Wehrmacht

The Wehrmacht (literally defence force or means/power of resistance) was the name of the armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. (In Nazi Germany the term "Wehrmacht" was not only used for the German military forces. The military forces of other nations were also addressed as "Wehrmacht". For instance "Englische Wehrmacht" meant all English forces.) In 1935, with the re-institution of conscription in Germany, the "Wehrmacht" became the official term for the German armed forces, previously known as the Reichswehr and today called the Bundeswehr. The Wehrmacht was organised into:\n* Heer (army);\n* Kriegsmarine (navy);\n* Luftwaffe (air force). The Commander-in-Chief was the German Chancellor (a position Adolf Hitler had gained 1933). In 1938, after the Blomberg-Fritsch-Krise the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) under Wilhelm Keitel was formed, intended to serve as military staff for the Chancellor who. Any soldier in the Wehrmacht had to swear "unconditional loyalty" to the "Führer und Reichskanzler" Adolf Hitler.

• Wehrmacht -- Armed Forces\n* Heer -- Army\n* Luftwaffe -- Airforce\n* Kriegsmarine -- Navy
• Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) -- Armed Forces High Command\n* Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) -- Army High Command\n* Oberkommando der Marine (OKM) -- Navy High Command\n* Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (OKL) -- Airforce High Command
• Abwehr -- Military Intelligence\n* Oberbefehlshaber West (Commander of the German forces in the West, i.e. France)

The different branches of the Wehrmacht had different command organisations: OKH for the army, OKM for the Navy and OKL for the Air Force. Its actions were presented with a lot of beautiful photos in the magazine "Signal".

See also

\n*Waffen-SS\n*History of Germany\n*Third Reich\n*World War II \n\n\n\n Category:Military of Germany\nCategory:Nazi Germany\nCategory:Holocaust