TaylorRiess
New member
I've recently been researching Imperial German uniforms in an attempt to gleam whatever information I can from this photo of my great great grandfather. This ended up leading me here so I thought I'd share:
View attachment Wilhelm Bavarian Military.jpg
The only relevant information I know is that he was Bavarian, he was born in 1861, and he left for America in 1884. So far I've learned enough to know that he's an Ulan, judging by the cut of his tunic and the pointed cuffs. But beyond that, I've had a hard time figuring out what all the accessories mean because I have no idea what any of them are called.
That being said, after learning about the various tracks that could be taken to fulfill mandatory service, I think he's a one-year volunteer who's become an unteroffizier. I say this partly because I imagine it was pretty damn expensive to have your picture taken in 1880, and that anyone who had the money to do that would have the money to be a one-year.
Anyways, I though you guys would like this photo. I haven't seen a lot of photos from this early time period before so I hope it's valuable. I would also appreciate anyone who can gleam more information from the photo about what he was doing in the army. Interestingly, his stated reason for leaving Bavaria for America was Germany's increasing militarism.
View attachment Wilhelm Bavarian Military.jpg
The only relevant information I know is that he was Bavarian, he was born in 1861, and he left for America in 1884. So far I've learned enough to know that he's an Ulan, judging by the cut of his tunic and the pointed cuffs. But beyond that, I've had a hard time figuring out what all the accessories mean because I have no idea what any of them are called.
That being said, after learning about the various tracks that could be taken to fulfill mandatory service, I think he's a one-year volunteer who's become an unteroffizier. I say this partly because I imagine it was pretty damn expensive to have your picture taken in 1880, and that anyone who had the money to do that would have the money to be a one-year.
Anyways, I though you guys would like this photo. I haven't seen a lot of photos from this early time period before so I hope it's valuable. I would also appreciate anyone who can gleam more information from the photo about what he was doing in the army. Interestingly, his stated reason for leaving Bavaria for America was Germany's increasing militarism.
