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Marvin · 08-01-2001, 07:47 AM

Hakan,

This is a good question and I have thought about this a lot myself. From my limited understanding, officers were issued handguns, but some of them were required to purchase their own. I don't know what rank would indicate a sef-purchase. All machine gun crews were issued handguns, and the machine gun was the backbone of the infantry.

I have read accounts from German veterans that the regular soldier was not issued a handgun until the were a rank of Feldwebel or higher. I think a Feldwebel was a sergent.

Rear area personel of the command center, medical personel, and others of this type were issued handgins instead of the rifle.

There is a book by Col. Whittington, "German Holsters and Pistols of the Third Reich", vol 4 which list the authorized issue of weapons. It just does not go into the deatail we would like, but is a little help. The German Army was still one of the largest users of handguns at that time.

Marvin

08-01-2001, 07:47 AM	#2
Marvin User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Upstate S.C. Posts: 1,132 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: How many soldiers did carry handguns? Hakan, This is a good question and I have thought about this a lot myself. From my limited understanding, officers were issued handguns, but some of them were required to purchase their own. I don't know what rank would indicate a sef-purchase. All machine gun crews were issued handguns, and the machine gun was the backbone of the infantry. I have read accounts from German veterans that the regular soldier was not issued a handgun until the were a rank of Feldwebel or higher. I think a Feldwebel was a sergent. Rear area personel of the command center, medical personel, and others of this type were issued handgins instead of the rifle. There is a book by Col. Whittington, "German Holsters and Pistols of the Third Reich", vol 4 which list the authorized issue of weapons. It just does not go into the deatail we would like, but is a little help. The German Army was still one of the largest users of handguns at that time. Marvin