Ranks of the armed forces

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The ranks of the armed forces were, as with all modern German armies divided into tracks. The German Wehrmacht had three careers in all three branches of the armed forces ( army , air force , navy ):

army

Teams

Conscripts teams contributed from the time of call-up for military service until the end of the initial training , the lowest rank each badge of the relevant branches of the armed force or type of weapon , such as a soldier , and performed the service position designation recruit .

Uniforms: Crews wore gray or dark green epaulettes (Fig. Below A, B and C) with the number of the regiment or a corresponding association with piping in the color of the weapon without a badge of rank. The badges of rank were worn as patches on the left upper sleeve. In addition, teams wore collar tabs in the weapon colors.

Enlisted as a sleeve patch (left arm) on dark pad:
18 Stabsgefreiter : two gray telescoped angle, about a gray star
19 Obergefreiter more than six years of service: a gray angle, about a gray star
20 Obergefreiter : two gray telescoped angle
21 Gefreiter : a gray Winkel
22 Senior soldier : a gray square star; depending on the branch of service or type of weapon (ie different Oberschütze , Upper Gunner, Upper tab, Upper pioneer Obergrenadier, Upper radio operator, etc.)
A, B u. C soldier : without sleeve patch; different depending on the type of service or type of weapon (i.e. rifleman , gunner, rider, pioneer, grenadier, radio operator, etc.)

Upper arm badge : 18 Stabsgefreiter, 19 Obergefreiter (more than 6 years of service) , 20 Obergefreiter, 21 Gefreiter, 22 Oberschütze
shoulder flaps: A, B and C Stabsgefreiter to soldier; C = member of the
Greater Germany Regiment

NCOs

NCOs with portepee

13 staff sergeants (artillery and cavalry: staff sergeant ); (Rank introduced in 1939 in the three branches of service ): like Unterfeldwebel, but three stars
14 Oberfeldwebel (artillery and cavalry: Oberwachtmeister ): like Unterfeldwebel, but two stars
15 Sergeant : ( Artillery and cavalry : Wachtmeister ): like Unterfeldwebel, but also a four-pointed matt silver aluminum star

NCOs without portepee

Non-commissioned officers wore their insignia on epaulettes as a dull silver braid as a border. Their collar tabs corresponded to those of the teams. In addition, the collars of the uniform skirts were trimmed with a silver braid. Numbers of the regiments or abbreviations for special uses were worn as aluminum pins.

16 Unterfeldwebel : ( Artillery and cavalry : Unterwachtmeister ): Tresse around the shoulder flap
17 Sergeant : ( Mountain troops : Oberjäger ): U-shaped braid

13 staff sergeants, 14 sergeants, 15 sergeants, 16 sergeants and 17 non-commissioned officers

Officer candidate in the rank of NCO

In the Wehrmacht, soldiers and NCOs who wanted to pursue an officer career were given the designation Fahnenjunker (short: Fhj in lists Fj ) in front of their rank:

  • Fahnenjunker NCO (Fhj-Uffz, Fj-U),
  • Fahnenjunker-Unterfeldwebel (Fhj-UFw, Fj-UF),
  • Fahnenjunker Sergeant (Fhj-Fw, Fj-F),
  • Fahnenjunker-Oberfeldwebel (Fhj-OFw, Fj-OF) and
  • Fahnenjunker staff sergeant (Fhj-StFw, Fj-SF).
Table of rank insignia

Badges of rank worn on uniform jackets , uniform coats and camouflage clothing or special clothing are shown below as examples.

designation Officer Candidate (OA)
Epaulette Army Fahnenjunker NCO h.svg Heer Fahnenjunker Unterfeldwebel h.svg Army Fahnenjunker Sergeant h.svg Heer-Fahnenjunker-Oberfeldwebel h.svg RankFeldunterazt.png RankUnterazt.png Army Fahnenjunker Staff Sergeant h.svg
Badge of rank
special clothing
(sleeve stripes
summer / winter)
UO Cam Slv.gif UFW cam slv.gif FW cam slv.gif ObFW cam slv.gif StFw Stuscha OR8 cam slv 1945.svg
NCO - camouflage - black & white-pics.gif Unterfeldwebel - camouflage - black & white-pics.gif Feldwebel - camouflage - black & white-pics.gif Oberfeldwebel - camouflage - black & white-pics.gif StFw Stuscha OR8 cam slv wint 1945.gif
Rank 1 Fahnenjunker NCO 2 Fahnenjunker sergeants 3 Fahnenjunker Sergeants 4 Fahnenjunker-Oberfeldwebel 5 field doctor 6 sub-physician 7 Fahnenjunker staff sergeant

Epaulets:
1 Fahnenjunker NCO: like NCO , plus a double NCO across the lower end of the epaulette.
2 Fahnenjunker-Unterfeldwebel: like Unterfeldwebel , with a double
sergeant corse across the lower end of the epaulette.
3 Fahnenjunker sergeants: like sergeants , plus a double
sergeant major across the lower end of the epaulette.
4 Fahnenjunker-Oberfeldwebel: like Oberfeldwebel , plus double NCOs across the lower end of the epaulette.
5 field surgeon (medical corps army) as Sergeant Army, but without double Sergeant Stresse, and with a gothic "A" (for "Military Medical A kademie Berlin") stars between two aluminum-colored. The promotion to the field doctor took place after the 1st clinical semester.
6 Unterarzt (Medical Service Heer / Luftwaffe): like Oberfeldwebel Heer / Luftwaffe, but without double sergeant stresses , but each with the
Aesculapian sign between the two aluminum-colored stars. The promotion to the sub-doctor took place after passing the medical examination and appointment as a doctor.
7 Fahnenjunker staff sergeant: like staff sergeant , plus a double
sergeant major across the lower end of the epaulette.

from cadet-sergeant , field surgeon and assistant physician upward OA contributed already officer's uniform with brown officer's belt stuff, cap (with silver cord) and officer's insignia.

Fortress master craftsman and farrier trainer

The fortress foremen and horseshoe instructors formed an independent class above the NCOs with portepee.

Shoulder boards of this rank
FestungsoberwerkmeisterSB.jpg
FestungswerkmeisterSB.jpg
OberhufbeschlaglehrmeisterSB.jpg
Farrier instructorSB.jpg
Fortress master craftsman Fortress master craftsman Master shoeing teacher Farriery teacher

Officers

German officers traditionally wore shoulder boards with underlay in the same color as the weapon . The shoulder pieces were made of aluminum spun, with lieutenants and captains sewn next to each other (flat cords), with staff officers five times plaited, with generals four times, but somewhat thicker than with staff officers and braided from golden spun with aluminum-colored inlay. Four-pointed gold or silver stars were worn if necessary. The officers' collar tabs were attached to the high-necked, anthracite-colored collar, slightly larger and silver-colored with advances in the colors of the military branch. The regimental number or special usage abbreviations were worn as silver or gold aluminum pins. However, many officers who actively participated in combat operations did not wear their badges of rank. They wanted to prevent enemy snipers from being identified and killed as officers.

Staff officers

7 Oberst , Colonel physician : two gold star
8 Colonel , Oberfeldarzt : a gold star
9 Major , Oberstabsarzt : no rating, physicians ranks each with Aesculap symbol (snake around rod)

Captains and captains

10 Captain , cavalry: Rittmeister , medical officer : two gold stars

Lieutenant

11 Oberleutnant , Oberarzt : a gold star (OLt.)
12 Lieutenant : no star (Lt.)

7  colonel, 8  lieutenant colonel, here  senior field veterinarian , 9  major, 10  captain, 11 first lieutenant and 12  lieutenant

Generals

Field Marshal General : two crossed silver marshal's baton

1 Versions from 1942 made entirely of gold-colored spun
2 version before 1942

3 Colonel General : three silver stars
4 General : two silver stars

General of Artillery , the mountain troops , the infantry , the cavalry , the Signal Corps , the Armored Corps , the pioneers
Doctor General : two silver stars with Aesculapian staff in the middle
Veterinary Chief General Staff : two silver stars with a snake, but without the Aesculapian staff in the middle

5 Lieutenant General : a silver star

General staff doctor: a silver star with Aesculapian staff in the middle
Veterinary General Staff: a silver star with a snake, but without the Aesculapian staff in the middle

6 Major General : no star

General doctor: no star, but the staff of Aesculapius in the middle
Veterinary General: no star, but a snake without a staff of Aesculapius in the middle
1 Field Marshal General (from 1942), 2 Field Marshal General (until 1942), 3 Colonel General, 4 General (with addition of the branch of service), 5 Lieutenant General and 6 Major General

Badges of rank on special clothing

From 1942, rank insignia for special clothing, combat clothing or special clothing were introduced for the Wehrmacht (army) and Waffen-SS . The corresponding insignia were worn as sleeve badges or sleeve patches .

Right, officer with rank insignia First Lieutenant as sleeve patch, Russia 1944.
1 sergeant , 2 sergeant, 3 sergeant, 4 sergeant major, 5 sergeant major, 6 lieutenant, 7 lieutenant, 8 captain, 9 major, 1 lieutenant colonel, 11 colonel, 12 major general, 13 lieutenant general, 14 general of the branch of service, 15 general colonel , 16 general field marshal

air force

Teams

Uniforms: Crews wore gray epaulettes with the number of the squadron or a corresponding association with piping in the weapon color :

The badges of rank were worn on the left upper sleeve, and it was also recognizable by the collar tabs. The teams had the following ranks:

  • Aviators, gunners, radio operators: colored collar tabs with an aluminum-colored double swing arm
  • Private : a gray corner on a dark surface, colored collar tabs with two aluminum-colored double wings
  • Corporal : two nested angles, colored collar tabs with three aluminum-colored double wings
  • Corporal : three nested gray angles, colored collar tabs with four aluminum-colored double wings
  • Corporal : a braided gray corner, above a gray star, colored collar tabs with four aluminum-colored double wings

NCOs

NCOs with portepee

14 Staff Sergeant (Flak: Staff Sergeant ): like Unterfeldwebel, but three stars, collar tabs like Oberfeldwebel.
15 Oberfeldwebel (Flak: Oberwachtmeister ): like Unterfeldwebel, but two stars, collar tabs like Unteroffizier, but with four aluminum-colored double wings
16 Sergeants ( Flak : Wachtmeister ): like Unterfeldwebel, but with an additional four-pointed, matt silver aluminum star in the middle, collar tabs like
Sergeant , but with three aluminum-colored double wings

NCOs without portepee

Non-commissioned officers wore their insignia on epaulettes as a dull silver braid as a border. Their collar tabs corresponded to those of the teams. The uniform collar, however, was provided with a dull silver so-called NCO's.

17 Unterfeldwebel (Flak: Unterwachtmeister ): braid around the shoulder flap, collar tabs like sergeant , but with two aluminum-colored double wings
18 Unteroffizier (paratrooper: Oberjäger): U-shaped braid, collar tabs with an aluminum-colored double wing

14 Staff Sergeants, 15 Oberfeldwebel, 16 Sergeants, 17 Unterfeldwebel and 18 NCOs

Officers

The shoulder boards of the Luftwaffe corresponded to those of the Army for all officers, whereby the base was executed in the weapon colors of the Luftwaffe. The collar tabs also showed the respective rank.

Lieutenant

  • Lieutenant . Collar tab: a silver oak leaf wreath, an aluminum-colored double swing arm and silver piping.
  • First lieutenant . Collar tab like lieutenant, but two wings.

Captains

  • Captain : collar tabs like lieutenant, but three wings.

Staff officers

  • Major . Collar tab: silver piping, a silver oak leaf wreath, a silver double swing arm
  • Lieutenant colonel . Collar tab: like Major, but two wings
  • Colonel . Collar tab: like Major, but three wings
Colonel (8) Lieutenant Colonel (9) Major (10) Captain (11) First Lieutenant (12) Lieutenant (13)

Generals

Luftwaffe generals wore the same shoulder boards as those of the army. The collar tabs were white with golden piping, a golden oak leaf wreath and golden double wings.

1 Reichsmarschall : shoulder piece like GFM, but a golden imperial eagle with crossed marshal's baton in the claws; Collar tab: two crossed gold marshal's baton on a white background, with a double gold border.

Field Marshal General : two crossed silver marshal's baton ; Collar tabs like Colonel General, but also two crossed marshal's baton in the claws of the imperial eagle.

2 versions from 1942 entirely made of gold-colored web
3 version before 1942

4 Colonel General : three silver stars; Collar tab: a golden imperial eagle on a golden oak leaf wreath (Luftwaffe version)

5 General : two silver stars

General: the airmen , the parachute troops , the anti-aircraft artillery , the air intelligence force and general of the air force : collar tabs with three double wings

6 Lieutenant General : Chief Engineer: collar tab with two double wings.
7 Major General : Chief Engineer: collar tab with one double wing

Reichsmarschall (created in 1940 only for Hermann Göring ) (1), Field Marshal General from 1942 (2), Field Marshal General until 1942 (3), Colonel General (4), General (5), Lieutenant General (6), Major General (7)

Badges of rank on special clothing

The overview shows the rank insignia on fliers suit the pilots and the use of clothing of paratroopers (Knochensack) of the Wehrmacht in World War II to the 1945th

Air force officers in air protection suits, from left to right lieutenant, major (Johann Schalk) and first lieutenant (Theodor Rossiwal) from ZG 26 , western France 1940. In the background the tail unit of a Messerschmitt Me 110 .
Unteroffizier (1), Unterfeldwebel (2), Feldwebel (3), Oberfeldwebel (4), Stabsfeldwebel (5), Lieutenant (6), Oberleutnant (7), Hauptmann (8), Major (9), Oberstleutnant (10), Colonel (11), major general (12), lieutenant general (13), aviator general (14), colonel general (15), field marshal (16)

Navy

Teams

Uniforms: Teams wore no epaulettes (except for naval artillery, these like army and advanced in crimson) and no collar tabs. For "collar tabs" see "Discussion".

The badges of rank were worn on the left upper sleeve. In addition, teams wore the respective career badge as a gold patch over the rank badge. There were, among other things, the following career paths for all teams and NCOs:

  • Seafaring service
  • Marine survey service
  • Marines Medical Service
  • Marine Signal Service
  • Naval Administration Service
  • Helmsman's career
  • Naval artillery
  • Sailor : no rank badge

1 Corporal sailor: a golden angle on a dark surface
2 Corporal corporal: two nested golden angles
3 Corporal corporal: three nested golden angles
6 Corporal corporal: a braided golden angle, above a golden four-pointed star
7 Upper corporal corpses
: two interlocked golden four-pointed stars

1 - Corporal, 2 - Corporal, 3 - Corporal, 4 - Corporal UA (completed), 5 - Corporal UA (not completed), 6 - Corporal, 7 - Corporal

NCOs

NCOs with portepee

Uffz with portepee, like the army, wore epaulettes with braid and stars, the braid being gold-colored. They also wore the respective career badges on their epaulettes. Uffz. With portepee of the helmsman's career was called the helmsman , the chief helmsman , etc. In the nautical career, the sergeant ranks were called as follows:

1 boatman (also: helmsman): a star and career badge.
2 stabsbootsmann : two stars and raceway badge, stars next to each other
3 Upper Bootsmann : two stars and raceway badge, star above the other
4 bar top Bootsmann : three stars, and race badge.

Officer candidate in the rank of NCO

  • Midshipman : a round golden braid, including the five-pointed golden starfish, which is typical for officers of the Navy

5 Ensign at sea : shoulder piece like officers, but this is about half the width (four aluminum-colored flat cords arranged in parallel) and without stars.
6 Oberfähnrich zur See : like ensign, but with two four-pointed gold-colored stars.
7 without illustration: Navy Unterarzt (in the rank of Oberfähnrich z. S.): as Oberfähnrich z. S., but with the Aesculapian sign between the two gold-colored stars. The promotion to the marine junior doctor took place after passing the medical examination in full at the end of the 11th semester, depending on the number of vacancies. Oberfähnrich zur See and marine junior doctor wore the officer's uniform and peaked cap.

NCOs without portepee

Non-commissioned officers wore their badges on the upper left sleeve as crossed anchors that were slightly different depending on their career. They also wore cornflower-blue collar tabs. From December 1, 1939, the gold collar border (as indicated in the following illustration), which ran around the entire collar.

7 mates :

* Rank badge: A gold horizontal stripe on the collar tab
* Career badge: Boatswain's mate (golden anchor)

8 Chief Petty Officer :

* Rank: Two golden horizontal stripes on the collar tab
* Career badge: Oberbootsmannsmaat (golden anchor, under this a golden triangle )

9 mates :

* Rank badge: A gold horizontal stripe on the collar tab
* Career badge: helmsman's mate (golden double anchor)

10 Chief Petty Officer :

* Rank: Two golden horizontal stripes on the collar tab
* Career badge: Obersteuermannsmaat (golden double anchor, below this a golden triangle)
Boatswain's mate (7), chief boatman's mate (8), helmsman's mate (9), chief helmsman (10)

Officers

The shoulder boards of the Kriegsmarine corresponded to those in the army for all officers, whereby the backing was blue. Collar tabs were omitted. The officers of the nautical service wore the starfish already mentioned over the strip on their suit. In addition, there were career paths for officers:

  • Technical service badge: a gold gear
  • Medical service, badge: a golden staff of Aesculapia
  • Naval arms service: crossed golden pipes
  • Gun service: a golden raise
  • Naval Intelligence Service: a golden bolt of lightning
  • Marine artillery

Staff officers

8. Sea captain : two gold stars. Sleeves: four medium-wide stripes.
9-11. Frigate Captain : a gold star.

Sleeves: initially four medium-wide stripes (Fig. 11), for those promoted from August 1, 1940, three medium-wide stripes (Fig. 10); from April 1st / April 1st July 1944 one medium-wide stripe, one narrow stripe and two medium-wide stripes (Fig. 9).
Above the narrow stripe, 1 runs medium-wide, below the narrow stripe 2 runs medium-wide. The figure is wrong in this respect.

12th corvette captain : no star. Sleeves: three medium-wide stripes.

Captain lieutenant

13. Lieutenant Commander : two stars. Sleeves: Two medium-wide stripes with a narrow stripe in between.

Lieutenant

14. First lieutenant at sea . a gold star. Sleeves: two medium-wide stripes.
15. Lieutenant at sea . no star. Sleeves: a medium-wide stripe.

Captain z. S. (8), frigate captain from autumn 1944 (9), frigate captain (1944) (10), frigate captain (11), corvette captain (12), captain lieutenant (13), first lieutenant z. S. (14), Lieutenant z. S. (15)

Flag officers (admirals)

Admirals wore the same shoulder boards as the army generals, but with a blue backing. Collar tabs were also omitted here.

designation Flag officers
Admirals officer
Shoulder pieces Kriegsmarine-Großadmiral (s) .gif General Admiral of the German Navy.png Admiral of the German Navy. Png Vice Admiral of the German Navy.png Rear Admiral of the Kriegsmarine.png Captain of the Navy of the Navy.png
Sleeve stripes Kriegsmarine-Großadmiral.png Kriegsmarine-Großadmiral.png Kriegsmarine-Generaladmiral.png Kriegsmarine-Generaladmiral.png Kriegsmarine-Vizeadmiral.png Kriegsmarine-Rear Admiral.png Kriegsmarine-Kommodore.png
Rank Grand Admiral General Admiral
(here as OB )
Admiral General admiral Vice admiral Rear admiral Commodore

Special leader

Shoulder piece special leader

In the course of the war the so-called special leaders were added. They were civilians with no or inadequate military training who were assigned a special task (e.g. as interpreters, war correspondents, technical specialists, administrative or financial experts, in the medical service or in the veterinary service) as officers or non-commissioned officers in a corresponding rank (not in service grade !) were taken into the Wehrmacht. Their uniforms and shoulder pieces were similar to those of the corresponding officer or non-commissioned officer ranks of the Wehrmacht, but they wore clearly different, non-protruding collar tabs and a golden braid over the shoulder pieces.

Wehrmacht administration

Wehrmacht officials wore Wehrmacht uniforms with a slightly different color, here there was a similarly structured ranking. The uniform sheet pads were dark green.

Army officials

Administrative officials of the German army wore dark green as their weapon color and were differentiated according to the various areas in which they were active. Each area was marked with an additional color. It ran around the dark green collar and the cuffs as piping and served as a base for the dark green shoulder pieces. These bore the letters "HV" (Army Administration). For non-commissioned officers, reserve officers and generals, they were made of white metal. Active officers from lieutenant to colonel were given gold-colored designs. The following additional colors were distinguished:

  • Crimson: Officials in the political administration area
  • Crimson: officers on staffs
  • Light blue: Officials of the military judiciary
  • Light green: Pharmacy and food chemistry officials (pharmacists)
  • White: Officials of the purser
  • Black: Technical officers
  • Yellow: Remonten officers
  • Orange: Military substitute officers
  • Light brown: non-technical officers of the teaching staff at army schools
Examples: Pharmacist (7) Army Justice Inspector (8) Armorer (9) Army Worker (10) Warehouse Master (11)

At the beginning of 1944, the special service career was introduced, civil servants only received one weapon color without secondary colors. The designation "HV" was dropped, but officials received a Mercury staff as a career badge on the shoulder pieces.

Officials at the Reich Court Martial

Wehrmacht officials who worked at the Reich Court Martial wore epaulets without the letters "HV". The assigned weapon color was bordeaux red with dark green thread in the weapon color of the army officials / military administration.

With the introduction of the special service career at the beginning of 1944, army judges only wore the color of the weapon wine-red, combined with a miniature sword as a career badge on the shoulder pieces.

See also

literature

  • Insignia of World War II. Amber Books London 1999, pp. 20-27 (section Germany).

Individual evidence

  1. Rank of fortress master craftsmen and farrier trainers ( Memento of the original from November 12, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Rudolf Absolon, The Wehrmacht in the Third Reich, page 160. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / books.google.es