Imperial German WWI RPPC Wurttemberg Grenadier Regiment 123 Feldpost 1916

The piece is an original Imperial German Echte Photographie (real photograph postcard, abbreviated RPPC) showing the full-length studio portrait of a young soldier of the Royal Württemberg Army, posed against a painted backdrop of Art Nouveau columns and standing next to a wicker-seated bentwood chair on which his left hand rests. The postcard reverse bears a dated Feldpost cancellation, a purple regimental Soldatenbrief cachet, the soldier's handwritten message dated 2 January 1916, and the addressee block written in old German cursive. The combination of the postmark, the regimental cachet, and the address detail anchors the card precisely in time and unit, which is uncommon among studio-portrait RPPCs and substantially elevates its documentary value.

The soldier wears the M1910 Feldmütze mit Schirm (peaked field cap) in feldgrau (field-gray) wool with darker band and the two-cockade arrangement — Reichskokarde (imperial cockade) above and the black-and-red Württemberg state cockade below — that uniquely identifies pre-1918 Imperial issue. His tunic is the M1910 Feldrock (field tunic) rather than the simplified M1915 Bluse, with the longer skirt, full button row, side pocket flap, and trimmed standing collar visible. Trim consistent with the Litzen (collar braid) historically worn as a peacetime distinction by the Württemberg Grenadier regiments appears at the collar, though the detail is partially absorbed into the tonal range of the photograph. The brass belt buckle at his waist is the round Württemberg enlisted pattern, properly worn carrying the regimental motto Furchtlos und Treu (Fearless and Faithful), though the legend itself is not legible at this scale. Trousers, low boots, and overall turnout are correct for an enlisted soldier of an infantry or grenadier regiment in the first half of the 1914–1918 period.

Grenadier-Regiment "König Karl" (5. Württembergisches) Nr. 123 was one of the senior line regiments of the Royal Württemberg Army, garrisoned at Ulm an der Donau in peacetime and bearing the honorific König Karl in recognition of Karl I, King of Württemberg from 1864 to 1891. The regiment formed part of the 53. Infanterie-Brigade of the 27. Division within XIII. (Königlich Württembergisches) Armeekorps — one of the four contingents of the Imperial Army that retained substantial constitutional autonomy alongside Prussia, Bavaria, and Saxony. Throughout the conflict GR 123 saw heavy active service across multiple Western Front sectors, including operations in Lorraine, Champagne, and the 1916 fighting in the Argonne and Verdun sectors, where the 27. Division was committed during the protracted French campaign of that year. By the January 1916 dating of the present card, the regiment had already absorbed substantial losses and reinforcements over more than sixteen months of frontline operations and had been reorganized around its newly established Machine Gun Company (M.G.K.), one of the regimental-level supporting elements that became standard across the Imperial infantry organization in 1915 and 1916.

The reverse carries three principal documentary elements. First, the black circular Feldpost cancellation, struck in the upper center, reads in part K.D. Feldpoststation der 27. Infanterie-Division with the date 3 JAN 16, placing the card within the divisional postal apparatus on that day. Second, the purple rectangular Soldatenbrief cachet at lower left identifies the sending unit at regimental level as Infantry/Grenadier-Regiment 123 — the cachet's middle line is partially obscured but its lower line reads "Inf.Reg. 123" clearly. Third, the handwritten message in old German cursive begins with a place name and the dating den 2. Jan 1916, opens with a familial salutation, and continues with the typical Feldpost reassurances of good health and good news from home before closing with the writer's initials, which are not fully resolvable. A separate notation in the address area refers to "M.G.K. 123," which may identify the writer's specific company within the regiment. The recipient address is written in two cursive lines along the right side and refers to a Konditorei (confectionery business) in Heidenheim, the Württemberg town in the Brenz valley east of Ulm — consistent with the regional posting of the regiment's home depot.

Condition is honest period-used. The photographic side is sharp and tonally balanced, with full detail retained in the face, the uniform fittings, and the studio backdrop; light edge handling with minor surface wear and a few small spots of foxing are present but no significant loss or creasing affects the image. The reverse shows the postal cancellation, cachet, and handwritten content as described, with light overall toning consistent with age and use, some scattered surface soiling, and a faint stain at upper right. Approximate dimensions are 5.5 by 3.5 inches (14 by 9 centimeters), the standard Imperial German postcard format of the period.

The combination of attributes gives this card distinctive collector appeal beyond the general run of unidentified studio-portrait RPPCs. The Württemberg state attribution is reliably established through both the Soldatenbrief cachet and the 27. Division Feldpost cancellation; the regimental identification — Grenadier-Regiment "König Karl" (5. Württembergisches) Nr. 123 — is among the better-known Württemberg line designations and is independently sought by collectors building state-specific groupings; the dated postmark of January 1916 anchors the piece firmly within the regiment's active operational period; the Soldatenbrief cachet itself is a documentary detail favored by Feldpost specialists; and the addressee detail toward a Heidenheim Konditorei adds a layer of civilian-to-military narrative typical of the best inscribed Imperial German postal ephemera. The card will appeal particularly to collectors of Württemberg material, of identified-regiment photography, of Imperial Feldpost covers and cachets, and to those building thematic groupings around the XIII. Royal Württemberg Army Corps and its constituent regiments.