In the Austrian provinces, the equivalent of the Hungarian Royal Honvéd forces was the Austrian Landwehr, whose regiments were later renamed Schützen Regiment. The battle value of these regiments was as high as that of the Honvéd regiments, equivalent to that of the regular regiments in the Great War. The 21st Rifle Regiment had its headquarters in St Pölten, its supplementary district was Upper Austria. During the war, the regiment was deployed primarily on the Italian front. First in defense of Tyrol, then from mid-1916 along the Isonzo, in changing positions, with various corps, always as part of the 44th Rifle Division.
The portrait shown in the assault helmet on the badge presented in the post is an extremely beautiful, plastic depiction. Work of the Gurschner company in Vienna. There was also a scaled-down version. Not a very rare, but beautiful badge. A special feature is the regiment’s letter seal, which is a representation of a soldier with full equipment. The badge and letter seal are placed on a mail envelope with the regiment’s unit stamp.
