The German Army on the Eastern Front: An Inner View of the Ostheer's Experiences of War

Appendix D Table of ranks

Note: The Luftwaffe (Air Force) and the Kriegsmarine (Navy) had a similar structure to the Army, but while the Luftwaffe used more or less the same names, the Kriegsmarine had very different rank names for traditional reasons.

OA/FA: Offizieranwärter (Army)/Führeranwärter (SS) = Ranks for Officer candidates.

General[1]

Oberfähnrich[2]

Feldwebel[3]

Soldat[4]

Plate Section

^{German engineer company marching in the Ukraine, summer 1941. The endless plains of the Soviet Union forced German troops to undertake long marches that exhausted the infantry. (BAMA RH 26-76/21)}

^{German engineers crossing the Dnieper by force, summer 1941. Broad Soviet rivers proved difficult obstacles to overcome for German troops. (BAMA RH 26-76/21)}

^{German trench near Naumovka, Velizh area, 1943. Beginning in early 1942, large sections of the front reverted to positional warfare – a strategy that needed to be relearned by the German army. (BAMA RH 26-205/94)}

^{Troops of the 371st Infantry Division in a bottleneck at a river crossing during the breakout from the Kamianets-Podilskyi encirclement, March 1944. Note the various uniforms as well as the many horse-drawn vehicles. (Private archive of Marco Sigg)}

^{Units of the 371st Infantry Division during their retreat in southwestern Ukraine in February 1944. Harsh weather conditions hampered troop movements and had negative effects on the troops’ health. (Private archive of Marco Sigg)}

^{German infantry supported by an assault gun advancing in open order in the Ukraine, summer 1941. Combined arms were an essential part of German tactical success. (BAMA RH 26-76/21).}

^{Ferrying of an assault gun over the Kasplia River (Vitebsk area), spring 1942. (BAMA RH 26-205/94)}

^{An assault gun passing a horse-drawn column, Ukraine 1941. One of the German army’s fundamental problems was the lack of adequate means of supply for the rapidly advancing Panzer troops. (BAMA RH 26-76/21)}

^{Part of the staff of the 385th Infantry Division in April 1942, Ukraine. The divisional commander Generalmajor Karl Eibl, the twenty-first soldier of the Wehrmacht (and second of the army after Erwin Rommel), decorated with with Swords to the Oak Leaves, died six months later during the Soviet winter offensive after being accidentally wounded by Allied Italian troops during a frontline reconnaissance. (Private archive of Marco Sigg)}

^{Generalleutnant Hermann Niehoff (centre), best known for his command of besieged Breslau in 1945, during his staff’s celebration for receiving the Knight’s Cross, late June 1944. He earned the award for his command of the 371st Infantry Division during the breakout of First Panzer Army from the Kamianets-Podilskyi encirclement. (Private archive of Marco Sigg)}

^{Improvised sled production by a German supply unit, autumn 1942. The German troops started preparing for the second winter in the Soviet Union much earlier than in 1941 – a lesson learned after the high casualties and breakdown of the supply system. (BAMA RH 26-205/93)}

^{Construction of a log causeway, central Russia, 1942. Warfare in the generally undeveloped forest and swamp regions of central and north Russia forced the German army to build its own infrastructure. However, the lack of men, machines, and material only allowed for makeshift solutions. (BAMA RH 26-205/94)}

^{Soldiers try to pull a truck that has slid off the road, Ukraine 1944. The road conditions, especially after rains or in the thaw period, hampered German movement and supply. (Private archive of Marco Sigg)}

^{Garden of a German supply unit. Due to difficulties in the logistical system, self-supply became essential for German troops. (BAMA RH 26-205/93)}

^{Soviet civilians building positions near Velizh, 1943. The longer the war endured, the more the German army had to rely on Soviet manpower for auxiliary tasks. (BAMA RH 26-205/94)}

^{A German NCO prepares tactical training on a sand table, 1942. The level of detail demonstrates the degree to which the German army sought to train men and leaders even under the difficult conditions of the Eastern front. (BAMA RH 26-205/94)}

^{Destruction of an abandoned truck on the German retreat in the Ukraine, March 1944. Long retreats under difficult conditions not only caused the German troops to suffer materially, but also affected their combat morale. (Private archive of Marco Sigg)}

^{Recreation home of the 205th Infantry Division in Baslovo, 1942. A peaceful area that allowed German soldiers to recuperate from the horrors of the front line. (BAMA RH 26-205/93)}

^{Sleeping room in the recreation home of the 205th Infantry Division in Baslovo, 1942. Even if very Spartan from a modern perspective, it was luxurious compared to conditions on the Eastern front. (BAMA RH 26-205/93)}

^{The ‘attraction’ of the 205th Infantry Division’s recreation home: two German Red Cross Sisters. German women were rarely seen in the German-occupied Soviet Union. (BAMA RH 26-205/93)}

^{Cemetery of the 205th Infantry Division in Novosokolniki area, 1942. Burying comrades in proper circumstances – when possible – was an important hygienic measure and proved essential for combat motivation. (BAMA RH 26-205/93)}

^{Makeshift graves of German soldiers killed in action against Soviet partisans, spring 1942. (BAMA RH 26-205/94)}

Note: We gratefully thank Dr Marco Sigg for offering us pictures from his private archive.

Copyright

First published in Great Britain in 2018 by

Pen & Sword Military

an imprint of

Pen & Sword Books Ltd

47 Church Street

Barnsley

South Yorkshire

S70 2AS

Copyright (c) Jeff Rutherford and Adrian E. Wettstein 2018

ISBN 978-1-47386-174-9

eISBN 978-1-47386-176-3

Mobi ISBN 978-1-47386-175-6

The right of Jeff Rutherford and Adrian E. Wettstein to be identified as Authors of this Work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

1

General was combined with the branch, i.e. General der Infanterie, der Artillerie, and so on.

2

Oberfähnrich were already wearing officers’ insignia, such as officers’ uniforms and caps.

3

Note that the artillery and the cavalry used the rank name Wachtmeister instead of Feldwebel for all NCO ranks.

4

Note that this rank was different according to the arm: in the infantry it was Schütze and from 1942 on Grenadier (riflemen), in the artillery Kanonier (gunner), in the cavalry Reiter (horsemen) and so on.