In researching my family history recently, I found this man who might be a relation of mine, from my father's side of the family.
This is the link to him on Findmygrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/147748570/karl-vaterlaus
I've struggled to find anymore information on his circumstances, at the time of his death. My German isn't that great and my living relatives aren't too familiar this far back in my family history.
If you can help me with the following questions, especially if you speak German and are well learned in WW1 history. I'd greatly appreciate it.
How common was it for Swiss nationals to end up serving in the German Imperial Army thru 1914 - 1918? (I know he moved as a kid, but I'm not sure if he was a German citizen or not)
I'm struggling to find information on his regiment, 3rd Bayern inf.regiment, Company commander of 1st Komp (?) Who are they? And what did they do during the 1st world war?
Is it possible to find his medals? (Iron cross 1st and 2nd class, along with Bayern military service cross 1st class) Could they help me connect with his other living relations, therefore my living relatives?
Are there any German records that can help with this? Such as a national or historical archives, that can help me find more information on him and his family?
Thank you for reading, anything you can share could be helpful. Danke Schön!
Hello there! As your question is related to looking for identification/information regarding military personnel, our Guide on Military Identification may be of use to you. It provides a number of different resources, including how to request service records from a number of national agencies around the world, as well as graphical aids to assist in deciphering rank, unit, and other forms of badges or insignia. While the users here may still be able to lend you more assistance, hopefully this will provide a good place to start!
I don’t know if the 3rd Bayern inf regiment has something to do with the 3rd Royal Bavarian Division, if it does, I can tell you that they saw combat from the beginning of the war in the battle of the frontiers in the borders of France, Belgium and the German Empire, until the end of the conflict in 1918. It is also important to mention that the battles they were involved through, are ones of the most important of the western front and some of the most deadliest ones. Some of those battles are the battle of Ypres, the battle of Somme, the battle of arras, and they participated in the spring offensive of 1917. If the regiment you mentioned has something to do with 3rd Royal Bavarian Division, thats some info you can obtain. I hope this comment help you with something. I think that unfortunately the best way you can obtain some info is by some german sources, which isn’t my language either.