Motorized Gendarmerie u. Feldgendarmerie Tunic

[SARGE]

Gents,

 

I thought I would show a tunic that I picked up at the Wichita Militaria Show this weekend. This is a Police Motorized Gendarmerie Officer tunic for a Hauptmann d. Gendarmerie (Captain). Notice that this is the standard style of Police Officer tunic cut in the M1936 manner rendered in police-green lightweight wool cloth. This tunic was tailor made and is named and dated 1938.  It is made in the typical Police style with light brown collar and cuffs.  The officer quality bullion sleeve eagle is the standard police officer eagle that is tightly tailor sewn to the upper left sleeve with the stitches not penetrating the lining.  The tunic has the standard police style orange backed collar tabs and shoulder boards.  There is an Officer style "Motorisierte Gendarmerie" cuff band tailor sewn above the left cuff whose stitches do not penetrate the lining.  There is also a bullion Heer Officer style breast eagle sewn above the right breast pocket with stitches that do not penetrate the lining.  This would seem to indicate this officer was one of the thousands of Gendarms who were transferred en-mass into service in the Feldgendarmerie in 1938.  These Gendarms entered military service in the Feldgendarmerie dressed in their civil Police uniforms until they could be outfitted in a military uniform.  This uniform also has several tailor sewn loops for a ribbon bar and a single breast badge on the left breast pocket.  Just below the left breast pocket is an indication of a "ghost" for a set of bullion SS runes that have been removed.

 

I was very happy to pick this tunic up from a dealer at the show.

 

[Jack the Collector]

Super uniform Sarge

[Proud Kraut]

Awesome uniform in excellent condition, thanks for sharing your latest find!

[shemp h.]

Wow that's nice 

[SARGE]

Thanks for the kudos gents.  

 

The WH Feldendarmerie went to war often dressed in their regular M1936 police green uniforms with a "Deutsche Wehrmacht" armband or cuff title to indicate their combatant status. This is clearly shown in period photographs and film of Gendarms handling prisoners, etc. in the French campaign. While I was re-reading a reference book the other night I came upon some interesting Gendarmerie manpower figures that I had forgotten. According to Edward Westermann, "Hitler's Police Battalions" p.82 he mentions the wholesale transfer of 13,604 police personnel into the Wehrmacht in September 1939. He also mentions, "The Gendarmerie was hardest hit, losing 8,451, over one-third of its members, to the German Military Police (Feldgendarmerie)." So, in addition to the various active duty Gendarmerie units serving in prisoner contol, pacification, and rural occupation duties one-third of Gendarmerie personnel also served as the Military Field Police (Feldgendarmerie).

There also exist known examples of the standard Gendamerie uniform that were worn by Feldgendarmerie personnel as well as Heer style police green Waffenrock made for FG personnel early on. I have seen several such examples of Gendarmerie style uniforms with Heer insignia like this. So, I think the police green cloth was largely fazed out for the Feldgendarmerie troops in favor of field-grey after awhile. The fact that this is a standard issue police uniform would indicate this is true.  Here is a photo of a Gendarm engaged in French prisoner control wearing his police issue uniform with an armband to indicate his combatant status.  A picture is worth a thousand words.

 

 

 

 

[Skysoldier80]

That is a great uniform

[SARGE]

I was able to track down the owner of this uniform with a bit of help from my friends with books.  He had an interesting career in that he was an Officer (Leutnant) in the Feldjaegerkorps (FJK) police unit in 1935.  This was a party police unit fielded mostly by SA men.  When it was absorbed by the nationalized Schutzpolizei (SCHUPO) our man melded into the Gendarmerie and was a Hauptmann d. Gendarmerie when he wore this Motorized Gendarmerie tunic.  By this time (1938) he had joined the SS and held SS rank as well.  By 1942 he was promoted to Major of Police (Major d. SchP. im Gend.-Dienst) and his SS rank was SS-Sturmbannfuhrer.  He is listed as an SS-Obersturmbannfuhrer in the last 1944 rank listing (SS DAL).

 

It is always nice to be able to identify the fellow who wore your newly acquired uniform.  Also, upon close inspection I can see where his bullion SS membership runes badge was sewn to his uniform just below his left pocket.  He may have removed them himself to place them, along with his ribbon bar and breast badge, on his new Major's tunic or they may have fallen prey to the dreaded "patch pirates" who remove patches to sell to collectors separately.