Badge of rank of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces

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This article deals with the rank insignia of the Austro-Hungarian Armed Forces .

Land Forces

The distinction badges in the Austro-Hungarian land forces were worn without exception on the front part of the collar. They were the same for the Common Army , the Imperial and Royal Landwehr and the Imperial and Royal Landwehr , only the mountain infantry had an additional edelweiss behind the distinctive stars since 1908 . The stars (and other badges - e.g. badges for specialists) were attached to the contrasting colored collar of the tunic or the parolis of the field blouse. The stars of rank for the crews , corporals and platoon leaders were made of white celluloid , those for sergeants , staff sergeants and cadets from 1914 on were made of white silk. The rank stars of the lower officer ranks usually consisted of embossed metal (so-called Aryan version ), for the uniforms they had procured themselves, the variant of embroidered metal web could be chosen.

The ranking star of the officers had, even on the field jacket, always the button color of the tunic . In the case of the staff officers, however, the border that was additionally worn on the collar was made in the button color, so that the stars here were opposite to the button color. (With silver buttons, silver braid and gold stars or vice versa.) A straight zigzag pattern was applied to the braid. The generals always wore silver stars on a gold braid. The color of the stars and the borders therefore had nothing to do with the rank.

No distinction badges were worn on the coats.

The officers of the Landesschützen and the two additional mountain infantry regiments uniformed like the Landesschützen (Landwehr Infantry Regiments No. 4 and No. 27) wore epaulets with the imperial insignia on their tunics for the parade. However, this was not a badge of rank.

For each rank designation there had to be a designation in Hungarian. Associations that were predominantly or exclusively made up of Poles, Ruthenians, Romanians, Slovenes or Czechs unofficially used the corresponding terms in these languages ​​in their service operations.

The NCOs were counted among the crews, so they did not form a separate group. They did not belong to any class.

Cadets

The cadets in their capacity as candidates for career officers (or as candidates for reserve officers ) also belonged to the status of the teams. The cadet ranks, however, ranked before the respective normal ranks of the same rank, but behind the next higher normal ranks (e.g. the cadet-private stood before the private, but behind the corporal, who in turn was subordinate to the cadet-corporal).

The external distinguishing feature of the cadet ranks was the special distinction border on the collar ends. This resembled the serrated sergeant's jagged patterned distinctive border , but was gold instead of imperial yellow. If the cadet held a batch, the corresponding distinctive stars were added, e.g. B. for the cadet corporal a six-pointed star made of white cloth (since 1901: celluloid) or three stars for the cadet platoon leader. If a cadet dressed the sergeant charge, he also put on the imperial yellow sergeant distinction bracelets, half of which protruded from the upper edge of the gold bracelets. The deputy cadet officer was marked next to the gold braid with a silver lieutenant star attached to it, but plated (instead of raised, as is usual with officers). To adjust their going out, the cadets were allowed to wear the ensigns' black, yellow silk decorated cap.

The cadets are not to be confused with the pupil ( Novendék in Hungarian ) of a military institution who is still in training . Within the cadet corps, a pupil could achieve the rank of pupil non-commissioned officer ( Hungarian Növendék altiszt ; no real military rank).

Staff Sergeant

The rank was generally introduced in the Austro-Hungarian armed forces at the end of 1913, it or that of the district sergeant of equal rank was already in use in the gendarmerie (as part of the Landwehr). With the sergeant's uniform, the staff sergeant / district sergeant wore a headgear similar to the officer's cap, but without its golden distinctions. At the general ranks introduction in 1913, the collar division of the staff sergeants, staff superiors and staff sergeants consisted of the 1.3 cm wide patterned sergeant braid made of imperial yellow silk, which was also divided by a 2 mm wide, woven black stripe. 3 mm above the sergeant's braid, a 6 mm wide gold braid formed an additional decoration. For this purpose, three white stars made of celluloid were sewn on. In June 1914 the distinction was noticeably changed: the upper and lower braids were now made of silver; the black central stripe of the lower border was omitted. In addition, the three stars of rank were now embroidered in white silk. (Staff sergeant / sergeant and deputy officer were combined in the new rank group of higher non-commissioned officers in 1915.)

Annual Volunteers

The cadets of the Reserve provided his military training as a one-year volunteer ( "EF") ( Hungarian Egyévi Önkéntesi ) . External features were imperial yellow-silk, black-divided cross braids ("intelligence braids") on the upper edge of the cuffs. The braids have been removed since 1915 after passing the final examination, instead the reservist now wore a blank "EF" button on each of the collar tabs ( Paroli ). This was to be attached behind the distinction badge of the titular rank. The buttons were discarded with promotion to the officer.

Ensigns

The rank of cadet officer deputy was renamed to ensign in 1908 . Since 1871 the service badge has been the blackened leather map pocket worn on the waist strap; also the black officer's cap, but with imperial yellow silk decorations (instead of gold). The white celluloid star has been replaced by a silver-colored star. In the same year Kadett replaced the previous designation Kadett - Feldwebel .

shako

In addition to the rank stars on the collar ("Distinctions"), imperial yellow distinction borders on the parade headgear ( shako , helmet) marked the individual ranks . The private could be recognized by an imperial yellow, black-scratched 1/5 Austrian inch (~ 0.5 cm) thick round cord. Corporals wore a 1½ inch (~ 4 cm) wide imperial yellow patterned (= decorated with zigzag pattern) distinctive border . The distinctive border for platoon leaders, sergeants and cadet officers' deputies (ensigns) was of the same design and width, but divided in the middle by a 1/24 inch (~ 1 mm) narrow black stripe. The distinctive braids and cords were made of imperial yellow sheep's wool for enlisted men and NCOs, for ensigns since 1908 made of imperial yellow silk, and for officers made of gold thread. In the case of privately purchased special designs for crews and NCOs, silk decorations were also allowed.

The colors represent the different regiments or branches.

Crews, non-commissioned officers, officer cadets, officer deputies

All teams in the lowest rank of all troops, with the exception of state riflemen no badges
Corporal ( Hungarian Őrvezető ) / Vormeister ( Hungarian Főtüzér ) / patrol leader ( Hungarian Járőrvezető ) one white star each
Corporal ( Hungarian Tizedes ) / gun foreman / rifle foreman / Unterjäger ( Hungarian Alvadász ) / battalion drum / armorer 3rd class / battalion hornist two white stars each
Platoon leader ( Hungarian Szakaszvezető ) / Kurschmied / Accounting NCO 2nd class ( Hungarian Számvivő altiszt ) / Armorer 2nd class three white stars each
Sergeant ( Hungarian Őrmester ) / Wachtmeister / fireworker ( Hungarian Tűzmester ) / Oberjäger ( Hungarian Fővadász ) / accounting sergeant 1st class / armorer 1st class / regiment drum / regimental horn player / one-year volunteer sergeant / cadet sergeant Three white stars each with an additional 1.3 cm wide strand with a jagged design made of imperial yellow silk around the edge of the collar.
Staff leader Three white stars each with an additional 1.3 cm wide strand with a jagged design made of imperial yellow silk around the edge of the collar. A silver-plated lyre on each front end of the collar
Staff Sergeant ( Hungarian Törzsőrmester ) / Staff Sergeant / Staff Fireworker ( Hungarian Törzstűzmester ) / Chief Hunters ( Hungarian Törzsfővadász ) Until June 1914 a 13 mm wide strand of imperial yellow silk with a 2 mm wide, woven, black central stripe, 3 mm above it another 6 mm wide strand with three white stars.

After June 1914, silver braids with silk stars

Military bandmaster ( Hungarian Karmester ) On the collar a lyre with a sword stuck through it, in silver for silver buttons, in gold for gold buttons. With black equalizing color, the collar made of black velvet.
Cadet officers' deputies ( Hungarian Hadapród-Tiszthelyettes ) (repealed 1908) Gold braid like a sergeant with a smooth, silver-plated star
Cadet ( Hungarian Hadapród ) (from 1908) 3 white (from June 1914 made of silk) stars on a 13 mm wide gold braid with the same approach
Officers' deputy / ( Hungarian Tiszthelyettes ) (from 1915) A 13 mm wide silver braid, 3 mm above it, another 6 mm wide braid with an ensign star made of brass
Ensign ( Hungarian Zászlós ) 1 silver star on a 13 mm wide, golden border

Officers and officials

trainee 1 rosette with 13 mm wide gold braid Rank XII
Sub-veterinarian / accessist / assistant / teacher 2nd class / fencing master 2nd class / economic adjunct 1 gold or silver embroidered star rosette Rank XI
Lieutenant / ( Hungarian Hadnagy ) / assistant doctor / lieutenant accounting officer 1 gold or silver embroidered star Rank XI
Veterinary assistant / veterinarian / pharmacist / official / teacher 1st class / fencing master 1st class / economic sub-administrator / war economics commissioner 2 gold or silver embroidered star rosettes Rank XI
Artillery Engineer Assistant / Military Civil Engineer Assistant 2 gold or silver embroidered stars Rank class X
First lieutenant / ( Hungarian Főhadnagy ) / senior doctor / first lieutenant auditor / first lieutenant accounting officer 2 gold or silver embroidered stars Rank class X
Veterinary adjunct / senior veterinarian / senior pharmacist / senior official / senior teacher / master fencing / economic administrator / war economics commissioner / forest administrator 3 gold or silver embroidered star rosettes Rank IX
Secretary of the Military Chancellery Sr. Majesty / Sub-Director / Artillery Engineer / Military Civil Engineer 3 gold or silver embroidered stars Rank IX
Captain / ( Hungarian Százados ) / Rittmeister / regimental doctor / captain auditor / captain accounting officer 3 gold or silver embroidered stars Rank IX
Staff vet / staff pharmacist / technical advice / accountant / paymaster / registrar / artillery equipment manager / catering manager ( Hungarian : Ellátás ugyintézö ) / senior teacher / economic manager / war economics council 1 gold or silver embroidered star rosette on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VIII
Secretary of the Military Chancellery Sr. Majesty / Intendant / Artillery Chief Engineer 3rd Class / Military Construction Engineer 3rd Class 1 gold or silver embroidered star on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VIII
Major / ( Hungarian Őrnagy ) / medical officer / major auditor 1 gold or silver embroidered star on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VIII
Associate professor ( Hungarian : Rendkivüli Professzor ) / Chief Veterinarian / Chief Pharmacist 2nd Class / Technical Chief Counselor / Artillery Chief Administrator 2nd Class / Chief Accountant 2nd Class / Treasurer 2nd Class / Chief Catering Administrator / Registrar Sub-Director / Economic Director / War Economics Chief Councilor 2nd Class 2 gold or silver embroidered star rosettes on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VII
Court secretary of the military chancellery Sr. Majesty / Secretary of the military chancellery Sr. Majesty / chief director 2nd class / artillery chief engineer 2nd class / military construction chief engineer 2nd class 2 gold or silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VII
Lieutenant Colonel / ( Hungarian Alezredes ) / Senior Medical Officer 2nd class / Lieutenant Colonel Auditor 2 gold or silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VII
Full professor / senior pharmacist 1st class / technical council 1st class / technical senior councilor 1st class / artillery supervisor 1st class / chief accountant 1st class / registry director / treasurer 1st class / building accountant 1st class / war economics councilor 1st class . Class 3 gold or silver embroidered star rosettes on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VI
Section Council of the Military Chancellery Sr. Majesty / Government Councilor of the Military Chancellery Sr. Majesty / Chief Executive 1st Class / Artillery Chief Engineer 1st Class / Military Construction Engineer 1st Class' 3 gold or silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VI
Colonel / ( Hungarian Ezredes ) / Chief Medical Officer 1st class / Colonel Auditor 3 gold or silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold or silver border Rank VI
Councilor of the Military Chancellery Sr. Majesty / General Director / Artillery General Engineer / General Civil Engineer / Hofrat der Mil. Veterinary College / Ministerial Council / War Economy General Council 1 silver embroidered star on a 33 mm wide gold border Rank class V
Major General / ( Hungarian Vezérőrnagy ) / General Medical Officer / General Auditor 1 silver embroidered star on a 33 mm wide gold border Rank class V
Head of Section 2 silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold border Rank IV
Field Marshal Lieutenant ( Altábornagy in Hungarian ) / Chief Medical Officer General / Chief Auditor General 2 silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold border Rank IV
General of the Infantry ( Hungarian Gyalogsági tábornok ) / General of the Cavalry ( Hungarian Lovassági Tábornok ) / Feldzeugmeister ( Hungarian Táborszernagy ) 3 silver embroidered stars on a 33 mm wide gold border Rank III
Colonel General ( Hungarian Vezérezredes ) (from 1915) 3 silver-embroidered stars, underlaid by a silver-embroidered wreath 40 mm in diameter on a 33 mm wide gold border Rank II
Field Marshal ( Hungarian Tábornagy ) 33 mm wide embroidery with oak leaves pointing downwards on the collar Rank class I.

Members of the soldier's class

After the uniforms of the kk Landwehr were reformed in 1908, the tunic was dropped and was generally replaced by the blouse for the teams. This no longer had a surrounding colored collar, but only Parolis in the weapon color and with the distinction badge. If a soldier of the mountain troops belonged to a formation that was equipped with a special badge (e.g. machine gun division), this was attached to the Parolis instead of the edelweiss.

Team guards

Of the five guard formations, two consisted only of officers, the other three were therefore called team guards.

Guard infantryman / guard rider 1.5 cm wide, imperial yellow silk border. Three white stars made of silk. Scarlet equalization
Guard corporal (Guard infantry) 1.8 cm wide, imperial yellow silk border with a 1 mm wide black stripe on the outer edges. Three white stars made of silk. Scarlet equalization
Guard leaders (Guard infantry) 2 cm wide imperial yellow silk border, separated lengthwise by a 1 mm wide, black stripe. Three white stars made of silk. Scarlet equalization
2nd Guard Sergeant (Guard Cavalry) 2 cm wide imperial yellow silk border, separated lengthwise by a 1 mm wide, black stripe. Three white stars made of silk. Scarlet equalization
Guard Sergeant (Guard Infantry) 2.2 cm wide imperial yellow silk border, separated lengthways by a 2 mm wide black stripe. Three white stars made of silk. Scarlet equalization
1st Guard Sergeant (Guard Cavalry) 2.2 cm wide imperial yellow silk border, separated lengthways by a 2 mm wide black stripe. Three white stars made of silk. Scarlet equalization
Guard (satellite bodyguard) 1.8 cm wide imperial yellow silk border. Three white stars made of silk. Ponceau red leveling
Vice-Security Guard (satellite bodyguard) 2 cm wide imperial yellow silk border, separated lengthwise by a 1 mm wide, black stripe. Three white stars made of silk. Ponceau red leveling

The officers' rank insignia did not differ from those of the regular troops.

Standschützen

After the Standschützen had to be called up in 1915 , they were forced to equip these associations, which belonged to the Landsturm and were not previously uniformed, with uniforms. They were to receive distinctive badges that differed from the regular troops, which were to consist of gold-embroidered star rosettes for the officers and silver-knitted star rosettes for the men and officers. Since the latter were not available in sufficient numbers, they were replaced by the normal celluloid stars of the regular troops. The badges of rank were worn on grass-green parolis ( weapon color: hunters troop grass-green), with the Tyroleans wearing a silver-metal Tyrolean eagle behind the stars / rosettes, with the Vorarlberger Standschützen a white metal shield with the Vorarlberg coat of arms was used instead of the eagle. Major was the highest rank among the Standschützen.

Military officials

The same rules applied to military officials as to officers. Instead of the identification stars, they only had four-leaf star rosettes (except for the officials with star distinction!).

The troop accountants who were on duty were always equipped with silver buttons.

  • There were further deviations from the scheme:

Military officials with portepee: The staff members wore a border with an applied cross-band pattern

Military Intendaturbeamte: (Gold-colored buttons in the Joint Army, silver-colored buttons in the Landwehr.)
Military civil engineers: (Silver-colored buttons in the Joint Army, gold-colored buttons in the Landwehr.)

Military officials without portepee: Here the barons wore a border with a wavy cross-band pattern.

Auditors: (Gold-colored buttons in the Joint Army, silver-colored buttons in the Landwehr.)
Military medical officer corps: (gold-colored buttons in the joint army, silver-colored buttons in the armed forces) with the corresponding collar variants.

Examples

kuk Kriegsmarine

Before the introduction of the sleeve trims and the open collar from 1859/60, the distinctions of the naval personnel followed the example of the land forces (distinction stars on the collar that had been closed up until then). The sleeve distinctions and batch names were modified several times until the First World War.

Crews and NCOs

Longer serving

Sailors and batches who voluntarily continued their service wore angles made of a 1 cm wide yellow silk border with a 2 mm wide black center line.
For 3 years of service there was one angle
For 6 years of service two angles
For 9 years of service three angles

Non-commissioned officers wore a 1.3 cm wide sleeve strip made of gold-plated nickel wire and above it at 5 mm intervals
after 1 year of service one corner
after 2 years of service two corners
after 3 years of service three corners

Officers

Literature and Sources

  • Stefan Rest, M. Christian Ortner , Thomas Ilming: The Emperor's Rock in the First World War - Uniforms and Equipment of the Austro-Hungarian Army from 1914 to 1918 , Verlag Militaria, Vienna 2002, ISBN 3-9501642-0-0
  • Peter Fichtenbauer , Christian Ortner : The history of the Austrian army from Maria Theresa to the present in essays and pictorial representations , Verlag Militaria, Vienna 2015, ISBN 978-3-902526-71-7
  • Austro-Hungarian War Ministry : Dislocation and division of the Austro-Hungarian Army, the Austro-Hungarian Navy, the Imperial and Royal Landwehr and the Imperial and Royal Landwehr . In: Seidel's small army scheme, Seidel & Sohn, Vienna 1914.
  • Mag. Stefan Fördö: Austria-Hungary's Army Uniforms in the 20th Century in Description and Examples , Zadní dvůr-Press, Ústí nad Labem (CZ) 2008. (loose-leaf collection)
  • Austro-Hungarian War Ministry: Adjustment regulation for the Austro-Hungarian Army, the Imperial and Royal Landwehr, the Imperial and Royal Landwehr, the affiliated institutions and the corps of military officials , Vienna 1911/1912.
  • Uniforms and badges of the Austro-Hungarian Wehrmacht , edited by Colonel M. Judex, 5th edition, Leipzig 1908

Remarks

  1. The version supplied by the state, i.e. the standardized version, was referred to as “ärarisch”
  2. Compulsory from major upwards
  3. Gold or silver colors or brass or white metal colors
  4. Designation "Teams" according to "Adjustment regulation for the kuk Herr 1910/1911" Part I p. 13
  5. In Austria-Hungary there was no tripartite division of the rank groups into men, NCOs and officers. The NCO ranks belonged to the group of men.
  6. ^ Adjustment and amendment regulation at the kk Kriegs-Marine , dated November 5, 1859, in: Militär-Zeitung, 13th year, Vienna 1860 , p. 21