{"product_id":"imperial-german-generalfeldmarschall-von-haeseler-portrait-postcard-bieber-berlin","title":"Imperial German Generalfeldmarschall von Haeseler Portrait Postcard Bieber Berlin","description":"\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eA colored portrait postcard depicting Generalfeldmarschall (Field Marshal) Gottlieb von Haeseler, one of the senior soldiers of the Imperial German Army, produced after an original studio photograph by the Berlin court photographer E. Bieber. The card is of standard postcard format and presents a bust portrait of the field marshal in old age, gazing slightly to the viewer's left against a plain brown ground. He wears the Prussian dark-blue officer's Interimsrock (undress tunic) with general-officer shoulder cords of braided flat gold cord bearing crossed marshal's batons, the enameled neck badge of the Johanniterorden (Order of Saint John) at the throat, and the Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (Iron Cross First Class) pinned to the left breast. The reverse carries the printed caption Generalfeldmarschall von Haeseler and the studio credit Nach Original-Aufnahme von E. Bieber, Berlin (after an original photograph by E. Bieber, Berlin), together with an undivided lower field and stamp box in the Art Nouveau manner typical of the period.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eGottlieb Ferdinand Albert Alexis von Haeseler (1836–1919) was among the most respected and severe figures of the Prussian officer corps in the Wilhelmine era. Commissioned before the wars of German unification, he saw active service in the Austro-Prussian conflict of 1866 and again in the Franco-Prussian conflict of 1870 to 1871, during which he served on the staff and distinguished himself in the campaign that produced the German Empire. For much of the following generation his name was linked with the VIII Army Corps at Metz in the annexed territory of Alsace-Lorraine, which he commanded for sixteen years and shaped into one of the most rigorously trained formations in the army. His insistence on hard, realistic field exercises, long marches, and personal austerity made him a legend among German officers and gave rise to a large body of anecdote about his spartan habits and biting wit. He was raised to the rank of Generalfeldmarschall in 1905, the highest rank the Prussian and Imperial army bestowed, held largely as a mark of honor upon officers of exceptional standing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eHaeseler belonged to the Prussian service and thus to the royal house of Hohenzollern, whose head reigned simultaneously as King of Prussia and German Emperor. The Order of Saint John shown at his throat was the Protestant chivalric order of the Prussian nobility, an institution closely tied to the Junker officer class from which Haeseler came, and its presence marks him as a Rechtsritter or honor knight of that body. Although he was by the outbreak of the First World War a man approaching eighty, he returned to a field command in 1914, briefly leading troops in the opening operations before age compelled his retirement from active duty. He died in October 1919, having outlived the empire he had served for more than half a century. Portrait cards of this kind were issued in large numbers during the war years to satisfy public appetite for images of the army's commanders, and the coloring and patriotic framing reflect that market.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eThe studio credit is itself of interest. Emil Bieber directed one of the foremost court photography firms in Berlin and Hamburg, holding warrants to German and other royal houses, and portraits issued under the Bieber name carried a mark of quality and official standing. That this image derives from a Bieber original places it among the better-produced patriotic portrait cards rather than the cruder anonymous printings that flooded the market.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eCondition is honest. The printed face is bright, with the coloring well preserved and the portrait crisp, showing only light edge wear and handling. The reverse tells a harder story: it is heavily toned and soiled, with several prominent brown moisture or adhesive stains scattered across both halves, consistent with a card once mounted in an album. The card is unposted, with no message, stamp, or postmark. The staining is confined to the back and does not intrude on the portrait itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eFor collectors the appeal lies in the sitter and the maker together. Haeseler is a named and historically substantial personality of the Imperial German Army, spanning the wars of unification through the opening of the First World War, and material connected to him is sought by those who collect Prussian general-officer and personality items. As a Bieber-sourced portrait card in bright condition on the display side, the piece serves both the personality collector and the collector of period military postcards, while the reverse staining keeps it in an accessible price range. It is a modest but genuine window onto the face of the old Prussian army.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Derrittmeister Militaria Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50183767458031,"sku":"44-76","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/9169\/5855\/files\/44-76_1.jpg?v=1784154109","url":"https:\/\/derrittmeister.com\/products\/imperial-german-generalfeldmarschall-von-haeseler-portrait-postcard-bieber-berlin","provider":"Derrittmeister Militaria Group","version":"1.0","type":"link"}