The evolution of german fieldgear 1933-1945
German field gear
The german fieldgear during the war was both traditional and innovative. Experience of use, resources becoming more scarce and innovation created an evolution during the years of the war. This page covers the basics of german field gear.
During the re armament of the german forces in violation of the versailles treaty, resources was abundant. The field gear was specialzied for different roles and precisely made. As the invasion of poland, and the war, started 01.09 1939 an evolution of the german soldier also started. Experience gained in the field generated changes in the field gear. As the war expanded resources started to become scarcer and production was inevitable forced to be simplified. Experience and the shortage of resources took the german soldier from a traditional and nicely dressed to the modern soldier of today. Most items are a colelctors field of its own so this will only scratcht the top of the iceberg.
1939 The invasion of poland
1940 Above the norwegian skies
1941 Operation barbarossa
1942 The cold winter
1943 Slow return from Stalingrad
1945 Battle of berlin
1944 Luftwaffe on the ground
The "Knobelbecher" Marchstiefel
A signature of the german ww2 soldier was their helmet, another distinct feature were their boots. Described by witnesses the sound when the "iron heel" was marching. This is a short intro to the german footwear.
Der "Koppelschloss"
The german belt & buckle followed the soldier the entire war. and was basic field gear. change of construction and materials occurred. A brief intro to the Koppelschloss here.
Y-riemen
Kobbeltrageting med hilfstrageriemen. Skriv introen her. Legg bilde av web på siden av andre bildet. A limitedt introduction to the koppeltragestell here.
The "affe"
A german tradition from the prussian army, it lived on during ww1 and ww2 before it was relieved by the gefechtsgepack and later the rucksack. Here is a short introduction to the "affe" Backpack.
Patronentasche 11
Used from the first mauser in various forms, the two K98 ammunition pouches followed the german soldier until the end of the war. Up until recently thes M1911 cartridge pouches was in abundance and not worth faking. Read more here about the "Patronentasche 11"
The "Seitengewehr"
Seitengewehr mit seitengewehrtasche. Numerous and iconic. This is a very short intor to the seitengewehr and its use.
The Zeltbahn 31 was in use by several armed forces long after the war and the same variant is till in use. An important part of the german field gear that was not changed significantly in production or use during the war. The accessories saw changes due to material shortage and change in use. More about tent & accessories here
Feltflasche 31 und trinkbecher
Several version exists and it was made ine many varieties. The m31 canteen followed the german soldier troughout the war. Feltflaschen is a collectors field on its own. A little introduction to the m31 canteen can be found here.
Gas mask & Cannister
With the horrible use of gas as weapon in the great war, the german soldier always carried a gasmask and various gas protection equipment. Tough gas was never used in ww2, the fear of gas was always present. More about the gasmask, cannisters and protection equipment here
Another item with long traditions that followed the soldiers during the entire war was the bread bag or Brotbeutel M31. It is one item that shows the evolution of field gear and the adaptation to lack of resources best. More about the m31 brotbeutel here
Kochgeschirr 31
A low cost but efficient design, the Kochgeschirr is still in use. An important part of the german field gear during ww2. More about the kochgeschirr 31 here
First came the Tornister, the tornister fur Y-riemen M39, then the A-frame or gefechtsgepack fur infanterie Schutzenkompanmien. An intro to the A-frame here.
K43 ammopouch
The marked suddenly got flooded by these ammopouches creating good supply and declining prices. Made for the gewehr/karabiner 43 in many varieties. A very short introduction to this pouch can be found here
The m44 Rucksack
The culmination of evolution. The soldier startet with a ponyfur detailed backpack from the napoleonic era, trough a battlepack system and ended up with simplicity and the M44 rucksack. More about the M44 rucksack here
Medical equipment
A collectors field of its own. Not directly in the category of field gear. A variety of items exists. Here are some notes regarding medical equipment.
Dienstglas 6x30
Th dienstglas 6x30 was intoduced to replace various earlier models as the standard binoculars. Short text about dienstglas here
Entrenching tools
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