M1916 Polizei Helmet

[SARGE]

Gents,

 

Here is an interesting example of a recently acquired Stahlhelm Police helmet. This helmet started out life as a Model 1916 WWI Austrian helmet. One of 486,000 German made helmets issued to Austrian forces during WWI. It was manufactured with a revised Model 1917 liner and after the war it was used by the Austrian Police and the chinstrap is property marked to the Steyrmark district of the Land Gendarmerie, The Gendarmerie armorers drilled two small holes on the left side of the helmet dome next to the lugs for attachment of the armored frontal plate. These secured a brass flaming grenade as the insignia of the Austrian Gendarmerie. When Austria became part of the German Reich as the Ostmark, all Austrian Policemen took off their helmets and held up their right hands and took the oath to become German Policemen. Austrian/German armorers once again modified these M1916 helmets by brush painting them green and then attached new German Police decals to these helmets to be worn by Austrian Policemen with their new Model 1936 green German Schutzpolizei uniforms. These WWI period helmets continued to serve during WWII. After the end of the war the Austrian Police were once again stood up and Austrian Police armorers painted over the decals in "Gendarmerie Grey" or "Police Green". These helmets served in Austria through the 1950s according to Ludwig Baer in his book, "The History of the German Steel Helmet 1916-1945".

 

 

[RRA227]

Nice piece.   Rich A. in Pa.

[Tony v]

SARGE

 

   Good looking helmet! Great information, I learn something new every day, thank you for the posting

 

Tony

 

[Fortunes Of War]

Thanks Sarge for the background on the helmet; I'm always learning something!

[Tom Kibler]

Nice lid

[SARGE]

Thank you for the kudos.  

 

One of the things I was happiest with was the chin strap.  Since these Austrian issue helmets were made a bit different from the standard German issued WWI Stahlhelm some collectors are not comfortable with the normal Polizei reworking process that included repainting, refurbishing, drilling holes, etc. they don't like them.  Some collectors think that these light brown chin straps are post 1945 Austrian Bundes-Gendarmerie replacements.  They are not IMHO.  This particular chin strap has pre-war Land Gendarmerie Kommand Steyrmark property markings indicating it was one of at least 1402 helmets in inventory.  The matching light brown liner has brown grommets for the string adjustment which is also correct.  Finally, there are WWII period photographs of these specific helmets, with these distinctive chin straps, in wear by German Polizei troops.  

 

 

[Preppy Picker]

Hard to find helmet. Very nice.