Artilleryman of the Marine Feld Batterie, III. Seebataillon

 
     
 

 
 

Photo © Doppler Collection

 



 

         
 

A photo of a mounted artilleryman of the field artillery battery ("Marine Feld Batterie") of the III. Seebataillon taken in Tsingtao prior to the First World War.

He wears the Seebataillon Dark Blue Home Uniform (see below right) with collar, cuffs and piping in white with yellow Litzen on the collar and cuffs. The insignia on the shoulder straps is also yellow  and showed an imperial crown above two crossed anchors above the battalion numeral III. The Marine Feld Batterie had two crossed cannon super-imposed over their shoulder strap insignia (see Specialist Insignia Page). The tunic has plain domed brass buttons on the front, cuffs and rear skirts.

Notice the curious way in which old orthochromatic film shows yellow (on the collar Litzen) as a very dark colour, much darker than natural. This was caused by the inferior photographic techniques of the time. See the Pickelhaubes Forum for more information on orthochromatic film.

His trousers are matching dark blue but do not appear to have any white piping.

The shako of the Seebataillone was of the same design as for the army's light infantry, the "Jäger". It was of black leather, with front and rear peaks. The Seebataillone wore a brass imperial eagle superimposed over a naval anchor on the front with an oval imperial cockade at the top (see above right).

Of special note is the cartouche belt worn over the shoulder and artillery pattern sword, both unique to the Marine Feld Batterie.

 


Seebataillon Shako
Musée Royale de l'Armée Collection, Brussels

Seebataillon Tunic
(See Seebataillon Uniform Details Page)
Photo
© Doppler Collection

Please respect the generosity of the Doppler Collection in sharing this photograph with us by not reproducing it without prior permission. 
 

 
 
Please contact me here if you have other photographs of the German colonies or the soldiers and sailors that served there. I am especially keen to hear from people with family photograph collections and am always happy to try to assist in identifying uniforms, units, places and dates for family history research.

Back to Main Menu for German Colonial Uniforms