went to war in their own civil police uniforms until they could be issued new Feldgendarmerie uniforms.  Their police green civil uniforms were worn with "Deutsche Wehrmacht" armbands or cuff titles during the first years of the war as can be seen in this photograph of a German Feldgendarm escorting French POWs during the invasion of France.  This insignia gave them combatant status during the early days of the war.  

 

 

 

[SARGE]

Here is another Feldgendarmerie peaked cap in the form of an Officer saddle form cap.  This cap is essentially a standard Gendarmerie Offizier Schirmmutze with Heer insignia instead of Police insignia on the front.

 

This Officer cap has a police green top and an early light brown band with orange piping.  It was made as a cap with a stiff saddle shape and the top has wire around the edges which gives it a very nice saddle shape.  The cap has the standard German Army insignia, in the form of an aluminum eagle and a bullion oak leaf wreath, on the front peak.  The cap has a very raked visor surmounted with a bullion officer chin strap secured with silver pebbled buttons.  The interior has a gold silk cloth lining and a celluloid sweat shield.  This cap sweat shield indicates the cap was made by "Deutsche Qualitsarbeit" and the owner is identified inside the leather sweatband.  The brown leather sweatband is riveted together on the back side of the cap.  

 

 

[RRA227]

Great visor hats.  Rich A. in Pa.

[shemp h.]

The officers visor is a beauty ! 

 

      Bill

[SARGE]

Thanks for the kudos guys.  I particularly like these two caps as they are good examples of a "one look" original cap IMHO.  They both show signs of original age and wear and tear but not enough to downgrade the condition of the cap. 

 

For instance, the Feldgendarmerie Officer cap retains an excellent external shape and condition and the chin strap cords fit evenly and properly indicating they were not added later.  They also show a bit of wear on the vulcanfiber visor near where it is sewn onto the cap band.  The insignia is straight and properly placed and the pins on the eagle, and thread on the wreath do not protrude through the inner lining.  The internal lining shows the proper amount of sweat and hair oil and the staining is where it should be on a cap that has been worn for years.  The leather sweatband has the same kind of sweat stains and you can see where the shanks of the side buttons have pressed against the sweatband showing it was worn for years.  Lastly, you can see sweat stains and discoloration on the lower edge of the cap band in the back where one would expect to see such staining.  

 

These are the attributes that I look for when evaluating acquiring a peaked cap.  

[SARGE]

I have just been able to determine that the NCO cap was a contract visor made by the Landes-Lieferung-Genossenschaft Kurschner und Mutzenmacher (LAGO) Bayern.  So, an early contract item of issue style visor cap made in Bavaria in 1937.  My old eyes could not make that rubber stamp out clearly.