WWII GERMAN ARMY OFFICER'S HAT - SIGNALS
The German Army during WWII was made part of the Wehrmacht in May 1935 with the passing of the
"Law for the Reconstruction of the National Defence Forces". The Wehrmacht included not just the
Army and Navy but also a third branch known as the Luftwaffe. Initially, the Army was expanded to
21 divisional-sized units and smaller formations. Between 1935 and 1945 this force grew to consist
of hundreds of divisions and thousands of smaller supporting units. Between 1939 and 1945 close
to 16 million served in the Army. Over 3 million were killed and over 4.1 million were wounded. Of
the 7,361 men awarded the initial grade of the highest German combat honour of World War II, the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, 4,777 were from the Army, making up 65% of the total awarded.
The Allies dissolved the German Army on 20 August 1946.
The Army had a need to keep all of its troops under close contact. Hence the development of the
"signals" group. Its job included the development and maintenance of all communications. Whether
telegraph, telephone or radio.
The hat featured here is a German WWII Army Signal Officer hat.
This hat would have been worn with a uniform similar to the ones shown in the
German uniforms
section.
Of high quality construction. The main body is made of a green
rayon-wool
type material. The
center has a dark green felt band. Yellow piping is applied to the top and two more strips are
placed in the center. The top front has the distinctive German "peak" construction.
A metal army eagle is secured to the upper portion of the hat via the use of two metal prongs.
Just below that a metal cockade is placed. the center is a separate metal button with a black
corrugated base and a red dot.
A decorative two section, silver cord is placed below the cockade. The cord is secured to the
hat via the use of two buttons, one per side. A black leather visor finishes the hat. Both,
the eagle and cockade, are secured to the hat via the use of metal prongs.
This page is a recognition and identification guide for WWII German hats. Multiple
detailed photos of a specific sample are provided. Descriptions point out clearly defined points
that should be noted.
One of the most commonly asked questions is "How much is my WWII German hat worth?". A price
guide is included here to address this question. The value of the hats is reviewed
over a period of several years. A trend can be observed. The present worth of the German
headgear in the collector's market is illustrated.
This service is provided free of charge to the visitor/enthusiast courtesy of
MilitaryItems.com,
a company dedicated to the preservation of military history and to providing quality military
antiques and collectibles to museums, institutions and the general public.
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The inside of the visor is of light brown color. Almost a beige. Like many other hats of
the time
it has a checkered pattern. When handling these type of hats make sure not to grab from the
bill because it places alot of pressure on the stiching and can cause it to come apart.
A brown sweatband is sewn to the inside of the hat.
The crown section has a clear plastic diamond insert. The name of the
manufacturer has been
silk screened on the clear plastic diamond piece sewn in. No
RZM paper tag is found.
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WE BUY German Hats and Eagles - All types of German headgear and accessories. Whether it is for military use or a civilian
application.
The process gets started by you sending us an
Email .
We will respond to your inquiry normally within 24 hours and in many cases much faster.
We can tell you what you have, what it is worth and how much we can pay you.
One item or an entire collection -
Email Us .
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This hat is currently being reproduced.
It is becoming more difficult to be able to tell the fake ones from the real ones because the quality
of the reproductions is improving. The collector must become familiarized with the construction style
and materials employed in the manufacturing of this hat. Attention to the details is critical in
order to be able to determine the authenticity of the headgear.
If you have an interest is seeing other headgear of the Third Reich, you can do so by going
to our WWII German Headgear
identification guide. Where we cover Heer (Army), Navy (Kriegsmarine),
Air Force (Luftwaffe), political and other organizations.
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