German Ranks: What rank commanded which Unit?

[@VosseyVanJoss]

Fahnenjunker-Oberfeldwebel, Festungsoberwerkmeister , Oberhufbeschlaglehrmeister German - We got words which are longer than the Russian front. :D

[@emperorionic]

There are also many abbreviations in German: MaBuKo = Marinebeischlafsutensilienkoffer, translates into Navy intercourse equipment suitcase = the supply with condoms and similar for sailors in harbours to prevent the spreading of STDs. :-D

[@SteveSmith-os5bs]

Just trying to pronounce some of these words can sprain your tongue

[@danewikinger6256]

Vossey van Joss ...very funny ...thanks

[@Dadouf112]

Oberunterstabsgrefeiterschutzefeldmarschallkommandantoffizier

[@little_lord_tam]

Our names take longer to speak than the time we need to invade france

[@cnoxey6898]

My favorite rank in the Wehrmacht will always be the Stabsfeldwebel in the vetenary corps, which is called Oberhofbeschlaglehrmeister. Not to be confused with the Hufbeschlaglehrmeister, an Oberfeldwebel. And no, I didnt made this up.

[@andreaslundberg2978]

@@Reichsritter They don't? I could translate them to swedish without knowing german, and then they made sense. I mean, I had to assume that either 'hof' or 'huf' was a misspelling, but otherwise it seemed fine. Why don't they make sense?

[@andreaslundberg2978]

@@Reichsritter Shouldn't it be seen as 'Hufbeshlag'' lehrmeister'. So teaching those who shoe horses? 'Huf' means hoof too, right?

[@cnoxey6898]

@@Reichsritter i meant Huf, not Hof obviously. And look it up, Wikipedia has a german page about it.

[@DZ-1987]

Mm. German's a wonder language. Heh. Someone either tell me the German for language" or just translate wonder language to German for me. Thank you!

[@dewiz9596]

You’re just horsing around. . L

[@WildBillCox13]

The pronunciation guides are immeasurably helpful.

[@sangvinhun]

5:40 look at the pain in his eyes when there are not enough /good enough sources on something :D

[@TheReaper569]

SCHEISSEE NO SOURCES MEIN GENERALE

[@DavideZamblera]

Impossible. Perhaps the archives are incomplete.

[@thomassaldana2465]

@@DavideZamblera If an item does not appear in the records, it does not exist.

[@neglesaks]

...wikipedia.... ACH NEIN

[@GreenLeafUponTheSky]

Shouldn’t have burned all those books, you Nazis

[@johnnothe]

Subtitles: "Time to look at chairman ranks in volvo" Weird military history video, but okay.

[@catriona_drummond]

I like how "captain" and "Hauptmann" trace back to the same word: "head". The English one referring to the latin "caput" and the German one to the german word "Haupt", both meaning "head".

[@Kackpuh]

And yes, the captain of a ship got his rank from the infantry captain. In early times, most ships were not sepcial "fighting" ships but just merchant ships that got an infantry detachment. And infantry comes from latin "infans" meaning "baby". Go figure.

[@olehigorovich474]

Both languages are Germanic and full of similarities

[@tilmanweinbrenner5769]

@@olehigorovich474 Same influencers: Celts, Romans, Germans, Vikings, French

[@catriona_drummond]

@@timgronau3948 Don't think you understood what I am saying. The English and the German name for that rank bot have the same etymological roots, just in different origin languages. Of course it has nothing to do with literal heads. In both of them.

[@tilmanweinbrenner5769]

@@timgronau3948 I think your opinion is wrong. Because in the times (late 17. th century) military structures, grades and ranks were established. The most spoken languages were french, latin and italian. If you couldn't speak at least one of these three, you were no gentleman and could not be an officer in any army. It was that easy! And the most armies in Europe in these days were propper copies of the first national standig one in france. Caput = Haupt, Capitaine = Hauptmann

[@dondraper3871]

My dream rank - Donaudampfschiffahrtsgesellschaftskapitän German - Our words make excellent passwords

[@theother1281]

OK, I don't speak German, so I'm guessing at : Chief Engineer of a Danube cargo barge? 🙂

[@burkinafaso64]

Although I consider myself a WWII crack thats something I always asked myself. So thanks a lot for this video Bernhard!

[@Soulaimane955]

me to i would talk world war 2 with you for days man contact me this is my facebook *soulaimane ajanif *

[@idograf6492]

I found your video invaluable. It's one thing to write down a German rank on a page and quite another to say it properly. I am just getting my book made into an audiobook for Audible and I keep sending him the video and the time stamp on it for the relevant rank. Many thanks Ido

[@alganhar1]

Sergeant Major is not a rank in the British Army either, it is an appointment, Company Sergeant Major (CSM) is usually a Warrant Officer 2nd, Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) is usually a Warrant Officer 1st, in both cases they are always the most senior NCO in the Company or Battalion (so ranks lower than WOI for RSM, and WOII for CSM will generally denote the unit has suffered serious NCO casualties). Oddly enough, the Army Sergeant Major (the most senior NCO in the British Army) is also a Warrant Officer 1st Class. Pipe and Drum Majors like Sergeant Major are, again, appointments, not ranks, Pipe and Dum Majors are *usually* Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer 2nd, but, occasionally are Sergeants or Warrant Officer 1st. With the pipe/drum majors you can tell their actual military rank by the additions to their appointment insignia (4 chevrons), sergeant remains clear of additions, whilst the others have additions depending on rank, with WOI retaining the royal arms that is the rank insignia of WOI. EDIT: Oh, and an interesting difference between the British and Germans was the use of Brigades, not used often by the Germans, but common in the British Army. This is because in the German Army the Regiment was a Combat formation made up of 2 or 3 Battalions, in the British Army the Regiment was an *administrative* formation, never a combat formation. It was the Brigade that was the Regiment equivilant. To illustrate why this was done you only need to look at some British Regiments, the Royal Tank Regiment raised something in the region of 20 Battalions during WWII, the Royal Welch Fusiliers in WWI raised 24 LINE Battalions alone (more if you include Admin and training Battalions required to keep the Line Battalions in the field). Given that a Division numbered 9 - 12 Battalions you can understand why the Regiment was not used as a Combat Formation by the British! There was no real limit on the size of a regiment. Though traditionally they were 3 Battalions in strength, as you have seen, in times of war this does not always remain true, though they would always return to 3 Battalions after the war. Also, traditionally all three Battalions of a Regiment were NEVER deployed together, this is in large part to avoid the utter destruction of a Regiment in a single action. One Battalion would always remain at home, thus could be used as a cadre around which to rebuild the regiment should the other two Battalions meet unfortunate ends. An oddity, but one I find interesting, and one that many Historians (including British historians) are not aware of. It is also why you see reports of British Regiments fighting in multiple different theatres simultaneously. I have heard several people refer to the 2rd RTR, or 7th RWF as the 3rd Regiment Royal Tank Regiment and 7th Regiment of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, when in fact they are the 3rd and 7th Battalions of said regiments.

[@Riceball01]

In the US military, Sergeant Major is both a rank and a billet and the Sgt. Major billet isn't always filled by a Sgt. Major.

[@michaelwest4325]

Pre-Great War and early on the German Army used Brigades but to control two Regiments, later as they adopted the 3 Regiment Division the Brigade became an odd intermediary. The Wehrmacht used Brigades in for example the Panzer Division to control the Infantry and formed independent units such as with the Gebirgsjager. And to add confusion some Regiments fielded two versus three Regiments, especially in the mountain and "light" infantry Divisions. But essentially the Regiment was the highest field formation and where the fighting was commanded, the British using the Brigade, something the US Army moved to post-WWII, the Russians retaining the Regiment yet moving it towards a more combined arms status.

[@timcubison9832]

In WW2 there were several brigades which had 3 btns from the same Regiment this was usually because brigades tended to be formed in the same area which aided recruitment particularly with the Territorial btns

[@galier2]

leutenant comes from french lieutenant which means "tenant lieu" holding place. So leutenant would translate to place-holder.

[@ousou78]

I'm French but just realised the "lieutenant" real sens, I don't know much about military so I always thought this grade was just a random num like caporal, colonel, général and co...

[@juanzulu2755]

Interesting point. Do u know why the English pronounce it like "Leftenant"?

[@n00btotale]

@@juanzulu2755 Simply because the English language is flawed, und Deutsch ist besser als...

[@laurancerobinson]

@@juanzulu2755 lots of different theories and debates but the most commonly agreed upon is the old French spelling of Lieu is Luef as well as older English using a Lu or Lef pronunciation.

[@TheHaighus]

@@laurancerobinson I think there is also a link with Norman French having different pronunciations to main French of the time (accent and dialect differences), and the English version of leiutenant descends from Norman French rather than Parisian French (like everyone elses versions!). Why the Normans pronounced it differently is another question though haha

[@95DarkFire]

"Hauptmann" can be translated as "Head Man" as well as "Main Man". It is similar to "Hetman" in Eastern Europe.

[@darrenanderson4921]

Thank you for quoting sources! It is very helpful and reminds the viewers how much effort you put into your videos! Danke!

[@HojozVideos]

Ober is a waiter in The Netherlands too I love how you can hear a slight frustration in his voice each time he says that the sources differ

[@brittakriep2938]

Attention! In Austria ,Obers' or ,Schlagobers' means ,Sahne/ Schlagsahne/ Schlagrahm' , i don' t know english word, cream (?)/ whipped cream (?).

[@Artur_M.]

And then the "brilliant" chaps from the Waffen SS looked at this system and decided that it's way too simple and sensible and added their own parallel one.

[@erickhan4534]

I think their system made more sense* (*aside from Oberfuhrer)

[@DZ-1987]

Shütze... obershütze..? PISS! I forgot about it already! And i only now just realized it... Well. I need to proofread my wattpad novel anyway.

[@maximilienfrancoisderobesp202]

@@DZ-1987 DZ Schütze, Oberschütze, Sturmmann, Unterscharführer, Scharführer, Oberschärführer, Hauptschärführer, Sturmscharführer, Untersturmführer, Obersturmführer, Hauptschärführer, Sturmbannführer, Obersturmbannführer, Standartenführer, Oberführer, Brigadeführer, Gruppenführer, Obergruppenführer, Oberst-Gruppenführer, Reichführer-SS. Simple.

[@dreamdancer8212]

@@maximilienfrancoisderobesp202 you forgot Brigadeführer, between Oberführer and Gruppenführer

[@maximilienfrancoisderobesp202]

@@dreamdancer8212Damnit.

[@typorad]

What rank commands what unit, is, even in the modern military, not consistent

[@shoryukenxx]

Thanks for this video Military History Visualized 👍

[@sevenproxies4255]

The important thing to know is which rank will land you behind a desk and keep you away from glorious field duty.

[@hirumaryuei]

None below brigadier general.

[@Riceball01]

For the most part, that would depend more on what your job/MOS is than your rank. You could be a Private but have a clerk's job and you'll probably never see the field except for when/if your unit decides to do some field training. But unless you're assigned to a high headquarters, like Corps or above, there's no guarantee that the shit won't hit the fan and you'll find yourself given a rifle and to hold the line. This has happened numerous times all the way up to the Division level like what happened to the 1st MarDiv during the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir during the Korean War. The 1st Marine Division was so badly outnumbered and hit so hard that Marines assigned to the various headquarters units up to and including the Division HQ actually had to take up rifles in order to keep from being overrun. As it was, some HQs at the Company and even Battalion level did end up getting overrun by Chinese troops. That battle really put the Marine Corps' creed of every Marine a rifleman first to the test.

[@DZ-1987]

In a sarcastic sense, i can feel that Tanya would agree with you.

[@aaronpaul9188]

lieutenant always means deputy. Its from the french lieu as in "in lieu of the commander"

[@sevenproxies4255]

Famously known among the troops as "asskisser of the commander"

[@drktronic]

*Limited sources and books* "Ah shit, we burned them all"

[@sparki20081]

Very good video, Bernhard. Only one thing, the Unterfeldwebel rank still exists in the Bundeswehr, but it is now called Stabsunteroffizier and is the rank between Unteroffizier and Feldwebel.

[@nebfer]

You know I've generally went by the German Stellengruppen, as found on their KStNs for the rank positions. Their KStNs (equivalent of our ToEs, and listed who went where), lists a position (like Battalion Commander) as being filed by a rank found in X rank group, on a normal day at lest, as by the end of the war they increasingly used fewer officers and often of lower rank than the earlier KStNs went with (even the late war ones do show fewer officers and more senor NCOs) These rank groups is as such Group A: (Army), Generalfeldmarschall & Generaloberst Group F: (Corps), General der ... Group D: (Division), Generalleutnant Group I: (Brigade), Generalmajor Group R: (Regiment), Oberst Group B: (Battalion), Oberstleutnant & Major Group K: (Company), Hauptmann Group Z: (Platoon), Oberleutnant & Leutnant Group O: (Senior NCOs), all of the Feldwebels (except Unterfeldwebel) Group G: (Junior NCOs), Unterfeldwebel, Unteroffizier & Obergefreiter Group M: (Privates), Gefreiter, Oberschütze & Schütze

[@owlrecon6263]

Written down like this was a lot more helpful than just listening because I would get caught up in the pronunciation and forget "where " I was

[@valta5063]

Military History is the move Stalingrad (1993 (the German one)) historically accurate with its military ranks? Thanks.

[@c32amgftw]

Valta do a general video of your thoughts on that movie please

[@mousepad505]

Your pronunciation of English is really on point in this video Nobody seems to be mentioning it

[@billcoggeshall6764]

Once again another excellent video thank you

[@fernandoroza6061]

Servus ! Very enlightening video. Thanks.

[@dochteriris]

Isnt servus latin for slave

[@fernandoroza6061]

I believe ( I might be wrong) that's the way the Austrians ( oesterreicher) greets themselves. So , maybe your comment ( Just maybe) is out of context... Just maybe...

[@ultimusborussiarum9333]

Very nice!!! Could you also make a video about German ranks in WW1?

[@MilitaryHistoryNotVisualized]

well, lately I found out that the NVA also used the "Abteilung" (literally Department but correctly Battalion in this context), whereas the Bundeswehr didn't. I was quite confused about this myself. I might have been less of the NVA following the Wehrmacht than the Bundeswehr "westernizing". To answer this question fully, we would need one, who knows the Wehrmacht, Bundeswehr, NVA, NATO and Red Army, because there are various "influences" going on. So it could be that they did not follow the Wehrmacht, but the Red Army structure, which might have been very similar...

[@derheinz9589]

@Andrew Gianelli In case of Uniforms and traditions the NVA was certainly more similar to the Wehrmacht than the Bundeswehr. At least the parade uniforms look very similar to the Wehrmacht uniforms and the NVA kept the Prussian Stechschritt (goose step), while the Bundeswehr deliberately did not adapt the Stechschritt and its uniforms were influenced by the USArmy and the Wehrmacht. The rank structure was designated to the ranks of the Red Army respectively. Rank Insignia were influenced by Prussian/German und Soviet traditions. Due to the NVA being under Soviet high command und the soviet origin of most of its equipment, doctrinwise there was certainly influence of the red army. I dont know how the doctrine was influenced by Prussian/German ideas thow.

[@stalkingtiger777]

Army in U.S. has 2 ranks called private. E1 private has no rank patch (fresh out of basic no bonus xp), E2 private has a single chevron (after about 6 months to 1 year of service, which means you finish basic and advanced training without jacking it up).

[@Damo2690]

The UK Private has no chevron and Lance corporol has 1 chevron

[@Basileios1974]

Great video! Fahnenjunker, Fähnrich and Oberfähnrich are missing! All three of them were Officer Candidates. The first being an OC with an equivalent rank to the Unteroffizier, the second an OC with an equivalent rank to a Feldwebel and the third an OC with an equivalent rank to Stabsfeldwebel. These ranks were held during officer training. As far as I understood some ranks would be skipped. A NCO or OC would typically move directly from Gefreiter (UA/OA) to Unteroffizier or Fahnenjunker upon completing their respective training. Mannschaften who didn't pass the examinations might be promoted to Obergefreiter and Stabsgefreiter. In addition to that the Vizefeldwebel was typically skipped during wartime.

[@9thbloodandfire508]

About platoon leader: Even before the war the rank of the platoon leader was eithet a officer (Leutnant) OR a experienced senior NCO (usually Oberfeldwebel). Not all platoons were commanded by officers, only one or two per company.

[@stamfordly6463]

Perhaps you could use Commonwealth ranks as a comparison too, for them sergeant-major (both company and regimental) is an "appointment" for Warrant Officers (second and first class respectively) rather than a rank.

[@dondraper3871]

2:17 Would "acting" be a better description than deputy? Lieutenant comes from French - "Tenant lieu (de) [...]" that literraly means "holding place" but would be better translated in this context as "Acting [...]" . Tenant lieu de colonel =>Holding the place of a Colonel =>Acting colonel => Lt colonel

[@dr.ryttmastarecctm6595]

I suspect that the named ranks were so complex because of the amalgamation of various principalities (and their armies) into the Empire under Kaiser Wilhelm I. The use of function-named ranks reminds me of modern immunology where immune cells (e.g., Macrophages) or chemical products (e.g., Tumour Necrosis Factor) are also named by their function.

[@derheinz9589]

In the German Empire there were basically only two armys. The Prussian and the Bavarian. The contingents of all the other states were either incorporated into the Prussian Army or under its command (Saxony, Württhemberg). The named ranks were named according to the service branch of the individual Soldier.

[@henrykissinger3151]

1# Video suggestion: How effective where Danish, Norwegian, French, Polish etc resistance fighters and partisans at disrupting the occupied German war effort through bombing (factories, railways, depots etc). Thks in advance.

[@Chrigei888]

The French restistance dont exist till Dday or even after DDay it’s a lie from the allies to get the French people to be again proud of there nation they accepted German occupation because they don’t had any unity because they got to this time a lot of times invaded from Germany and they accepted it

[@kitten6114]

@@Chrigei888 because i don't have any greater source than wikipedia this is all i can provide to disagree with your point en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Resistance

[@mobrule8219]

Been watching your videos, truly respect the process you are using to reconstruct history. So I subscribed and plan to watch much more!

[@ahorsewithnoname643]

Private, Rifleman, Fusilier, Grenadier, Gunner, Sapper, Trooper, Signaller are some names for the same rank level in British Commonwealth armies

[@kdato774]

Nice explanation. To add to it, Generalmajor is actually short for General-oberst-leutnant. So the pattern is just like with Major > Oberstleutnant > Oberst: Generalmajor > General(oberst)leutnant > General of the branch.

[@danielmobley1]

First video i’ve seen from this channel i love the beard!! Edit: the video was fantastich! Thank you so much for this!!

[@DaveSCameron]

Brilliant channel and naturally your niche is that you being native German and a military scholar however I must say your presentation and evidently clear grasp of this period and it's myriad mysteries are a breath of fresh air. I am 50years old and as we know WW2 has a cultural stranglehold on us Englishmen, , from building toy model aeroplanes and battle play with plastic soldiers to our reading material so again I must praise you for your time and helpful uploads. Best wishes. Dave, Cambridge U.K.

[@deutschamerikaner]

Are the names the same as WW1 ranks? If not then could you do a video on that? Your videos are very helpful and I encourage you to keep up the good work!

[@Taliesin2]

So from March 16th 1940 to October 26th 1941 the Wehrmacht had the Walter Model of a modern Major General.

[@typxxilps]

General der Brieftauben(Meister) - General of the pigeons. pretty long list of ranks ... but always good to be aware of for example in the african campaign Rommel and his rank and role in the axis force

[@nirfz]

2:09 don't confuse Oberst with Ober or Obers... 3 very different things :-D

[@FloriFarfisa]

mmmmh schlagoberst

[@SNOUPS4]

perfect topic for a Military History actually Vizualised short video

[@harveyhams1572]

Good work again.

[@MaziarYousefi]

Well done mate.

[@kchickenlord]

Add in that Major and Brigadier are originally French NCO ranks and you have the reason Major General and Brigadier General are below Lieutenant General in the hierarchy. Does anyone have some good reading for rank structure and commands as a subject rather than just being a small section or appendix?

[@galier2]

Hauptmann is not "main man" but "head man". Haupt in German means head. It's the same captain which derives from the french capitaine which is itself evolved from the latin caput meaning head (btw the german kaputt also comes from latin caput, apparently germans at the times of the Romans plaid football with heads of their enemy). EDIT: funnily there are even more ranks that are derived from latin caput: chief from chef from caput, corporal from french caporal from capo also from caput (french and then english had two main imports of latin, one when the Gauls took over roman language and then a second import in middle age from scholars, that's why you often two distict words with the same latin origin: fragile-frail, agile-aisle)

[@brittakriep2938]

The german word for ,chief' is Häuptling. From merovingian days into high middleage , as we germans describe the time 1000- 1300, ,Germany/ HRE ' was for administration divided into tribal based duchies/ Herzogtümer, so a Herzog was in early years also a kind of chief. And the ,webel' in Feldwebel was once a kind of official in administration ( or justice?). In Switzerland both central gouvernement and cantonal governements still have a Waibel, who wears ceremonial dress at some occasion.

[@Oscuros]

Hauptman, or headman has a very ancient provenance going back to the Caucasian steppes, where the headman is still an important administrative unit at village level. When you get the the Anglo Saxons, they established a system of "hundreds" in Eastern England (they still have Hundreds in Essex instead of wards as one of the smallest municipal administrative units), from which a company of men could be drawn for local defence, a hundred men, company, headman, hauptman. Jumping back around to the Goths against the Romans, they often fought in triangles or wedge formations, not the round formations that the Celts liked. Much like modern panzer wedges (that used stronger tanks at the tip), the Hauptman (village or warband, hundred, leader, chief) fought at the front, with an axe.

[@IrishTechnicalThinker]

Love your work man! From Ireland.

[@GTNSkeleton]

Great video!!

[@kern1000]

What rank fitted in to a company and/or a battalion quartermaster role? Keep up the great work!

[@jorgschimmer8213]

It is more or less the "Kasernenfeldwebel" . The highest Ranking NCO of an barrac or Post. Highest means highest rank (Stabsfeldwebel ) and the most Servicetime. Nowadays this is an CO Job.

[@MerlijnDingemanse]

In the Bundeswehr they removed the Unterfeldwebel rank but they added the Hauptfeldwebel and the Oberstabsfeldwebel. Although in the Navy they're called "bootsmänner" or Boatsmen.

[@sparki20081]

To my knowledge the Unterfeldwebel still exists in the Bundeswehr. It is the Stabsunteroffizier (SU). That's the rank between Unteroffizier (U) and the Feldwebel (Fw).

For the Navy Unteroffizier->Bootsmann and Feldwebel->Maat.

[@ws5273]

4:12 fun fact: the “mother of the company” is directly from the Roman legions and how they stricter their units

[@aperson1139]

I got another one, a bohemian corporal in Germany commands the entire country!

[@imalexandros3150]

United military ranks from all countries into one army OF-12 Generalissimus - Generalissimus - Στρατηλάτης (Soviet rank, japanese rank, north Korean rank, Chinese rank) OF-11 Grand Marshal - Großmarschall - Ἀρχιστρατάρχης (North korean rank, Chinese rank, Japanese rank) OF-10a Field Marshal - Generalfeldmarschall - Στρατάρχης OF-10b Vice Marshal - Vizemarschall - Ἀντιστρατάρχης (North korean rank) OF-9a General of the Army - Armeegeneral - Ἀρχιστράτηγος (American rank, Russian - soviet rank, north Korean rank, east german rank, Chinese rank) OF-9b Colonel General - Generaloberst - Στρατηγός (Russian - soviet rank, north korean rank, east german rank, chinese rank) OF-8 Lieutenant General - Generalleutnant - Ἀντιστράτηγος OF-7 Major General - Generalmajor - Ὑποστράτηγος OF-6 Brigadier General - Brigadegeneral - Ταξίαρχος (Greek rank, german rank, American rank, british rank) OF-5a Colonel Commandant - Oberstkommandant - Ἀρχισυνταγματάρχης (Old british rank, north Korean rank, Chinese rank) OF-5b Colonel - Oberst - Συνταγματάρχης OF-4 Lieutenant Colonel - Oberstleutnant - Ἀντισυνταγματάρχης OF-3a Major - Major - Ταγματάρχης OF-3b Lieutenant Major - Majorleutnant - Ὑποταγματάρχης (Old greek rank) OF-2a Staff Captain - Stabshauptmann - Ἐπιλοχαγός (Old greek rank, german rank, italian rank) OF-2b Captain - Hauptmann - Λοχαγός OF-1a First Lieutenant - Oberleutnant - Πρωθυπολοχαγός (Old greek rank, old east german rank, north Korean rank, russian - soviet rank, old Italian rank) OF-1b Second Lieutenant - Leutnant - Ὑπολοχαγός OF-1c Third Lieutenant - Unterleutnant - Ἀνθυπολοχαγός

[@krisfrederick5001]

Well....I'm glad we cleared all that up. I will never get confused again lol

[@22.naufalikhsan15]

Funfact: there is an actual record that stated a Leutnant/Oberleutnant taking command of an entire battalion after the Hauptmann who previously commanding the battalion was injured by hand grenade

[@nanananan6501]

Those main characters from Inglorious Basterds (August Diehl, Christopher Waltz, the sniper...) what were they? Edit: Land (Waltz) seems to be a Standartenführer according to wikipedia and another source says he might not be Waffen- (military) or Allgemeine- (general), but Polizei-SS, due to the color of the jacket (green) and undershirt. The sniper was a private, wikipedia doesnt say what specifficaly. Another source says Grossdeutschland Division, so i guess granadier. Diehl apparently was a Gestapo, so i suppose another type of rank? My god... There must had been so much confusion on whos ranked higher and stuff.

[@podemosurss8316]

The Soviet ranks for generals were very similar, except for the fact that the Soviet equivalent of Generalfeldmarschall was the "Armiya general" (Army general), reserving the rank of Marshal of the USSR (CCCP Marshal) for those Army Generals who had special significance. Of course, the names for the Soviet ranks were in Russian (colonel general was "general-polpovnik", for example)

[@kaczynskis5721]

Soviet and Russian military ranks and language are quite influenced by German, and often resembled German practice more than American or British. For example a captain could be a battalion commander in WW2, much as in the German army.

[@podemosurss8316]

@@kaczynskis5721 In the USSR Captain was "Kapitan" (Captain), battalion commander was the rank for "mayor" between 1918 and 1940.

[@honorshot5448]

who asked?

[@beaubeaukitty5301]

Also please address and or clarify the distinction of Lowest rank allowed to Drive a Tank as opposed to Lowest rank allowed to captain a tank as compared to Lowest rank allowed to Lead a squadron of tanks please and thank you

[@machinegunpreacher2469]

@5:03 I looked at my books (English translations, I'm working on German at university and it's going well :) but not full on reading books yet...) from primary sources within the Wehrmacht and found little about dates. However, Major Siegfried Knappe defined Stabsgefreiter as: "a career corporal... who could not accept a higher responsibility and would never achieve a higher rank." - Siegfried Knappe, "Soldat," Pp xxii. Looking at it that way, it is possible that the rank was "'grandfathered" but not conferred on many others during the years you mentioned. Knappe indicates that they were heavily involved in officer training, which would explain the rarity of being promoted to it. Knappe also said that they were (in paraphrase) very brutal towards officer candidates because the instructors themselves would never be able to rise above or around gefreiter. He must have not liked them; in his glossary the only entry with a longer and more disdainful-sounding definition is that of the SS... And if you guys haven't read "Soldat," you really should. Amazing insights into the world of a German officer in WWII.

[@reminder9146]

Good stuff! I'd only point out a grammatical error. In English an adjective (a word that modifies a noun) goes before the noun. It would be Lieutenant General which you would get right when it comes to Brigadier and Major Generals. I'd write this in German, but being fully bilingual is something you have on me. Again, good stuff. Very informative.

[@brittakriep2938]

In german Generalleutnant, Generalmajor or Generaloberst is correct, but i know what you mean . A Handtasche/ handbag is ,un sac des mains' in French.

[@jduff59]

Manshaft, Funky Officer and The Main Man. The Germans not only had the coolest tanks, planes and uniforms - they had the coolest ranks. But was a Hauptman of the Signal Korps called The Funky Main Man? Sorry, I'm not trying to insult anyone - just a little levity. These videos along with Drach, Dr Felton, Ace Destroyer and a few other chaps on KZbin are 100 times better then the Military or History Channels. Thanks for everything you do for us military history buffs.

[@johnny5wd567]

Nice video. One observation however, regarding the subtitles (yes it's a bit of nitpicking, but thought to mention it anyway just in case you edit your videos). I think you meant "Leutnant" not "Leutant". As for "lower officers" I think maybe the dominant term would be "junior officer" but I may be wrong. Interesting video as always though :)

[@Betrix5060]

I think that Oberschütze would be most comparable to Private First Class. With Schütze being just plain Private.

[@erik2811]

Correct me if i'm wrong. But I always thought the Stabsgefreiter was a administrative rank. For example a typist within the officer staff.

[@nirfz]

"Stab" is the admin part of the unit, but the term in front of a rank doesn't have to tell that he does that. We have Oberstabswachtmeister and Stabswachtmeister, and this doesn't mean they have administrative jobs, are just ranks. (We have 4 differet ranks of Wachtmeister...)

There are several ranks X with promotion schemes like this: OberX, HauptX, StabsX and sometimes even OberstabsX. Holders of these ranks tend to be older, more exprienced and might often hold administrative assignments/positions, but there is no rule requiring this. In modern Bundeswehr, Oberstabsgefreiter is the highest Enlisted rank. Their rank insignia look rather ridiculous, as they have the same bar ("Pommes"/"French Fry") a Gefreiter has, but five of them stacked. Because of this they are usually referred to as "Pommes-General"

[@laisphinto6372]

I originally thought scifi Ranks we're a Bit confusing but when i Look at the Bundeswehr and US Army and lets BE honest there are a bunch of bullshit Ranks purely for inflating Egos. Also i dont Accept that you have to make Up Ranks to justify pay increased. Like the Bundeswehr inserted Korporal Ranks Just to make some Guys feel better than you have the Same Rank with Ober-,Stab-,Haupt,Oberstab- Basically i am Not a soldier i am a super super over soldier.

[@kiowhatta1]

I get the impression that it was much harder to get promoted in WWI than WWII. I have heard of the policy of promotion in WWII as 'jumped up clerks'. I can recall only two FeldMarschals from WWI - Von Hindenberg, and Moltke, whilst during WWII I counted at least 25 GeneralFeldMarschals, plus Generals der Infanterie/Panzertruppen etc.

[@frederickthegreatpodcast382]

How did Kampfgruppen fit into this? Would someone commanding a regiment command a kampfgruppe?

[@derheinz9589]

Kampfgruppen were temporary ad hoc formed combined arms units. Their size varied between the size of a company and a corps, but they were mostly battallion sized. A Kampfgruppe might be formed in order to fulfill a certain mission. This mission would for example be assigned to the commander of a battallion of infantry. Additional support elements like companys of self propelled guns, engineers, artillery, armor, etc. would be playced under his command until the mission was fulfilled. This Kampfgruppe would be named after its commander or the Division it belonged to or its area of operation. So yes, someone who commanded a regiment might command a Kampfgruppe.

[@mrd7067]

Ich habe ein paar Fragen: Was genau unterscheidet den Oberschützen vom Gefreiten und warum gibt es den heutzutage nicht mehr? Ich habe gesucht, aber leider habe ich dazu im Gegensatz zur Offiziersausbildung nichts gefunden. Stimmt es, dass es vor 1939 eine Gruppenführerausbildung gab, um nach den 2 Jahren Grundwehrdienst Obergefreiter zu werden? Wie lief das ab? Was genau ist ein Nahkampftag. Ich habe dazu verschiedene Angaben gefunden. Danke für ihre Zeit.

[@JRTurgeon13]

A question not related to rank, but to awards. Did someone who was awarded the Iron Cross First Class still continue to wear the ribbon for the Iron Cross Second Class from the second button of the tunic? Also were there OTHER awards that were shown with a ribbon from the second button of the tunic?

[@MilitaryHistoryNotVisualized]

Yes. Not sure

[@muharremrevani3895]

can you do a video about medieval armies composition, strategy and tactics? I did some research myself and its very complicated but you'll be able to tackle it, its a fun era

[@gangzta28]

I'm missing the rank of Fähnrich

[@spppo11]

Danke fürs Video bin jetzt definitiv schlauer als vorher

[@GlamorousTitanic21]

Could you do a video for the Wehrmacht’s successor forces, the Bundeswehr and the Nationale Volksarmee?

[@MilitaryHistoryNotVisualized]

Was planned last year, but it is a lot of work, if I want to do right.

[@Chronos5376]

My head hurts after watching this.

[@shoryukenxx]

Lol

[@melangellatc1718]

Seriously true!!!!

[@Ordos20]

An then we have the anwarters and the difference between "mit portepee" and "ohne portepee".

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

CoH2: Sergeant Pozharsky commands a Company

[@podemosurss8316]

Not a sergeant, but in 1941 the Soviets had lieutenants commanding companies, as they lacked field officers.

[@zaum2002]

I have a photo of my "Opa" from the war with his rank abbreviated Uftz. Would this be Unteroffizier ? He was Pioneer .

[@marcelosilveira2276]

wait, what? you have another channel? and it's first video have being 1year ago? danm, that's a lot of videos to get upto date...

[@papaaaaaaa2625]

I WANT TO BECOME THE PIGEONMASTER, I WANT TO RULE THEM ALL...

[@MS-yv9rt]

I would disagree with Hauptmann being "Main-man". Haupt can also mean head, and I would assume it to be the proper intention for the rank, as the whole "Capt" comes from the Latin Caput, for head. Otherwise, well done. :)

[@Galenus1234]

infact Haupt is cognate with Latin caput (and English head: www.etymonline.com/word/head). as a stand-alone word (with the meaning "head") it has been replaced by Kopf (which ultimately stems from Latin cuppa = cup). but it survived as part of Hauptmann (a man who is the head [most important part] of a unit) or Hauptstadt ( = capital, litteraly "head-city", ie. the most important city).

[@exundfluriba]

A literal translation of Generaloberst would be "uppermost general", but it is often translated as "colonel-general" by analogy to Oberst, "colonel". Colonel General makes no sense in English. There's just General Officer and his deputy, a lieutenant general. They then added an inferior rank, based on the fact that the next closest rank to a lieutenant was a Sargent Major, of Sargent Major General, then shortened to Major General (which also makes no sense)......ah military intelligence... lol 😁

[@Daniel-ef1mw]

Hastag *MILITARY LOGIC*

[@DingoNovember]

Would be better to include the picture of the ranks. But the information is very good anyway.

[@PatriceBoivin]

The British and the French published books on the armies of WW2... e.g. search for "osprey German uniforms 1939-45" or e.g. "Casterman uniformes et armes soldats allemands 1939-45". The French Casterman books are older, they are not all on the Internet -- I remember seeing German-specific ones in my high school's library back in the early 1980s. Many things prior to the mid 1990s are just not on the Internet. Also I sometimes don't understand what the French are doing with the Internet... It's different than what I am used to from North America.

[@Cruiserman70]

Why not Show pictures of the insignia ?

[@ottovalkamo1]

4:18, how come is it Mutter Der Kompanie? If Die is the feminine preposition. Also what is "Des" or where does it derive from? Since the main 3 prepositions I learned from German were Das Der and Die

[@ezio123456789100]

Look up Genetiv. Basically "Des" almost all the time and in this case "Der" are used to show a relationship between two words as in one belongs to the other often translated with "of" or "of the" For example: Mutter der Kompanie = mother of the company, Komandant des 1. Battalions= Commander of 1.Batallion

[@محمدابراهيم-ف5غ]

So in summary : 1-squad 2-platoon 3-company 4-battalion 5-regement 6-division

[@neilpk70]

Like Commonwealth ranks/ appointments. Who's senior? The Sergeant Major, the Pipe Major or the Drum Major?

[@alganhar1]

The Sergeant Major is not a rank, it is an appointment, at least in the British Army. The Company Sergeant Major usually carries the rank of Warrant Officer 2nd Class, while the Regimental Sergeant Major usually carries the rank of Warrant Officer 1st Class. There is also a relatively new position, the Army Sergeant Major who is the most senior NCO in the British Army, despite that he also carries the actual rank of Warrant Officer 1st Class (though the rank insignia is slightly different, with the usual WOI insignia being enclosed in a wreath). Pipe and Drum Majors are exactly the same, appointments, not ranks. A Pipe Major has to have achieved at least the rank of Sergeant, but is usually a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer 2nd, a Drum Major is usually the same. Pipe and Drum majors rarely carry the rank of Warrant Officer 1st. In all cases the Regimental Sergeant Major is the most senior NCO in a Battalion (the British Army never used Battalion Sergeant Major, thus all Battalions of a regiment would have an RSM! In this case the RSM of the 1st battalion was *usually senior). The others, be they CSM's, Pipe Majors or Drum Majors would be at dependant on the actual military rank of the holder.

[@guavaburst]

What about the Waffen SS ranking system?

[@robertfisher8359]

Basically the same as the Heer, although they had one additional rank between the equivalent of colonel and brigadier general. Specifically the rank of SS-Oberfuehrer.

[@marsnz1002]

@@robertfisher8359 Umm, nothing like the Heer actually? Heer - Anglosaxon equivalent - W.SS Oberst - Colonel - Standartenfuehrer Major - Major - Sturmbannfuehrer Unterfeldwebel - Sergeant - Scharfuehrer That's just a few examples. They're all totally different.

[@robertfisher8359]

@@marsnz1002 I wasn't talking about the names, but the insignia. Oberschuetze and SS-Oberschuetze wore the same patch on the sleeve. Same for Gefreiter and Obergefreiter compared to SS-Sturmmann and SS-Rottenfuehrer respectively. NCOs and officers all had the same shoulder strap insignia. Unless you want to get into the collar patches too.

[@Nuka0420]

New Subscriber here, my family name is Weakland, which after looking it up may be an English version of the German name Wickland, I am still looking into it but right now I think my family is one of the original Anglo-Saxon tribes to come to the isles, mainly Ireland. I also have a slight criticism, please make subtitles, some of the words that you speak in english dont come out clearly. All in all a great video

[@thomasborgsmidt9801]

The problem with Grenadier is that it is heavy infantry. Where as Schütze is normal infantry.

[@spot1401]

In "Rechtsmedizin unterm Hakenkreuz" they mention a guy who died as "Sturmarzt" ("Assault Doctor"). Very very dark chapter for Germany (and doctors) but that title sounds cool AF

[@Ralphieboy]

I was initially confused at why a lieutenant general was superior in rank to a major general, as a major is superior to a lieutenant. But Richard Holes tell us in "Redcoat" that this is because the term "major general" was originally "sergeant-major general".

[@CONxNOR]

What did the "V" patch on the left bicep of German uniforms mean? I've seen in on both officers and enlisted, but not everyone had it.

[@demonprinces17]

Think it was a political badge if member of the Nazi party before a certain year

[@derheinz9589]

On the right bicep of SS or Nazi-Party member Uniforms it was the "Ehrenwinkel der Alten Kämpfer"" (Honour Chevron for the Old Guard) for members of the SS and the NSDAP who had joined before the Nazis gained power. In the army it was the rank insignia for enlisted personal. Gefreiter: one chevron Obergefreiter: two chevrons Obergefreiter who had served for more than six years: one chevron with a grey star above Stabsgefreiterwho had served for more than six years: two chevrons with a grey star above

[@tabletopgeneralsde310]

Another good video, about the Wehrmacht, thanks.

[@lucius1976]

7:00 Grenadier: "Es ist kein Mensch, es ist kein Tier, es ist ein Panzergrenadier!", It is not a human, not an animal, it is a Panzergrenadier.

[@95DarkFire]

Somethin to remember: As "Oberst" means "Highest", "Generaloberst" also means "Highest General", which is probably the reason it is above the regular General.

[@michaelwest4325]

This has been the most consistent translation I find, but endlessly see the term "colonel-general" used for the Soviet rank so I think it gets misused for the German rank. If we think of Field Marshal as a sort of higher and distinct appointment, then "highest" general translates better the intent if not meaning of the rank.

[@grandengineernathan]

Gut Video, aber ich habe nicht verstanden was NCOs sind. Could you make a video to explain please ? PS : is my german alright ?

[@danijelkasunic7572]

NCO=non commissioned officer

[@nemofunf9862]

ncos sind unteroffiziere. was er in dem video dazu noch erwähnt hat, ist, dass es einerseits den rang eines unteroffiziers gibt, andererseits alle ränge zwischen mannschaften und offizieren "unteroffiziere" genannt werden.

[@nemofunf9862]

oh and your german is fine :). its "gutes video" not "gut video", but the rest is perfect. i hope you understand my answer.

[@goranserka3601]

Just noticed that your background is feldgrau. Muy favorite color since your videos came out