Uniforms of the German Army (1935–1945)
The following is a general overview of the Heer main uniforms, used by the German Army prior to and during World War II.
Terms such as M40 and M43 were never designated by the Wehrmacht, but are names given to the different versions of the Model 1936 field tunic by modern collectors, to discern between variations, as the M36 was steadily simplified and tweaked due to production time problems and combat experience.
Insignia
Uniforms of the Heer as the ground forces of the Wehrmacht were distinguished from other branches by two devices: the army form of the Wehrmachtsadler or Hoheitszeichen worn above the right breast pocket, and – with certain exceptions – collar tabs bearing a pair of Litzen, a device inherited from the old Prussian Guard which resembled a Roman numeral II on its side. Both eagle and Litzen were machine-embroidered or woven in white or grey. Rank was worn on shoulder straps except for junior enlisted, who wore plain shoulder straps and their rank insignia, if any, on the left upper sleeve. NCO's wore a 9mm silver or grey braid around the collar edge.Shoulder straps and, in many cases, collar patches were piped or underlaid in Waffenfarbe, a color code which often identified the branch of service to which the unit belonged: white for infantry, red for artillery, rose-pink for Panzer troops and so on.
Most belt buckles had the Heeresadler with the inscription "Gott mit uns".
Field and service uniform
Field Tunic (''Feldbluse'')
Model 1936
When the Nazis came to power in early 1933 the Reichswehr, the armed forces of the Weimar Republic, were near the end of a two-year project to redesign the Army Feldbluse. Beginning in that year the new tunic was issued to the Reichsheer and then the rapidly growing Wehrmacht Heer, although minor design changes continued to be made until the appearance of the standardized Heeres Dienstanzug Modell 1936. The M36 tunic still retained the traditional Imperial and Reichswehr uniform color of grey-green "field gray" wool, but incorporated four front patch pockets with scalloped flaps and pleats. The front was closed with five buttons rather than the previous eight, and the collar and shoulder straps were of a dark bottle-green instead of the Reichswehr grey. Compared to the Weimar-era uniforms the skirt of the feldbluse was shorter and the tailoring was more form-fitting due to Germany's adoption of mechanized warfare: soldiers now spent much time in the confined space of a vehicle and a shorter jacket was less likely to pick up dirt from the seats. It also included an internal suspension system, whereby a soldier could hang an equipment belt on a series of hooks outside of the tunic. These hooks were connected to two straps inside the lining, which spread the weight of the equipment without having to use external equipment suspenders. The M36 was produced and issued until the very end of the war, though successive patterns became predominant.SS field uniforms were of similar appearance externally but to fit their larger patches had a wider, feldgrau collar, and the lower pockets were of an angled slash type similar to the black or grey SS service-dress. The second button of an SS Feldbluse was positioned somewhat lower, so that it could be worn open-collar with a necktie. Due to supply problems, the SS were often issued army uniforms.
M40 Tunic
The M40 uniform was the first design change in the standard army uniform. It differed from the M36 only in the substitution of feldgrau for the bottle green collar and shoulder straps, which began to be phased out in 1938/39, though most combat examples show this variation appearing in 1940, hence the unofficial M40 pattern. The troops liked the older green collars, and M40 tunics modified with salvaged M36 collars or bottle-green collar overlays are not uncommon.M41 Tunic
The M41 is exactly the same as the M40, but with a 6 button front due to the decline of material quality, which by now was 50% or more viscose rayon and recycled shoddy. SS-specific uniforms nonetheless stayed with 5 buttons.M42 Tunic
The M42 is essentially an M40/41 tunic, but with pleats removed from all the pockets to save on materials and production time.M43 Tunic
The M43 saw the removal of all pleats and scalloped flaps from the field tunic, and pockets began to be cut straight rather than with rounded edges. Many M43 tunics were made with a much simplified version of the internal suspension system, or omitted it entirely.Field Blouse Model 1944
In late 1944, in order to cut down on tailoring and production costs, the Wehrmacht introduced the M44 pattern uniform. Similar in appearance to the British Battledress or the related US "Ike" jacket, the M44 was unlike any other German pattern uniform, and the first major deviation in uniform design since 1936. The tunic skirt was shortened to waist length, an internal belt was added, and the tunic could be worn with an open or closed collar. The color was the new "Feldgrau 44", a drab greenish-brown. The rarely used and complicated internal suspension system was finally dropped. German insignia was still worn. Except for the elite Panzer-Lehr-Division, which field-tested the new uniform in summer 1944 before its approval for general issue, the M44 was usually seen at the front only in the war's last months and generally on the greenest of troops: new replacements, teenage Flakhelfer, and Hitlerjugend and Volkssturm militia.Greatcoat
M36
Field grey double-breasted great coat with dark green collar and shoulder strap. It was worn by all ranks below general officers. Generals and field marshals wore a variant with scarlet turnback lapels and gold buttons.Trousers
M22 (M36)
Originally the M1936 tunic was worn with the same stone gray trousers that the Reichswehr had introduced in 1922. These were high-waisted, straight legged, button-fly trousers with suspenders and three internal pockets plus a watch-pocket; in the field they were worn tucked into jackboots.M40
In 1940 contractors were ordered to discontinue the manufacture of steingrau fabric and instead produce trousers from the same feldgrau cloth as the tunic; however, Army depots continued to issue existing stocks and the older dark trousers were still frequently seen until around 1942.M42
A new design of field trousers was introduced in 1942, replacing the old World War I style straight legged "Langhosen". These were based on the gebirgsjäger model of trousers, designed to be worn with low boots and gaiters, which began replacing jackboots in 1941. New features included tapered ankles, reinforced seat, and a straight-cut waist, which included belt loops and two tabs for optional suspender use, as opposed to the fishtail design of the m36 model. HBT models often were straight legged, and featured a tab and buttons to taper the ankles, for optional use without gaiters.
M43
In the late war, lower quality, often recycled material was being used for uniforms. The M43 trousers saw extra fly buttons being added to accommodate a reinforced waistband, all other features remained virtually the same.Field caps
Side cap (''Feldmütze'') M34/M38/M42
The original soft headdress for the Heer, introduced in 1934, was a folding garrison or envelope cap in feldgrau wool, similar to that worn by American, Soviet and RAF personnel but with a "scoop" in the front; the Schiffchen was popular, convenient, and worn throughout the war. Variants in black wool and olive cotton were issued with the Panzer and tropical uniforms. Insignia consisted of an embroidered national emblem and red-white-black cockade, and an inverted chevron in Waffenfarbe. Officers' caps were piped in silver or aluminum. A variant appeared in 1942 with a two-part "fold" intended to serve as ear flaps in cold weather, secured by two front buttons: this was rapidly overtaken by the M43 field cap.Visored field cap (''Einheitsfeldmütze'') M43
Since before World War I German and Austrian mountain troops had worn a visored "ski cap" with turn-down ear flaps secured in front by two buttons. A version of this cap with longer visor, false turn-down, and slightly lower crown in olive cotton twill had been issued with the tropical uniform. In 1943 a similar cap in field-grey wool with a visor intermediate in length between the mountain and tropical versions was issued to all troops for field wear only; it quickly became the most commonly seen soft headgear at the front. Insignia was similar to that of the side-cap, although the eagle and cockade were both worn above the turn-up. A black version was issued to Panzer crewmen.Peaked cap (''Schirmmütze'')
The dress, service and walking-out cap for all ranks was the peaked cap as finalized in 1934. The semi-rigid band was covered in bottle-green fabric, and the stiff visor came in variety of materials and were made of either black vulcanized rubber, fibre, plastic, or patent leather. The oval wool crown was stiffened with wire into a curved "saddleback" shape with a high front. Insignia consisted of the national cockade surrounded by an oakleaf wreath on the front of the band, with the Wehrmachtsadler above; these were stamped aluminum or sometimes embroidered in bullion for officers. The edges of the band and crown were piped in Waffenfarbe. Enlisted men wore the cap with a black leather chinstrap; officers wore a pair of braided silver or aluminum cords. NCOs were authorized to wear the Schirmmütze when the uniform of the day prescribed the field cap.Officers' caps were frequently private-purchase and had covers of higher-quality fabric; these were often interchangeable and included summer white and tropical olive versions as well as ''feldgrau.''