Original World War Two Late War EM/NCO German M43 Gebirgsjäger Bergmütze, USGI Attributed “Bring-Back” Souvenir.
(First two photos depict the cap in our studio lighting while the remainder of the photos depict the cap in natural outdoor lighting).
The precursor to the M43 field cap (Einheitsmütze) and the Gebirgsjäger Bergmütze (Mountain Troops Mountain Cap) was a service cap first issued to Austrian Imperial-Royal Mountain Troops in 1906, this cap was made of Hechtgrau (pike grey) wool and had a turn-down brim to cover the wearer's ears in cold weather. German mountain troops, who initially wore a grey peakless forage cap resembling a sailor cap, adopted the Bergmütze in 1915 as a gesture of solidarity with their Austrian allies. Both the German and Austrian Bergmützen bore Edelweiss insignia, the mark of an experienced mountain climber, but, unlike the leather peaks of the Austrian caps, the peak of the German cap was covered with slate grey wool.
The Gebirgsjäger Bergmütze, in the Mountain Cap or “Ski Cap” family were first introduced before the War in the 1930’s. These caps were first issued solely to Mountain Troops and had only the slightest differences compared to their later M43 Einheitsmütze counterpart which was issued to more conventional units later in the war. The bill of the Bergmütze was extended out more and the top panel of the hat had a smaller circumference, giving it slightly sloped-in sides. All Bergmützen were made of field grey or “Feldgrau” and had a small Edelweiss flower or a grouping of Jäger leaves (depending on the unit) sewn to the side. The sides of the Bergmütze stand almost straight up, due to the wide top sewn onto the cap. The skirt that surrounds the cap is made in the same wool as the cap, and is double layered in the rear three quarters of the skirt, enabling it to be folded down over the ears. The skirt has a small dip in the front quarter with a divide secured by two small buttons in order to get the skirt around the bill. The small section in the front quarter was built shorter to show the insignia, and cover the wearer's chin or mouth, without disturbing breathing by covering the nose. From its inception, the Bergmütze had no readily identifiable rank indicator although the buttons were to be silver for Officer’s and gilt for General Officer’s. Regulations of October 1942 introduced silver/aluminum or gold piping to the top crown edge as a rank indicator. Although very similar to the M43 Field Cap, Bergmützen were issued in considerably smaller quantities and thus are more scarce today.
The cap is approximately a size 56 (US 7) and shows honest wear throughout the interior along with a hand placed and stitched two piece leather sweatband indicating the peak and leather lining were added during the war making this a textbook late war example of a M43 Bergmütze featuring a trapezoid Insignia which was hand applied on the front as well as the Edelweiss hand applied to the (wearers) left side. This is definitely a cap that saw a lot of use prior to being picked up in country by Karl J. Fetzer (ASN 32806294) of the 97th Infantry Division and brought back to the United States after the war. The cap was purchased from Fetzer’s widow in New York.
More research to be done!
