M 1951 Helmet City Police Karlsruhe (Baden Württemberg)

**Sleepwalker** · 12-15-2021, 08:22 PM

Hello,

Today I would like you a little rarity. Even if large parts of the collector's world have only focused on WW2, such a helmet is probably one of the rarest in German history.

It is a helmet of the Stadtpolizei Karlsruhe - Karlsruhe City Police (Baden Württemberg). In the early Federal Republic of Germany there were still city police, which were not subordinate to the state police. This included the city of Karlsruhe in the state of Baden Württemberg.

In 1972 this city police was finally incorporated into the state police.

The city police had their own uniform with their own color scheme in dark blue and black and their own coat of arms.

Stadtpolizei Karlsruhe – Stadtwiki Karlsruhe

The number of staff was only 573 policemen at the most
No information is available on the number of helmets procured.

Karlsruhe also purchased the M 1951 steel helmets for this purpose.

I am talking about the popular M1951 model in shiny, very black-and-blue enamel paint. At first glance, these helmets look like black. In comparison, however, the difference is noticeable.

The shown helmet has no manufacturer mark or a shell size. According to the details, the shell, in my estimation, was made by "F.W. Quist" in Esslingen (Q or FWQE) or the "Vereinigte Deutsche Nickel-Werke AG" in Schwerte (NS or VDNS).

M 1951 Helmet City Police Karlsruhe (Baden Württemberg)

On the side there is a small coat of arms with the Latin "Fidelitas" = loyalty
"Fidelitas" is the motto of the noble house of Baden and the city of Karlsruhe.

The simplified inner lining 31 has a padding made of foam rubber and otherwise made of felt under the leather lining at the front. The inner ring is made of black plastic or molded material.
The distances to the shell are underlaid with cork washers.

The inner lining is fastened with three pins.

The chin strap is sewn and riveted to the inner ring.

After the takeover by the state police in 1972, the Karlsruhe police were equipped with new uniforms in green. The still existing helmets were repainted in green and given the coat of arms of Baden Württemberg.
You can rarely find one with these helmets under whose paint you can still see the Kalrsruhe coat of arms.

Regards

**MAP** · 12-15-2021, 08:47 PM

Minty time capsule! Nice!!!!!

**Greg Pickersgill** · 12-16-2021, 10:59 AM

Excellent presentation - it is almost like having the real thing here on my desk. And *all* the background information we might need to know. Perfect.