Uniforms The first military units of the Central Training Administration () were dressed in police blue. With the restructuring of the Barracked Police (CIP) in 1952, khaki uniforms similar in shape and colour to those of the
Soviet Army were introduced. The desire for a separate "German" and "socialist" military tradition, and the consequent founding of the NVA in 1956, introduced new uniforms which strongly resembled those of the . They were of a similar cut and made of a brownish-gray, called
stone gray, cloth. The dark high-necked collar was later removed, except on the coats from 1974 to 1979. Even the NVA's M-56 "gumdrop"
army helmet, in spite of its easily noticeable resemblance to well-known Soviet designs, was actually based on a prototype "B / II" helmet that was initially developed for the by the Institute for Defence Technical Materials Science in Berlin. The helmet had seen trials since 1943, but was not adopted by the . With the exceptions of the People's Navy, whose dark-blue uniforms were consistent with the styles of most navies around the world, and the
Combat Groups of the Working Class (), who wore their own olive-green fatigue uniforms, all NVA armed services, the Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment, the
Border Troops of the German Democratic Republic, and the wore the same basic uniform. Several later modifications were introduced, but the style and cut remain fundamentally the same. There were a variety of uniforms worn according to the setting (work or social) and season (summer or winter). Most uniforms (service, semi-dress, and parade) were stone grey, a brownish-grey colour that was conspicuously different from the grey-green of the
People's Police. Officers' uniforms differed from those of enlisted personnel by better quality and texture cloth. The field and service uniforms were normal attire for most day-to-day functions.
Uniform categories Several basic categories of uniforms were worn: and members of the
Combat Groups of the Working Class at the border of the Berlin sector on 14 August 1961
Parade uniform () The parade uniform for ground forces and air force officers was the semi-dress/walking-out tunic with all authorized orders, awards and decorations attached,
breeches and
riding boots, steel helmet, white shirt, dark-gray necktie, and a ceremonial dagger worn on the left side and fastened to a silver-gray parade belt. Officers in guards of honor, as well as the officer faculty of cadet schools when on parade, carried sabers. General officers wore the peaked cap with the parade dress. In winter, a
greatcoat, scarf, and gloves were worn with it. Naval officers and petty officers and up wore dark blue uniforms with a peaked cap while junior ratings wore sailor caps.
Service uniform () The summer service uniform for officers was a bloused
jacket, called a Hemdbluse, worn with a shirt, trousers, and a visored service cap. The winter service uniform featured a tunic with four large buttoned-down patch pockets, a black waist belt, the service cap, breeches, shirt, tie, and pants belt; high boots were reserved for officers and NCOs. A long, heavy, belted greatcoat was also part of the winter uniform.
Semi-dress/walking-out uniform () With a few details, the semi-dress uniform was the same for all ranks and was worn for walking-out purposes (i.e. off-duty and off-post). It consisted of a single-breasted tunic without belt, a silver-gray shirt with dark-gray tie, the service cap, long trousers, and black low-quarter shoes. Officers also wore the tunic with a white shirt. During periods of warm weather, there was the option of omitting the tunic, and furthermore omitting the tie. A double-breasted jacket was optional for officers and warrant officers.
Field service uniform () The summer field uniform for both officers and enlisted consisted of a jacket and trousers originally in and then in , a dark-brown (later a forest green) raindrop camouflage pattern on a stone-gray background; a field cap, service cap, or
steel helmet; high black boots; and a gray webbing belt with y-strap suspenders. In winter, a quilted stone gray padded suit without a camouflage pattern was worn over the service uniform. Later winter uniforms were also of the same camouflage pattern as the summer variant. The winter uniform also included a fur
pile cap or a steel helmet, boots, knitted gray gloves, belt, and suspenders.
Work uniform () Seasonal considerations and weather governed the kind of work uniforms worn. Generally, reconditioned articles of service uniforms (field, semi-dress, and padded winter uniforms) were dyed black and issued for all types of fatigue and maintenance details.
Coveralls are also used by the lower ranks, especially armor and air force personnel. Officers in technical branches supervising fatigue details wore a
laboratory-style smock.
Other uniforms '' uniform High-ranking officers occasionally wore white uniforms (or white jackets), and staff officers were issued distinctive staff service uniforms. Women wore uniforms consisting of jackets, skirts or slacks, blouses, caps, boots or pumps, and other appropriate items according to season and occasion. Personnel, such as
paratroopers, motorcyclists, and tank troops, wore additional items with their uniforms identifying them as such. The parachute units of NVA used Polish
wz. 63 helmets.
NVA personnel initially wore the as worn by the , but later reverted to white except for generals who wore red. The uniforms of the Border Troops were distinguished from that of the NVA ground force and Air Force/Air Defense Force by a green armband with large silver letters identifying the wearer's affiliation. Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment uniforms were nearly identical to those of the NVA and were distinguished primarily by the dark red MfS service color of its insignia and by an honorary cuff-band on the left sleeve bearing the regiment's name. Other
Stasi officers wore a similar uniform, but without the cuff-band.
Rank insignia NVA personnel displayed their rank insignia on shoulder boards or shoulder loops on service, semi-dress, and parade uniforms, and subdued sleeve insignia midway between the shoulder and elbow on the left sleeve of the field uniform, coveralls, or other special uniforms. A general officer rank was denoted by five-pointed silver stars mounted on a gold and silver braided shoulder cord set on a bright red base. All other officers and NCOs wore a four-pointed star. Like many of the armies of the other Warsaw Pact countries, NVA rank insignia followed the Soviet pattern in the arrangement of stars. The followed similar shoulder insignia for the naval officers (who also used sleeve insignia) and enlisted ratings except that these were blue and white or yellow (in the case of naval ratings).
Awards and decorations The DDR had some seventy decorations for persons or groups it wished to recognize, and it bestowed them liberally. Some, such as battle decorations, were specifically set aside for armed forces personnel, many awarded to soldiers and civilians alike, and others, although ordinarily civilian awards, can on occasion be earned by those on military duty. The latter group included decorations for achievement in the arts, literature, production, and work methods. They were awarded to service personnel or specific units that participated in
civil production projects or assisted during harvesting. The
Order of Karl Marx,
Patriotic Order of Merit,
Star of People's Friendship,
Banner of Labor,
Order of Scharnhorst, and the
National Prize were among the more important awards. Some, including the Order of Merit and the Star of People's Friendship, were awarded in three classes. A few were accompanied by substantial monetary premiums. The NVA did not permit military personnel to wear awards and decorations. == Periodicals ==