BACKGROUND: German Naval uniforms and headgear were based on traditional designs that date back to the creation of the Prussian Navy in 1848, and although uniforms and headgear did evolve during the interim years many items used during the Third Reich would still have been quite recognizable to the Imperial sailor. The Kriegsmarine adopted a slightly modified version of the NSDAP’s, Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, (National Socialist German Worker’s Party), national eagle for wear on the front of the headgear and the right breast of the uniform on March 24TH 1934. The Kriegsmarine’s version of the national eagle was identical to the army version except for the coloration with the army utilizing silver, white and grey eagles while the Kriegsmarine utilized golden yellow eagles. Of Note: The only exceptions in the coloration of the Kriegsmarine eagles was that personnel serving in the Administrative branch utilized a silver eagle while eagles worn on the white jumper shirts were in cornflower blue. Due to the silver insignia the Administrative personnel were contemptuously referred to as Silberlinge, (Silvered Ones). Generally officer’s ranks utilized hand embroidered headgear eagles while EM/NCO’s ranks utilized machine embroidered or machine woven headgear eagles. Beginning in 1935 Kriegsmarine land based personnel, primarily Coastal Artillery units, were issued field-grey uniforms and headgear that followed the fundamental designs of the army uniforms and headgear with minor variations. The cap eagles for the field-grey headgear was basically the same as the standard cap eagles but were worked on different colored backgrounds. The early produced breast eagles were on a dark blue/green base while later production models were on a field-grey base.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Machine woven cap eagle with out-stretched wings, clutching a wreathed, canted, swastika in it’s talons, in bright, golden yellow rayon threads on a woven, dark blue/green, rayon base. Near mint.