{"product_id":"original-german-wwii-french-made-kriegsmarine-navy-59cm-nco-m38-overseas-cap-schiffchen","title":"Original German WWII French-made Kriegsmarine Navy 59cm NCO M38 Overseas Cap - Schiffchen","description":"\u003cp\u003eOriginal Item: Only One Available. This is an excellent French-made example of a German WWII Kriegsmarine Navy M38 Overseas cap (\u003cem\u003eSchiffchen\u003c\/em\u003e), as worn NCO ranks. The overseas cap, nicknamed in German military slang as \u003cem\u003eSchiffchen\u003c\/em\u003e, or literally \"little ship\" as it resembled an up-turned row-boat, was standard issue for Warrant and Petty officer NCO ranks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe cap is constructed of a navy blue wool exterior, and features machine BeVo embroidered bullion eagle and tri-color cockade emblems sewn to the front. The interior looks to be a dark navy blue rayon \/ cotton blend, and is in very good condition. It is size marked \u003cstrong\u003e59\u003c\/strong\u003e and has a relatively clear French maker's mark, which reads:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCHAPELIÈRE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePARISIENNE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePARIS\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003eChapelière Parisienne\u003c\/em\u003e cap making firm in Paris was a known manufacturer for the Germans during their occupation of France. However, as an act of covert defiance they manufactured a number of caps in inordinately small sizes, rendering them useless and resulting in them having to be altered to suitable dimensions. This cap however is in the correct size.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCondition is very good, showing only a bit of wear and no mothing we can see. The top pleat has been stitched together at the top, which helps to maintain the shape when being worn. The colors are all still vibrant on the embroidered insignia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn excellent lightly used French-made Kriegsmarine NCO cap, ready to add to your collection!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003eKriegsmarine\u003c\/strong\u003e was the navy of NSDAP Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war Reichsmarine (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches, along with the Heer and the Luftwaffe, of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces from 1935 to 1945.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn violation of the Treaty of Versailles, the Kriegsmarine grew rapidly during German naval rearmament in the 1930s. The 1919 treaty had limited the size of the German navy and prohibited the building of submarines.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKriegsmarine ships were deployed to the waters around Spain during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) under the guise of enforcing non-intervention, but in reality supported the Nationalists against the Spanish Republicans.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn January 1939, Plan Z, a massive shipbuilding program, was ordered, calling for surface naval parity with the British Royal Navy by 1944. When World War II broke out in September 1939, Plan Z was shelved in favor of a crash building program for submarines (U-boats) instead of capital surface warships, and land and air forces were given priority of strategic resources.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Commander-in-Chief of the Kriegsmarine (as for all branches of armed forces during the period of absolute NSDAP power) was Adolf H, who exercised his authority through the Oberkommando der Marine (\"High Command of the Navy\").\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Kriegsmarine's most significant ships were the U-boats, most of which were constructed after Plan Z was abandoned at the beginning of World War II. Wolfpacks were rapidly assembled groups of submarines which attacked British convoys during the first half of the Battle of the Atlantic but this tactic was largely abandoned by May 1943 when U-boat losses mounted. Along with the U-boats, surface commerce raiders (including auxiliary cruisers) were used to disrupt Allied shipping in the early years of the war, the most famous of these being the heavy cruisers Admiral Graf Spee and Admiral Scheer and the battleship Bismarck. However, the adoption of convoy escorts, especially in the Atlantic, greatly reduced the effectiveness of surface commerce raiders against convoys.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFollowing the end of World War II in 1945, the Kriegsmarine's remaining ships were divided up among the Allied powers and were used for various purposes including minesweeping. Some were loaded with superfluous chemical weapons and scuttled.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Original Items","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":40635580350533,"sku":"ONSV23AGC31","price":495.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1524\/1342\/files\/ONSV23AGC31__03.jpg?v=1694852589","url":"https:\/\/www.ima-usa.com\/products\/original-german-wwii-french-made-kriegsmarine-navy-59cm-nco-m38-overseas-cap-schiffchen","provider":"International Military Antiques","version":"1.0","type":"link"}