List of flags of Germany (1933–1935)

The list of flags of Germany (1933–1935) includes flags that were used in the Third Reich from March 13, 1933 - the official introduction of the swastika flag as the Reich flag - to the Reich Flag Act of September 15, 1935.

Imperial flag

On March 12, 1933, a decree by Reich President Paul von Hindenburg ordered that the black, white and red flag and the swastika flag should be hoisted together from the following day until the Reich colors were finally regulated . The decree of Paul von Hindenburg de facto abrogated Article 3 of the Weimar Constitution (“The imperial colors are black, red and gold”). This provisional regulation of the national flags was maintained until September 15, 1935.

flag	date	designation	description
	1933-1935	National flag	The swastika flag was introduced as the Reich flag on March 13, 1933, together with the subsequent flag. The central position of the white disc was mandatory for the national flag on land until September 15, 1935. It was only at this point in time that the Reich and trade flags were combined under the National Socialists and defined as “a disc that had been shifted slightly from the bar” (again more precisely defined by the decree of June 18, 1937). Swastika flags with a centrally located disk, shown after September 1935, embodied party flags of the NSDAP . In contrast to the trade flag, the back of the flag also showed a right-pointing swastika, so it was not “colored through”.
	1933-1935	National flag	Was shown as an additional national flag together with the swastika flag.

Trade flag

In the ordinance on the provisional regulation of flag flying of March 31, 1933, merchant ships were allowed to use the simple black-white-red Reich flag and the swastika flag instead of the republican trade flag. It was not until May 1, 1933, that the old Republican flag was prohibited from setting, so that several flags were official at the same time. It is known that the HAPAG shipping company operated three different trade flags at the same time during this period. On December 20, 1933 it was once again and definitely determined that the German merchant ships had to set the black-white-red stern flag and the swastika flag. This sealed the official extinction of the Weimar trade flag. Furthermore, it was described for the first time at this point that the swastika flag of the merchant ships deviates from the shape used up to that point in that the white disc with the swastika is slightly shifted towards the pole. This variant was only valid for seafaring until September 1935.

flag	date	designation	description
	1933	Trade flag	Used until May 1, 1933. Officially abolished December 20, 1933.
	1933-1935	Trade flag	Used from March 31, 1933 with the flag below.
	1933– (1945)	Trade flag	Introduced as an additional trade flag on December 20, 1933 with the disc offset to the left. Already before this time with the central disc together with the black-white-red flag used as a trade flag. The back of the flag was “colored through”, so it showed a left-pointing swastika. When the flag with a central disk was introduced in March 1933, however, this was not the case. It is not known when the reverse side of the trade flag was changed, but it can be assumed that this change was made in the course of the decree of December 20, 1933.
	1933	Commercial flag with the iron cross	Used until July 16, 1933 by commanders of merchant ships who were retired officers of the war or imperial navy.
	1933-1935	Commercial flag with the iron cross	Introduced on July 16, 1933

Imperial war flag and wargösch

Main article: Imperial War Flag

The imperial war flag of the republican pattern was quickly abolished. It is interesting, however, that Paul von Hindenburg's decree on March 12, 1933 determined that the Republican war flag should be hoisted on all military installations on the following day of national mourning (March 13, 1933). This is all the more surprising since the next day (March 14, 1933) the new Reich war flag (without the republican Obereck) was introduced.

flag	date	designation	description
	1933	Reich war flag	Last used on March 13, 1933
	1933-1935	Imperial war flag and wargösch	Introduced on March 14, 1933. In addition to omitting the republican upper corner, the new flag also featured an additional white outer border around the iron cross . Furthermore, this was moved slightly to the left. The flag was also used as a war gösch , but was made smaller for this purpose.

For the possibly existing previous versions of all other flags shown see: List of flags of the Weimar Republic

Service flags

flag	date	designation	description
	1933	Reich service flag of the Wehrmacht	Introduced March 14, 1933 and used until April 22, 1933.
	1933-1935	Service flag for the other Reich authorities at sea / Reich service flag	Introduced on March 31, 1933 as an official flag for the other Reich authorities at sea . A new service flag for the authorities on land was not introduced. In contrast, the flag was renamed the Reich Service Flag on April 22, 1933 . At the same time it was determined that in future all authorities would have to use the Reich Service flag. There were flag variants that showed the eagle with six feathers per wing. The flag was replaced by a new version on October 31, 1935.

Reich President, Adolf Hitler, Reichswehr Minister, Reich Minister of War

flag	date	designation	description
	1933–1935 (de facto until 1934)	Standard of the Reich President	Introduced on April 22, 1933. Used until August 2, 1934. Abolished on April 11, 1935
	1933–1935 (de facto until 1934)	Standard of the Reich President (variant)	Like the previous standard. Possibly only used as a vehicle stand.
	1935– (1945)	Standard of Adolf Hitler (officially: Standard of the Führer and Reich Chancellor)	Introduced on April 11, 1935. Adolf Hitler never carried the standard of the Reich President after the death of Paul von Hindenburg on August 2, 1934, although he subsequently united the office of Reich President with that of Reich Chancellor , but refused to be titled as Reich President. Nevertheless, the standard of the Reich President was not officially abolished until April 11, 1935.
	1933-1935	Flag of the Reichswehr Minister	The flag was introduced on March 14, 1933, and was used until July 23, 1935.
	1935	Flag of the Reich Minister of War and Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht	Accepted on July 23, 1935. Used until October 5, 1935. The name was changed to Reich Ministry of War on May 21, 1935.

Reich Minister of Aviation

The position of Reich Aviation Minister or, in later years, Commander in Chief of the Air Force was occupied from the beginning of the Third Reich to its end by Hermann Göring , who wielded a variety of personal flags and standards.

flag	date	designation	description
	1933-1935	Command flag of the Reich Minister of Aviation (left side)	Introduced on May 5, 1933, this flag showed the imperial eagle, which was used until 1935, in the center. Below the laurel wreath is the Pour le Mérite - Order, which Hermann Göring was awarded during the First World War. Starting from the center of the laurel wreath, there are a total of four stylized propeller blades on the flag pointing into the corners. Since April 1935 the designation of this flag was the command flag of the Reich Minister of Aviation and Commander in Chief of the Air Force
	1933-1935	Command flag of the Reich Minister of Aviation (right side)	Similar to the left side, but with the symbols arranged in reverse
	1933-1935	Flag of the Reich Aviation Ministry (left side)	This was an alternative variant of the previous flag, which was probably used in the same period as this one. Apparently, it served as a kind of "transitional flag" from April 1935, which was used until a new version was introduced by the end of 1935. However, it is also possible that this version was only hoisted at the Reich Aviation Ministry.
	1933-1935	Flag of the Reich Aviation Ministry (right side)	This is the likely appearance of the right side of the flag, as there are no images or descriptions. However, it can be assumed that the style of the appearance was adapted to the first variant.

Reichspostflagge

Main article: Reichspostflagge

flag	date	designation	description
	1933-1935	Reichspostflagge	Introduced March 31, 1933. Abolished on September 19, 1935.

marine

The traditional command flags of the war and Reichsmarine, which had already been used in the German Empire and then in the Weimar Republic, were adopted. See: List of flags of the Weimar Republic . For the flags used from 1935 onwards, see: List of flags of the German Navy (1935–1945)

flag	date	designation	description
	1933-1935	Pilot signal flag	Introduced on June 21, 1933. Replaced by a new version on November 5, 1935. The white stripe around black-white-red was 1/5 of the total flag height.
	1935– (1936)	Water sport flag	Used from May 31, 1935 to January 31, 1936. The flag was only to be shown together with the swastika flag. The flag was only allowed to be used by recognized water sports vehicles of the water sports association. Other water sports craft had to fly the swastika flag and black-white-red. From February 1936 until the introduction of the new water sports flag, the trade flag had to be set. In practice, the water sports flag was probably no longer used from September 1935.

Maritime service flags of the coastal countries

By changing the national service flag on April 22, 1933, the coastal states saw themselves forced to modify their traditional sea service flags.

flag	date	designation	description
	1933-1935	Maritime service flag of Mecklenburg	Introduced on July 7, 1933.
	1933-1935	Bremen's naval service flag	Introduced on August 7, 1933.
	1933-1935	Maritime service flag of Oldenburg	Introduced on October 27, 1933.
	1934-1935	Lübeck's naval service flag	Introduced on March 3, 1934.
	1934-1935	Maritime service flag of Hamburg	Introduced on March 3, 1934.
	1933-1935	Sea service flag of Prussia	Introduced on October 2, 1933.

Service flags of the coastal countries for inland navigation

The states of Mecklenburg and Lübeck took over the official flags of the Weimar period by 1935 (see official flags for inland navigation in the Weimar Republic ). On March 3, 1934, Lübeck's official flag was confirmed. The additional hoisting of the swastika flag was made mandatory. Special flags with additional letters were no longer mentioned.

literature

• Dreyhaupt: German National Flags Part VIII: The Third Reich , in: Der Flaggenkurier No. 16/2002, German Flagship Society

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Andreas Herzfeld: Some unknown flag changes 1933–1945 , in: Der Flaggenkurier No. 13/2001, German Society for Flagging Studies, p. 17 ff.
2. ↑ See also discussions on Flags of the world : Centered vs. Offset Disc and Swastika

Web links

• Flags of the Third Reich 1933–1935 on Flags of the world (engl.)
• Flags of the German Reich (1933-1943) / Greater German Reich (1943-1945) on Wikimedia Commons