German Luftwaffe M-35 with Late Pattern Double Decals
This Model 1935 double decal helmet was worn by a German Luftwaffe soldier just prior to and during World War II. The helmet's shell is painted in blue-gray paint per regulations issued in 1938.1 It features a second pattern Luftwaffe service eagle on the left and tricolor shield on the right. This insignia helps date the helmet to pre-June 1940 regulations that called for the discontinue of the black/white/red tricolor shield.2 The interior contains a Model 1931 liner system with a 1938 stamped date on the aluminum band. Emaillierwerke A.G. in Fulda manufactured this helmet indicated by the "EF" letter code stamped on the left interior skirt.3
Luftwaffe Second Pattern Service Eagle
The Luftwaffe second pattern eagle service insignia was used on all models of German helmets from 1937 to 1945. It differs from the first pattern “droop tail” and “snake leg” decals by being larger and having a more streamlined design.
Third Reich National Tricolor
The black, white, and red national tricolors had its foundation with the North German Confederation in 1871. The German Empire continued to use the tricolor into the First World War. After the war, the newly established Weimar Republic voted to change the national colors to black, red, and gold. Many in Germany rejected this change claiming it was merely a concession to the humiliating Treaty of Versailles. Once the Nazis established power in 1933, they reintroduced the imperial black, white, and red tricolors “to establish a link with Germany’s great past and, especially in the early years of the Nazi movement, to win over nationalist groups who considered the Black-Red-Gold nothing but a thorn in their side.”1 The tricolors and Nazi party flag flew side by side until the Nazi swastika was named the sole flag of the German Third Reich after 1935. Hitler did not completely remove the black, white, and red tricolors, though. The color scheme remained prominent in Nazi insignia. The tricolor shield was ordered removed from wear on helmets in 1940, but period photographs show that some soldiers continued to wear it.2
| Germany | Interwar Period |
| Infantry Helmet | 1935 — 1940 |
| Emaillierwerke A.G., Fulda | |
| LUH-72-0109 | |
