Grand Admiral Staff
The Grand Admiral's staff is a staff worn by the Grand Admiral as an insignia of his dignity . It is comparable to the marshal's baton .
Emergence
Corresponding ranks in other fleets were usually called Fleet Admiral ( Great Britain , Russia ).
The rank of Grand Admiral arose at the request of the Imperial Navy in 1900 , when Wilhelm II accepted this rank. A rank should be created which is equal to the field marshals of the army .
In the Third Reich the rank was created again.
The Grand Admiral's baton is only worn on special occasions; the interim baton is worn instead for service .
Grand Admiral Staff in the Empire
The grand admiral's staffs of the empire were covered with red velvet, on the velvet lay fields framed by ropes with alternating imperial eagles with imperial crown, imperial crown and unclear anchor in golden yellow. An imperial eagle with an imperial crown or the abbreviation "W.II" with the imperial crown above it lay on the pommel ends .
Grand Admiral's Staffs in World War II
The staff for Erich Raeder is similar to those of the imperial era, but had no imperial crowns and instead of the abbreviation "W.II" an iron cross was put on. It was also covered with blue velvet.
The staff for Karl Dönitz does not resemble any of the previous Grand Admiral's staffs ; it was aligned with the army marshal's staffs. It was covered with blue velvet on which the Wehrmacht eagle, the unclear anchor and the iron cross were placed alternately. On the end of the knob was a swastika or a sovereign eagle with outstretched wings, underneath a submarine . This rod is located in the Shropshire Regimental Museum ( Shrewsbury , UK) and can be viewed there.
The interim staff
In both the German Empire and the Third Reich, the interim staff was in the form of a telescope, the cylindrical part of which was patterned like the corresponding Grand Admiral's staff.
literature
- André Stirenberg, André Hüsken : Myth of Marshal's Staff . Marshal's baton in Prussian and German history from 1852 to 1945. HM Hauschild, Bremen 2004, ISBN 3-89757-252-4 .