The German Army employed a series of branch
colours to differentiate between soldiers in different trades and units. A detailed
discussion of this can be found elsewhere on this site. In general, soldiers in any given
battalion or regiment sized unit all wore the same colour. Before the expansion to
divisional status, then, all soldiers of GD, be they pioneers, infantrymen, signallers,
medics, etc. would have worn the white waffenfarbe of the infantry. These colours were
used for the piping on shoulder boards (as well as the monogram on the shoulder strap, if
in thread rather than metal) as well as piping on dress caps, dress trousers, etc.
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Line infantry regiments were differentiated by the use of a number on the shoulder strap,
in either waffenfarbe coloured embroidery, or in the form of a metal cypher in either
yellow or white metal. Grossdeutschland chose to use an intertwined "GD"
device as its insignia. For private soldiers and junior non-commissoned officers,
the "GD" device was embroidered, senior NCOs wore white metal, and officers wore
gold or yellow metal devices. Actual examples of wartime shoulder straps are shown
below.
After expansion to divisional status, all
battalion and regimental sized units coming under Divisional headquarters wore their own
branch colour, examples of shoulder straps worn are shown below. The only exception to
standard German practice was the piping worn by the Grenadier and Füsilier Regiments -
they retained the traditional infantry white even after the change in designation and role
to Panzergrenadier/Füsilier, distinguishing between the two by coloured loops on the
shoulder board. Bear in mind that the boards shown below are the early war dark
green style worn on the Feldbluse; field grey straps were more common as the war
progressed, and some enlisted rank soldiers would have worn the black AFV uniform, with
shoulder straps in matchng black wool. The dark green are shown throughout below for
convenience and consistency.
Michael Pruett, author of FIELD UNIFORMS OF GERMAN ARMY
PANZER FORCES IN WORLD WAR TWO and co-author of FIELD UNIFORMS OF GERMANY'S PANZER ELITE
passed on the following information regarding the uniforms of the Reconnaissance troops in
the Motorized Infantry Division GD and later Panzergrenadierdivision (based on interviews
with Knight's Cross bearer and divisional historian Helmuth Spaeter (2./Pz AA GD) and
other unit veterans:
The 2. through the 5. Kompanien of Kradschützen-Batl. Grossdeutschland wore meadow green
waffenfarbe from 1942 to 1943. The 1. (Panzerspähkompanie) wore golden yellow. In 1943
the Batl. was reformed/renamed as Panzeraufklärungs Abteilung "GD" and the
entire unit converted to golden yellow waffenfarbe at that time which they wore until the
end of the war. |