Ranks of the National People's Army

This article shows the ranks of the National People's Army , which was the army of the German Democratic Republic from 1956 to 1990 .

execution

The appearance of the rank badges followed the Wehrmacht tradition , but with a few modifications. Thus, the arm angle of were corporal and Corporal replaced by one to two transverse braid on the shoulder straps. The trimmings on the collars and epaulets of the NCOs and sergeants , however, remained unchanged compared to the Wehrmacht, as did the star distinctions for sergeants , sergeants and staff sergeants . The officers' shoulder pieces represented a compromise solution: the basic shape of flat cord or wickerwork, as well as the shape of the star rankings, matched those of the Reichswehr. However, the arrangement of the rank stars followed the pattern of the Soviet Army.

With the introduction of the Soviet rank structure for officers, the rank of sub-lieutenant was reintroduced (in Germany the term sub-lieutenant was no longer used after 1898). In return, the rank of general of the branch of arms ( general of the infantry , general of the artillery, etc.), who was previously the next higher above the lieutenant general, was dropped . This was immediately followed by the Colonel General, followed by the Army General.

Also the Soviet model was followed by the introduction of the rank group of cadets in 1974 (with a first rank), five years later expanded to include the ranks midshipman , stabsfähnrich and stabsoberfähnrich . These ranked between the sergeants and the officers. Their rank badges consisted of two silver flat cords placed on the basic cloth of the shoulder pieces. To introduce the rank group of ensigns, they wore two gold stars arranged one above the other. As a special identification, the ensigns wore a sleeve badge on the left upper arm of the uniform. Initially, the number of these stars reflected seniority. After ten years of service there was the first star, after 15 or 20 years a further star. On October 1, 1979, further ensign ranks were introduced, namely after the ensign the senior, staff and senior midshipman. One to four star rankings, arranged vertically on top of each other, were used to differentiate, which were only silver-colored for a very short time, about a week. Due to massive complaints from the ensigns, who perceived one star less and the change in the star color from gold to silver as a downgrade, a return was made to gold-colored stars. With the introduction of further ensign ranks, the stars on the sleeve badges were dropped. The ensigns wore the officers' uniforms and equipment, but the silver field armband , the honor dagger and, from 1977, the armpit cord were reserved for them.

Pauldrons, patches and sleeve badges

The shoulder pieces of the lieutenants and captains were made of simple silver flat cord. The second lieutenant was distinguished by a star of rank, the lieutenant two stars placed next to each other, and the first lieutenant three stars of rank formed into an even triangle. The captain had another star above the triangular formation.

Staff officers had silver braided shoulder boards with one star for the major , two stars for the lieutenant colonel , three stars for the colonel .

With the gold-colored general badges, consisting of two gold strings on the outside and one silver string on the inside, the stars of rank for the major general, lieutenant general, colonel general and army general were placed vertically on top of each other. Until the mid-1960s, the cords were laid in four loops, just like the shoulder pieces of the Wehrmacht generals; later there were five loops. In contrast to the stars of the lower rank groups, the general stars were pentagonal and had a diameter of 15 mm. The appointment of a Marshal of the GDR would only have taken place in the event of a defense or for special military services. His rank would be a five-pointed star Order star with ruby insert was 40 mm in diameter.

According to the old Prussian tradition, the military music service wore the characteristic swallow nests on both sleeves .

For reasons of health and safety, no shoulder boards were used on aviator and technician suits for the Air Force. The rank was marked with a bar code on the left side of the chest, starting with the rank of NCO with a seven millimeter wide stripe on a gray or blue background. From 1984 the barcode of the officers corresponded to the sleeve stripes in the navy.

Land forces, air forces and border troops

Note:
The different colors stand for different branches of service, branches of service, special troops and services. See:

→ Main article : Gun colors (NVA)

Generals

Generals of the NVA
Marshal of the GDR	Army General	Colonel General	Lieutenant General		Major general
Land Forces			Air Force		Border troops
OF-10	OF-9	OF-8	OF-7		OF-6

Officers

Officer corps of the NVA
Colonel	Lieutenant colonel	major	Captain	First lieutenant	lieutenant	Sub-lieutenant	Officer student
Missile troops / artillery	Motorized shooters	Rear services	Missile troops / artillery	news	Air Force	Pioneers	0-5 Academic year
OF-5	OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1			OF-D (student)

Ensigns

Ensign corps and ensign pupil of the NVA
Sleeve badge (except for ensign students)	Senior Ensign	Ensign of Staff	Ensign	Ensign	Ensign student
	tank	Pioneers	Paratroopers	Border troops	Air Force
	W-4	W-3	W-2	W-1	W-1 (student)

NCOs

NVA non-commissioned officers
Staff Sergeant	Sergeant Major	sergeant	Sergeant major	Sergeant
Missile troops / artillery	news	Pioneers	Mot. Protect	Border troops
OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5	OR-4

Team ranks

Team ranks of the NVA (LaSK, LSK)
Sergeant student		Corporal	Private	soldier	soldier
Armored troops	news	Air Force	Motorized shooters	Missile troops / artillery	Armored troops
OR-2	OR-1	OR-4	OR-2	OR-1

People's Navy

Admirals

Admiralty of the People's Navy (dark blue / navy blue)
Arabesques	Lampassen	Fleet Admiral	admiral	Vice admiral	Rear admiral
OF-6 to OF-9		OF-9	OF-8	OF-7	OF-6
Sleeve stripes
Command flag

Officer corps

Officer Corps of the People's Navy
Sea captain	Frigate captain	Corvette captain	Skipper lieutenant	top lieutenant	lieutenant	Under lieutenant	Officer student
OF-5	OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1			OF-D (student)
(Seafaring career)	(Administrative career)	(Medical career)	(Coastal service career)	(Military judicial organs)	(Engineering or technical career)	(Seafaring career)	(2nd year of study)

Ensigns

Ensigns and ensign students of the People's Navy
Sleeve badge	Senior Ensign	Ensign of Staff	Ensign	Ensign	Ensign student (2nd year of study)
	W-4	W-3	W-2	W-1	W-1 (student)

Boatmen

Boatmen of the People's Navy
Chief of Staff (technical career)	Obermeister (Coastal. Career)	master	Obermaat (professional sergeant)	Chief Petty Officer on time	Maat (professional non-commissioned officer)	Maat on time
OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5		OR-4

Team ranks

Crew ranks of the People's Navy
Collar Tabs	Staff sailor	Senior Seaman	sailor
(OR-1 to 4)	OR-4	OR-2	OR-1

literature

• Klaus Feder, Jürgen Wagner, Rolf Swoboda: Military badges of the German Democratic Republic. Military publishing house of the German Democratic Republic, Berlin 1988, ISBN 3-327-00523-0 .
• Klaus-Ulrich Keubke, Manfred Kunz: Military uniforms in the GDR 1949–1990. ES Mittler & Sohn GmbH, 2005, ISBN 978-3-8132-0915-0 .
• Ministry for National Defense of the German Democratic Republic (Hrsg.): Handbuch Militärisches Wissen , NVA edition, 17th edition. Military publishing house of the German Democratic Republic, Berlin 1988, without ISBN.
• ZDv 2/65 Foreign Armed Forces - Uniforms of the National People's Army and the paramilitary organizations of the Soviet occupation zone. Bonn 1969.
• Ministry for National Defense of the German Democratic Republic (ed.): DV 010/0/005 Types of uniforms and how they are worn - clothing regulations (1990)