Mystery photo from WW1 (?)

[cuprum]

In the photo is hard to see, what kind of overcoat dressed for Belgian soldiers ...
Judging by the fact that the headdress have Belgian soldiers ill-suited for the Russian winter, maybe that they just got a Russian army sheepskin coats? Together with Russian shoulder straps.

[cdr]

Cuprum,

Belgian sources state that shortly after landing, they were issued with Russian winter clothing. They were supposed to wear Russian shoulderboards. Other ranks wore  'volunteer cords'. The original uniform was quickly put aside. (the cap was apparently similar to the Austrian one and caused friendly fire incidents)

Carl

 

[ts]

"Belgian sources state that shortly after landing, they were issued with Russian winter clothing. They were supposed to wear Russian shoulderboards. Other ranks wore  'volunteer cords'. The original uniform was quickly put aside."

That is not what contemporary photos show. In those very few and very seldom Russian pieces of military clothing are to be seen.

[cdr]

There is actually quit a lot of evidence for the use of Russian shoulderboards.
There are actual uniform pieces of the armoured car unit in the Brussels army museum. The most recent
book on the unit by August Thiry and Dirk Van Cleemput shows several illustrations with these boards. The book
also talks of the use of Russian winter coats, boots and bonnets
At least one Russian armoured car with two mg towers was used

[ts]

An armored car, type "Peugeot", from the Belgian Armored Car Corps  in Kiev at the shell amaged bell tower of the Military St. Nicholas Monastery, February-March 1918.
Armour (average thickness) of 5 mm. Crew: 4-5 men.
Armament: "Hotchkiss" 37 mm cannon, number of cartridges - minimum 40  or  maximum 300. Engine: "Peugeot" power 40-45 hp. Speed on highway: 50 km/h. Range: 140 km.

On one or more Russian armoured cars was with the Belgians, I can agree on that.
One picture from the  Barracks in Kiev show such a car together with Belgian armoured cars, shortly before they were destroyed.


The Sviatoshyn Barracks in Kiev, January 1918 - Belgian and Russian armored cars.

If there was a Russian battery (unit) within the Belgian Corps, I do not know - in that case the discussed photo could show the Russian crews. Especially as some of the Russians on the photo do not wear any cockade, perhaps dating the photo to the revolution period - before or just after the Belgians have destroyed the cars?

I only have 2 newer Ukrainian books on the subject:

На периферії війни, Бельгійський бронедивізіон в Україні 1916-1918, Тірі Август, Київ 2010.
(At the Periphery of the War, the Belgian Armoured Corps in Ukraine 1916-1918, August Thiry, Kiev, 2010.)
A nice and well illustrated booklet in a series like the English Osprey.



Пілігрими Великої війни. Одіссея бельгійського бронедивізіону у 1915— 1918 роках / А. Тірі. — К.: Темпора, 2010. — 240 с.:
(Pilgrims of the Great War. The Odyssey of the Belgian Armoured Coros in 1915 - 1918, A. Thiry, Tempora, 2010. - 240 p.)



but have just ordered "Reizigers door de Grote Oorlog - De odyssee van het Belgische ACM-pantserkorps 1915-1918" par August Thiry & Dirk Van Cleemput, Davidsfonds, Leuven, 2008, which I believe is the book used for translation to the second Ukrainian book and with same photos, printed in 2010. The pictures in the Ukrainian version are terribly reproduced.

The main work on the Corps, I suppose, is: Thiry, Oscar & Marcel, Soldats belges à l'armée russe, Livre de bord d'une auto-blindée belge en Galicie (2ème édition). Liège, 1923, 240 p. ??

The only picture in the two above mentioned books showing Belgians with Russian uniforms with the typical shoulder boards, is a picture showing 4 Belgian deserters, who have taken service with Ataman Semyonov.


ACM deserters, who in Harbin joined the troops of the Siberian Cossack Ataman Semyonov. On the photo: Maurice Kremer (below), Jean Derek (center left), Jules Gachet (inside right) and Eugene Valle (top).


An armored car, type "Mors", from the Belgian Armored Car Corps on the square in front of the St. Michael's Cathedral in Kiev, January-February 1918. Weight: 3.46 tons (on Fiat chassis - 55). Armour (average thickness) of 5 mm. Crew: 4 men.
Armament: "Hotchkiss" 8 mm machine gun, ammunition (maximum) - 2500. Engine: "Minerva" power 35 hp. Speed on highway: 60 km/h. Range: 125-135 km.