This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (March 2011)

Armed Forces of Germany
Wehrmacht

The straight-armed Balkenkreuz, a stylized version of the Iron Cross, the emblem of the Wehrmacht.
Active1935?1945
Country Nazi Germany
AllegianceNazi Germany
BranchHeer
Kriegsmarine
Luftwaffe
RoleArmed forces of Nazi Germany
Size20,700,000 (total who served at any time)

2,200,000 (1945)
Garrison/HQZossen
PatronAdolf Hitler
ColorsFeldgrau
EngagementsSpanish Civil War
World War II
Commanders
Ceremonial chiefAdolf Hitler
Notable
commandersAdolf Hitler
Hermann Goring
Wilhelm Keitel
Erich Raeder
Karl Donitz
Robert Ritter von Greim
Insignia
Identification
symbolBalkenkreuz
Identification
symbolSwastika

The Wehrmacht (German pronunciation: [?ve???maxt] ( listen) (Defence Force)?from German: wehren, to defend and Macht, power, force, cognate to English might) was the unified armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer (army), the Kriegsmarine (navy) and the Luftwaffe (air force).
Contents

1 Origin and use of the term

2 Ranks in the Wehrmacht

2.1 Reichsmarschall

2.2 Generalfeldmarschall

2.3 Generaloberst

2.4 General

2.5 Generalleutnant

2.6 Generalmajor


3 Waffen-SS and Wehrmacht

4 History

4.1 Adolf Hitler and reinstatement of conscription


5 Numbers

6 Command structure

7 War years

7.1 Army

7.2 Air-Force

7.3 Air-Force units in a ground role

7.4 Navy

7.5 Theaters and campaigns

7.5.1 Eastern theatre

7.5.2 Western theatre


7.6 Casualties

7.7 War-crimes

7.8 Resistance to the Nazi regime


8 Prominent members

9 After World War II

10 Gallery

11 See also

12 Notes

13 References

14 External links


Origin and use of the term

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2013)

The term Wehrmacht generically describes a nation's Armed Forces, thus, Britische Wehrmacht denotes “British Armed Forces.” The term Wehrmacht is in Article 47 of the 1919 Weimar Constitution, establishing that: Der Reichsprasident hat den Oberbefehl uber die gesamte Wehrmacht des Reiches (“The Reich's President holds supreme command of all armed forces of the Reich”). From 1919, Germany’s national defence force was known as the Reichswehr, which name was dropped in favor of Wehrmacht on 16 March 1935. The name Wehrmacht even in Germany is generally considered a proper noun of the 1935-45 armed forces, being replaced by Streitkrafte in its original meaning; however, this was not so even some decades after 1945. In English writing Wehrmacht is often used to refer specifically to the land forces (army); the correct German for this is Heer.

During World War II, the German rank of general saw its widest usage. Due to the massive expansion of the German armed forces (Wehrmacht), a new “wave” of generals were promoted in the 1930s that would lead Germany into war.
Ranks in the Wehrmacht
Reichsmarschall

The post of the Reichsmarschall was the highest military ranking that a German could reach. The post was held solely by Hermann Goring, the most powerful Nazi leader in Germany apart from Hitler. Goring also happened to serve as the head of the Luftwaffe and was responsible for handling Germany's war economy.
Generalfeldmarschall

In 1936, Hitler revived the rank of field marshal (pic. 1 and 2), originally only for the Minister of War and Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht.
Generaloberst

The rank of Generaloberst (pic. 3), usually translated as "colonel general", but perhaps better as "senior general" was equivalent to a four-star rank.