Military Uniforms of World War II

US Marine Corps Captain 1st Provisional Marine Brigade, Iceland 1941-1942.

2012-08-03T16:26:00.000-07:00

US Marine Corps Captain (1st Provisional Marine Brigade), Iceland - United States occupation force 1941-1942.

Iceland signed a defense agreement with the United States in which United States troops would be stationed on the island nation. The U.S. Marine Corps hastily assembled the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade in Charleston, South Carolina, to move to Iceland as part of the agreement. The brigade was first activated on 14 July 1941. Its elements were taken from the 2nd Marine Division, which was training at Marine Corps Base San Diego and Camp Elliott, both in San Diego, California. This brought the force up to a strength of 4,095 men. They were the first of 28,000 men occupying Iceland under Major General Holland M. Smith and his 1st Marine Division. While the 1st Marine Division was building its forces, though, the Provisional Brigade would hold Iceland. However, priorities soon changed and the 1st Marine Division was moved elsewhere. The 1st Provisional Marine Brigade was instead joined by units of the United States Army.

US Naval aviator USS Enterprise, Pacific Ocean World War II, 1941.

2012-08-03T16:09:00.000-07:00

US Navy Lieutenant Naval aviator USS Enterprise, Pacific Ocean theatre of World War II, 1941.
USS Enterprise (CV-6), colloquially referred to as the "Big E," was the sixth aircraft carrier of the United States Navy.

US Marines - Private, 1st Marine Defense Battalion, Wake Island Defenders 1941.

2012-08-03T15:56:00.000-07:00

U.S. Marines - Private, 1st Marine Defense Battalion, The defense of Wake Island December 1941.

Marine defense battalions were United States Marine Corps battalions charged with coastal defense of various naval bases in the Pacific during World War II. They maintained large anti-ship guns, anti-aircraft guns, searchlights, and small arms to repel landing forces.

The defense battalions were first conceived from the fixed defense concept during the Marine Corps's, as well the United States Navy's, critical change in their traditional sea service role to a more 'aggressive' amphibious landing force. They conducted "fixed" defense exercises on Culebra Island of Puerto Rico throughout the first half of the 20th century, and other areas around the Caribbean.

The first battalions were created in 1939, when the outbreak of World War II caused concerns that overseas bases might be attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy.[2] After the attack on Pearl Harbor, where defenders shot down three planes on December 7, 1941, the battalions grew rapidly. On December 8, the Japanese began an assault on Wake Island, and the defenders surrendered after a prolonged battle on December 23.

German Hitler Jugend Flak unit, 1944.

2012-07-19T15:14:00.000-07:00

German Hitler Jugend Flak unit

World War 2 German Hitler Jugend Flak unit Auxiliary, Leipzig September 1944.

The Hitler Youth (German: Hitler-Jugend , abbreviated HJ) was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It existed from 1922 to 1945.

WWII German Luftwaffe Ace Pilot, Major, Stukageschwader 2, 1944.

2012-07-19T13:22:00.000-07:00

German Luftwaffe Ace Pilot, Stukageschwader 2

WWII German Luftwaffe Ace Pilot, Major, Stukageschwader 2, Eastern Front August 1944.

Schlachtgeschwader 2 (SG 2) Immelmann was a Luftwaffe Dive bomber-wing of World War II. It was named after Max Immelmann,the first German pilot to earn the Pour le Mérite.

This close-support Stuka unit fought principally in the southern sector of the Eastern Front in places like Stalingrad and the Caucasus. The early two Schlachtgeschwader 1 and 2 were abbreviated SchlG, the reformed Stukageschwader in 1943 were abbreviated SG. The 4 SchlG Gruppen were integrated into the former Stuka- (StG) and Schnellkampfgeschwader (SKG) to form SG 2, 4, 77 and 10.

German Navy Kriegsmarine seaman, Kiel August 1944.

2012-07-18T15:02:00.000-07:00

WWII German Navy Kriegsmarine Petty Officer, Kiel August 1944.

WW 2 German Panzergrenadier SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, Normandy 1944.

2012-07-18T14:45:00.000-07:00

WW2 German Panzergrenadier Waffen-SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend

World War 2 German Waffen-SS Panzergrenadier 12th Panzer Division Hitlerjugend Private, Normandy campaign June 1944.

The 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend ("Hitler Youth") was a German Waffen SS armoured division during World War II. The Hitlerjugend was unique because the majority of its junior enlisted men were drawn from members of the Hitler Youth, while the senior NCOs and officers were generally veterans of the Eastern Front.

The division, with 20,540 personnel, first saw action on 7 June 1944 as part of the German defense of the Caen area during the Normandy campaign. The battle for Normandy took its toll on the division and it came out of the Falaise pocket with a divisional strength of 12,000 men.

German 916th Grenadier Regiment, Normandy - Omaha Beach 1944.

2012-07-18T14:32:00.000-07:00

German Grenadier Normandy - Omaha Beach 1944

WWII German 916th Grenadier Regiment Senior Sergeant, Normandy - Omaha Beach D-Day June 1944.

Grenadier Regiment 916 was an infantry regiment of the Wehrmacht from 1943 until 1945.
It was set up in the area around Saint-Lô and then sent to Omaha Beach in December 1943.
Grenadier Regiment 916 was split up in the Omaha Beach area and fought against the United States 29th and 1st infantry divisions on D-Day. The Headquarter of the Regiment was in Trévières. The companies were close to the Villages: Vierville, St. Laurent, Colleville-sur-Mer as second line to counterattack the Allied forces once they landed.
The 916th withdrew on 8 June from the Omaha Beach area and made the retreat to Saint-Lô. Fighting the US Divisions with only rifles, machine guns and handgrenades. Very little supply reached the combatants. Soldiers of the Regiment can be found at the German war cemetery at La Cambe in Normandy.

WWII German Soldier - 389th Infantry Division, Stalingrad 1943.

2012-07-18T13:46:00.000-07:00

German Soldier Stalingrad

World War II German Army - 389th Infantry Division Private, Eastern Front Battle of Stalingrad February 1943.

German Waffen-SS Soldier 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, 1943.

2012-07-17T14:11:00.000-07:00

German Waffen-SS Soldier 1st SS Division Leibstandarte

World War 2 German Waffen-SS Soldier 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, Poland April 1943.

The Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH) was Adolf Hitler's personal bodyguard. Initially the size of a regiment, the LSSAH eventually grew into an elite divisional-sized unit. The term Leibstandarte was derived partly from Leibgarde "Life Guard" – a somewhat archaic German expression for the personal bodyguard of a military leader - and Standarte: the Schutzstaffel (SS) or Sturmabteilung (SA) term for a regiment-sized unit.

The LSSAH independently participated in combat during the invasion of Poland, and was amalgamated into the Waffen-SS together with the SS-Verfügungstruppe (SS-VT) and the combat units of the SS-Totenkopfverbände (SS-TV) prior to Operation Barbarossa in 1941. By the end of World War II it had been increased in size from a regiment to a Panzer division. The Leibstandarte division's symbol was a skeleton key, in honour of its first commander, Josef "Sepp" Dietrich (Dietrich is German for skeleton key or lock pick), and it was retained and modified to later serve as the symbol for I SS Panzer Corps. The elite division, a component of the Waffen-SS, was found guilty of war crimes in the Nuremberg Trials. Members of the LSSAH participated in numerous atrocities. They murdered at least an estimated 5,000 prisoners of war in the period 1940–1945, mostly on the Eastern Front.

German Army - Panzer Grenadier Division GrossDeutschland, 1943.

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German Army - Panzer Grenadier Division GrossDeutschland

World War II German Army - Panzer Grenadier Division GrossDeutschland Sergeant, Eastern Front Battle of Kursk - Operation Citadel July 1943.

The Großdeutschland Division was an elite Heer combat unit of the Wehrmacht. The Großdeutschland was considered to be the premier unit of the German Army and as such it was one of best-equipped unit of the German Armed Forces, receiving equipment before all other units.

WWII German TankMan 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich, 1943.

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German TankMan 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich

WWII German TankMan 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich Corporal, Eastern Front - Third Battle of Kharkov June 1943.

The 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich was a Waffen-SS division during World War II. It is considered to be an elite formation amongst the thirty-eight divisions fielded by the Waffen-SS.

It served during the invasion of France and took part in several major battles on the Eastern Front (particularly in the Battle of Prokhorovka against the 5th Guards Tank Army at the titanic Battle of Kursk). Afterwards, it was transferred to the West and took part in the fighting in Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge, ending the war with the last, desperate fighting in Hungary and Austria.

The symbol for the Das Reich division was the wolf's hook, or Wolfsangel. As a whole, the Waffen-SS was found guilty of war crimes in the Nuremberg tribunal, with Das Reich itself being notorious for the Oradour-sur-Glane massacre.

German Army - French Volunteer Legion Private, 1943.

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French Volunteer Legion

German Army French Volunteer Legion Private, Ukraine June 1943.

The Legion of French Volunteers Against Bolshevism (French: Légion des Volontaires Français contre le Bolchévisme, or simply Légion des Volontaires Français, LVF) was a collaborationist French militia founded on July 8, 1941. It had no formal link with the Vichy regime, even though it was recognized as an "association of public usefulness" by Pierre Laval's government in February 1943. Philippe Pétain, head of state of Vichy France, personally disapproved of Frenchmen wearing German uniforms and never went beyond individual and informal words of support to some specific officers.

It volunteered to fight against the USSR on the Eastern Front. It was officially known to the Germans as Infantry Regiment (Infanterieregiment) 638.

In October 1941, a French infantry regiment, 2,452 men strong, crossed the frontier of the Soviet Union as part of the foreign contingent of the German invasion force.

During the spring of 1942, the Legion of French Volunteers was reorganized with only the 1st and 3rd battalions and spent the rest of its tour of duty on the Eastern Front fighting partisans in the rear areas.

In June 1943, the two independent battalions were again united in a single regiment and continued fighting partisans in Ukraine.

On 1 September 1944, the Legion of French Volunteers was officially disbanded. It merged with the Milice to create the SS Charlemagne Division.

WWII German forces Luftwaffe - 1st Parachute Division paratrooper Sergeant-Major.

2012-07-17T12:55:00.000-07:00

Luftwaffe - 1st Parachute Division paratrooper

WWII German forces Luftwaffe - 1st Parachute Division paratrooper Sergeant-Major (1st Fallschirmjäger Division), Italy June 1943.

The German 1st Parachute Division (German: 1. Fallschirmjägerdivision) was a German elite military parachute-landing Division that fought during World War II. A division of paratroopers was termed a Fallschirmjäger Division. It was originally raised as the 7th Flieger-Division, or Air Division, before being renamed and reorganized as the 1st Fallschirmjäger Division in 1943.

WWII German forces Luftwaffe - Hermann Göring Panzer Division paratrooper Corporal.

2012-07-17T12:45:00.001-07:00

Luftwaffe - Hermann Göring Panzer Division paratrooper

WWII German forces Luftwaffe - Hermann Göring Panzer Division paratrooper Corporal, North African Campaign Mareth Line March 1943.

The Fallschirm Panzer Division 1. Hermann Göring (1st Paratroop Panzer Division Hermann Göring - abbreviated Fallschirm-Panzer-Div 1 HG) was an élite German Luftwaffe armoured division. The HG saw action in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and on the Eastern front. The division was the creation of Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring and increased in size throughout the war from an Abteilung (battalion) to a Panzer corps.

The Mareth Line was a system of fortifications built by the French between the towns of Medenine and Gabès in southern Tunisia, prior to World War II. It was designed to defend against attacks from the Italians in Libya, but following the Fall of France and Operation Torch it fell into Axis hands and was used by the Italians and Germans to defend against the British instead.

WWII Blue Division Infantryman - Spanish Volunteer.

2012-07-17T04:06:00.000-07:00

Blue Division - Spanish Volunteers

WWII Russian front Blue Division Infantryman - Spanish Volunteer, Ukraine June 1942

The Blue Division (Spanish: División Azul, German: Blaue Division, officially designated as División Española de Voluntarios by the Spanish Army and 250. Infanterie-Division in the German Army,) was a unit of Spanish and Portuguese volunteers that served in the German Army on the Eastern Front of the Second World War.

WWII German Luftwaffe Ace Pilot, Captain.

2012-07-17T03:39:00.000-07:00

German Luftwaffe Ace Pilot

WWII German Luftwaffe Ace Pilot, Captain, Luftwaffe Fighter unit, Eastern Front Ukraine March 1942

German tankman, Lance-Corporal, Panzer Lehr Division.

2012-07-17T03:26:00.000-07:00

German tank man Panzer Lehr Division

German tank man, Lance-Corporal, Panzer Lehr Division.

The Panzer Lehr Division, commonly known as Panzer Lehr, was a German armored division during World War II, one of the most elite units in the entire German Wehrmacht. It was formed in 1943 from various units of elite training and demonstration troops (Lehr = "teach") stationed in Germany, to provide additional armored strength for resisting the anticipated Allied invasion of western Europe. Its great weakness was that it concentrated the cream of Germany's tank commanders/instructors in a single unit. Due to its elite status it was lavishly equipped in comparison to the ordinary Panzer divisions, though on several occasions it fought almost to destruction, in particular during Operation Cobra.

Panzer Lehr is occasionally referred to as the 130 Panzer Lehr Division, since a number of its constituent units were numbered 130, and in most other Panzer divisions those units were numbered to match the division's number.

German Corporal 15th Panzer Division Afrika Korps, North Africa 1941 July.

2012-07-17T03:18:00.000-07:00

Afrika Korps, 15th Panzer Division

World War II Corporal 15th Panzer Division German Africa Corps (Afrika Korps), North Africa 1941 July.
The 33rd Infantry Division (later the 15th Panzer Division and the 15th Panzergrenadier Division) was part of the Heer, or German Army during World War II.

WWII German Tankman, 1st Panzer Regiment, France May 1940.

2012-07-17T03:06:00.000-07:00

German Tankman, 1st Panzer Division Wehrmacht

WWII German Wehrmacht Tank man, 1st Panzer Division, France May 1940.

The German 1st Panzer Division was an elite armoured division in the German Army during World War II. Its divisional insignia was a white oakleaf emblem.

The 1st Panzer Division was formed on October 15, 1935 from the 3rd Cavalry Division, and was headquartered in Weimar. Initially it consisted of two panzer regiments organized into brigades, a motorized infantry brigade, a reconnaissance battalion, a divisional artillery regiment, and supporting ancillary formations.

In 1938 the division participated in training exercises with the XVI Corps, a fully motorized formation. By the start of the Polish Campaign in September 1939, the 1st Panzer Division was one of six panzer divisions in the Wehrmacht. It was deployed with the XVI Corps, Tenth Army, Army Group South, in the upper Silesia region.

XVI Corps, with the 1st and 4th Panzer Divisions, drove northeast into Poland, rapidly penetrating toward Warsaw. In September 16–20 they eliminated a Polish counter-attack along the river Bzura. With the double-encirclement of the Polish Army by the panzer divisions, resistance soon came to an end.

In May 1940 the 1st Panzer Division joined Guderian's XIX Corps for the advance into France through the Ardennes forest. The corps achieved a decisive breakthrough at Sedan and by May 16 the panzer formations were advancing rapidly toward the English Channel coast. First Panzer Division came within 25 km of Dunkirk despite determined British resistance, but was ordered to stop by Hitler.

WW2 German Paratroopers Uniform Fallschirmjäger.

2012-07-16T15:35:00.000-07:00

Wehrmacht Luftwaffe Fallschirmjäger Paratroopers

German Wehrmacht Luftwaffe Paratroopers, NCO 1st Fallschirmjäger Regiment, Belgium May 1940.

Fallschirmjäger are German paratroopers. They played an important role during World War II, when, together with the Gebirgsjäger they were perceived as the elite infantry units of the German Wehrmacht.

German Corporal, Infantry Regiment, Poland September 1939.

2012-07-16T15:22:00.000-07:00

Corporal German Infantry Regiment

WWII German Corporal, Infantry Regiment, The German Invasion of Poland with the codename Operation Fall Weiss (English - Case White) 1 September 1939.

German Luftwaffe Pilot, Lieutenant, Jagdgeschwader 26, 1940.

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German Luftwaffe Pilot, Jagdgeschwader 26

German Luftwaffe Pilot, Lieutenant, Jagdgeschwader 26, Pas de Calais September 1940.

Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26) Schlageter was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. It operated mainly in Western Europe against Great Britain, France the United States but also saw service against Russia. It was named after Albert Leo Schlageter, a World War I veteran and Freikorps member arrested and executed by the French for sabotage in 1923.

German Major Pilot of Luftflotte 2

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German Pilot

World War II German Pilot Major, Luftflotte 2, Bomber unit, France June 1940.

Luftflotte 2 (Air Fleet 2) was one of the primary divisions of the German Luftwaffe in World War II. It was formed February 1, 1939 in Braunschweig and transferred to Italy on November 15, 1941. The Luftflotte was disbanded on September 27, 1944.

German Legion Condor Pilot, Spanish Civil War.

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German Legion Condor Pilot

German Military Air force Pilot, Condor Legion, First fought in the Spanish Civil War, Madrid May 1939.

The Condor Legion (German: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of volunteers from the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) and from the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer) which served with the Nationalists during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legion developed methods of terror bombing which were used widely in the Second World War shortly afterwards. The bombing of Guernica was the most infamous operation carried out by the Condor Legion during this period. Hugo Sperrle commanded the aircraft units of the Condor Legion and Wilhelm Ritter von Thoma commanded the ground units.