After much debate, the curator of this online reference site has decided that the opening article from Cuffler provides an excellent opening to the reading of the Regimental codes. Thus why reinvent the wheel? So special thanks to the Cuffler, and now to the opening article.

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"The firearms and accouterments that were used by the various German military organizations from before the time of its adoption of the bolt action metallic cartridge rifle (1871) to the end of the First World War (1918) bear unique historical signatures.   These signatures, in the form of regimental markings stamped into the metal can give the collector and historian a good idea of whose hands grasped the rifle or bayonet in question, where it saw combat, and the history associated with the piece.

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However, these signatures are of value only to the extent that one knows how to read them.  Our intent here is to provide a rudimentary introduction to these markings and their significance.   However, it cannot be stressed enough that the study of the formations that made up the Imperial German military forces is a tortuous and complex discipline in and of itself.   And now, without further ado, let's examine the markings:

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Upon first glance at a piece, one is struck by a confusing jumble of numbers and letters that may look something like this:
 

22.R.6.114

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As can be seen there are four portions of the marking; the number preceding the lettering, the letter or letters themselves, the first set of numbers following the lettering, and finally the second set of numbers following the lettering.  Let's look at each portion of the marking individually.

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The Regimental Number

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22.R.6.114

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This is the first number, prior to the lettering, and indicates the number of the regiment that the piece of equipment belonged to.

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The Regimental Type

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22.R.6.114

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The lettering indicates the type of regiment the piece of equipment belonged to.  The letter R, stamped alone, indicates an infantry regiment.  By the regulation of 1877, R.R. indicated a reserve infantry regiment.  The marking regulations were amended in 1909 so that a single italicized R. indicated a reserve infantry regiment, while the earlier R.R. now indicated the recruiting depot of a reserve infantry regiment.  R.R., by the 1909 regulations, indicated the recruiting depot of a regular infantry regiment.

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The two R.R. marks can be differentiated by the numbers following the letters.  A single set of numbers indicates a recruiting depot, while two sets usually indicate a reserve infantry regiment.   Just to keep things interesting, however, some reserve infantry regiments had more than one recruiting depot, and thus might have a depot number preceding the last number, thus looking very much like the markings for a reserve infantry regiment.

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The Company Number

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22.R.6.114

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The company number is the first number following the letter, and indicates the number of the company to which the piece of equipment was assigned.

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The Weapon Number

22.R.6.114

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The last number is the inventory number of the individual piece of equipment.

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Read completely then, 22.R.6.114 would indicate that this was weapon number 114, assigned to the 6th Company of the 22nd Infantry Regiment."

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