kuk generals

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The Austro-Hungarian generals were the group of the highest-ranking officers in the land forces of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1914 . They led larger troops and held leading positions in the central authorities.

hierarchy

Gala skirt for German generals (GFM)

At the head of the rank group of the generals was the field marshal (FM). The last field marshal before the First World War was Archduke Albrecht , who died in 1895. After that, this rank was no longer awarded until the First World War. (An exception to this was the emperor, to whom this rank was automatically granted.)

The General of the Cavalry or the Feldzeugmeister followed under the FM . (The designation General of the Cavalry was reserved for officers who came from the cavalry . All others were called Feldzeugmeister .) From 1908 the rank of General of the Infantry was introduced. Since then, the Feldzeugmeister came only from the artillery or artillery and military geographic service . This rank group provided the corps commanders (as the largest formation of troops in peace).

The field marshal lieutenants usually held the position of division commander , and the major generals served as brigade commanders . The rank of colonel general was not introduced until 1915.

Adjustment, equipment and armament

A distinction was made between German and Hungarian generals. The uniform of the Hungarian generals was only allowed to be worn by officers who had previously been colonels of a hussar regiment .

German dress uniform

The German dress uniform consisted of a hat with a plume, a white tunic, and scarlet pantaloons with gold braids.

German service uniform for parades
Hat with plume, pike-gray tunic, blue-gray pantaloons with scarlet lampasses.
General von Sarkotić in a Hungarian gala
German service uniform in the field, during weapons exercises and on the march
Field cap, tunic and breeches

Hungarian dress uniform

The Hungarian gala uniform consisted of the kalpak with a heron bush, scarlet attila , white fur, scarlet boot pants, chisms with gold cord and rosette.

Hungarian service uniform for the parade
Shako with plume, pike-gray attila, (in appropriate weather conditions pike-gray fur) blue-gray pantaloons with scarlet lampasses.
Hungarian service uniform in the field, during weapons exercises and on the march
Field cap, pike-gray fur, pike-gray Attila, blue-gray boot pants, chisms with leather cord and rosette.

The gala uniform had to be worn: audiences, at court and religious festivals as well as during missions at foreign courts. It was only allowed on foot and not in troops. The Hungarian generals had to wear the fur around their necks, unless other generals appeared in the cloak, then the fur had to be put on. The coat of the German uniform had to be put on when the troops in the coat had moved out, the Hungarian generals only had to wear it in rainy weather, then it had to be put on over the Attila.

Tabard for service and parade

Adjustment of the German generals

The gala headgear was a top hat in the style of military doctors with a gold, 8 cm wide zigzag pattern and a bush of green vulture feathers. In addition, there were field caps in the style of infantry officers. The gala tunic consisted of white cloth with scarlet leveling and two rows of yellow buttons in a general design. The tunic for the service uniform was cut from pike-gray cloth and was similar to the gala skirt.

The generals' badges of distinction differed from those of the other officers . Generals up to General d. K. and the FZM wore a 3.3 cm wide gold braid on the collar and a 5.3 cm wide, zigzag pattern on the cuffs. The major general wore one star on the collar, the field marshal lieutenant two and the GdK / FZM three silver embroidered stars. The Field Marshal had no stars, but a gold-embroidered acanthus leaf on the left and right of the collar.

The pike -gray blouse , decorated with scarlet parolis , was only permitted for office work, business trips and related occasions. Like a field march, it could not be carried. The scarlet pantaloons, worn in dress uniforms, had gold braids on both sides; the blue-gray pantaloons belonging to the service uniform, on the other hand, have two 3.3 cm wide lampasses on each side. The trousers of the service uniform could also be designed as breeches.

The coat was made of blue-gray cloth with scarlet passepoils and parolis. The lining was also scarlet in color.

The generals wore a special kind of armband made of gold thread and interwoven with black silk. The fringes hanging down from the tassel consisted of twisted plug-in bouillons. The sidearm was the infantry officer's saber.

Feldzeugmeister Tamasy with fur in a Hungarian parade uniform

Adjustment of the Hungarian generals

The gala uniform included a kalpak made of noble marten with a height of 17 cm. On the Kalpak there was the cap pouch made of scarlet cloth, which reached down to the brim and a cord for decoration. The hanging cord was made of 4 mm thick, square cord that was gold-colored and scratched in black. There were also two round braids with tassels. The cord was doubled and braided into 17 links. The lanyard was attached to the right side of the kalpak with adhesive tapes; the braided part hung down in an arc. The front of the Kalpak was decorated with a 32 cm high, white heron bush. It was held by an acorn made of matt gold braid, which was mottled with black silk. The approach was covered by black curled feathers 3.5 cm in length. A shako with a plume was worn with the service uniform, as was customary in the form for the hussar officers, but with a black cloth cover. The front edge of the umbrella was embroidered with gold thread, the transition to the pillar was covered by a gold chain cord. The Tschakoadler had the shape of the dragoon's eagle but corresponded in size to the eagle of the hussar officers. The distinction border was 6.6 cm wide and was the same as the border on the cuffs for general weapons coats. On the shako there was a cord ornament made of 3 mm thick cords, gold-colored and laid twice, each of which was decorated with a round braid with a tassel. The round braids were similar to those on the hussarentschako. The plume of green vulture feathers was attached erect and 15 cm high. At the top it was 11 cm wide. The field cap was similar to that of the infantry officers .

The attila required for the dress uniform was made of scarlet cloth and was cut like the hussar attila. The decorations were made of gold chain strings, olives and rosettes covered with gold. Unlike the usual officer sattila, however, the ends of the noose hung down here. The white fur attila was made in the same shape. For all generals the sleeves of the Attilas were trimmed with jagged braids, those of the field marshals, however, with a pattern in the style of the acanthus leaf. The service uniform included a pike-gray Attila, whose collar and cuffs were made of equalizing cloth and the decorations were made of gold-black mottled Attilla cords. The pike-gray fur attila was trimmed with white fur and otherwise did not differ from the white fur attila.

Scarlet boot pants with 2 cm wide Vitéz Kötés made of gold braids were worn with the gala uniform. At the thigh seams there was an identical, 2.6 cm wide border. The blue-gray pantaloons for the service uniform were like the German generals. Both the service and the gala uniform included a waist belt made of gold and black silk cords with a width of 4.6 cm. This belt was held together with a toggle and loop.

Footwear was the Hungarian boots, so-called chisms, which were used for the service uniform made of unpainted calfskin; black corduan leather was used for dress uniform. The latter were provided with a golden chain cord, rosettes and hussar spurs.

The cloak was that of the cavalry officers, made of brown cloth but with a scarlet lining. The infantry officer's saber also served as a side arm here.

Museum reception

In Vienna Military History Museum many objects are exhibited by well-known members of the imperial generals. For example, the marshal's baton of Field Marshal Archduke Friedrich and the tunics, Orden- and decorations as well as Marshal sticks marshals Archduke Eugene , Boroevic Bojna , Alexander von Krobatin and Kövess of Kövesshaza be visited. Field Marshal Conrad von Hötzendorf's uniform and baton are also open to the public. In addition, the respective showcases are filled with various personal items from the possession of the above-mentioned senior officers.

literature

Web links

Commons : Military uniforms of Austria-Hungary  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files
Commons : Details of military uniforms of Austria-Hungary  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ However, writing of the kuk Militäradministratur to 1918 since the spelling reform of 1996 as Field Marshal Lieutenant referred