Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very interesting piece of German Post war memorabilia: a 1962 dated commemorative flag from a gathering of the Münster chapter of the Verband Deustches Afrikakorps (German Afrika Corps Association). By this time in post war West Germany, the Bundeswehr had been founded and the country was now in the process of fully re-arming to become a bulwark against the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact states. Many of the senior NCOs and Officers in the new force were veterans of WWII, and as such veteran's associations had also been allowed to re-form, with the addition of several specific to WWII. They were however intended as veteran's groups in the form they were prior to the NSDAP takeover, not as political takeover tools.

This lovely plastic colored 7 1/2" x 7 1/2" square fringed flag, which has a German Black, Yellow, and Red background on one side, while the other side is Yellow, Red, and Yellow. The "front" side shows a large shield with gold embroidered borders, which shows a palm tree in the middle. The border of the shield has AFRIKA embroidered at the top and 1941 and 1943 on the sides. The other side shows an engraved image of the Friedenssaal (Hall of Peace) in Münster, with D.A.K. KREISKAMERADSCHAFT (District Association) above and MÜNSTER below. The flag has gold fringes on the bottom and side, and there are even the original hang-tags present from when it was purchased.

The flag is attached to a lovely 22 1/4" tall stand, which has a 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" square wooden base. It looks to be made from plated brass, as it is not magnetic at all, and has some attached emblems at the bottom and on the base. There is a metal support for the flag, however the soldering attaching it together has partially failed over the years, so now the cross support for the top is detached. The main support itself is also partly detached, buts someone skilled with metalwork could probably easily repair it.

A very interesting piece of West German Cold War militaria, ready to research and display!

The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (German: Deutsches Afrikakorps, DAK was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of their African colonies, the formation fought on in Africa, under various appellations, from March 1941 until its surrender in May 1943. The term "Afrika Korps" is pseudo-German (so-called "cod-German"), deriving from an incomplete German title. The German term referred solely to the initial formation, the Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK), which formed part of the Axis command of the German and Italian forces in North Africa. The name stuck, with both news media and Allied soldiers, as the name for all subsequent German units in North Africa. The unit is known for having been commanded by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.