Oath of allegiance

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This article or paragraph presents the situation in Germany . Help us to describe the situation in other countries.

An oath of flag is a solemn declaration of loyalty by soldiers .

In the Bundeswehr there is - depending on the status of the soldier - an oath or a vow . In Austria's armed forces , the soldier's vow is called a swearing- in, and in the Swiss armed forces , soldiers on active service are sworn in . In the National People's Army of the GDR there was also a military oath .

Historical

Even Roman legionaries had to take an oath of flag ( sacramentum ) on the emperor and the state when they entered service and renew it annually. In the German Empire , the pledge was referred to as oath of the flag and was actually given to those units that carried a flag or a standard . The Bundeswehr's pledge for recruits, on the other hand, is not an oath, only professional and temporary soldiers take an oath.

The artillery men swore oath of allegiance to their artillery , even if the troop unit concerned had carried a flag.

The officers appointed by the German Kaiser swore the oath, so

  • the highest commanding officers of the contingents,
  • the commanders who commanded troops from several contingents
  • the fortress commanders and
  • the soldiers from the realm of Alsace-Lorraine , which was administered directly by the emperor

Otherwise, the troops swore the oath to the sovereign of the state to which the oather belonged. Only the officers of the troops who were accepted into the Union of the Prussian contingent by military convention swore oath to the King of Prussia . (for the legal organization until 1918 see: German Army (German Empire) )

German soldiers' oath

"I swear loyalty to the Imperial Constitution and vow that, as a brave soldier, I want to protect the German Reich and its legal institutions at all times, and to obey the Reich President and my superiors."
The ceremonial swearing-in of the Reichswehr on the new head of state Adolf Hitler in the barracks yard of the guard in Berlin 1934
Oath of oath of the fighting groups of the GDR 1980
  • New form of oath of the Reichswehr from December 2, 1933:
"I swear to God on this holy oath that I will always serve my people and fatherland faithfully and honestly and, as a brave and obedient soldier, I will be ready to give my life for this oath at any time."
  • Oath of the Reichswehr ( renamed to Wehrmacht in March / May 1935 ) from August 20, 1934:
"I swear to God this holy oath that I want to obey the leader of the German Reich and the people, Adolf Hitler , the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, unconditionally and, as a brave soldier, to be ready to give my life for this oath at any time."
“I swear to you, Adolf Hitler, as leader and Chancellor of the German Reich, loyalty and bravery. I pledge obedience to you and your appointed superiors until death! So help me God! "

See also

literature

  • Hans Ehlert (Hrsg.): Military ceremony in Germany (= Potsdam writings on military history, Volume 6). Military History Research Office , Potsdam 2008, ISBN 978-3-9808882-8-8 .
  • Sven Lange : The oath of the flag. The history of the oath obligation in the German military (= series of publications of the Scientific Forum for International Security eV (WIFIS), Volume 19). Edition Temmen, Bremen 2003, ISBN 3-86108-365-5 .
  • Ralf Pröve , Carmen Winkel (ed.): Creating transitions. Ritual and performance in early modern military society (= rule and social systems in early modern times, volume 16). V & R Unipress, Göttingen 2012, ISBN 978-3-8471-0023-2 .
  • Marcus Twellmann: "About the oaths". Breeding and Criticism in Enlightenment Prussia . Konstanz University Press, Paderborn 2010, ISBN 978-3-86253-000-7 .

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Table of contents, foreword and excerpt online (google books)