Editing Reichswehr (section)

==Structure of the ''Reichswehr''==
===Arms limitations under the Treaty of Versailles===
In Part V of the 1919 Versailles Treaty, Germany had obligated itself to limit the size and armaments of its military forces so that they could be used only as border protection and for the maintenance of order within Germany.

In accordance with the treaty's provisions, personnel strength was limited to a professional army of 100,000 men plus a 15,000-man navy. The establishment of a general staff was prohibited. Heavy weapons above defined calibres, armoured vehicles, submarines and large warships were prohibited, as was any type of air force.<ref>{{Cite wikisource|title=Treaty of Versailles/Part_V}} For size of army, Art. 163; of navy, Art. 183; no general staff, Art. 160; heavy weapons, Arts. 167,196; armoured vehicles, Art. 171; submarines / warships, Art. 181; air force, Art. 198</ref> The regulations were overseen by the [[Military Inter-Allied Commission of Control]] until 1927.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Interalliierte Militär-Kontroll-Kommission (IMKK) |trans-title=Military Inter-Allied Commission of Control |url=http://www.geschichte-reckenfeld.de/index.html?http://www.geschichte-reckenfeld.de/kapitel/entstehung/imkk_allgemein/start.html |access-date=21 December 2023 |website=Die Geschichte Reckenfelds |language=de}}</ref>

Conscription into the German Army had traditionally been for a period of 1 to 3 years. After they had completed their terms of service, the discharged soldiers created a large pool of trained reserves. The Versailles Treaty fixed the term of service for ''Reichswehr'' officers at 25 years and for all others at 12 in order to prevent such a buildup of reservists.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Treaty of Versailles Part V, Articles 173–176 |chapter=Part V. Military, Naval and Air Clauses |chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles/Part_V#Chapter_III._Recruiting_and_Military_Training}}</ref>

===Founding===
On 9 November 1918, at the beginning of the [[German Revolution of 1918–1919|German Revolution]] that led to the collapse of the [[German Empire]] and the flight of [[Wilhelm II, German Emperor|Emperor Wilhelm II]], a [[Proclamation of the republic in Germany|republic was proclaimed]] from Berlin. The next day, [[Chancellor of Germany|German Chancellor]] [[Friedrich Ebert]] and General [[Wilhelm Groener]], acting in the name of the [[Oberste Heeresleitung|Supreme Army Command]], concluded the [[Ebert–Groener pact|Ebert–Groener Pact]]. In it Groener assured Ebert of the loyalty of the armed forces,<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Wheeler-Bennett |first=John |title=Hindenburg: The Wooden Titan |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=1967 |isbn=9780333082690 |location=London |pages=207–208}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Shirer |first=William L. |title=The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2011 |location=New York |pages=54}}</ref> and in return Ebert promised that the government would take prompt action against leftist uprisings,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fuchshuber |first=Thorsten |url={{Google books|7LAmEAAAQBAJ|page=117|plainurl=yes}} |title=Rackets Kritische Theorie der Bandenherrschaft |publisher=ça ira |year=2019 |isbn=978-3862591459 |location=Freiburg, Vienna |pages=117 |language=de |trans-title=Rackets Critical Theory of Gang Rule}}</ref> call a national assembly, keep the military command within the professional officer corps and, most importantly, retain the military's traditional status as 'state within a state' – that is, it would continue to be largely independent of the civilian government.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gusy |first=Christoph |url={{Google books|yZydn3V2swkC|page=22|plainurl=yes}} |title=Die Weimarer Reichsverfassung |publisher=Mohr Siebeck |year=1997 |isbn=978-3161468186 |location=Tübingen |pages=22 |language=de |trans-title=The Weimar Constitution}}</ref>

As part of the [[Armistice of 11 November 1918]], the new German government agreed to the speedy evacuation of occupied territories. The withdrawal on the western front began on 12 November and by 17 January 1919 the areas on the west bank of the Rhine were free of German military forces. The task was then to gradually disarm the units of the [[Imperial German Army|Imperial Army]] which still numbered several million soldiers. This was done at previously designated demobilisation sites, usually the respective home garrisons. For the regiments with garrisons on the west bank of the Rhine, demobilisation sites were designated in the interior of the Reich.

The [[Council of the People's Deputies]] – the ''de facto'' government of Germany from November 1918 until February 1919 – and the Supreme Army Command intended to transfer the remaining units to a peacetime army following demobilisation. On 6 March 1919 the [[Weimar National Assembly]] passed a law on the formation of a provisional army to be made up of 43<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tapken |first=Kai Uwe |date=4 July 2006 |title=Reichswehr-Gruppenkommando 4, 1919–1921 |trans-title=Reichswehr Group Command 4, 1919–1921 |url=https://www.historisches-lexikon-bayerns.de/Lexikon/Reichswehr-Gruppenkommando_4,_1919-1921 |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Historisches Lexikon Bayerns |language=de}}</ref> brigades. It authorised the [[President of Germany (1919–1945)|Reich President]] "to dissolve the existing army and to form a provisional ''Reichswehr'' which, until the creation of a new armed force to be ordered by Reich law, would protect the borders of the Reich, enforce the orders of the Reich government, and maintain domestic peace and order."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gesetz über die Bildung einer vorläufigen Reichswehr |trans-title=Law on the Formation of a Provisional Army |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/wr/vorl-reichswehr_ges.html |access-date=20 November 2022 |website=documentArchiv.de}}</ref>

A similarly worded law on the formation of a provisional navy dated 16 April 1919 authorised it to "secure the German coasts, enable safe maritime traffic by clearing mines, acting as maritime police and otherwise assisting merchant shipping, ensure the undisturbed exercise of fishing, enforce the orders of the Reich government in conjunction with the ''Reichswehr'', and maintain peace and order."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gesetz über die Bildung einer vorläufigen Reichsmarine. Vom 16. April 1919 |trans-title=Law on the Formation of a Provisional Reich Navy. Of 16 April 1919 |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/wr/vorl-reichsmarine_ges.html |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=documentArchiv.de |language=de}}</ref> The strength of the navy was to be 20,000 men.

From 1 October 1919 to 1 April 1920, the forces of the Provisional Reich Army were moved into the 400,000-strong 'Transitional Army'<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Haskew |first=Michael |title=The Wehrmacht |publisher=Amber Books Ltd |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-78274-592-1 |location=London |pages=13}}</ref> consisting of 20 brigades.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Das deutsche Militärwesen (4) – Deutsches Reich 1919–1932 |trans-title=The German Military (4) – German Reich 1919–1932 |url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/DE/Content/Virtuelle-Ausstellungen/Das-Deutsche-Militaerwesen-4-Deutsches-Reich-1919-1932/das-deutsche-militaerwesen-4-deutsches-reich-1919-1932.html |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Das Bundesarchiv |language=de}}</ref> At the same time, the old army's units and duties were eliminated. After falling to 150,000 men in October 1920, the brigades were replaced by regiments, and the final army strength of 100,000 was reached by 1 January 1921. The ''Reichswehr'' was officially formed on that date, with the Defence Law of 23 March 1921 regulating the details.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wehrgesetz. Vom 23. März 1921 |trans-title=Defence Act. Of 23 March 1921 |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/wr/1921/wehrgesetz.html |website=documentArchiv.de |language=de}}</ref> The soldiers' oath was sworn to the [[Weimar Constitution]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Auseinandersetzungen um die Vereidigung der Reichsbeamten auf die Verfassung |trans-title=Disputes over the Swearing in of Imperial Civil Servants to the Constitution |url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/DE/Content/Virtuelle-Ausstellungen/verfassung_beamteneid.html |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Das Bundesarchiv |language=de}}</ref>

===Structure===
[[File:Kommandostruktur des Reichsheeres.jpg|thumb|left|Structure of the ''Reichswehr'', 1920–1934]]
The ''Reichswehr'' was divided into the {{Lang|de|Reichsheer}} (army) and the ''[[Reichsmarine]]'' (navy). The {{Lang|de|Reichsheer}} consisted of seven infantry and three cavalry divisions,<ref name=":3"/> with all units renumbered. The Reich's territory was divided into seven military districts. There were two group commands, No. 1 in Berlin and No. 2 in [[Kassel]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gruppenkommandos der Reichswehr und Wehrmacht vor der Mobilmachung |trans-title=Group Commands of the Reichswehr and Wehrmacht Before Mobilisation |url=https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gliederungen/Gruppenkommando/Gliederung.htm |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Lexikon der Wehrmacht |language=de}}</ref> The navy was allowed a limited number of certain types of ships and boats, with no submarines.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Porter |first=David |title=The Kriegsmarine |publisher=Amber Books Ltd. |year=2010 |isbn=9781907446108 |location=London |pages=11}}</ref> It was divided into Naval Station Baltic Sea and Naval Station North Sea. Under the terms of the Versailles Treaty, the service period for enlisted men and non-commissioned officers in both the army and the navy was 12 years, with 25 years for officers.<ref>{{Cite wikisource|title=Treaty of Versailles/Part_V}} Articles 173, 174 and 194</ref>

The 1921 Defence Law ended the military sovereignty of the states but left [[Saxony]], [[Free People's State of Württemberg|Württemberg]], [[Republic of Baden|Baden]], and [[Bavaria]] with limited independence. Bavaria was special in that Military District VII covered the entire territory of the state with the exception of the [[Palatinate (region)|Palatinate]], and only Bavarians served in the 7th (Bavarian) Division. Until 1924 this unit, known as the Bavarian ''Reichswehr'', enjoyed certain rights of autonomy with respect to the Reich government.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tapken |first=Kai Uwe |date=4 July 2006 |title=Reichswehr in Bayern |trans-title=The Reichswehr in Bavaria |url=https://www.historisches-lexikon-bayerns.de/Lexikon/Reichswehr_in_Bayern |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Historisches Lexikon Bayerns |language=de}}</ref>

===Commanders===
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1989-0718-501, Gustav Noske und Walter Lüttwitz.jpg|thumb|Gustav Noske (right) with Walther von Lüttwitz (1920)]]
According to the Weimar Constitution, the Reich President had "supreme command over the entire armed forces of the Reich". In general, however, he could act only if there was a countersignature by a member of the government. In terms of authority, this was the ''Reichswehr'' minister.<ref>{{Cite wikisource|title=Weimar_constitution#Section III: The President of the Reich and the National Ministry}} Articles 47 and 50</ref>

Two Reich Presidents held office during the Weimar Republic: [[Friedrich Ebert]] until 1925, followed by [[Paul von Hindenburg]]. The first ''Reichswehr'' Minister was [[Gustav Noske]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 November 2023 |title=Gustav Noske |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gustav-Noske |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> who was replaced by [[Otto Gessler]] after the [[Kapp Putsch]] in 1920.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 March 2023 |title=Otto Gessler |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gessler-Otto |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> Wilhelm Groener took office in 1928,<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 November 2023 |title=Wilhelm Groener |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wilhelm-Groener |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> and his deputy [[Kurt von Schleicher]] replaced him in 1932. Schleicher continued to hold office on a provisional basis during his two-month chancellorship.<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 August 2023 |title=Kurt von Schleicher |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Kurt-von-Schleicher |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> Prior to Adolf Hitler's appointment as Reich chancellor, Hindenburg unilaterally – not at the chancellor's recommendation as required by the constitution – appointed [[Werner von Blomberg]] as ''Reichswehr'' Minister.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wichmann |first=Manfred |date=14 September 2014 |title=Werner von Blomberg 1878–1946 |url=https://www.dhm.de/lemo/biografie/werner-von-blomberg.html |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Deutsches Historisches Museum |language=de}}</ref>

The head of army command was initially General [[Walther Reinhardt]]. After the Kapp Putsch, General [[Hans von Seeckt]] took over the post and had both the [[Communist Party of Germany]] (KPD) and the [[Nazi Party]] banned in 1923.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Michaelis |first1=Andreas |last2=Felbinger |first2=Rolf |date=14 September 2014 |title=Hans von Seeckt |url=https://www.dhm.de/lemo/biografie/hans-von-seeckt.html |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Deutsches Historisches Museum |language=de}}</ref> [[Wilhelm Heye]] followed him in 1926. Heye was succeeded in 1930 by [[Kurt von Hammerstein-Equord|Kurt Freiherr von Hammerstein-Equord]], who tendered his resignation on 27 December 1933. He was succeeded by [[Werner von Fritsch]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Heeresleitung / Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) - Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres |trans-title=Army Command / High Command of the Army (OKH) - Commanders-in-Chief of the Army |url=https://portal.ehri-project.eu/units/de-002525-rh_1 |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=European Holocaust Research Infrastructure |language=de}}</ref>

===Social composition===
Given the limited size of the army, careful selection of personnel was possible. Experienced leaders came from the 'Old Army' of the Empire. In 1927, 20% of the officers were from the former nobility,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bill |first=Claus Heinrich |date=November 2020 |title=Adelstabellen und historische Quantitäten des Adels – Eine kumulierte Neuedition alter Adelsstatistiken |trans-title=Nobility Tables and Historical Figures of the Nobility - A cumulative new edition of old aristocratic statistics |url=http://www.adelskartei.de/zfda-statistik.pdf |journal=Zeitschrift für deutsche Adelsforschung |language=de |volume=22 |issue=114 |pages=28}}</ref> down from 30% in 1913.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bald |first=Detlev |date=1979 |title=The German Officer Corps: Caste or Class? |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/45346160 |journal=Armed Forces & Society |volume=5 |issue=4 |page=645 |doi=10.1177/0095327X7900500408 |jstor=45346160 |s2cid=144879571 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> This continued the long-term trend of a reduction in the percentage of noble officers. Large parts of the officer corps held a conservative, monarchist worldview and rejected the Weimar Republic.{{Sfn|Bald|1979|p=642-3}} Especially within the former nobility, however, the stance towards [[Nazism|National Socialism]] was not without criticism.

The ''Reichswehr'' leadership and officer corps successfully resisted the democratisation of the troops.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Decree by Reich Minister of War and Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht Werner von Blomberg on Political Education and Instruction for the Wehrmacht (January 30, 1936) |url=https://ghdi.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=1539 |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=German History in Documents and Images (DHDI)}}</ref> Preference was given to recruits from the predominantly conservative rural areas of Germany.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 December 2018 |title=Gewerkschaften feiern den 100. Geburtstag vom 8-Stunden-Tag |trans-title=Unions Celebrate the 100th Birthday of the 8-Hour Day |url=https://muensterland.dgb.de/presse/++co++67a6da84-f7a1-11e8-b318-52540088cada |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=DGB-Bezirk Nordrhein-Westfalen Region Münsterland |language=de}}</ref> The ''Reichswehr'' leadership considered them not only physically superior to young men from the cities but also as able to stand up against the "temptations" of social democracy.

In 1926 Reichstag President [[Paul Löbe]] proposed to make recruitment dependent on physical fitness only in order to make the composition of the ''Reichswehr'' reflect more closely that of society as a whole. The proposal led to fierce opposition from the ''Reichswehr'' and conservative circles,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Aufzeichnung des Regierungsrats Planck über die Rekrutierung der Reichswehr |trans-title=Record of Government Councillor Planck on the recruitment of the Reichswehr |url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/aktenreichskanzlei/1919-1933/1u1/ma3/ma31p/kap1_2/para2_96.html |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=Das Bundesarchiv |language=de}}</ref> both of which believed that opening the ''Reichswehr'' to all social groups would lower its effectiveness. Löbe's proposal did not pass.

The ''Reichswehr'' saw itself as a '[[Cadre (military)|cadre army]]' or 'Leader army' ('{{Lang|de|Führerarmee}}'), which meant that every unit kept close ties to its former members and could hope to call on them in a time of need.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bussiek |first=Dagmar |url={{Google books|pHhHEAAAQBAJ|page=39|plainurl=yes}} |title=Dem Frieden verpflichtet: Wolf Graf von Baudissin (1907–1993) – Die Biografie |publisher=Nomos Verlag |year=2021 |isbn=978-3748927662 |location=Baden-Badem |pages=39 |language=de |trans-title=Committed to Peace: Wolf Graf von Baudissin (1907–1993) – The Biography}}</ref> This was to become a basic prerequisite for the rapid growth of the army after the proclamation of military sovereignty by the Nazi regime in 1935.

===Officers in the ''Reichswehr''===
Under the terms of the Versailles Treaty, the ''Reichswehr'' was allowed 4,000 officers, while the {{Lang|de|Reichsmarine}} could have 1,500 officers and deck officers.<ref>{{Cite wikisource|title=Treaty of Versailles/Part_V}} Army: Art. 160; Navy: Art. 183</ref> The actual ''Reichswehr'' officer corps numbered 3,718, down from 227,081 in 1918, of whom 38,118 were career officers. The officers transferred to the ''Reichswehr'' were almost all general staff officers. Of the approximately 15,000 men who had been promoted to officers during the war, the ''Reichswehr'' took on only a few, as these front-line officers were seen as alien to officer life in the mess hall, barracks, and society. Democratically-minded officers were not accepted into the force. Radical nationalist officers were with few exceptions removed, especially after the Kapp Putsch.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Richhardt |first=Dirk |date=2002 |title=Auswahl und Ausbildung junger Offiziere 1930–1945: Zur sozialen Genese des deutschen Offizierkorps |trans-title=Selection and Training of Young Officers 1930–1945: On the Social Genesis of the German Officer Corps (PhD dissertation) |url=http://archiv.ub.uni-marburg.de/diss/z2005/0100/pdf/ddr.pdf |access-date=29 December 2023 |website=Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek |publisher=Philipps–University |place=Marburg |pages=17–19}}</ref>

The political attitude of the officer corps was monarchist, although outwardly they posed as loyal to the Republic. Even though the German nobility, which was officially abolished in August 1919, had accounted for only 0.14% of the pre-war German population, an average of 23.8% of the officers in the ''Reichswehr'' were from noble backgrounds. The proportion of former noble officers in the individual branches of the armed forces varied greatly. In 1920 they made up 50% of the officers in the cavalry but only 5% in the infantry and 4% in the sappers. Of the approximately 1,000 non-commissioned officers promoted to officers in 1919, by 1928 only 117 remained, or 3.5% of the total officers in the ''Reichswehr''.{{Sfn|Richhardt|2002|p=19–21}}

Since the Reich government did not bring the officer candidate recruitment process under state control, regimental commanders in the ''Reichswehr'' continued to be responsible for selecting officer candidates, as they had in the old Imperial Army. Those admitted came almost exclusively from circles traditionally close to the military. In 1926, 96% of the officer candidates came from the upper social classes and nearly 50% from officer families. The homogeneity of the ''Reichswehr'' officer corps was in fact greater than it had been during the Empire. In 1912/13 only 24% of officers had come from families of active or former officers.{{Sfn|Richhardt|2002|pp=22–23}}