Austro-Hungarian soldiers returning withhares they hunted behind the frontlines, December 5, 1917.
Austro-Hungarian soldiers returning withhares they hunted behind the frontlines, December 5, 1917.
This photograph was taken today 106 years ago near Cervignano on the Italian Front.
I bet those tasted a whole lot better than whatever rations they were issued, with a whole lot more protein and fat! 💪
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Austro-hungarian Soldiers Posing In Their Trench, Galicia Front (Ukraine) 1916.
The First World War would lead to the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. They suffered an estimated 5.5 million casualties with up to 2 million of those being killed, military as well as civilians.
Austria-Hungary was an important contributor to the war on the Italian Front (also known as the Alpine Front), and in Balkans
Unlike New Zealand and British troops, Austro-Hungarian soldiers were allowed to wear their medals on their field tunics in the front line.
The danger of course was that the medals could easily be lost, damaged or, as in this instance, almost certainly 'souvenired' by the enemy if the owner was taken prisoner.
The Austro-Hungarian Army started issuing German type steel helmets to its troops in late 1916. These included the Austrian made 'Berndorfer' version as well as helmets imported directly from Germany. The fierce intensity of alpine trench warfare on the Italian Front led to Austro-Hungarian units serving there receiving steel helmets before troops on other fronts.
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