THE RED BARON: RICHTOFEN, MANFRED VON. 1892-1918.

THE RED BARON: RICHTOFEN, MANFRED VON. 1892-1918.
Portrait Postcard Signed ("Frhr v. Richthofen"), 135 x 85 mm, gelatin silver print, captioned card printed by W. Sanke, Berlin, red ink stamps of Jagdstaffel 11, Deutsche Feldpost #408 on verso, addressed in ink "Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Herr Doctor Seisch / 1.12.1917." With mailing envelope bearing similar Feldpost stamp, also addressed to Doctor Seisch, with wax official seal on closure. Toning along left edge of image, mild soiling to envelope.

Freiherr Manfred von Richtofen, the "Red Baron," was the most famous flying ace of the German Air Force in World War I, credited with 80 combat victories — the highest number of any pilot in the war. His signature red painted aircraft and the bright colors used by his squadron comrades in Jagdstaffel 11, earned them the nickname "the Flying Circus." He died in combat in April 1918 after being struck by a single bullet, leaving generations of debate as to who fired the fatal shot.