European Infantry Sidearm.

corrado26 · 4th July 2021, 06:34 PM

The "AA" mark under a crown stands for "Auszueger Armatur" and was a mark of the Bern Arsenal.
All conscripted men who did not belong to the "Recruited Soldiers" were assigned to the Landwehr. In contrast to the Auszueger, who gathered his equipment in the arsenal, the Landwehr soldier had to disarm and arm himself at his own expense. This naturally led to a different look and a Landwehr pattern had to look like a carnival procession, as numerous caricatures attest. The goal of the government was to maintain a troop with the Landwehr and, above all, a large rifle budget as cheaply as possible. Among other things, a marriage law was passed in which the groom was obliged to buy weapons and equipment before the wedding. Here is a cartoon from that time. The disadvantage of this system was of course the enormous variety of weapons in terms of type and quality.

4th July 2021, 06:34 PM	#7
corrado26 Member Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Black Forest, Germany Posts: 1,237	The "AA" mark under a crown stands for "Auszueger Armatur" and was a mark of the Bern Arsenal. All conscripted men who did not belong to the "Recruited Soldiers" were assigned to the Landwehr. In contrast to the Auszueger, who gathered his equipment in the arsenal, the Landwehr soldier had to disarm and arm himself at his own expense. This naturally led to a different look and a Landwehr pattern had to look like a carnival procession, as numerous caricatures attest. The goal of the government was to maintain a troop with the Landwehr and, above all, a large rifle budget as cheaply as possible. Among other things, a marriage law was passed in which the groom was obliged to buy weapons and equipment before the wedding. Here is a cartoon from that time. The disadvantage of this system was of course the enormous variety of weapons in terms of type and quality.