Waffenfarbe (Austria)

Waffenfarbe(n), also Egalisierungsfarbe(n) (en: corps colours or egalisation colours | i.e. colours to, on, or/and of service uniforms) are colors that communicate the rank and arm of service for members of the Federal Army of the Republic of Austria (de: Bundesheer der Republik Österreich) and the police. They are also referred to as Kragenspiegel (en: collar patches or gorget patches).

Austrian Guard Company showing basic colours of the Austrian uniform and Guards Waffenfarbe.

History

In 1920/21 the Austrian Federal Army of the First Republic adopted German Reichswehr uniforms along with the corps colours. Two colours were changed during the transition: the Austrian infantry assumed a grass-green colour and the Austrian hunter troops adopted yellow-green (German colours were white for the infantry and hunter-green for the hunter troops). A new uniform was introduced in 1933 modeled on those worn by the Austro-Hungarian Land forces from 1867–1914. The so-called k.u.k. "Adjustierungsvorschrift" (en: service dress instruction) contains the colour pattern tables from the year 1912 and regulated the Egalisierungsfarben to be worn.

Synoptic table and examples

The table below contains some corps colours as used by the Austrian Federal Army.

Troops, unit, appointment Corps colour Example
(Paroli)
Ranks		 Remark
Guards scharlachrot mit weißem Vorstoß
(en: scarlet(-red) with white edging strip)		       OR-8[1] Oberstabswachtmeister
     
  • Jagdkommando
    (en: skirmishing command)
  • Heeresportzentrum
    (Army sports centre)
 gelbgün (yellow-green)       OR-3 Korporal
Jäger
(rifleman)		 grasgrün (meadow green)       OF-1a Oberleutnant
  • Panzer (armour)
  • Panzergrenadiere
    (panzergrenadiers)
 schwarz (black)       OF-1b Leutnant
Aufklärer
(reconnaissance)		 gelb (yellow)       OR-7 Stabswachtmeister
Theresian Military Academy rot
(red)		       OF-D Fähnrich
  • Artillery
  • Air defence
  • AD academy
 OR-9 Offizierstellvertreter
Engineer troops stahlgrün
(steel green)		       OR-4 Zugsführer
NBC-Defence hechtgrau
(pike grey)		       OR-2 Gefreiter
Communicators rostbraun
(rust brown)		       OR-9 Vizeleutnant
Aviators
(e.g. pilots)		 violett
(violet)		       OR-5 Wachtmeister
Technical service braun
(brown)		       OF-2 Hauptmann
Higher mil. technical service braun mit rotem Vorstoß
(en: brown with red edging strip)		       N/A
     
Higher mil. expert service rot-blau
(en: red blue)		       OF-3 Major
     
General staff service red-black       N/A
     
Intendance service green deep-red       N/A
     
Logistic deep-blue       N/A
Mil. medical service (human medicine) blue black       OF-3 Majorarzt
     
Mil. medical service (veterinary medicine) deep-red black       OF-5 Oberstveterinär
     
Mil. medical service (pharmacology) lilac black       N/A
     
Medical service sky blue       OR-6 Oberwachtmeister
Wirtschaftsdienst
(support service)		  light blue
(index #007BA7)		   OF-4 Oberstleutnant
General officers gold (colour) OF-9 General rank insignia on peaked cap left
basic colours of the uniforms
  • jacket: field grey
  • trousers: stone grey
       OR-2 Gefreiter
     
See also main article
Ranks of the Austrian Bundesheer

Synoptic table and examples to beret colours

One of the features of person in uniform of the Austrian Bundesheer is the beret. Normally, it will be worn to the dress uniform or on special occasions to the field suit. Exempted are only members of the Air Force and the Gebirgsjäger (en: mountain infantry) with an own headgear. The colour of the particular beret corresponds to the appropriate branch of service and/or the particular unit or formation. The colour of the Bundesadler (en: federal eagle) and the eagle double-wing on berets is as follows:

  • grey metallic - recruits and charges (OR-1 to OR-4)
  • silver - NCOs (OR-5 to OR-9)
  • gold - officers (OR-1 to OF-5)
  • gold on red background - general officers (OF-6 to OF-9)
Troops, unit, appointment Caps colour Example Remark, mainly use
jaegergreun (rifleman-green)      
  • Infantrymen (not: Jägerbataillon 25)
  • members of the territorial organization
  • military schools and academy (not: Heereslogistikschule)
schwarz (black)       members of the armored corps, most members of the 3rd - and 4th Mechanized infantry brigade. The image shows an armored officer's beret with golden federal eagle
Garde (guards) scharlachrot (scarlet-red)       members of the Guards battalion
Red beret rot (red)       members of 25th Jaegerbataillon in Klagenfurt.
Coral-red beret Korallrot (coral-red)       members of the military patrols and military police
Rusty-brown beret Rostbaraun (rusty-brown)       members of the combat support troops
Pike-grey beret Hechtgrau (pike-grez)       members of the NBC-defence school and the "Austrian Forces Disaster Relief Unit"
Dark-blue beret Dunkelblau (dark-blue)       members of the Army logistics school, Combat support command (with all subordinate elements), and the Military medical centre
Yellow-green beret Gelbgruen (yellow-green)       Federal army top-performance athletes (de: Bundesheer-Leistungssportler) of the Army sports centre (de: Heeres-Sportzentrum)
Olive-green beret
(with federal eagle)		 Olivegruen
(olive-green)		       members of the Skirmishing command (basic level – characterised by the federal eagle)
Olive-green beret
(with Skirmishing patrol badge)		 members of the Skirmishing command that passed the basic Skirmishing command trainings course (advanced level – the federal eagle is replaced by the Skirmishing command badge)
Blue UN-beret UN-blue       soldiers on duty to -, contract of -, or by order of the United Nations.

Federal police

The Bundespolizei uses corps colours on the so-called distingtion (en: rank insignia) and peaked cap (de: Tellerkappe):

  • usually and police paspore: Krapprot
  • higher service (police legal advisor and public health official): Bordeauxviolett (bordeaux red)

K.u.k. Egalisation colours
K.u.k. Adjustation instruction (de: Adjustierungsvorschrift), edition 1912.

The so-called "Adjustierungsvorschrift" (en: service dress instruction) contains the colour pattern tables from the year 1912. The name ″Egalisierung″ consists of uniform colour at the one hand, and corps colour, egalisation colour (de: Waffenfarbe) or badge colour at the other hand. The system was extremely complicated and was called by slang Farbkastel (en: paint box). Ultimately, in the k.u.k. common army it was very difficult to distinguish the 102 infantry regiments from Hussars, Lancers or Dragoons, as well as services, service branches, special services, appointments, etc.

  • Farbkastel (egalisation colours) of the k.u.k. armed forces
  • table 1
  • table 2
  • table 3
  • table 4
  • table 5
  • table 6
See also
Main article: Rank insignia of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces


See also

References
  1. The abbreviation "OR" stands for "Other Ranks / fr: sous-officiers et militaires du rang / ru:другие ранги, кроме офицероф"
  • Glossary of German military terms
  • Adolf Schlicht, John R. Angolia: Die deutsche Wehrmacht, Uniformierung und Ausrüstung 1933-1945
    Vol. 1: Das Heer (ISBN 3613013908), Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 1992
    Vol. 3: Die Luftwaffe (ISBN 3-613-02001-7), Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 1999
    (very detailed information and discussion but no coloured images)

Sources
  • Schriften des Heeresgeschichtlifhen Museums in Wien Das k.u.k. Heer im Jahre 1895 Edition Leopold Stocker Graz 1997 ISBN 3-7020-0783-0
  • Rest,Ortner,Illming Des Kaisers Rock im 1. Weltkrieg Edition Militaria Vienna 2002 ISBN 3-9501642-0-0
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