{"product_id":"original-german-wwii-heer-111th-infantry-regiment-oberleutnant-officer-private-purchase-m36-field-uniform-tunic-with-aiguillette-cords-ribbon-bar","title":"Original German WWII Heer 111th Infantry Regiment Oberleutnant Officer Private Purchase M36 Field Uniform Tunic with Aiguillette Cords \u0026 Ribbon Bar","description":"\u003cp\u003eOriginal Item: Only One Available. This is a very attractive German WWII Heer infantry officer’s privately purchased M36-style field tunic, configured for an Oberleutnant and displaying gilt 111 regimental numerals consistent with Infanterie-Regiment 111. Tailored from fine field-gray whipcord wool gabardine, the tunic retains its officer-quality bullion breast eagle and collar Litzen, white infantry Waffenfarbe, dress aiguillette, Iron Cross 2nd Class buttonhole ribbon, three-place ribbon bar, and original-style officer shoulder boards. No tailor’s label or maker marking is present, but the materials, lining, and construction are characteristic of a privately purchased officer garment rather than an issued enlisted tunic. The primary condition issue is moth damage to the breast eagle. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe 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 all steel. 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. They were originally finished in green, but that has now worn away partially. All look to be marked with \u003cstrong\u003eEXTRA FEIN\u003c\/strong\u003e on the rear, and the buttons are sewn directly to the fabric, which does make them a bit more prone to tearing off, however these all look to be original. There are also two hook and loop collar securing fasteners, which are fully functional.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe interior is lined with a lovely gray colored rayon cotton blend, with sleeves lined with striped sheer rayon. There is some staining to the interior, but no tears or major damage. There is an internal horizontal slash pocket on the inner left chest, with no other internal pockets. There is no eyelet for a dagger on this example.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt 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 stitched to the outer layer of fabric only, but the green background has very heavy moth damage, the worst damage on the uniform. The collar is wrapped in \u003cem\u003eflaschengrün\u003c\/em\u003e (dark bottle-green) wool, and has officer's field litzen collar patches on each side, which are woven from silver bullion thread with a dark bottle green background matching the collar. The collar is in good shape, showing some minor mothing and wear.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe colored stripes on the litzen are age toned \u003cem\u003eWeiß\u003c\/em\u003e (white) rayon cord, the \u003cem\u003eWaffenfarbe\u003c\/em\u003e (Corps Color) during WWII for \u003cem\u003eInfanterie\u003c\/em\u003e (Infantry) and \u003cem\u003eMotorisiert Infanterie\u003c\/em\u003e (Motorized Infantry). The “sew-in” style company grade officers \u003cem\u003eschulterklappen\u003c\/em\u003e (shoulder boards) of this tunic are constructed with two rows of fine silver flatware \"Russia Braid\" double piping and have the correct white piping around the edges. There is a single rank \"pip\" installed on both, indicating the rank of Oberleutnant, equivalent to a U.S. Army 1st Lieutenant. They also both have three golden metal \u003cstrong\u003e1 \u003c\/strong\u003ecyphers on them, most likely for the \u003cstrong\u003e111th Infantry Regiment\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eInfanterie-Regiment 111\u003c\/strong\u003e was formed on October 6th, 1936 in Wehrkreis V and became part of the 35th Infantry Division. The regiment served on the Western Front at the beginning of WWII and later fought on the Eastern Front. It was redesignated Grenadier-Regiment 111 in October 1942.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe left chest pocket has one pair of thread loops for award attachment, which definitely show wear. There is also a \u003cstrong\u003eIron Cross 1939 EKII\u003c\/strong\u003e ribbon installed on the second button hole from the top, and above the pocket there is a 3 award ribbon bar, with ribbons for the War \u003cstrong\u003eMerit Cross 2nd Class KVKII with swords, the Eastern Front Medal\u003c\/strong\u003e, and a very worn \u003cstrong\u003eWehrmacht Long Service Award with a gold Wehrmachtadler eagle\u003c\/strong\u003e, but the blue of this ribbon is all gone.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe tunic also has an officer's dress aiguillette cord setup on the right hand side, held under the shoulder board and attached to the buttons. These were to be worn on specific occasions requiring formal dress, or at any time on Parade when A H might be present.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith its fine feldgrau whipcord construction, dark green officer collar, bullion breast eagle and Litzen, white infantry Waffenfarbe, Oberleutnant shoulder boards with 111 numerals, and dress aiguillette, this is a particularly complete representation of a German Army infantry officer’s service uniform. The primary condition consideration is the heavy moth damage to the breast eagle backing. The regimental numerals provide a strong association with Infanterie-Regiment 111 and the 35th Infantry Division, and this would be a great addition to any collection focused on German WWII uniforms. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eApproximate Measurements:\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eCollar to shoulder: 8.5\"\u003cbr\u003eShoulder to sleeve: 24.5\"\u003cbr\u003eShoulder to shoulder: 15.5\"\u003cbr\u003eChest width: 19\"\u003cbr\u003eWaist: 18.5\"\u003cbr\u003eHip: 24\"\u003cbr\u003eFront length: 24\"\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eField Tunic (Feldbluse) Model 1936\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTerms 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen 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.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Original Items","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45582722039877,"sku":"ONSV26EMC129","price":1395.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1524\/1342\/files\/191824A7-BA00-4925-8DF5-45E1619E0C89.jpg?v=1787342768","url":"https:\/\/www.ima-usa.com\/products\/original-german-wwii-heer-111th-infantry-regiment-oberleutnant-officer-private-purchase-m36-field-uniform-tunic-with-aiguillette-cords-ribbon-bar","provider":"International Military Antiques","version":"1.0","type":"link"}