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Reichsmarschall

Military rank

Summary

Military rank

Field	Value
name	Reichsmarschall
image	Reichsmarschall Version 2 links.svg
image_size	100px
caption	Standard from 1941 to 1945 (left side)
image2	Luftwaffe collar tabs Reichsmarschall 3D.svg
image_size2	100px
caption2	Collar insignia
image3	Luftwaffe Reichsmarschall.svg
image_size3	50px
caption3	Shoulder boards
country	Nazi Germany
service branch
formation	12th century (historical)
19 July 1940
abolished	1945
lower rank	Generalfeldmarschall
Großadmiral

19 July 1940 Großadmiral Reichsmarschall (; ) was an honorary military rank, specially created for Hermann Göring during World War II, and the de jure highest rank in the Wehrmacht. It was senior to the rank of Generalfeldmarschall (, equivalent to field marshal, which was previously the highest rank in the Wehrmacht), but was merely a ceremonial appointment to accentuate Göring's position as Hitler's designated successor. No actual subordination of the other field marshals or a superior position of the holder followed from it. It was equivalent to General of the Armies in the United States, or Generalissimo in other countries.

History

Until July 1940, the highest rank in the German military was Generalfeldmarschall. At the beginning of World War II, the only active holder of that rank was Hermann Göring, Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe. On 19 July 1940, following the German victory in the Battle of France, Adolf Hitler held a ceremony in which he promoted twelve generals to the newly awarded rank of Generalfeldmarschall. During the same ceremony, Göring was elevated to the newly created rank of Reichsmarschall, a symbolic move to highlight his seniority over other Wehrmacht commanders and to fulfill his ambitions for prestige, though it conferred no additional authority. This was done in order to ensure that the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (, abbreviated in German to OKW), which was headed by Hitler, would retain overall control and authority over the German military.

Earlier, on the day Germany invaded Poland, Hitler designated Göring as his successor, a status underscored by a 1941 decree that empowered Göring to act as Hitler's deputy with full freedom of action in the event Hitler was incapacitated. Nevertheless, on 23 April 1945, when Göring suggested to Hitler that he assume leadership of the crumbling remains of Nazi Germany, Hitler relieved Göring of his duties and named a new successor in his last will and testament, Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz. Dönitz's appointment was made on or before the day of Hitler's suicide.

Standards

|File:Reichsmarschall Version 1 links.svg |Standard from 1940 to 1941 (left side)

|File:Reichsmarschall Version 1 rechts.svg |Standard from 1940 to 1941 (right side)

|File:Reichsmarschall Version 2 links.svg |Standard from 1941 to 1945 (left side)

|File:Reichsmarschall Version 2 rechts.svg |Standard from 1941 to 1945 (right side)

Uniform

|Mundur Goeringa.jpg |Göring's uniform shown in the Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr in Berlin

|Goering reichsmarschall baton.jpg |The original baton shown in the West Point Museum

Notes

References

Sources

References

"The History of General Officer Ranks".
(2024-10-11). "Albert Kesselring: Hitler's Go-To Guy".
(2012). "Görings Reich: Der Reichsjägermeister in der Schorfheide". Neumann-Neudamm GmbH.
(2025-04-23). "Wehrmacht {{!}} History, Branches, & Definition {{!}} Britannica".

Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

german-words-and-phrases marshals-of-germany military-of-nazi-germany military-ranks-of-germany

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