The military ranks of the German Empire were the ranks used by the military of the German Empire. It inherited the various traditions and military ranks of its constituent states.
Critics long believed that the Army's officer corps was heavily dominated by Junker aristocrats, so that commoners were shunted into low-prestige branches, such as the heavy artillery or supply. However, by the 1890s, the top ranks were opened to highly talented commoners. [1] [2]
Rank group | General Officers | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Insignia | ||||||
Rank designation | Generalfeldmarschall | Generaloberst mit dem Rang als Generalfeldmarschall | Generaloberst | General der Waffengattung | Generalleutnant | Generalmajor |
(English designation) | General Field Marshal | Colonel General in the rank of Field Marshal | Colonel General | General of the branch | Lieutenant General | Major General |
Rank group | Staff Officers | ||
---|---|---|---|
insignia | |||
Rank designation | Oberst | Oberstleutnant | Major |
(English designation) | Colonel | Lieutenant Colonel | Major |
Rank group | Subalterns | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
insignia | ||||
Rank designation | Hauptmann/Kapitän I Klasse: infantry and artillery Rittmeister I Klasse: cavalry | Hauptmann/Kapitän II Klasse: infantry and artillery Rittmeister II Klasse: cavalry | Oberleutnant Feuerwerksoberleutnant | Leutnant : infantry, cavalry and other arms Feuerwerksleutnant: artillery |
(English designation) | Captain | Staff Captain [lower-alpha 1] | 1st Lieutenant | 2nd Lieutenant |
Rank group | Unteroffizier mit Portepee | Unteroffizier ohne Portepee | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Collar | ||||
Epaulette | ||||
Title | Etatmäßiger feldwebel | Vizefeldwebel | Sergeant | Unteroffizier |
Cavalry/ Artillery | Etatmäßiger wachtmeister | Vizewachtmeister |
Rank group | Enlisted | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Collar | |||||
Epaulette | |||||
Title | Kapitulant | Einjährig-freiwilliger | Obergefreiter | Gefreiter | Soldat |
English designation | Capitulant | One-Year Volunteer Enlistee | Senior Lance Corporal | Lance Corporal | Private |
Additionally, the following voluntary enlistees were distinguished:
Note: Einjährig-Freiwilliger and Kapitulant were not ranks as such during this specific period of use, but voluntary military enlistee designations. They, however, wore a specific uniform distinction (twisted wool piping along their shoulder epaulette edging for Einjährig-Freiwilliger, the Kapitulant a narrow band across their lower shoulder epaulette) in the colours of their respective nation state. This distinction was never removed throughout their military service nor during any rank grade advancements.
The Imperial German Navy's rank and rating system combined that of Prussia's with the navies of other northern states.
The rank insignia of commissioned officers.
Rank group | General / flag officers | Senior officers | Junior officers | Officer cadet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Epaulette [9] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sleeve insignia [10] [11] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Großadmiral | Admiral | Vizeadmiral | Konteradmiral | Kapitän zur See/ Kommodore | Fregattenkapitän | Korvettenkapitän | Kapitänleutnant | Oberleutnant zur See | Leutnant zur See |
Title | Großadmiral | Admiral | Vizeadmiral | Konteradmiral |
---|---|---|---|---|
Command flag |
Title | Oberfähnrich zur See | Fähnrich zur See | Seekadett |
Epaulette [9] | |||
Sleeve | |||
English designation | Midshipman | Sea cadet | Junior sea cadet |
Warrant officers | |||
---|---|---|---|
Title | Deckoffiziere als Offizier-Stellvertreter | Oberdeckoffizier | Deckoffizier |
Shoulder [9] | |||
English designation | Chief Warrant Officer as Acting Commissioned Officer. | Chief Warrant Officer | Warrant Officer |
Specialty designations | Offizier-Stellvertreter | Oberbootsmann Obersteuermann Oberfeuerwerker | Bootsmann Steuermann Feuerwerker |
English designation | Acting Commissioned Officer | Chief Boatswain Chief Helmsman Chief Artificer | Boatswain Helmsman Artificer |
Senior Petty Officers | Junior Petty Officers | |||
Title | Feldwebel | Vize-Feldwebel | Obermaat | Maat |
Sleeve [9] | ||||
English designation | Chief Petty Officer 1st Class (with additional stripe around the sleeve) | Chief Petty Officer | Petty Officer 1st Class (Chief Mate) | Petty Officer (Mate) |
Seamen | |||
---|---|---|---|
Title | Obermatrose | Einjährig-Freiwilliger | Matrose |
Sleeve [9] | |||
English designation | Seaman 1st Class | Seaman Volunteer (i.e.: Reserve Officer Candidate) | Seaman |
Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corresponds to commanding a section or squad of soldiers.
Leutnant is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the military of Switzerland.
Schutztruppe was the official name of the colonial troops in the African territories of the German colonial empire from the late 19th century to 1918. Similar to other colonial armies, the Schutztruppen consisted of volunteer European commissioned and non-commissioned officers, medical and veterinary officers. Most enlisted ranks were recruited from indigenous communities within the German colonies or from elsewhere in Africa.
"Other ranks" is the term used to refer to all ranks below officers in the British Army and the Royal Marines. It includes warrant officers, non-commissioned officers ("NCOs") and ordinary soldiers with the rank of private or regimental equivalent. Officers may, in speaking, distinguish themselves from those "in the ranks".
Gefreiter is a German, Swiss and Austrian military rank that has existed since the 16th century. It is usually the second rank or grade to which an enlisted soldier, airman or sailor could be promoted.
Feldwebel is a non-commissioned officer (NCO) rank in several countries. The rank originated in Germany, and is also used in Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, and Estonia. The rank has also been used in Russia, Austria-Hungary, occupied Serbia and Bulgaria.
Unterfeldwebel was a rank of the Wehrmacht, from 1935 until 1945. It was also used in the East German National People's Army from 1956 to 1990. The equivalent to Unterfeldwebel in the Bundeswehr of West Germany and later the Federal Republic of Germany is the rank Stabsunteroffizier (OR-5).
Unteroffizier is a junior non-commissioned officer rank used by the Bundeswehr. It is also the collective name for all non-commissioned officers in Austria and Germany. It was formerly a rank in the Imperial Russian Army.
Wachtmeister is a military rank of non-commissioned officers (NCO) in Austria and Switzerland. It is also used in civil authorities in German-speaking countries. The Wachtmeister was initially responsible for the guard duty of the army. Later, it became the Feldwebel equivalent NCO-grade of the cavalry and artillery. Besides Austria and Switzerland today, the rank was also used elsewhere, for example in Germany, Russia, and Poland (wachmistrz).
Before Unification as the Canadian Armed Forces in 1968, the Canadian military had three distinct services: the Royal Canadian Navy, the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the Canadian Army. All three services had a Regular (full-time) component and a reserve (part-time) component. The rank structure for these services were based on the services of the British military, the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, and the British Army. The change to a "Canadian" rank structure meant that many of the traditional (British) rank titles and insignia were removed or changed.
Unteroffizier(e) mit Portepee, also Portepeeunteroffizier(e) (transl. Non-commissioned officer(s) with sword knot), is the designation for German senior non-commissioned officers in the armed forces of Germany. The title derives from the French porte-épée ("sword bearer"), as senior enlisted men would historically carry a sword into battle.
In the German Wehrmacht, Hauptfeldwebel was not a rank but a position title, assignment or appointment, equivalent to the Commonwealth company sergeant major or U.S. company-level first sergeant. There was one such non-commissioned officer (NCO) in every infantry company, artillery battery, cavalry squadron, etc. He was the senior NCO of his subunit, but his duties were largely administrative and he was not expected to accompany his unit into an assault or a firefight.
Korporal is the German and Danish spelling of the English corporal. Korporal is used in a number of armed forces as the lowest rank of the non-commissioned officers group. However, in the German Bundeswehr, it is considered a high enlisted personnel rank. In Switzerland the rank is used in the Fire Department as well.
The rank insignia of the federal armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany indicate rank and branch of service in the German Army, German Air Force, or the German Navy.
The ranks of the German Armed Forces,, were set up by the President with the Anordnung des Bundespräsidenten über die Dienstgradbezeichnungen und die Uniform der Soldaten on the basis of section 4, paragraph 3 of the Soldatengesetz. The Bundesbesoldungsordnung regulates the salary scales of all Federal office holders and employees including soldiers. The 'ZdV-64/10 – Abkürzungen in der Bundeswehr' gives the abbreviations and a list of the abbreviations.
A one-year volunteer, short EF, was, in a number of national armed forces, a conscript who agreed to pay his own costs for the procurement of equipment, food and clothing, in return for spending a shorter-than-usual term on active military service and the opportunity for promotion to Reserve Officers.
This article deals with the rank insignia of the Austro-Hungarian Army, as worn by the Austro-Hungarian Army after the reorganisation in 1867 until 1918.
Stabsgefreiter is the second highest rank of enlisted men in the German Bundeswehr, which might be comparable to Corporal (OR-4) in Anglophone armed forces.
Feuerwerker are specialists in the armed forces of German-speaking countries responsible for the maintenance of ammunition.
The military ranks and insignia of Chile are the military insignia used by the Chilean Armed Forces.