Original Items: One of a Kind Set. This is a fantastic early pattern German WWII Heer Army Kriegspfarrer (Field Chaplain) Uniform Set, named to Wehrmachtpfarrer Georg Zeuleis. This is one of the very few times that we have had one of these rare uniforms, and it makes a great set with some fantastic research potential. It consists of an early pattern M-36 Tunic, Breeches, Officer's open claw cross belt, and some great research materials in a binder, all related to Zeuleis. Chaplains were not very common at all, and we have only had a handful German Chaplain related items before. This is sure to make a great addition to any German WW2 Uniform Collection!

The officer's belt is definitely one of the most compelling items in the set, and is a well-fitting 50mm brown leather open claw belt, which looks to have a zinc alloy buckle, along with the correct keepers and a cross strap. The belt is adjustable from 36 1/2" to 43", and is marked 115 on the far end, which should mean 115cm (45.3in.), so the belt may have shrunk, or it may not be a size at all. There are no maker markings on the belt or strap, however the cross strap itself has the owners information stamped on it in German "blackletter" typeface:

Wehrmachtpfarrer
Georg Zeuleis
Würzburg
Mönchbergſtr. 8
Tel 4556

The leather is in really good shape, showing wear from service, but the finish is still very good, and it is fully functional.

The M-36 tunic in the set is a lovely example, and shows some real wear from service, so it was not some spare that sat at home or in a trunk. It 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 aluminum with plated steel 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. They look to have a good amount of wear, and they are maker marked on the back, but do not all match, and also vary a bit in style, so several have been replaced. They are all sewn directly to the fabric, which makes them more prone to pulling off. There are also two hook and loop collar securing fasteners, which are fully functional.

The interior is lined with with a very nice gray brown rayon cotton blend twill fabric, while the sleeves are lined with striped white cotton. There are definitely some repairs where the sleeve lining meets the main lining, as well as at the ends of the sleeves, where there is also some tearing of the outer shell. There are slash pockets on the inner chest of both sides, as well as the large eyelet for an officer dagger, so the tunic was made for an officer in general, not specifically a chaplain, and then was set up when purchased.

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 machine stitched to the chest in a fashion typical of wartime German tailor work. It shows wear to the fabric backing, and there is also loss of the bullion at the tops of the wings, indicating long use in service.

The collar is wrapped in flaschengrün (dark bottle-green) wool, and has the correct officer's litzen on each side of the collar opening. These are actually the "dress" style, and the base material and mittelstreifen (middle stripe) of each is lila (purple), the Waffenfarbe (Corps Color) during WWII for Kriegspfarreren (Field Chaplains) in the Heer Army. As is correct, there are no rank shoulderboards. We have confirmed with period photographs of German Army chaplains that they only had collar insignia. The left breast pocket has a War Merit Cross 1st Class with Swords award attached above an early stamped brass Wound Badge in Black. There is also a crucifix marked C.F. JUNCKER / BERLIN SW in the right breast pocket, though it does not look to be the one in the pictures of Zeuleis.

The included breeches are in very good condition, made from "whipcord weave" wool fabric in the steingrau (stone gray) color that officers prefer. They have a button fly closure with three hidden buttons, a securing strap, and a hook and loop closure at the top. The exterior features two diagonal button-closed waist slash pockets, with the usual pocket watch pocket next to the fly. There is another pocket on the right rear seat, which features a button-closed scalloped flap. There are size adjustment straps with buckles on both sides of the breeches, and they are heavily reinforced with suede on the insides of the legs. The interior features rayon lining and pockets, which do show heavy wear from use, with holds and some large areas missing. The front suspender buttons are all present, as are the two straps with attached buttons on the rear. The bottoms of the legs feature both laces and buttons so they can be secured to fit inside tall boots.

The included binder contains printed out documents, which look to have been acquired from internet research almost 20 years ago. We unfortunately do not have the original files, or the original documents, and it is possible that they are no longer in existence. The following printed out items are included:

● a Period photograph printout of Zeuleis in uniform, with a crucifix around his neck and a medal ribbon bar over his left breast pocket. It looks to be very similar to the included tunic, though we do not see any evidence of a medal ribbon bar having been installed in the past.

● a period photograph printout of Zeuleis in uniform, sitting in a chair with a visor cap in his lap. He is wearing uniform breeches similar to those in this set.

● a period photograph printout of Zeuleis, sitting behind Generalleutnant Dr. Friedrich Franek, an Austrian General and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during WWII, as well as the Military Order of Maria Theresa, Knight's Cross during WWI, one of only two people to have earned both awards. He commanded the 196th Infantry Division, 44th Infantry Division, and 73rd Infantry Division during the war, and was captured while in the last of those.

● a period photograph printout of Zeuleis with what look to be other military chaplains.

● a printed copy of Zeuleis's official appointment as a Provisional Protestant Military Chaplain, dated 15. August 1938.

● a printed copy of Zeuleis's official appointment as an official Protestant Military Chaplain, dated 6. March 1939.

● a printed copy of Zeuleis's award certificate for the War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords, dated 1. Januar 1942. It indicates at the time that he was with the 196th Infantry Division.

● a printed copy of Zeuleis's award certificate for the Western Wall medal, indicating he was with the 73rd Infantry Division at the time, which looks to have been 25. Juni, 1940.

● a period photograph printout of Zeuleis in front of an altar, looking to be giving a religious service.

A fantastic Named German WWII Army Field Chaplain Uniform Set with some great period documents, ready to research and display!

Approximate Measurements:-
Collar to shoulder: 8.5"
Shoulder to sleeve: 25”
Shoulder to shoulder: 14.5"
Chest width: 18.5”
Waist: 17"
Hip: 21"
Front length: 27"

Pants:-
Waist: 15.5"
Inseam: 24"

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.