History

Following the First World War, the German Red Cross (Deutsches Rotes Kreuz, DRK) was threatened in its existence by the Treaty of Versailles, since the organisation was mainly focused on preparing its members for war and military-related medical service. This resulted in the DRK switching focus to social welfare activities during the time of the Weimar Republic.

The stipulations enforced by the Treaty of Versailles were declared null and void following the NSDAP’s consolidation of power in 1933. The new Reich Minister of the Interior, Wilhelm Frick, an NSDAP member, ensured that the DRK would be ready to support all of the Third Reich’s future military affairs and political ideologies. In 1938, the DRK was merged with the Ministry of the Interior’s Social Welfare Organisation, officially becoming an organisation under NSDAP oversight. The DRK also had ties to the SS, mainly due to high-ranking medical professionals serving in both organisations simultaneously.

The belt buckle designs used at the beginning of the Third Reich for Enlisted Ranks and Officers are a continuation of the designs implement during the First World War and the Weimar Republic.

The belt straps worn in association with the DRK belt buckles were composed of brown, dark brown or black coloured leather, or simulated leather. The fittings are silver-coloured unless the belt wearer had the rank of Generalführer, in which case the belt fittings are gold-coloured (gilt). The reverse of the belt may be stamped, in ink or into the leather, with a size, a manufacturer's mark, or an inscription indicating the use of the belt strap by the DRK.

The belt straps worn by all DRK personnel with the 1st pattern buckles (1933-1938) tend to be composed of brown leather, while the belt straps worn by all DRK personnel with the second pattern (1938-1945) were generally composed of black leather.