The uniform depicted
here is the service dress uniform of an Obergefreiter or Private First Class in
the West German Army's Sanitätsdiensttruppe of Medical Service Corps. The
uniform is the gray color of the West German Army Heer with the blue color waffenfarbe
piping of the Medical Corps. The collar insignia maintains the blue backing
behind Heer enlisted collar bars, and the shoulder epaulettes of the uniform
have the blue identifying color along the borders.
The black dress
trousers worn with the Heer service dress uniform is standard of all Army
branch service uniforms.
The shoulder
epaulettes are piped with the blue color of the Heer Sanitätsdiensttruppe along
with the metal insignia of an Obergefreiter. The Obergefreiter rank consists of
two parallel bars and is the equivalent of the grade of E-3 in the United
States military. Upon progression from the initial rank of Gefreiter, soldiers
in the Heer then progress to become an Obergefreiter following satisfactory
performance in the grade of Gefreiter.
The patch on the left
shoulder of the service tunic is the patch insignia of the Heer 6
Panzergrenadierdivision or 6th Mechanized Infantry Division stationed in
Neumünster in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. The unit insignia depicts a
white nettle leaf against a red background with a yellow shield and two blue
heraldry lions. The white nettle leaf on the red background is the family crest
of the Counts of Schaumberg that was adopted as the coat of arms for Schleswig-Holstein.
The blue lions on a yellow shield associate the region of Schleswig-Holstein's
ties to the German emperor and a Danish fief. The coat of arms belonged to
Adolf of Schaumberg and his lion coat of arms replaced the coat of arms of
Denmark on the crest of Schleswig-Holstein. The white and black braiding along
the border of the patch signifies the unit status of being a division.
A white border
signifies the first brigade, with the 16th and 17th brigades using a red border
and the 18th Brigade of the Division utilizing a yellow border.
The
Sanitätsdiensttruppe initially wore a standard visor cap with blue piping along
the peak of the cap designating their branch of service. As shown here with the
West German national roundel insignia on the peak of the cap and the Heer
military service insignia of two cross swords surrounded by a wreath of oak
leaves.
The peaked cap was
later replaced by a blue beret designated for wear only by Medical units. The
beret is accompanied by a metal crest insignia specific to medical forces.
The
Sanitätsdiensttruppe beret badge insignia consists of the staff of Aesculapius,
the long standing Greek symbol of a serpent and staff associated with medicine
the world over in a wreath of oak leaves and the flag of the Federal Republic
of Germany.
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