Reichswehr

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Reichswehr

The Reichswehr (German

German language

German is a West Germanic languages, thus related to and classified alongside English language and Dutch language. It is one of the world's world language and the most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union....
for "National Defence") formed the military organisation

Armed forces

The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external and internal aggressors....
of Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht

Wehrmacht was the name of the unified armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe ....
("Defence Force").

At the end of World War I

World War I

World War I, or the First World War , was a global military conflict which involved the Great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War I and the Central Powers....
, the forces of the German Empire

German Empire

The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from the unification of Germany and proclamation of William I, German Emperor as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became Weimar republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of William II, German Emperor ....
had mostly disintegrated, the men making their way home individually or in small groups. Many of them joined the Freikorps
Freikorps

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 119-1983-0012, Kapp-Putsch, Marienbrigade Erhardt in Berlin.jpgThe designation of Freikorps was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of 18th century onwards....
("Free Corps"), a collection of volunteer paramilitary units that were involved in revolution

Revolution

A revolution is a fundamental social change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time....
and border clashes between 1918 and 1923.

The newly-formed Weimar Republic

Weimar Republic

The Weimar Republic was the democracy and republican period of Germany from 1919 to 1933. Following World War I, the republic emerged from the German Revolution in November 1918....
did need a military

Military

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Encyclopedia

The Reichswehr (German

German language

Armed forces

Germany

World War I

German Empire

Revolution

Weimar Republic

Military

A military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or Threat of force ....
though, and on 6 March 1919 a decree established the Vorläufige Reichswehr ("Provisional National Defence"), consisting of a Vorläufige Reichsheer ("Provisional National Army") and a Vorläufige Reichsmarine ("Provisional National Navy"). About 400,000 men served in the Reichsheer.

On 30 September 1919, the army was reorganized as the Übergangsheer ("Transitional Army"). This lasted until 1 January 1921, when the Reichswehr was officially established according to the limitations imposed by the Treaty of Versailles

Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaty at the end of World War I. It ended the declaration of war between German Empire and Allies of World War I....
.

Limited by treaty to a total of 100,000 men, the Reichswehr was composed of the following:

The Reichsheer, an army
Army

An army , in the broadest sense, is the land-based armed forces of a nation. It may also include other branches of the military such as an air force....
consisting of two group commands,

seven infantry
Infantry

Infantry are soldiers who are primarily trained for the role of fighting on foot. A soldier in the infantry is known as an infantryman. Infantry units have more physically demanding training than other branches of armies, and place a greater emphasis on fitness, physical strength and aggression....
division
Division (military)

A division is a large military unit or Formation usually consisting of between ten to thirty thousand soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions make up a corps....
s, and
three cavalry
Cavalry

The Cavalry is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat, it represents the mobility and offensive power of the armed forces....
divisions.

Tanks, heavy artillery and aircraft were forbidden.

The Reichsmarine
Reichsmarine

The Reichsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Weimar Republic and first two years of Nazi Germany. It was the naval branch of the Reichswehr, existing from 1918 to 1935....
, a navy
Navy

A navy is the branch of a nation's military forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions....
limited to a handful of ships. Submarines and aircraft were forbidden.

Despite the limitations on its size, their analysis of the loss of World War I

World War I

Research and development

The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of knowledge to devise new applications [sic]" ...
, secret testing abroad (in cooperation with the Red Army

Red Army

The Red Army was the armed force first organized by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Civil War in 1918 and, in 1922, became the army of the Soviet Union....
) and planning for "better times" went on. As well, although forbidden to have a general staff, the army continued to conduct the typical functions of a general staff under the disguised name of Truppenamt

Truppenamt

The Truppenamt or 'Troop Office' was the cover organisation for the German General Staff from 1919 through until 1933 when the General Staff was re-created....
, or "Troop Office". During this time, many of the future leaders of the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht

Wehrmacht was the name of the unified armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe ....
, for instance, Heinz Guderian

Heinz Guderian

Heinz Wilhelm Guderian was a Theorist and innovative General of the Nazi Germany Wehrmacht during the World War II. Germany's panzer forces were raised and fought according to his works, best-known among them Achtung? Panzer! He held posts as Panzer Corps commander, Panzer Army commander, Inspector-General of Armoured Troops, and Chief...
, first formulated the ideas that they were to use so effectively a few years later.

The Reichswehr was never a friend of democracy but stayed loyal to the democratic German government. The apolitical character of the Reichswehr was emphasised, and this gave democracy the chance to develop without intervention from the military leadership. The biggest influence on the development of the Reichswehr was Hans von Seeckt

Hans von Seeckt

Hans von Seeckt was a Germany military officer noted for his organization of the German Army during the Weimar Republic....
(1866–1936), who served from 1920–1926 as Chef der Heeresleitung (literally "Chief of the Army Leadership").

Whilst the reduction of the peacetime strength of the German army from 780,000 (1913) to 100,000 actually enhanced the quality of the Reichswehr (only the best of the best would be permitted to join the army) the changing face of warfare meant that the smaller Rechswehr was largely helpless without mechanised and aerial support, no matter how much effort was put into modernising infantry tactics.

During 1933 and 1934, after Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born Germany politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , popularly known as the Nazi Party....
became Chancellor of Germany

Chancellor of Germany (German Reich)

The head of government of the German Reich was called Reich Chancellor or short Chancellor from 1871 until 1945. This designation stems from the German chancellor tradition from the Middle Ages and the early modern era....
, the Reichswehr began a secret programme of expansion. With the Nazi takeover of power, there were suggestions by Ernst Röhm

Ernst Röhm

Ernst Julius R?hm, was a Germany army officer and Nazism leader. He was a co-founder of the Sturmabteilung , the Nazi Party militia, and later was SA commander....
that the SA

Sturmabteilung

The , abbreviated SA, , functioned as a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party the Germany Nazism. They played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1930s....
, the Nazi paramilitary force, take over the functions of the Reichswehr. This alarmed the leaders of the military, and to forestall the possibility of a coup, Hitler sided with the military and killed Röhm and his supporters in the Night of the Long Knives

Night of the Long Knives

The Night of the Long Knives or "Operation Hummingbird", was a purge that took place in Nazi Germany between June 30 and July 2, 1934, when the Nazi Party regime carried out a series of political executions, most of those killed being members of the Sturmabteilung , the paramilitary Brownshirts....
. The secret programme of expansion, finally became public with the formal announcement of the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht

Wehrmacht was the name of the unified armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe ....
in 1935.

Reichswehr

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