Germany

Germany was one of the greatest innovators of military camouflage in the Second World War, and a complete history of WW2 era German military camouflage can be found in the seperate article on Germany (Third Reich). Although rebuilt and trained largely under the auspices of Allied nations (particularly the United States and Great Britain), the West German Army nonetheless quickly embraced many of her predecessor's military traditions, including a healthy interest in the employment of camouflage uniforms. Initially, the Germans experimented with and modified a number of WW2 era patterns, including Leibermuster, Sumpfmuster, and variations of the Wehrmacht Splittermuster. Nevertheless, the majority of the German Army remained outfitted in olive drab for the next twenty-five or more years, in keeping with unofficial NATO standards.

A renewed period of interest in camouflage arose in the mid-1970s and led to the Bundeswehr Truppenversuch 76, or German Army Uniform Trials of 1976. The work leading up to these trials produced a number of camouflage patterns, including the Sägezahnmuster ("saw tooth" pattern), Punktmuster ("dot pattern") and three variations of a pattern called Flecktarn (from the German Fleck, or spot, and Tarnung, or pattern). The three flecktarn patterns are generally known as Flecktarn A (klein)/(small), Flecktarn B (groß)/(large), and Flecktarn C (Schattenmuster)/(shadow pattern). Nevertheless, adoption and implementation of a general service camouflage uniform for the German Army did not occur until 1990, following a second series of combat uniform trials, the Bundeswehr Truppenversuch 89. German Flecktarn camouflage has since become a highly effective and influential pattern, spawning a large number of derivative patterns in use by countries as diverse as Denmark, Japan, Poland, China, and Belgium. Germany itself has produced tropical and desert variations of the basic pattern as well, and continues to use the pattern despite a widespread international fascination with so-called digital or pixelated patterns.

German Army Camouflage Patterns

• One of the last camouflage patterns implemented by the German Army during WW2 was Leibermuster. Although never fully implemented by the Nazis, the pattern apparently retained an enthusiastic following within the German Army after the war and was in fact produced in limited quantities by a Belgian military firm for the Bundeswehr in the 1955-56 time frame. As with the wartime uniforms, the BW version was never fully implemented.

• At approximately the same time, another WW2 era pattern - Splitternmuster ("splinter pattern") - was given new life as a possible general purpose uniform for the Bundeswehr. Although retaining many of the original characteristics of the Wehrmacht pattern, the 1956 version can be distinguished from the wartime era design by prominent white patches, indicating an intentional slippage of the print screens during production. Produced between 1956 and 1960, the pattern was also never fully-implemented into the Bundeswehr, although it did see use with a number of infantry and airborne units during its relatively brief life. There were, in fact, at least two distinctive color variations of the BW Splittertarn camouflage, having either a pale blue or a pale green background color. It is unknown whether these variations were intentional or simply a product of mistaken dye lots or different manufacturers.

• A variant of the Splittermuster pattern employs much larger and more prominent rain flecks. This pattern, Bundeswehr Splittermuster - starke, incorporates grass green and brown splintered shapes on a grey-green background, with an overlapping pattern of thick black rain straits. Also utilized by both infantry and paratrooper units, evidence suggests that far fewer uniforms were produced in this pattern, it being much less commonly encountered.

• The only general purpose item of camouflage to make it into the Bundeswehr supply system during its early years was a reversible Zeltbahn (shelter half). Possibly created by combining elements of both WW2 Wehrmacht and SS pattern camouflage designs, the BW Zelt-tarnmuster is nevertheless a fairly unique design. One side (Sommer/summer) consists of black, dark olive & tan amoebic shapes over a splintered background pattern of light and medium olive green, while the other side (Herbst/autumn) features black, russet & tan amoebic shapes over olive green & beige splintered pattern background. Although custom-made helmet covers were made, the only officially-produced item in either pattern was the shelter, which could be worn also as a poncho with a detachable hood that also served as a carrying pouch for the folded zelt.

Patterns used by (West) Germany after 1945:

• Flecktarn