East Asia Occupation Brigade

[Dirk]

This oversize cabinet card taken in China, shows a young infantryman of the East Asian 2nd Infantry Regiment. I am guessing he is wearing the 1900 field gray winter tunic jacket with stand down collar. He also had chosen to rest his grey felt covered pickelhaube on a studio prop table, that also includes what most likely is a photo album atop a silk dragon themed table cover. From the inscription on the reverse, it seems he spent 2 years in China garrisoned at Yangtsun, China (a town/railroad station stop along the route from Tientsin to Peking). During WWI it appears he was in IR 129 Generalfeld Marschall von Mackensen, garrisoned in Graudenz. Unfortunately, I can’t decipher anything else (such as his name)

 

[b.loree]

That is an excellent photo Dirk with lots of information!

 

[Sandmann]

Nice photo, and you read it well.
Just for fun and may be it helps, I read following:

Meine Dienstzeit in China.
vom 22.7.1903 bis 22.9.1905
bei der 1. Kompagnie 2. ostasiatisches
Infanterie-Regiment in
Yangtsun
Im Heer gedient vom
19.10.1901 bis 28.2.1919
im Inf.-Regt. Generalfeldmarschall
v. Mackensen Nr. 129 - 12. Komp.
Bromberg, ab 1.4.1903 in
Graudenz / Westpr.

Paul H. Wichmann, Gefreiter

I am sorry, but the last Name is the only thing I am not sure too.
May be someone else or Philippe can decrypt it completely.

 

[Lars13]

Well done Sandy,
You beat me to it, but I didn't have a clue about the last name, *ichmann looks ok to me, but he makes his capitals into works of art that are hard to decipher
Regards,
Lars

 

[Dirk]

Thank you Sandy for the excellent full translation! It’s nice to bring this mans military service back to life again!

 

[argonne]

May be someone else or Philippe can decrypt it completely.

Paul Ehrlichmann, Gefreiter
Philippe

 

[Dirk]

Prefect!!! Thank you,,

 

[Dirk]

And another East Asian Brigade image. This time a PPC instead of a cabinet or CDV photo

 

[Dirk]

And with some French Marines in Peking