Picked up this interesting German Turnerschaft Belt buckle and other items and thought i would show them out of interest
Picked up this interesting German Turnerschaft Belt buckle and other items and thought i would show them out of interest
Cool items, and I thought the name was "Deutsche Turner-bund", but now I know better
lovr the brooch.
Nice buckle and still an unknown maker, I tried to research it and found it could have been made by Gebrüder Haunstein, Leipzig but no solid proof of this
Ben
Thank you all yes a interesting lot
Maybe you know already.
The four stylised "F"s at the buckle stand for "frisch, fromm, fröhlich, frei" (fresh, godly, happy, free) which has been the motto of the turners. The early turners had a political claim of liberty and German unity started by their founder Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the wars of liberation against Napoleon. Turnen was a way to train the body and to learn military exercises and discipline too. As a consequence after the wars of liberation the German sovereigns distrusted the turners. At Wiki I read that the motto was used in another order since their first organised forms by Jahn and that "fromm" has not meant orginally godly but disciplined/hard-working/virtuous. After the put down of the German revolution of 1848/49 many turners emigrated to the USA and brought the motto with them to build up new turner organisations there. The four "F"s form the so called "Turnerkreuz".
With best wishes
alter musketier
Last edited by Alter Musketier; 02-13-2016 at 05:58 PM.
In memory of my father who was in K-Einsatz, combat engagement, with the RAD in the Alps in 1945, of my grandfather who was with the IR 87 during campaign in France in 1940 and of my grand-uncle who served in the Gardegrenadierregiment Nr. 3 "Königin Elisabeth" and who was killed in action at Craonne, Chemin des Dames in France in 1917
Nice items and thanks for sharing!...
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