Amongst the riches of this month's Military Collectibles timed auction, our specialists have identified a piece signalling one of the famous figures of Word War One. The piece in question is lot 203, shown below, a Great War Memorial Plaque to Lieutenant Joseph Bertram Taylor. Taylor, born in Essex in 1898, joined 82 Squadron on 24th March 1918. Four days later Taylor was reported missing, presumed dead. Taylor had become the 74th victim of the famed flying ace, Manfred von Richthofen, better known as the Red Baron. 

Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen was a fighter pilot in the German Air Force in WWI. Not just any fighter pilot, von Richthofen was famed for being the highest-scoring fighter pilot of WWI, shooting down 80 enemy aircraft over just 20 months of combat. Recognised for his ruthlessness, von Richthofen's record has cemented him a place in public imagination as one of the most renowned flying aces.

Born to Polish nobility in 1892, Richthofen joined the Prussian army in 1912, commencing a successful military career as a lieutenant in the 1st Ulan Cavalry Regiment. As the war shifted towards trench warfare, the role of the cavalry declined. Thus, in 1915, Richthofen swapped the gallantry of cavalry for the gallantry of the skies, becoming a fighter pilot in September 1916. 

Having studied the principles of 'Dicta Boelcke' under strategist and flying ace Hauptman Oswald Boelcke, Richthofen swiftly proved his abilities. These tactics included always approaching the enemy from above and with the Sun behind you. Resultantly, Richthofen rapidly gained notoriety. Due to his noble status, alongside with his decision to paint his aircraft red, he became known by the British as ‘the Red Baron’. 

The emergence of distinct fighter pilots was still a relatively novel thing. Indeed, it had only recently be honed by the allies with the production of a fighter aircraft by Morane-Saulnier in April 1915. Saulnier's key contribution was to mount a machine gun on a monoplane, with the ability to accurately aim and fire, and without catching its own propeller. The German forces took little time to respond, and commissioned Dutch airman Anthony Fokker, who used captured Moranr-Saulnier interrupter gear to produce a preeminently efficient Fokker Eindecker in July 1915. The evolving demands of aerial warfare continued to drive the competitive production of aircraft throughout the rest of the war.

Richthofen suffered severe injuries in July 1917, possibly including a skull fracture. This injury caused him headaches and a personality change for the remaining months of his life. He was eventually shot down in his iconic red Fokker triplane near Amiens in April 1918. Mystery surrounds the exact identity of the individual responsible for shooting down von Richthofen. Original credit was given to Canadian pilot Roy Brown, although reviews have since suggested various alternatives, including Gunners Robert Bure and Snowy Evans, or Sergeant Cedric Popkin. Regardless, the gunners made it to the wreckage of the Fokker triplane, reportedly with time to hear the muttered 'kaput' - the final word of the famed Red Baron.

Richthofen’s body was taken to Poulainville, before being buried in a military funeral in a village near Amiens organised by Commonwealth forces, pictured above. The plane was scavenged for souvenirs and does not survive.

The memory of Richthofen's career has echoed through the ages. Not a hero, nor a villain of the Great War, but rather an individual who flourished in the role he occupied. Hidden in the shadow of the Red Baron, it can be difficult to retrieve the histories of those who died in combat against him. Lot 203 is an item which brings us in to contact with two sides of the proverbial coin, on which both sides are maybe not too different. It reminds us of the heroising of combatants in the war, as well as the tragic loss of life suffered on all sides.