Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice early pattern German WWII Heer Army M-36 Tunic, showing some service wear and in nice untouched condition. There does not appear to be any maker or name information inside the tunic, so it is most likely bespoke.

The tunic is made from lovely "whipcord weave" wool gabardine, in the standard Heer feldgrau (field gray) color. It features four pockets with scalloped flaps and pebbled magnetic buttons, which look to be made from pebbled nickel-plated stamped steel with aluminum backings and eyelets. The front closure features five of the same buttons on the right breast flap meeting an equal number of reinforced buttonholes on the left flap. The buttons on the tunic are sewn directly to the fabric, not attached with metal circlips, and all are maker marked on the back, showing light wear. There are also two hook and loop collar securing fasteners, which are fully functional.

The interior is lined with with a very nice olive green colored rayon cotton blend twill fabric, while the sleeves are lined with striped rayon. There is some light staining in areas, as well as some fraying and small tears. There is no hanger strap for an officer's dagger on the left side, but the tunic still has the large eyelet that opens into the left side waist pocket for a dagger hanger. It also features horizontal slash pockets on the inner left side, and there is an internal non-adjustable belt with three snaps.

The tunic is adorned with the usual rank and branch insignia used on German tunics. The attractive Army breast eagle is the correct early pattern officer's silver bullion hand embroidered type on a dark bottle green background, and is very neatly hand stitched to the chest in a fashion typical of wartime German tailor work. It is correctly attached only to the outer layer of fabric, and does not show any major wear or oxidation.

The collar is wrapped in flaschengrün (dark bottle-green) "badge cloth" wool, and has officer's litzen collar patches on each side, which are woven from silver bullion flatwire thread with a dark green background matching the collar. The colored stripes on each are Orange-gelb (Orange-yellow), the Waffenfarbe (corps color) used by both Feldgendarmerie Military Police as well as Recruiting and replacement (Wehrersatzwesen) troops. The collar is in good shape, tough there definitely is some wear around the edges, which is usually one of the first places to show damage from use. We can also see some repairs in the back of the collar where it meets the lining.

The “sew-in” style style Stabsoffizier schulterklappen (Field-grade Officer shoulder boards) of this tunic are constructed with two rows of fine silver flatware "Russia Braid" double piping, which are plaited together to form a loop around the buttonhole. They have the correct orange-yellow bottoms and edges matching the litzen. There are no rank "pips", indicating the rank of Major, a rank equivalent to a Major in the U.S. Army. We noticed some thread loops over the left breast pocket for a ribbon bar, and two on it for another award, which are not included.

Overall condition is very good, though there is some wear and staining consistent with service. Ready to out fit with medals and display!

Approximate Measurements:-
Collar to shoulder: 9"
Shoulder to sleeve: 25”
Shoulder to shoulder: 14"
Chest width: 18”
Waist: 17"
Hip: 20.5"
Front length: 28"

Field Tunic (Feldbluse) Model 1936
Terms such as M40 and M43 were never designated by the Wehrmacht, but are names given to the different versions of the Model 1936 field tunic by modern collectors, to discern between variations, as the M36 was steadily simplified and tweaked due to production time problems and combat experience.

When the NSDAP came to power in early 1933 the Reichswehr, the armed forces of the Weimar Republic, were near the end of a two-year project to redesign the Army Feldbluse (field-blouse). Beginning in that year the new tunic was issued to the Reichsheer and then the rapidly growing Wehrmacht Heer, although minor design changes continued to be made until the appearance of the standardized Heeres Dienstanzug Modell 1936. The M36 tunic still retained the traditional Imperial and Reichswehr uniform color of grey-green "field gray" (feldgrau) wool, but incorporated four front patch pockets with scalloped flaps and pleats (on Reichswehr tunics the lower pockets were internal and angled). The front was closed with five buttons rather than the previous eight, and the collar and shoulder straps were of a dark bottle-green instead of the Reichswehr grey. Compared to the Weimar-era uniforms the skirt of the feldbluse was shorter and the tailoring was more form-fitting due to Germany's adoption of mechanized warfare: soldiers now spent much time in the confined space of a vehicle and a shorter jacket was less likely to pick up dirt from the seats. It also included an internal suspension system, whereby a soldier could hang an equipment belt on a series of hooks outside of the tunic. These hooks were connected to two straps inside the lining, which spread the weight of equipment without having to use external equipment suspenders. The M36 was produced and issued until the very end of the war, though successive patterns became predominant.

SS field uniforms were of similar appearance externally but to fit their larger patches had a wider, feldgrau collar, and the lower pockets were of an angled slash type similar to the black or grey SS service-dress. The second button of an SS Feldbluse was positioned somewhat lower, so that it could be worn open-collar with a necktie. Due to supply problems the SS were often issued army uniforms.