Gausieger 1944 Detailed Examination

Forums New posts
Yes definitely, as these are going to be covered in other occupation-related (union?) papers around the same period, end of April. Maybe not the full total but surely get close to it.
3000 Awards would also make this a very scare item item indeed.
Maybe one day someone will send me a "genuine" to examine. Or at least another version, as there are a few, which there obiously can`t be with so little made. Time will tell, but we here at the famous HJ Research forum are known for dedicated long term projects. LOL.

Seriously though, just look at some of them, turned out sweet as nut!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Garry said:
Yes, the main difference in 1944 was that the best of the Gausieger in the various disciplines who would normally have gone on to compete again at the Reichskampf did not do so as that stage did not take place in 1944 due to concerns about the safety of competitors due to bombing etc. Instead, the eventual Reichssieger were determined by committee.
Click to expand...
The newspaper article says that they did, in Posen, from 23-25 April? Or am I reading something else into this? At least for the Reichstnaehrstand-related Kaempfe they did, and others were held in other places. So no central main event, but rather seperate events around the same time in different places?
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Last edited by a moderator:
Exactly. Posen was the final for those in that trade group. Other trade groups held their finals in different towns/cities. In previous years, the best of the Gausieger would have gone on to compete in the Reichskampf at a central location but that didn't happen in 1944.

By the way, I got myself nice and confused with the number of Gausieger for that year. I corrected it in my previous post. Across the Reich there was a certain number of Gausieger. In 1938 for example it was 37,700. However, only the best of those went on to compete at the Reichskampf for the title of Reichssieger. But.. there was no Reichskampf in 1944. In that year, the best of the Gausieger competed at decentralised locations like Posen and others. Anyway, the number of 1944 Gausieger badges was much higher than I said. The missing stage messed me up :)
 
Here's a little booklet that I have which shows the Reichsentscheid in Darmstadt and Hanau which covered the trade groups Bekleidungshandwerk and Spezialhandwerk.

I'll have a look for any online newspapers etc that might give us more numbers for the table.

You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Lots of trades that either are no more, or dying out. Hat maker, book binder......
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Weitze has an example with Urkunde in his Friday update. Not cheap if you ask me...

You don't have permission to view attachments.
1000 Euros
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Way (about by $600.00)over priced IMHO. After viewing Jo's microscopy examination of one.... I would not buy one of those without micro photos of it. JMHO.

Mike
 
Just trying to get my head around this.
In theory, a Reichssieger, would also be the holder of a Gausiger Award and Urkunde, as well as a Kreissieger Award and Urkunde.
Are there are such groups known?
Or did those that win at the Kreissieger level, and went on to Gausieger level not get anything for the time being, and then if they went on to Reichssieger also not get anything for the time being, and then if they won at RS level, only get the Reichssieger Award and Urkunde?
 
Damn good question mate. The award ceremony for Kreissieger was conducted by the Kreisleiter and other leading personalities, the Gausieger saw the Gauleiter etc and the Reichssieger, well a delegation of them anyway, saw old Adolf after their award ceremony with Dr Ley and Schirach. This all happened simultaneously on the first of May meaning that a Reichssieger would have received that badge and folder but not those of Kreis- and Gausieger. Obviously the same would apply to someone who won at the Gau level. This is certainly my understanding of how it worked. Axmann's "Der Reichsberufswettkampf" from 1938 p68/9 shows the progression (below).

You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
You don't have permission to view attachments.


Strange but I've never really thought about that aspect of the competition until you asked that question :)
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Then they must all have recieved their Urkunden and Awards later, after all the results were "ausgewertet" Otherwise a RS winner would have all three, which would be pointless.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Exactly. The achievement badges, for example, were awarded over a period of years so there was a point in someone having all three because he/she could have worn each one for quite some time before achieving the next level. With the RBWK badges, had these been awarded after each stage, an eventual Reichssieger would only have had the chance to wear the first two badges for a few weeks. As you say, no point in that. Might as well wait to see which badge you won after the competition is complete and then wear that one.
 
From the DuZ November 1943.
You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
Last edited by a moderator:
Cool. Here's a bit more from his autobiography:

You don't have permission to view attachments.
 

Attachments

    You don't have permission to view attachments.
On the question that Jo asked about how many RBWK badges someone could amass if they passed through all stages (Orts, Gau, Reich) and eventually became the Reichssieger in his/her trade.. An article in a 1937 newspaper reports on the ceremony for the Gausieger in Stettin giving the names of all of the winners and a description of the ceremony which was held in the Landeshaus. The theory/practical trade test were carried out on Saturday the third of April with the sports test taking place the next day with the presentation of the results happening later that day.

Anyway, and as we suspected, there is no mention of badges being presented. At the ceremony the winners names were called out by Gaujugendwalter Wehner and when they came forward they "shook hands with Gebietsführer Schmitz". That's it. No mention of Gausieger badges or Gausieger presentation documents. This fits with what we were saying earlier in the thread: no point in awarding badges to people until the Reichssieger were known and therefore the winners at all other levels. Kreissieger gets that badge, Gausieger doesn't get Kreissieger AND Gausieger badges and the same for the Reichssieger.
 
It does, makes perfect sense too. And I guess after the amount of each was known, the maker could be informed, and production of x-amount could start. Coz they are dated, so could not be reused for the next year. Also quite costly to make I would imagine, so you`d want to know more or less how many to order/produce.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top