Military history, weapons, old and military maps. Why was the uniform of the Red Army better than the uniforms of German soldiers? Ways to use a German cape tent

The cloak-tent model 31 (Zeltbahn 31) was originally known as the type
"Warei" and replaced the previous model - a square raincoat of the 11th model in gray. The new raincoat had a triangular shape, was made of
tightly woven gabardine, and thanks to this it was waterproof. There were three
ways to wear a cape as a raincoat: an option for an infantryman, a rider and a cyclist.

Initially, the raincoat of the 31st model was painted in feldgrau (field gray), but by 1939, raincoats with "comminuted" camouflage were used in most military units. One side of the raincoat was covered with dark camouflage (dunklerer Buntfarbenaufdruck), the other side with light camouflage (hellerer Buntfarbenaufdruck). By the end of the war, raincoats appeared with dark camouflage on both sides. V North Africa mainly used the continental version of the cape, there was also a special tropical version, which was painted on both sides in greenish-yellow or light beige, but it was produced in limited quantities.

Two sides of the raincoat of the new sample were 203 cm long, and the third side was 240 or 250 cm. There were 12 buttons and loops along the short sides. Along the broad
On the sides there were six holes with a steel edging through which a tension rope passed, and six buttons were sewn over the holes. Buttons and loops on the short sides served to connect several raincoats into one large tent, and the size of the tent depended on the number of combined panels.
When a raincoat was used as a cape, the holes and buttons in
the base of the cloth made it possible to fasten the raincoat around the legs of a soldier. In the center of the cloth there was a slot for the head, closed by two overlapping
valves. At first, a fastened hood was issued with a raincoat, but soon
it has been discontinued. There was a large hole in each corner of the cloth,
edged with metal, with the help of these holes the tent was fixed with pegs or
passed a rope through them - depending on the type of
tents.

One or two raincoats could serve as a simple blanket,
four panels, connected together, made it possible to put a pyramidal standard quadruple tent. In addition, in a special illustrated
The manual for the use of the 31-year-old raincoat tent contained standard designs for eight- and sixteen-person tents. The standard set for setting up a tent (Zeltausrustung) included: a black two-meter rope (Zeltleine), a collapsible wooden pole (Zeltstock) with metal tips (consisting of four parts connected to each other, each part 37 cm long), and two pegs (Zeltpflocke). To wear these items
a special bag (Zeltzubehortasche) was intended. The bag was sewn from
gabardine or canvas "comminuted" camouflage, field gray (feldgrau), gray, olive green, greenish yellow (tropical variant), brown or
beige flowers. From above, the bag was closed with a valve, which was fastened with one or two buttons. Initially, the bag had two leather straps, with which the bag was attached to other items of equipment, and then the straps gave way to leather loops. Tent pegs could have a different shape, light metal alloys, steel or impregnated wood were used for their manufacture. In the upper part of each peg there was a hole through which, if necessary, a rope was threaded to facilitate the removal of the peg from the ground.
A raincoat-tent could be worn by attaching with the help of an additional belt to the waist
a belt, harness, to a knapsack or a combat backpack in the form of a roll (with or without a blanket). Due to an acute shortage of materials, in 1944 raincoats were issued only to selected field units. Other raincoats were used in limited numbers, including captured camouflage Italian models of 1929 and square dirty-olive Soviet ones.

In addition to its main functions as a raincoat and tent cloth, the sample of 31 years old could also be used in a number of other cases: as an individual camouflage
cape for military personnel and military equipment; as a blanket or
pillows; as a floating craft to overcome water obstacles (one or two rolled raincoats stuffed with branches or hay); as a handy tool for
carrying the wounded or ammunition in combat conditions; for carrying garbage during construction work; as a simple field table.
In addition to the above-described cape of the 31st model, a number of others were used in the German army. army tents various designs, including special staff and medical tents.

Wehrmacht camouflage colors

SS camo colors

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In the Second World War, many items of equipment were used that were developed back in the late 19th and early 20th centuries: some were radically improved, others with minimal technological changes.

The Reichswehr of the Weimar Republic inherited the ammunition of the Kaiser's army. True, they began to make it from better materials, improved, modernized, customized to the standard. With the beginning of the second world! already outdated equipment was supplied by militia and rear units, and with the transfer of hostilities to German territory, Volkssturm formations.

Ammunition was produced by state-owned enterprises in the system of the General Directorate for Uniforms and Equipment of the Wehrmacht, as well as various private companies. Outwardly, the products of the latter sometimes differed from the standard state-owned ones - for example, the best finish, the quality of the seams, and well. of course, labelling. Some items were issued centrally, others, mostly for officers, were acquired privately. With monetary compensation costs.

Field equipment was distinguished by the rationality of the design, strength with a relatively low weight, and ease of use. By the end of the war, the quality of the materials used deteriorated: various ersatz, low-grade raw materials were used. Leather was replaced with tarpaulin and plastic; tarpaulin in turn canvas, etc. At the end of 1944, an attempt was made to completely standardize equipment in terms of materials and colors, to introduce a single one - of the general army type. But six months later, the question fell away - along with the fall of the Reich.

By the beginning of the march to the east, a significant part of the metal and parts - bowlers, shovels. cases of gas masks - began to be painted not in dark gray, as before, but in olive green. Since 1943, dark yellow has become the predominant color for all military equipment - as a natural basis for applying darker camouflage, ocher coloring was carried out directly at the manufacturer's factory.

Along with the marked colors in the ground forces, a bluish-gray, widely used in the Luftwaffe, was also used to paint some details.

Many elements of the equipment were covered with leather, both black and all shades of brown - up to natural. Black and dark brown tones were used in soldier and special equipment, light brown in officer's. Leather of different colors in one item was usually not used.

Tarpaulin belts and bands are also characteristic of pre-war ammunition, but they have become especially widespread since 1943. Sometimes the tarpaulin was replaced by cotton fabric folded in several layers and stitched. Such products were painted in the color of field gray, gray, green, brown, beige. Metal fittings: buckles, staples, washers, rings and half rings - had a natural metal tone or were covered with field gray or another shade of gray. An attempt to introduce a single dark gray color for all military branches was not entirely successful.

This stamp, embossed on the skin, along with information about the manufacturer, also indicated the place and year of issue. Manufacturer's stamp on the bowler. Under the abbreviated name of the company, the last two digits (41) indicate the year of manufacture. The stamp of acceptance of the military department on a camp flask.
Infantry shooter. He carries two ammo pouches for a 98k carbine.	Reserve captain with brown waist belt.	Company commander of an infantry regiment in field uniforms. He carried 2 bags with magazines for the MP machine gun. binoculars, wiauuiuem and holster.
Shooter of an infantry regiment in 1940 with typical weapons and equipment.	Different types of machines for a combat backpack, "trapezium" and bags for combat display.	Sergeant Major of the 91st Mountain Rangers Regiment, Hungary 1944
Usually the pouches for the MP-38 and MP-40 submachine guns were carried in pairs. Each pouch had 3 slots, and each pouch was placed both on them and on 32 rounds of 9 mm caliber. The pictures show pouches made of brown canvas, a small pocket is visible on the side. Here lay a device for loading the store. On the reverse side the pouch shows knee straps for attaching to the waist belt.

Officer equipment

Genuine leather of various shades of brown: light, orange, reddish, was worn on a wide waist belt with a double-pronged frame buckle and an adjustable shoulder harness. The instruction that followed in July 1943 to blacken items of equipment for camouflage was not always carried out: as already noted. the brown belt was revered as a symbol of officer dignity.

The belt of the 1934 model was worn not only by military officers, but also by military officials of an equal rank, doctors, veterinarians, bandmasters, and senior fenrichs. The frame of the buckle was made of aluminum alloy with a grained surface of matte silver or gray, the general's was covered with matte gold. A two-piece shoulder strap with a movable buckle was equipped with two flat carabiner hooks for fastening to the semi-rings of the couplings.

A pistol holster was hung from the belt. and at the front, a field bag - a service tablet of the 1935 model, or one of its many commercial versions purchased by officers at their own expense, or - at the end of the war - a simplified one made of artificial leather "press-stoff". If necessary, a bayonet in an officer's brown blade, a saber, and a dagger were hung on the belt.

From the end of September 1939, senior officers of the active army were forbidden to wear a shoulder belt, and soon this ban extended to all officers of combat units. Instead, they were allowed to use in combat conditions: lieutenants - a soldier's belt with a badge and shoulder straps with auxiliary straps: captains and above - cavalry-type belts, with narrow straight shoulders. (Later, in 1940, the relevant standards changed somewhat, but on the Eastern Front, officers wore belts with a frame buckle, sometimes with a shoulder belt.) And in November 1939, officers of the army in the field were ordered to wear soldier's belts in combat conditions: a black belt - up to and including the regiment commander: supporting shoulder straps (both infantry and cavalry models) - regardless of rank. But the officers preferred their own, "primordial" - brown equipment.

Cloak-tent arr. 1931 with camouflage. One side of the raincoat was covered with dark "fragmentation" camouflage, and the other side was covered with light. It is clearly visible in the picture. Three short tension cables were secured with pegs.	Reich, 1935. Artillerymen wear straps for cartridge bags. After the introduction in 1941 of a harness with additional belts, in the future, only officers had it.	In front of the camouflage tent is a soldier of the sanitary service. Medical personnel often wore very conspicuous insignia (a red cross in a deed circle) to carry out their tasks on the milking floor. He usually had a metal box with medicines for first aid. Helmets with red crosses ceased to be used in the second half of the war.

Pistol holsters

The German army was saturated with pistols like no other. The pistol was not only the personal weapon of each officer, but also an additional one for the machine gunner, squad leader, tanker, paratrooper. sapper, motorcyclist, military policeman, as well as soldiers and non-commissioned officers of many other specialties.

The officer holsters had smooth leather, about the same color as the waist belt; for soldiers, non-commissioned officers and all SS - black. And at the end of the war, various ersatz were used on those, others and thirds. The most widespread - respectively pistols - were holsters for P-08 Luger, better known as Parabellum, iodine Walter P-38 of two types, and for 7.65 caliber pistols - for "long Browning" 1910/22. Walter PP and PPK. Mauser and some others. Many holsters for small pistols were suitable for several systems.

Holsters iodine 9-mm "Parabellum" and Walter were similar - wedge-shaped. with a deep hinged lid of a complex rounded shape, with a pocket for a spare clip on the front edge of the case. The first, under R-08, was fastened with an oblique strap with a buckle; the second, under R-38. had a deeper lid and a vertical fastening strap, either locked with a button or passed through a bracket in the slot of a metal plate on the valve (there were other options for attaching it). Inside the lid there was a nest with a lid for wiping, and an exhaust strap was passed through the slot in the case. Two loops for a waist belt were sewn on the back. There was also a swing version of the holster for Walter - with a side pocket for a spare magazine. The lid in the form of a flat valve with rounded corners was fastened with a strap to a peg button on a triangular valve that closed the trigger guard.

The Model 1922 Browning holster had resilient straps riveted to the flat flap of the lid; a wide sleeve for a waist belt slid over them. A hinged strap was fastened to the peg of the lid, attached to the body by a quadrangular ring; in the nose of the holster there was a small grommet for a retaining cord. The pocket for the clip was located on the front on the rib, as on the P-08 holster.

Large holsters were worn, as a rule, on the left - it was more convenient to pull out a long pistol. Small ones - which were mostly used by senior officers and generals, as well as rear ranks - could also be worn on the right. A wooden holster-butt for the K-96 Mauser with leather fastened pockets and straps was worn on the shoulder with a suspension or behind a belt, like similar holsters for Browning 07 and UP. to the long Luger.

The Wehrmacht used various types of pistols, including examples of captured weapons. Officers had to carry pistols and more often chose the 7.65mm caliber, such as the Walter pistol (pictured #1), which was carried in a brown leather holster. The holster for other pistols P 38 (No. 2) and P 08 (No. Z), both caliber 9 mm, was sewn from black leather. All three holsters had a pocket for a spare clip.		The sample plate of 1935 could be made of brown or black gauge. It had two knee loops for attaching to the waist belt and the doll was worn on the left according to the charter. On the front, it had slots for pencils, rulers, and an eraser. There were two compartments inside the bag, in which the cards were stored in a protective case.

Tablets, bags, binoculars, flashlights

An officer's field tablet, or bag for maps, of the 1935 model was made of smooth or grained leather: brown in different shades - for the army, black - for the SS troops. It was also used by senior non-commissioned officers. During the war, the color changed to gray, and natural leather to artificial.

Inside the tablet there were partitions, transparent celluloid plates for cards. On the front wall of the case were leather pockets for pencils - usually along the pocket for the coordinate ruler - and nests for other tools. There were different options for their placement: along with standard state-owned ones, commercial products were used.

The valve could cover the whole tablet, half or only its upper third, fastening either on a leather tongue with a buckle, or on a bracket passing through the slots in the plates riveted to the valve - the lid tongue was passed through it. Domestic field bags were closed in a similar way. They wore German tablets or hung them by loops on a waist belt, or on an overstretched strap with an adjustment buckle.

Almost all binoculars were equipped with a neck strap with a fastened leather or plastic cap to protect the eyepieces and a leather loop attached to the body frame for fastening to the jacket button. State-owned binoculars were covered with black ersatz leather and painted in field gray or dark yellow; frequent firms used natural leather and black lacquer for these purposes. Cases were made of natural or artificial leather - black or brown, as well as plastics such as Bakelite; half rings were attached to the sidewalls for fastening a belt, on the back wall - leather loops for a belt. The clasp of the lid was elastic. with an eye on the tongue and a peg on the body of the case; there were also spring ones, as on cases of gas masks. The place of the binocular case was determined by the presence of other equipment.

There were many samples of service flashlights with colored signal or camouflage filters. The rectangular case, metal or plastic, was painted black, field gray. dark yellow, and whitened in winter. A leather loop was attached to the back of it for fastening to a button of clothing or other similar devices.

The bag of a hauptfeldwebel - a company foreman, in which he kept report forms, lists of personnel, writing materials. - did not have fasteners and, according to tradition, was worn overboard with a tunic or jacket.

Infantry equipment

The standard equipment of an infantryman was the base for many other branches of the military. Its basis was a waist belt - mainly made of thick smooth leather, black, less often brown, about 5 cm wide. A stamped aluminum or steel (and at the end of the war, bakelite) buckle with a grained or smooth surface, silver or painted in silver was worn on the right end. feldgrau, khaki, grey. A round medallion with an imperial eagle surrounded by the motto "God is with us" was stamped in the center. The buckle was adjusted using a tongue sewn to the belt with paired holes, which included the teeth of the inner sleeve. The hook of the left end of the belt was hooked on the buckle loop.

The next important component of the equipment was the Y-shaped support belts - two overstretched and dorsal. Similar ones were used in the first world war, and in 1939 they introduced new ones, with riveted side straps for a satchel of the same year or a combat backrest. The narrowed ends of the shoulders with sewn-on leather stops had a number of holes, which included the teeth of the adjustment buckles: the galvanized buckles ended with wide stamped hooks that clung to the semicircular or quadrangular rings of pouches or movable belt couplings. The length of the side straps with rings was adjusted with cufflinks and slits, as with the back strap, which was hooked from below to the middle of the belt, and for a tall soldier - for the ring of the movable clutch. The backrest was connected to the shoulder straps by a large round ring with a lining leather washer. Back on shoulders. above central ring, large half rings were sewn on for attaching the upper hooks of marching or assault packs, as well as other ammunition.

Simplified canvas equipment of a similar purpose was used in North Africa along with leather equipment, and after the surrender of the Africa Army in May 1943, it began to be produced for continental troops, mainly in the western theater of operations. However, at the end of the war, canvas belts, from greenish-yellow to dark brown, were also found in abundance on the Eastern Front.

Chief sergeant major of the 3rd motorcycle rifle battalion (3rd tank division). Various items of military equipment are visible on the carriage.	Soldiers of the reserve army in most cases carried only one cartridge bag.	On occasion, army units also adopted camouflage patterns like the Luftwaffe or C S troops. In the picture, two officers are wearing the camouflage jackets of a Luftwaffe field division.
Second number (right) with a carbine and a pistol. Behind him are two boxes of ammunition (300 rounds each) for a machine gun and accessories for a Type 36 light grenade launcher.	Hand grenades with handle arr. 24 and packing boxes for their transfer.	Several ammo boxes, a field telephone and a hand-held anti-tank cumulative magnetic mine.

Pouches for clips and magazines for small arms

Three-section cartridge pouches for the Mauser rifle model 1884-98 were used during the First World War. Standardized in 1933 as an all-army. the pouch of the 1911 model differed from the similar one of the 1909 sample ... with a smaller capacity - six clips (30 rounds). In combat units, the arrows wore two pouches - to the left and to the right of the buckle; the troops of the second echelon made do with one, which was located depending on other equipment. The hook of the shoulder strap clung to the ring on the upper part of the back wall of the pouch, the lids were fastened with straps on the pegs on the bottoms of the pockets. There were belt loops on the back.

Soldier. armed with a pistol and machine gun model 1938-40. (usually one per squad of shooters with rifles), kept stores to him in twin triple pouches but on both sides of the belt buckle. They also carried magazines for submachine guns of other systems chambered for a 9-mm cartridge. Each pocket for a 32-pack magazine had a flap with a leather tongue fastened to a peg. The pouch was canvas khaki or beige, before the war there was also a leather pouch - with a pocket for equipment, sewn onto the left pouch in front. On a canvas, a pocket with a flap on a button was sewn on the back side. On the back wall of the pouch there were leather loops sewn at an angle for a waist belt, so the pouches were worn obliquely, with the lids forward. Leather straps with half-rings went perpendicularly from the sides for fastening to yudderlіvakzhtsїm belts.

Soldiers armed with a self-loading rifle of the 1943 model wore four spare magazines on their belts on the left in a two-section pouch, usually canvas, with leather-trimmed edges. On the right was most often an ordinary three-section black leather pouch.

		Machine gunner (1st number). For self-defense, he had, in addition to the MG-34 machine gun, also a pistol, which was located on the waist belt on the left. On the right side, he carried a bag with tools for the MG-34 machine gun.
The MG 34 machine gun was a wide range weapon: it could be used as a light and as a heavy machine gun. Its theoretical rate of fire was 800-900 rounds per minute. Machine gunners wore a tool bag on their waist belt, which housed a cartridge case ejector (1), a sight for firing at aircraft (2), a cartridge case extractor (3), a fragment of a machine-gun belt (4), an oiler (5), an assembly key (6), rags (7) and muzzle pad (8).
In the second half of the war, the MG 42 machine gun appeared, which was also used as a light and heavy machine gun. The new machine gun was lighter, stronger and cheaper to manufacture than the MG 34. Its theoretical rate of fire was 1300-1400 rounds per minute. He gained legendary fame and still remains the best machine gun of this caliber. His modified samples are still used in various armies.

Equipment worn on the belt

The blade for the bayonet of the 1884/98 rifle was made of leather, usually black, with a grained surface. On the tapering glass of the blade there was a slot for a hook holding the scabbard, and at the upper end, forming a loop for the waist belt, there was a swivel with a button for fastening the hilt. A lanyard was tied over the glass (he almost never met on the Eastern Front).

A small infantry shovel - a folding German with a pointed end, a non-folding Austrian with a pentagonal blade, a straight non-folding German, a captured Polish one, or some other one used in the German army - was hung from one or two belt loops on the left thigh from behind - in framed case in black or brown leather, black ersatz pressstoff or canvas webbing. A bayonet was attached to the blade in the blade, the loop of which was located between the loops of the blade cover. The bayonet could be placed in front of the shoulder blade if its cover was with a single loop.

Small infantry shovel - folding German with a pointed end, non-folding Austrian with a pentagonal blade, straight non-folding German, captured Polish, or some other one used in the German army. - hung by one or two belt loops on the left thigh at the back - in a frame case made of black or brown leather, black ersatz "press-stoff" or canvas braid. A bayonet was attached to the blade in the blade, the loop of which was located between the loops of the blade cover. The bayonet could be placed in front of the shoulder blade if its cover was with a single loop.

A characteristic feature of German equipment is a bread bag, or bread bag. With some modifications, it has been used since the last century. A large valve with a semicircular bottom completely closed the bag of the 1931 model, fastening with internal straps with slots for buttons. Outside, it had two leather loops for straps that protected the bag from swinging. In its upper corners, near the loops, leather ears with half rings for a bowler hat, flask and other items were sewn on. The bag, belt loops, strap with a hook between them were canvas or canvas, usually gray or field gray. At the end of the war, brown tones prevailed. khaki, olive. Some bags were additionally equipped with a shoulder strap. A pocket with an external flap for gun accessories was sewn to the products of the latest releases. Bread or crackers (hence its name) were stored in the bag - part of dry rations or NZ ("iron portion"). toiletries, shaving and cutlery, an undershirt, gun accessories, caps, etc. In fact, in the field, with a lightweight layout, it served as a small duffel bag, largely replacing a knapsack. Always worn on the right back.

An aluminum flask of 1931 with a capacity of 800 ml, with a screw cap and an oval cup, was painted gray or black, later olive green. A strap with a buckle, which was included in the brackets on the cup and went around the flask but vertically in front and behind. it was worn in leather loops on a cloth, felzgrau or brown, case, which was fastened on the side with three buttons, and its flat hook-carabiner was fastened to the half-rings of equipment or a bread bag. At the end of the war, steel flasks appeared - enameled or covered with red-brown phenolic rubber, which protected the contents only from frost - in this case, the flask had an additional strap around the circumference. Cone-shaped drinking cups could be steel or black Bakelite; they were also attracted by a strap stretched into brackets. Mountain troops and orderlies used one and a half liter flasks of a similar device. discontinued in 1943

The combined kettle of the 1931 model, copied in many countries, including the USSR, was made of aluminum, and since 1943 - of steel. Until April 1941, 1.7-liter bowlers were painted gray, then they switched to olive green (however, the paint was often peeled off on the field). A fastening strap was passed into the brackets of the folding bowl-lid handle. In the presence of knapsacks of old samples, the bowler hat was worn outside, with later ones - inside them. With a lightweight layout, he either fastened to a bread bag next to a flask, or clung to a back strap or to a webbing combat satchel. NZ was stored inside the cauldron.

Introduced in April 1939, black shoulder straps were intended to support the infantryman's ammunition. The backrest was connected to the shoulder straps with a leather-lined knee. A satchel of the 1939 model was attached to it. In the photo - different angles of the infantryman's harness belts, including Y-shaped belts - two overstretched and back.
	A bowler hat of dark green color from two parts - a cover and the body.
A camping flask equipped with a black lacquered aluminum mug was produced until 1941. It was placed in a felt bag. The picture on the right clearly shows the fastening of the flask with a leather strap and a carabiner to a bread bag. The picture below shows a later edition flask with a small black Bakelite tankard and a canvas strap.	The gas mask equipment for each soldier consisted of a gas mask in a cylindrical test case and a protective cape against liquid poisonous substances. Soldiers. glasses wearers were given special goggles that could be fixed inside a gas mask. 1. Gas mask sample 1930. 2. Special glasses with a flat case, below is the prescription of an ophthalmologist. 3-5. From left to right: gas mask cases, model 1930 (Reichswehr model), model 1936 and 1938

Chemical and protective equipment

The cylindrical gas mask case-canister had a longitudinally corrugated surface and a lid on a hinged loop and a spring latch. To two brackets at the lid, a shoulder strap made of braid leaned, and to the bracket at the bottom - a strap with a hook that clung to a belt or equipment rings.

In the case of the sample of 1930, a gas mask of the sample of the same goal was usually placed with a mask made of rubberized fabric, with a round filter screwed on the stigma and with tightening elastic straps made of rubber-fabric braid. The case for a gas mask of the 1938 model was with a cover of less depth. and the mask is completely rubber.

A box with a degassing agent and napkins was placed in the lid. The factory coloring of gas mask cases is field grau, but they were often repainted on the Eastern Front. and in winter they covered it with whitewash or lime. Cases of the sample 1930 and 1938 were interchangeable.

According to the rules in the infantry, the gas mask was placed with the lid forward over the bread bag, slightly below the waist belt, but also with the lid back - like. for example, machine gunners or those whose special equipment was blocked by a gas mask. A shoulder strap and hook strap kept the case in a nearly horizontal position. Drivers and motorcyclists wore a gas mask on a shortened strap horizontally on the chest, lid to the right; cavalrymen - on the right thigh, passing the strap under the waist belt; in the mountain troops - horizontally, behind the backpack, lid to the right. In transport vehicles, the gas mask case, releasing the strap, was placed on the knee. Well, in combat conditions, it was located as it was more convenient for anyone - both on the left side, and vertically, and on the shoulder strap, and attached to the equipment.

An oilcloth bag for an anti-chemical (“antipritic”) cape was fastened to the strap of the gas mask case or directly to its corrugated canister.

The triangular raincoat of the 1931 model was cut from impregnated cotton gabardine with a three-color "comminuted" camouflage - dark on one side and light on the other (at the end of the war, the pattern was dark on both sides). The slot for the head in the center was blocked by two valves. The tent could be worn like a poncho, and with the flaps buttoned up, it was a kind of cloak. There were ways to wear it for hiking, riding a motorcycle and riding. The tent was used as a bedding or pillow, and two - stuffed with hay and rolled into a bagel - served as a good watercraft. With the help of loops and buttons on the edges, sections of tents could be joined into large panels for group shelters. Eyelets on the corners and on the sides of the middle seam at the base made it possible to stretch the panel with ropes and stakes during installation. A rolled-up tent and a bag with accessories for it were worn, attached either to shoulder straps, or to an assault pack, or at the waist. They attached it to the backpack - or put it inside it. At the end of the war, tents were delivered only to selected field units. Therefore, the German army did not disdain the old square times of Kaiser Wilhelm II and the captured Soviet ones with a hood.

Infantry special equipment

The quadrangular black leather pouch for accessories for the MG-34 and MG-42 machine guns had a flip-up lid with a strap. fastened with a button on the bottom, and on the back wall - fasteners for belts: two loops - for the waist and a four-legged or semicircular ring - for the hook of the shoulder support belt. At the end of the war, pouches began to be made from black or light beige "press stock". An asbestos tack for removing a hot barrel was often placed under the outer strap of the pouch box.

Interchangeable barrels were stored in cases swinging along the length, for 1 or 2 each, which were worn over the right shoulder with a strap and worn behind the back. The commander of the calculation of a heavy machine gun in the same way placed a case with two optical sights. All machine gunners were armed with "Parabellum" (less often - Walter P-38), worn in a black holster on the left side.

Hand grenades were kept in double canvas flat bags with valves and a connecting strap worn around the neck: subsequently they were worn only by the canvas handle. They also placed M-24 grenades with a long wooden handle, for which, however, there were also special bags (for 5 pieces each) made of coarse burlap with a tied neck and two straps: one was thrown over the neck, the other went around the waist. But much more often, these hand grenades were thrust into the belt, over the tops of boots, over the side of the tunic. tied to a trench tool. A special vest for wearing them - with five deep pockets. stitched in front and behind and fastened with straps - it was rarely used at the front.

From November 1939, officers of the active army were required to wear a belt on their field uniform. The waist belt was made of black leather with holes and ended with a buckle with two pins.	Lemon hand grenades sample 1939	Eastern Front, 1941. A messenger on a motorcycle is talking to the commander of a Panzer 1 Ausf.V. The motorcyclist has a gas mask bag in front. This way of wearing around the neck was common for motorcyclists.
Machine gunner (1st number) of the infantry regiment.	Trench tool. A short shovel and a bag for carrying it. The small picture below shows how to wear it.	Different angles of a folding shovel and the way it is worn. When assembled, the shovel bayonet is fixed with a special nut. The bayonet of this shovel can be fixed at a right angle and used as a hoe.

You need two lengths of fabric. Then you can sew two such raincoats.

The Zeltbahn 31 raincoat was a waterproof raincoat made of dense cotton water-repellent fabric and was used everywhere.

Raincoat-tent Zeltbahn 31 had the shape of a triangle 203x203x240 cm, on both sides it had a camouflage coloring of the "broken glass" type, darker on one side and lighter on the other.62 metal buttons were sewn to it, 31 on each side, and it had 30 loops. In the middle, it had a slot with a double valve.

A simplified, modern version of the Zeltbahn 31:

With the help of loops and buttons, it could be fastened in several ways, thereby creating maximum protection in various conditions.

Four tents could be combined into one large four-person tent.

In general, it’s rather strange - our army adopted the German bowler hat (the Red Army entered the war with a soldier’s copper bowler hat from the First World War, which was just a saucepan with a bow). The modern Russian army bowler hat is an exact copy of the German bowler hat (and by the way, the Czech-style bowler hat is more convenient than the German one). But the German flask for water - no. And it is more convenient than ours, because. closed with a mug at the top. No need to have a separate mug. The German flat three-light flashlight under the KSF brand was adopted, but the cape was not adopted.

Army Central Clothing Service all the time he invents some kind of backpacks, suitcases, field portable kitchens for 5-10-20 people (who will wear them and how?). And the soldier, just as he dragged his things in an orphan's cider, drags him around, as he gets wet in an outdated raincoat, and he gets wet.

Zeltbahn and Zeltausrüstung (Tent Quarter and Tent Equipment)

Zeltbahn during the First World War was invented by the Austrians, then the Zeltbahn 31 went into service with the Germans and was preserved by the Swedes as the Zeltbahn M39.

The Pattern '31 Raincoat (Zeltbahn 31) was originally known as the "Warei" type and replaced the former pattern, the square Gray Pattern '11 Raincoat.

The new raincoat had a triangular shape, was made of densely woven gabardine, and due to this it was waterproof.

There were three ways to wear a cape as a raincoat: an option for an infantryman, a rider and a cyclist.

Initially, the 31-year-old raincoat was painted in feldgrau (field gray), but by 1939, raincoats with "comminuted" camouflage were used in most military units.

One side of the raincoat was covered with dark camouflage (dunklerer Buntfarbenaufdruck), the other side with light camouflage (hellerer Buntfarbenaufdruck).

By the end of the war, raincoats appeared with dark camouflage on both sides. In North Africa, the continental version of the cape was mainly used, there was also a special tropical version, which was painted on both sides in greenish-yellow or light beige, but it was produced in limited quantities.

Two sides of the raincoat of the new sample were 203 cm long, and the third side was 240 or 250 cm. There were 12 buttons and loops along the short sides. Along the wide side were six holes with steel edging, through which a tension rope passed, and six buttons were sewn over the holes.

Buttons and loops on the short sides served to connect several raincoats into one large tent, and the size of the tent depended on the number of combined panels.

When the raincoat was used as a cape, the holes and buttons at the base of the cloth made it possible to fasten the raincoat around the soldier's legs. In the center of the cloth there was a slot for the head, closed by two overlapping flaps.

At first, a fastened hood was issued with a cape, but soon it was no longer used.

In each corner of the cloth there was a large hole, edged with metal, with the help of these holes the tent was fixed with pegs or a rope was passed through them, depending on the type of tent being set up.

One or two raincoats could serve as a simple blanket, four panels connected together made it possible to put up a pyramidal standard four-person tent. In addition, a special illustrated manual for the use of the 31-year-old raincoat tent contained standard designs for eight- and sixteen-person tents.

Standard installation kit tents (Zeltausrustung) included:

1. black two-meter rope (Zeltleine)
2. collapsible wooden pole (Zeltstock)
3. with metal tips (consisting of four parts that connect with each other, each part is 37 cm long)
4. two pegs (Zeltpflocke)

A special bag was designed to carry these items. The bag was sewn from gabardine or thin tarpaulin "comminuted" camouflage, field gray (feldgrau), gray, olive green, greenish yellow (tropical version), brown or beige. From above, the bag was closed with a valve, which was fastened with one or two buttons.

Originally on the bagthere were two leather straps with which the bag was attached to other items of equipment, and then the straps gave way to leather loops.

Tent pegs could have a different shape, light metal alloys, steel or impregnated wood were used for their manufacture. In the upper part of each peg there was a hole through which, if necessary, a rope was threaded to facilitate the removal of the peg from the ground.

Raincoat - could be worn by attaching with the help of additional. belts to a waist belt, harness, to a satchel or a combat backpack in the form of a roll (with or without a blanket).

Due to an acute shortage of materials, in 1944 raincoats were issued only to selected field units. Other raincoats were used in limited numbers, including captured camouflage Italian models of 1929 and square dirty-olive Soviet ones.

In addition to its main functions as a raincoat and tent cloth, a sample of 31 years old could be used in a number of other cases:

1. as an individual camouflage cape for military personnel and military equipment; as a blanket or pillow;
2. as a floating craft to overcome water obstacles (one or two rolled raincoats stuffed with branches or hay);
3. in the role of an improvised means for carrying the wounded or ammunition in combat conditions;
4. for carrying garbage time of construction work;
5. as a simple field table.

In addition to the above-described raincoat tent of the 31 model, the German army used a number of other army tents of various designs, including special headquarters and medical tents.

Heinrich Hofmann made zelt of 1941 vintage.

In the form, in addition to the external component, the functional one is also important. A soldier of any country on the battlefield should be comfortable and practical outfit.
According to the art historian M.R. Kirsanova, in the war, by the uniform, they recognize their own and others. S.V. Struchev, a costume designer, supplements this statement with the following: “To make it clear who to shoot. Because the contact between the shooter and the enemy is visual.”

the USSR

The soldiers of the Red Army were well equipped at any time of the year. In the summer, caps and helmets were used. The most common was the SSH-40 helmet. Semyon Budyonny participated in its creation, checking the helmet with checkers and shooting from a revolver. In winter, hats with earflaps were introduced with falling earmuffs, which were well protected from frost. The composition of the lightweight uniform also included cotton tunics with breast welt pockets, harem pants. Soldiers could store things in backpacks or duffel bags. Water was drunk from glass flasks hung in a bag from a belt. Grenades were also worn on the belt - in special bags. In addition, the uniform set included a bag for a gas mask and cartridges. Ordinary Red Army soldiers wore raincoats that could be used as raincoats. In winter, the uniform was supplemented with a sheepskin coat or a padded jacket with a padded jacket, fur mittens, felt boots and padded pants.

The uniform of the Red Army soldiers seemed to be thought out to the smallest detail: in the duffel bag of the 1942 model there was even a compartment for an ax. This is how one of the Red Army soldiers described the state of his clothes in a letter: “My clothes are pretty shabby and have no value for the house.” And so Professor P.M. spoke about the army uniform. Shurygin, a participant in the Battle of Rzhev: “Soon we will get quilted trousers, padded jackets, warm underwear. Boots will be given with snow. The material is solid, so you wonder where so much of this beautiful material comes from. From the memoirs it is clear that the uniform of the Red Army was of high quality and practical. Numerous pockets, bags for ammunition greatly facilitated military life.

Germany

Form German soldiers sewn at the factory of Hugo Boss. It included: a steel helmet with a double-sided cover, an overcoat, a gas mask case, a harness, rifle pouches, a cape, and a bowler hat. Wehrmacht uniforms were complete for European territory. The frosty Eastern Front required a completely different approach. The first winter the soldiers were freezing. We have already prepared for the second: insulated jackets, quilted pants, as well as woolen gloves, sweaters and socks were introduced into the uniform. But that wasn't enough.

Despite the fact that the Soviet uniform was much heavier and easier to manufacture, it was considered more suitable for military operations in winter. Yury Girev, the reenactor of the Eastern Frontier club, comments on the difference in the uniforms of the key powers as follows: “The uniform of the Red Army soldier was much warmer than the uniform of the Germans. On their feet, our soldiers wore cowhide boots. Winding boots were used more often. One of the German representatives of the Wehrmacht wrote in a message to his relatives: “Passing through Gumrak, I saw a crowd of our retreating soldiers, they are weaving in a wide variety of uniforms, wrapping all kinds of clothing around themselves, just to keep warm. Suddenly one soldier falls into the snow, others indifferently pass by.

Britannia

British soldiers wore field uniforms: a collared blouse or woolen shirt, a steel helmet, loose trousers, a gas mask bag, a holster with a long belt, black boots and overcoats. By the beginning of World War II, a new uniform was adopted. The regular units of the British army received it last, because first it was necessary to equip recruits and those whose clothes had already lost their decent look. In the course of the war, minor changes took place: a lining appeared at the collar and other elements of clothing so that coarse twill did not rub, buckles began to be issued with teeth.

It was not uncommon for British soldiers to wear heavy tropal cloaks lined with down. In order not to freeze, they put on knitted balaclavas under their helmets. Russian historian Igor Drogovoz appreciated the British uniform: “The uniform of the soldiers and officers of the British army has become a role model for all the armies of Europe. The entire European military class very soon began to change into khaki jackets, and Soviet soldiers took Berlin in 1945 in boots with windings.

USA

The uniform of American soldiers is objectively considered the most comfortable and thoughtful for the conditions of the Second World War. It was guided even when developing uniforms in the post-war period. The uniform included a woolen shirt, a light field jacket, trousers with linen leggings, low brown boots, a helmet or cap. All these things have replaced the twill jumpsuit. All the clothes of US soldiers were distinguished by their functionality: the jacket was fastened with a zipper and buttons, and was equipped with cut-out pockets on the sides. The best equipment of the Americans was the arctic set, consisting of a warm parka jacket and lace-up boots with fur.

Japan

During the Second World War, the Japanese had a uniform three types. Each of them included a uniform, trousers, an overcoat and a cape. For warm weather, a cotton version was provided, for cold weather - woolen. The outfit also included a helmet, boots or boots. For Japanese soldiers, military operations in winter conditions are operations in northern China, Manchuria and Korea. It was there that the most insulated form was used. Naturally, it was not suitable for a harsh climate, because it was an overcoat with fur cuffs, woolen quilted trousers and underpants. In general, it is difficult to call Japanese uniforms functional. It was suitable only for certain latitudes with a tropical climate.

Italy

Italian soldiers during World War II wore a shirt and tie, a single-breasted tunic with a waist belt, breeches with windings or woolen golf socks, ankle boots. Some soldiers were more comfortable wearing breeches. The uniform was not suitable for winter campaigns. The overcoat was sewn from cheap coarse cloth, which did not warm at all in the cold. The army was not equipped with winter clothing. Insulated options were available only to representatives of the mountain troops. The Italian newspaper Province of Como noted in 1943 that only a tenth of the soldiers during their stay in Russia were provided with a uniform suitable for this. In their memoirs, the fighters wrote that at times the temperature reached minus 42 degrees, so many died from frostbite, and not during military operations. The statistics of the Italian command reports that during the first winter alone, 3,600 soldiers suffered from hypothermia.

France

French soldiers fought in colored uniforms. They were outfitted in single-breasted button-down tunics, double-breasted overcoats with side pocket flaps. The floors of the overcoat could be buttoned back to make it easier to walk. The clothes had belt loops. Foot troops wore breeches with windings. Hats were of three types. The most popular was the kepi. Adrian's helmets were also actively worn, which had an emblem on the front. In addition to the appearance, this helmet could hardly boast of anything else. It did not provide protection from bullets. In very cold weather, the French uniform expanded its range to a sheepskin coat. Such clothes can hardly be called optimal for different weather conditions.

The best uniform of American soldiers became the prototype of all modern field clothing. It was distinguished by its functionality and thoughtful appearance. It did not freeze, and this was one of the decisive factors in the war.