Reichswehr
The Reichswehr (Imperial Defence or German Army) also known as The Weimar German Army or the Weimar Republic Army was the name of the German military from 1919 to 1935 it served the Weimar Era (1919-1933) and The Nazi Era (1933-1945) which replaced the old Imperial German Army. During these years, their number was severely restricted by the Treaty of Versailles. From 1935 to 1946 they were renamed and called the Wehrmacht, and since 1946 they have been called Bundeswehr. The German Reichswehr Military consisted of 2 and later 3 military branches the Reichsheer (German Army) and the Reichsmarine (German Navy) from 1921-1935. The German Freikorps paramilitary militia was not originally part of the military or the army but became part of the military from 1921-1935 .
| Reichswehr Reichswehr | |
|---|---|
| Established | 1919/1921 |
| Disbanded | 1945 (as the Wehrmacht) |
| Parts | Reichsheer (German Army)
Freikorps (Free corps) Reichsmarine (German Navy) |
| Headquarters | Berlin,Prussia,Germany |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief | Friedrich Ebert,Paul Von Hindenburg,
Adolf Hitler |
| Minister of Defense | Various |
| Chief of staff | Various |
| See also | |
| History | German Revolution of 1918-1919
Polish-Soviet War of the Russian Civil War (1918/19-1921) Beer Hall Putsch (1923) Interwar Period (1919-1939) |
| Ranks | Various Military Officer ranks |
The Reichswehr fought to stop the German Communists led by Rosa Luxemburg in the German Communist Revolution of 1918-1919 including defending East Prussia during the Polish-Soviet War which was the western front of the Russian Civil War in Eastern Europe from (1918/1919-1921) to stop Leon Trotsky’s Red Army. They also fought against the Beer Hall Putsch of 1923 to stop the NSDAP’s SA led by Adolf Hitler, Ernst Röhm, and Hermann Göring. During the Interwar period the Reichswehr came under control of the Third Reich in 1933 and was renamed as the Wehrmacht in 1935 after the Night of the Long Knives purge in 1934 against Ernst Röhm and the Sturmabteilung in Germany.
Reichswehr Media
Structure of the Reichswehr, 1920–1934
Gustav Noske (right) with Walther von Lüttwitz (1920)
- For documentary purposes the German Federal Archive often retained the original image captions, which may be erroneous, biased, obsolete or politically extreme.
General Otto von Lossow, commander of Reichswehr troops in Bavaria during Hitler's Beer Hall Putsch
Wilhelm Heye, the third chief of the German High Command
Kurt von Schleicher. After Seeckt's resignation, Schleicher made the Reichswehr increasingly political.
War ensign of the Reichswehr (1933–1935) and in the early Wehrmacht period (1935 – before the swastika was adopted as the national flag of Nazi Germany). It differs from the previously used version in removing the upper left corner in the national colours of the Weimar Republic (black, red and gold).
Reichsheer soldiers swearing the Hitler oath in August 1934, with hands raised in the traditional schwurhand gesture
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