Ways to use a German raincoat tent. Army raincoat-tent: a universal attribute of Russian soldiers. Modern raincoat and its alternatives

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

Initially, the ’31 model raincoat was painted in feldgrau (field gray) color, but by 1939, most military units used raincoats with “splintered” camouflage. One side of the raincoat was covered with dark camouflage (dunklerer Buntfarbenaufdruck), on 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, they mainly used the continental version of the raincoat; there was also a special tropical version, which was painted greenish-yellow or light beige on both sides, but it was produced in limited quantities.

Two sides of the new model raincoat 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
On the sides there were six holes with steel edging, through which a tension rope passed, and six buttons were sewn above the holes. Buttons and loops on the short sides served to connect several raincoat tents into one large tent, and the size of the tent depended on the number of panels combined.
When the raincoat was used as a cape, the holes and buttons in
The base of the cloth allowed the cloak to be fastened around the soldier’s legs. In the center of the panel there was a slot for the head, closed by two overlapping
valves. At first, the raincoat came with a fastened hood, but soon
it stopped being used. There was a large hole in each corner of the panel,
edged with metal, using these holes the tent was fixed with pegs or
passed a rope through them - depending on the type of installation
tents.

One or two raincoats could serve as a simple blanket,
four panels connected together made it possible to install a pyramidal standard four-person tent. In addition, in a special illustrated
The manual for using the '31 model 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 interconnected parts, each part 37 cm long), and two pegs (Zeltpflocke). To carry these items
a special bag (Zeltzubehortasche) was intended. The bag was sewn from
gabardine or thin canvas "fragmented" camouflage, field gray (feldgrau), gray, olive green, chartreuse (tropical version), brown or
beige flowers. The top of the bag was closed with a flap, 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 different shapes; light metal alloys, steel or impregnated wood were used for their manufacture. At the top of each peg there was a hole through which, if necessary, a rope was threaded, making it easier to remove the peg from the ground.
The cloak-tent could be worn by attaching it to the waist belt with the help of an additional belt.
belt, sword belt, knapsack or 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 quantities, including captured camouflage Italian ones of the 1929 model and square Soviet ones in a dirty olive color.

In addition to its main functions as a raincoat and tent canvas, the ’31 model could 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 device for overcoming water obstacles (one or two rolled-up raincoats filled with branches or hay); as an aid for
carrying the wounded or ammunition in combat conditions; for carrying waste during construction work; as a simple field table.
In addition to the above-described raincoat tent of the 1931 model, the German army used a number of other army tents of various designs, including special headquarters and medical tents.

Wehrmacht camouflage colors

SS camouflage colors

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In World War II, many items of equipment developed back in the late XIX- early 20th century: some are radically improved, others with minimal technological changes.

Reichswehr Weimar Republic inherited the ammunition of the Kaiser's army. True, they began to make it from higher quality materials, improved it, modernized it, and adjusted it to the standard. With the beginning of the Second World War! The militia and rear units were already supplied with outdated equipment, and with the transfer of hostilities to German territory, so were the Volkssturm formations.

The 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. Externally, the products of the latter sometimes differed from the standard official ones - for example, in better finishing, quality of seams, and so on. of course, labeling. Some items were issued centrally, others, mainly officer items, were purchased privately. With monetary compensation costs.

The field equipment was distinguished by rational design, strength with relatively low weight, and ease of use. By the end of the war, the quality of the materials used deteriorated: various ersatz and low-grade raw materials were used. Leather was replaced by canvas 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 an all-army type. But six months later the question disappeared - along with the fall of the Reich.

By the beginning of the campaign to the east, a significant part of the metal and parts - pots, shovels. gas mask cases began to be painted not dark gray, as before, but olive green. Since 1943, dark yellow became the predominant color for all military equipment - as a natural basis for applying darker camouflage, ocher painting was done directly at the manufacturer.

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

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

Canvas belts and braid are also typical for pre-war ammunition, but 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 feldgrau, honey mushroom, gray, green, brown, and beige colors. Metal fittings: buckles, staples, washers, rings and half-rings - had a natural metal tone or were covered with feldgrau or another shade of gray. The attempt to introduce a single dark gray color for all branches of the military was not entirely successful.

This stamp, embossed on the leather, along with information about the manufacturer, also indicated the place and year of manufacture. Manufacturer's stamp on the pot. Under the abbreviated company name, the last two digits (41) indicate the year of manufacture. War Department acceptance stamp on a camp flask.
Infantry shooter. He carries two 98k carbine ammo pouches.	Reserve captain with a brown belt.	Company commander of an infantry regiment in field uniform. He carried 2 bags with magazines for the MP assault rifle. binoculars, wiauiuem and holster.
A rifleman in an infantry regiment in 1940 with typical weapons and equipment.	Different types of machines for a combat backpack, “trapeze” and bags for combat equipment.	Sergeant Major of the 91st Mountain Rangers Regiment, Hungary 1944.
Typically, pouches for the MP-Z8 and MP-40 submachine guns were worn in pairs. Each pouch had 3 slots, and each contained 32 rounds of 9 mm caliber. The pictures show a brown canvas pouch with a small pocket visible on the side. Here was a device for loading a magazine. On back side The pouch shows knee straps for attaching to the waist belt.

Officer's equipment

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

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

A pistol holster was hung from the belt. and at the front and 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, artificial leather "press-stoff". If necessary, a bayonet in an officer's brown blade, a saber, and a dirk were hung on the belt.

From the end of September 1939, senior officers in the active army were prohibited from wearing a shoulder belt, and soon this ban extended to all officers in combat units. In return, 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 corresponding 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 in the active army were ordered to wear soldier belts in combat conditions: black waist belt - up to and including the regiment commander: supporting shoulders (both infantry and cavalry) - regardless of rank. But the officers preferred their own, “original” brown equipment.

Raincoat-tent arr. 1931 with camouflage. One side of the raincoat was covered with dark “fragmentation” camouflage, and the other side was covered with light camouflage. This is clearly visible in the photo. Three short tension cables were secured with pegs.	Reich, 1935. Artillerymen wear straps for cartridge bags. After the introduction of a sword belt with additional belts in 1941, in the future only officers had it.	A health service soldier was stationed in front of a camouflage tent. Medical personnel often wore very visible insignia (a red cross in a circle) to perform their tasks on the ground. He usually had a metal box with first aid supplies. Helmets with red crosses were no longer 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 weapon for the machine gunner, squad leader, tankman, and paratrooper. sapper, motorcyclist, military policeman, as well as soldiers and non-commissioned officers of many other specialties.

Officer's holsters were made of smooth leather, approximately 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 for those, others and thirds. The most widespread - according to the pistols - are holsters for the P-08 Luger, better known as the Parabellum, two types of iodine Walter P-38, and for pistols of 7.65 caliber - for the "long Browning" 1910/22. Walter PP and PPK. Mauser and some others. Many small pistol holsters were suitable for multiple systems.

The iodine 9-mm Parabellum and Walter holsters were similar - wedge-shaped. with a deep hinged lid of complex round shape, with a pocket for a spare clip on the front edge of the case. The first, under the R-08, was fastened with a slanting strap with a buckle: the second, under the R-38. had a deeper lid and a vertical fastening strap, either locked with a button or passed through a bracket into the slot of a metal plate on the valve (there were other options for its fastening). Inside the lid there was a socket with a lid for wiping, and a pull-out strap was passed through a slot in the body. Two belt loops were sewn at the back for the waist belt. There was also a swing version of the Walter holster - 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 pin button on the triangular valve that covered the trigger guard.

The 1922 Browning holster had spring straps riveted to the flat cap flap; a wide coupling for the waist belt slid along them. A hinged strap was attached to the lid pin, attached to the body by a quadrangular ring; in the nose of the holster there was a small grommet for the retention cord. The clip pocket was located on the front edge, like on the P-08 holster.

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

Used in the Wehrmacht Various types pistols, including samples of captured weapons. Officers were required to carry pistols and often chose the 7.65 mm caliber, such as the Walther 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 9 mm caliber, was made of black leather. All three holsters had a pocket for a spare clip.		The 1935 pattern tablet could be made from brown or black gauge. It had two knee loops for attaching to a waist belt and was worn on the left according to the regulations. On the front there were slots for pencils, rulers and erasers. Inside the bag there were two compartments in which cards were stored in a protective case.

Tablets, bags, binoculars, flashlights

The officer's field tablet, or map bag, model 1935, 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 changed to artificial leather.

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

The valve could cover the tablet entirely, half, or only its upper third, fastening either with a leather tongue with a buckle, or with a bracket passing through the slots in the plates riveted to the valve - the tongue of the lid was passed into it. Domestic field bags were closed in a similar way. German tablets were worn either by hanging them from loops on a waist belt, or on a heavy-duty strap with an adjustable buckle.

Almost all binoculars were equipped with a neck strap with a fastened leather or plastic cover to protect the eyepieces and a leather loop attached to the body frame for fastening to a jacket button. State-made binoculars were covered with black ersatz leather and painted feldgrau or dark yellow; Frequent companies used genuine leather and black varnish for these purposes. The cases were made from natural or artificial leather - black or brown, as well as from plastics such as Bakelite; On the sides there were half rings for fastening a belt, and on the back wall there were leather loops for a belt. The lid clasp was elastic. with a peephole on the tongue and a peg on the body of the case; There were also spring ones, like on gas mask cases. The location of the binocular case was determined by the presence of other equipment.

There were many examples of service flashlights with color signal or camouflage filters. The rectangular body, metal or plastic, was painted black, feldgrau. dark yellow, and turned white in winter. A leather loop was attached to the back for attaching clothing or other similar devices to a button.

The bag of the Hauptfeldwebel - company foreman, in which he kept report forms, lists of personnel, and writing materials. - it had no fastenings and, according to tradition, was worn tucked over the side of a tunic or jacket.

Infantry equipment

The standard equipment of the infantryman was basic 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. On the right end was put a stamped aluminum or steel (and at the end of the war, bakelite) buckle with a grained or smooth surface, silver or painted in color feldgrau, khaki, gray. Stamped in the center was a round medallion with the imperial eagle surrounded by the motto “God is with us.” The buckle was adjusted using a tongue sewn to the belt with paired holes into which the teeth of the inner sleeve entered. The hook of the left end of the belt was hooked into the loop of the buckle.

The next important component of the equipment was the Y-shaped support belts - two strong ones and a back one. Similar ones were used in the first world war, and in 1939 they introduced new ones, with riveted side straps for a backpack of the same year or a combat backrest. The tapered ends of the shoulders with sewn leather stops had a number of holes into which the teeth of the adjusting buckles entered: the galvanized buckles ended with wide stamped hooks that clung to 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 was the case with the back strap, which was hooked from below to the middle of the belt, and for a tall soldier - to the ring of the movable coupling. The backrest was connected to the shoulder straps by a large round ring with a leather washer. On the back of the shoulders. higher central ring, large half rings were sewn on to attach the upper hooks of marching or assault backpacks, as well as other ammunition.

Simplified canvas equipment for 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, ranging from greenish-yellow to dark brown, were 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 stroller.	Army Reserve soldiers in most cases carried only one cartridge bag.	Sometimes army units also used camouflage patterns like the Luftwaffe or S.S. troops. In the picture, two officers are wearing camouflage jackets of the Luftwaffe field division.
The second number (on the right) with a carbine and a pistol. On his back are two boxes of ammunition (each containing 300 rounds) for a machine gun and accessories for a Type 36 light grenade launcher.	Hand grenades with handle mod. 24 and packing boxes for carrying them.	Several cartridge boxes, a field telephone and a hand-held anti-tank cumulative magnetic mine.

Pouches for clips and magazines for small arms

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

Soldier. armed with a pistol and a machine gun model 1938-40. (usually one per squad of shooters with rifles), kept magazines for it in paired triple pouches but on both sides of the belt buckle. They also carried magazines for submachine guns of other systems chambered for the 9-mm cartridge. Each pocket for a 32-round magazine had a flap with a leather tongue fastened to a peg. The pouch was khaki or beige canvas; before the war there was also a leather pouch - with a pocket for equipment sewn onto the front of the left pouch. On a canvas pocket, a pocket with a flap on a button was sewn on the back side. 11a on the back wall of the pouch there were leather loops sewn at an angle for the waist belt, so the pouches were worn obliquely, with the lids facing forward. From the sides there were leather straps with half rings running perpendicularly for fastening to the holding straps.

Soldiers armed with a Model 1943 self-loading rifle carried four spare magazines on the left side of the belt in a two-section pouch, usually canvas, with leather trim around the edges. On the right was most often an ordinary three-section pouch made of black leather.

		Machine gunner (1st number). For self-defense, in addition to the MG-34 machine gun, he also had a pistol, which was located on the left waist belt. On right side he carried a bag with tools for an MG-34 machine gun.
The MG 34 machine gun was a weapon wide range: It could be used as a light or heavy machine gun. Its theoretical rate of fire was 800-900 rounds per minute. The machine gunners wore a tool bag on their waist belt, which contained a cartridge ejector (1), a sight for firing at aircraft (2), a cartridge extractor (3), a fragment of a machine gun belt (4), an oiler (5), a mounting 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 both a light and heavy machine gun. The new machine gun was lighter, stronger and cheaper to produce than the MG 34. Its theoretical rate of fire was 1300-1400 rounds per minute. It gained legendary fame and remains the best machine gun of this caliber to this day. Its modified samples are still used in various armies.

Equipment worn on the belt

The blade for the bayonet of the Model 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 above the glass (it was almost never seen on the Eastern Front).

A small infantry shovel - a folding German one with a pointed end, a non-folding Austrian one with a pentagonal blade, a straight non-folding German one, a captured Polish one, or some other one used in the German army - was hung from one or two belt loops on the left hip at the back - in frame case made of black or brown leather, black ersatz press-stoff or canvas tape. 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 had 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 from one or two belt loops on the left hip at the back - in a frame case made of black or brown leather, black ersatz “press-stoff” or canvas tape. 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 had a single loop.

A characteristic feature of German equipment is a rusk bag, or bread bag. It has been used with some modifications since the last century. A large flap with a semicircular bottom completely covered the bag of the 1931 model, fastened with internal straps with slots for buttons. On the outside there were two leather loops for the shoulder straps, which prevented the bag from swinging. In its upper corners, near the loops, leather ears with half rings for a pot, flask and other items were sewn. The bag, belt loops, and a strap with a hook between them were made of canvas or canvas, usually gray or feldgrau. At the end of the war, brown tones predominated. khaki, olive. Some bags were additionally equipped with a shoulder strap. The latest releases had a pocket with an external flap for gun accessories sewn onto them. Bread or crackers were stored in the bag (hence its name) - part of dry rations or NZ (“iron portion”). toiletries, shaving and cutlery, undershirt, gun accessories, cap (cap), etc. In essence, in field conditions, with a lightweight layout, it served as a small duffel bag, largely replacing a backpack. Always worn on the right back.

An aluminum flask of the 1931 model 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 that fit into the brackets on the cup and went around the flask vertically in front and behind. it was threaded through leather loops on a felt-colored or brown cloth cover, which was fastened on the side with three buttons, and its flat carabiner hook was fastened to the half-rings of equipment or a cracker 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. Conical drinking cups could be made of steel or black bakelite; they were also pulled together by a strap pulled into brackets. Mountain troops and orderlies used one and a half liter flasks of a similar device. discontinued in 1943

The 1931 combination bowler, copied in many countries, including the USSR, was made of aluminum, and from 1943 - of steel. Until April 1941, 1.7-liter pots were painted gray, then they switched to olive green (however, the paint was often peeled off in the field). A fastening strap was passed into the brackets of the folding handle of the bowl lid. If there were old-style backpacks, the bowler was worn outside, with later ones - inside them. In a lightweight display, it was either fastened to a cracker bag next to the flask, or clung to a back strap or to a braided combat pack. NZ was kept inside the cauldron.

Introduced in April 1939, black shoulder straps were intended to support infantry equipment. The backrest was connected to the shoulder straps by the knee on a leather lining. A satchel of the 1939 model was attached to it. The photo shows different angles of the infantryman's belt belts, including Y-shaped belts - two overstretched ones and a back one.
	A dark green pot made of two parts - a lid and a body.
A camp flask equipped with a black lacquered aluminum mug was produced until 1941. It was placed in a felt bag. The photo on the right clearly shows how the flask is attached to the bread bag using a leather strap and a carabiner. The picture below shows a later flask with a small black bakelite mug and a canvas strap.	Each soldier's gas mask consisted of a gas mask in a cylindrical dough case and a protective cape against liquid toxic substances. To the soldiers. Those wearing glasses were given special glasses that could be secured inside the gas mask. 1. Gas mask, model 1930. 2. Special glasses with a flat case, below is the ophthalmologist’s prescription. 3-5. From left to right: gas mask cases of the 1930 model (Reichswehr model), 1936 and 1938 models.

Anti-chemical and protective equipment

The cylindrical gas mask canister case had a longitudinally corrugated surface and a lid with a hinged hinge and a spring latch. A shoulder strap made of braid was attached to the two brackets at the lid, and to the bracket at the bottom there was a strap with a hook that clung to the belt or to the rings of the equipment.

In the case of the 1930 model, a gas mask of the same type was usually placed with a mask made of rubberized fabric, with a round filter screwed onto the stigma and with tightening elastic straps made of rubber-fabric braid. The case for the gas mask of the 1938 model had a lid of shallower depth. and the mask is entirely rubber.

The lid contained a box with a degassing agent and napkins. The factory color of the gas mask cases was fel dgrau, but on the Eastern Front they were often repainted. and in winter they covered it with whitewash or lime. Cases from 1930 and 1938. were interchangeable.

According to the rules in the infantry, the gas mask was placed with the lid forward over the cracker bag, slightly below the waist belt, but also with the lid backwards - how. for example, machine gunners or those whose special equipment blocked their 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, with the lid facing to the right; cavalrymen - on the right thigh, passing the strap under the waist belt; in mountain troops - horizontally, behind the backpack, with the lid to the right. In transport vehicles, the gas mask case was released from the strap and placed on the knee. Well, in combat conditions it was positioned however it was more convenient for anyone - on the left side, vertically, on a shoulder strap, and attached to the equipment.

An oilcloth bag for the anti-chemical (“anti-suppressant”) 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 “splintered” camouflage pattern - 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 covered with two flaps. The tent could be worn like a poncho, and with its buttoned flaps it was a kind of cloak. There were ways to wear it for walking, riding a motorcycle and riding a horse. The tent was used as a bedding or pillow, and two - stuffed with hay and rolled into a bag - served as a good floating device. With the help of loops and buttons along the edges, sections of tents could be joined into large panels for group shelters. Eyelets at the corners and on the sides of the middle seam at the base made it possible to tension the panel with ropes and stakes during installation. A rolled-up tent and a bag with accessories for it were carried, attached either to shoulder straps, or to an assault pack, or at the belt. It was attached to the backpack or placed inside it. At the end of the war, tents were supplied only to selected field units. Therefore, the German army did not disdain the old square ones from the time of Kaiser Wilhelm II and captured Soviet ones with a hood.

Special infantry equipment

The rectangular black leather pouch for accessories for the MG-34 and MG-42 machine guns had a hinged 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-headed 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-stoff”. An asbestos tack for removing a hot barrel was often placed under the outer strap of the pouch box.

Replacement barrels were stored in cases that hinged along the length, holding 1 or 2 each, which were put on over the right shoulder with a strap and worn behind the back. The commander of the heavy machine gun crew placed a case with two optical sights in the same way. All machine gunners were armed with a Parabellum (less commonly, a Walter P-38), carried 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 carried only by the canvas handle. They also contained M-24 grenades with a long wooden handle, for which, however, there were also special bags (5 pieces each) made of coarse burlap with a knotted neck and two straps: one went over the neck, the other went around the lower back. But much more often these hand grenades were thrust into the belt, behind the tops of boots, over the side of the jacket. tied to an entrenching tool. A special vest for wearing them - with five deep pockets. stitched at the front and back and fastened with straps - it was rarely used at the front.

Since November 1939, officers in the active army were required to wear a belt on their field uniform. The waist belt was made of black leather with a number of holes and ended with a buckle with two pins.	Lemon hand grenades, model 1939	Eastern Front 1941. A messenger on a motorcycle talks to the commander of the Panzer 1 Ausf.V tank. The motorcyclist has a gas mask bag on his front. This method of wearing around the neck was common among motorcyclists.
Machine gunner (1st number) of the infantry regiment.	Entrenching 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 to carry it. When assembled, the shovel bayonet is secured with a special nut. The bayonet of this shovel can be fixed at right angles and used as a hoe.

Basic personal field equipment German infantry and other infantry units consisted of a coherent system of items designed to complement each other during use. Despite the fact that many soldiers wore some kind of special equipment, everyone had the same basic equipment.

At the beginning of the war, the equipment consisted of a leather waist belt, to which a cartridge bag was suspended from the front right and left. Magazine bags for small arms of other types, except rifles (submachine guns, assault rifles), were included in the kit of these weapons. The belt straps (adopted for equipment along with the new backpack in 1939) were attached to the belt from the back and front at the level of the cartridge bags. Thus, an integral set was obtained, consisting of a waist belt, a sword belt and two cartridge bags. The cracker bag was attached to the waist belt at the back right, while the flask was worn on top of the cracker. The sapper blade was also located on the belt behind the back, but on the left, on top of the blade, a sheath for a bayonet knife was attached. The gas mask, placed inside a cylindrical tin box, was suspended on a separate belt over the left shoulder and secured to the belt above the cracker bag. Several ways of wearing a gas mask were proposed, depending on the specific characteristics of the service. The gas protective cape was stored in a bag attached to the belt of the gas mask box at chest level. If the soldier did not wear a satchel, then he attached the bowler hat to the “cooker”, next to the flask, or hung it on the sword belt. The cloak-tent (combining a cape, overalls and tent) was usually attached to the sword belt above the flask.

Such equipment allowed the soldier to operate on the battlefield for 24 hours, since it contained ammunition, auxiliary weapons (bayonet), rations, water, a pot and various useful items. In addition, the equipment included items that made it easier for a soldier to survive on the battlefield: a gas mask, a gas-protective cape, a sapper shovel and a raincoat.

Soldiers carried additional items of equipment in a combat backpack, introduced shortly before the war. A small bag for additional items was suspended from the backpack frame, attached to the belt. A raincoat with accessories was also suspended from the machine, and a bowler hat was crowned on top of the entire structure. Heavier items were stored in a backpack, in which soldiers usually carried spare underwear, warm clothes, rations and personal hygiene items.

The satchel was secured with shoulder straps to the waist belt. Just before the war, a model of a satchel appeared, attached directly to a sword belt. Such equipment for a soldier was called marching equipment. In addition, the soldiers were given small canvas bags in which a change of linen was stored. In combat conditions, soldiers handed over their backpacks and laundry bags to the convoy.

The equipment system was organized in such a way that the unit commander had a lot of room for maneuver - each soldier went on a mission carrying some special equipment. Already during the war, additional elements of equipment were introduced and provisions were made for different ways its wearing - statutory and non-statutory, facilitating the use of equipment in battle.

German infantry in battles near Kharkov, autumn 1941. In the center of the photo, with his back to us, stands the 3rd number of the machine gun crew of the infantry squad. His equipment consists of a cracker bag worn clearly at the back, a flask and a bowler hat fastened to the cracker, a raincoat and a shovel with a bayonet on the left side. In addition to the standard equipment, the soldier also carries a case with two spare barrels and an ammunition box for the MG-34 machine gun. The photograph shows that in combat conditions, soldiers wore their equipment as it was most convenient for them, and not as required by the regulations.

The field equipment of Wehrmacht soldiers was comfortable and contained all the items necessary in battle. The photo shows an example of wearing equipment; the raincoat and bowler hat are attached to the combat backpack.

WORKING UNIFORMS OF THE GROUND FORCES AND SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

1. German chief corporal in work uniform and cap (model 1938).
2. Soldier of the sapper battalion of the infantry division. Field uniform arr. 1936 Issue of shoulder straps - military color. The waist belt is of a standard type, with sapper pouches. Scissors for cutting wire - in a leather case. Armament: M24 grenade, Parabellum P08 pistol and saucer mines.
3. A flamethrower sapper in a heat-protective rubberized suit and a helmet with a mask. Armed with a backpack flamethrower mod. 1935

SUMMER FIELD UNIT
1. German non-commissioned officer in a field jacket (model 1936). On the head is a helmet (model 1935) with a rim for attaching camouflage made of leaves. The non-commissioned officer is wearing field binoculars, an officer's tablet, a cracker bag, a gas mask, a flask, and a raincoat in a roll. The officer is armed with an MP40 submachine gun..
2. German soldier in cotton uniform (model 1943). On the head is a cap (model 1942). Helmet arr. 1942 with rope net. On the belt of the gas mask case there is a mosquito cape bag. Standard infantry equipment with rifle pouches. The soldier is armed with a Mauser K98k carbine.
3. German machine gunner in a jacket mod. 1944. On the head is a field cap mod. 1943. On the waist belt there is a pouch for machine gun accessories. The machine gunner is armed with an MG42 machine gun.

WINTER FIELD EQUIPMENT

1. German soldier in a guard overcoat (model 1941) with leather flaps.
The hat with earflaps is worn on a woolen “pipe” liner. Insulated winter boots. There are rifle pouches on the waist belt. The soldier is armed with a Mauser K98k carbine.
2. A German soldier in an elongated overcoat (model 1942) with a fastening hood. A fur-trimmed field cap of a non-statutory type. The “pipe” liner covers half of the face. Sentry bots. Armament: captured Soviet PPSh assault rifle.
3. German soldier in an overcoat (model 1936). The helmet has a camouflage cover. Balaclava-cut.” Snow goggles. Winter boots. Standard infantry equipment with rifle pouches. Gas mask and bag with anti-mustard cape.

UNITS OF GERMAN OFFICERS AND GENERALS
1. German chief lieutenant in a cotton field jacket (model 1943).
Officer's field cap. Breeches. Binoculars, officer's tablet, officer's waist belt with machine gun pouches. On the jacket there is the Iron Cross of the 1st class and the Badge of the Assault Participant. Armament: MP40 submachine gun.
2. Major General in a uniform tunic. 1936 General's cap. Breeches with stripes. On the tunic there is the Iron Cross of the 1st class with a 1939 fastener and the straps of the Iron Cross of the 2nd class. Military Merit Cross II class with swords, the so-called “Eastern Medal” (for the winter campaign of 1941-1942) and Long Service Medals.
3. Chief lieutenant in an officer's overcoat and cap. Weapon: Walter P38 pistol.

GERMAN SUMMER CAMOUFLAGE UNIT

From left to right:
1. German soldier in mesh camouflage. Field uniform (model 1943). Helmet arr. 1942 with rope net. Equipment - rifle pouches, bayonet, gas mask with anti-mustard cape. The soldier is armed with a Mauser K98k carbine.
2. German soldier in a raincoat (model 1931). The helmet has a camouflage cover. On the waist belt there are automatic pouches with a pocket for the reloading mechanism. Armament: M24 grenade and MP40 submachine gun.
3. German soldier in a camouflage anorak blouse (model 1942). The helmet has leaf camouflage. Standard infantry equipment with rifle pouches, small sapper shovel, gas mask. Armament - Mauser K98k carbine and Panzerfaust 30 m (type 2).
4. Steel helmet (model 1942) with wire mesh.

GERMAN WINTER CAMOUFLAGE UNIT

1. A German non-commissioned officer in a double-sided insulated suit, a helmet, painted white, with a pipe liner.” Binoculars, flashlight, bowler hat, machine gun pouches. Winter boots. Armament - MP40 submachine gun.
2. A German soldier in a two-piece winter camouflage suit. For a cap (sample I938). wearing a woolen scarf confiscated from the civilian population. The soldier is armed with M24 and M39 grenades and a Mauser K98k carbine.
3. A soldier in a winter light camouflage blouse. A piece of white fabric is attached to the helmet with an elastic band or twine. Headphones. Overcoat arr. 1940 Guard bots. Armament: Mauser K98k carbine.

UNIFORMS OF GENERAL STAFF OFFICERS, SIGNALS OFFICERS AND MOTORCYCLISTS

1. German captain - division intelligence chief (3rd officer of the General Staff). Officer's field jacket (model 1936 with aiguillette. Cap with crimson piping. Breeches with crimson piping. On the jacket there is a Wound Badge and straps of the Iron Cross II class and the "Eastern Medal".
2. A German soldier of a telephone-cable company of a communications battalion of an infantry division with a reel of light cable. Field uniform (model 1936). Cap (model 1938). The piping of the shoulder straps and the corner on the cap are military color.
3. Motorcyclist in a rubberized raincoat. Steel helmet with goggles. Waist belt with rifle pouches. On the neck is a gas mask with an antiseptic cape.