History

The German Wehrmacht was composed of three main branches, the Heer, the Kriegsmarine, and the Luftwaffe. The Heer and Kriegsmarine uniforms were based upon the designs utilized by their predecessor organizations, the Deutsches Heer and the Kaiserliche Marine. Conversely, the Luftwaffe uniforms were based upon the uniforms worn in the sports and para-military organizations that were the forerunners of the Luftwaffe. The Luftwaffe uniforms were specifically designed to deviate from the designs of the other Wehrmacht service branches. It was also necessary that the uniforms differentiate between military and civilian pilots.

There were two main organizational precursors of the Luftwaffe, the German Air Sports Association (DLV or Deutscher Luftsportverband), and the National Air Raid Protection League (RLB or Reichs Luftschutzbund). The DLV included both a civilian group and a secret military sub-group called the DLV-Fliegerschaft (Pilot Base).

The DLV and the RLB were officially founded in 1933, and they were used to secretly train members for future roles in the Luftwaffe. The DLV became obsolete after Hitler’s official introduction of the Luftwaffe in 1935, and it was disbanded in 1937.

The cape was also known as the Officer’s cloak, and it was worn by Officers and General Officers, as well as Officials of equivalent ranks. It was permitted for wear on any occasion when another form of dress had not been prescribed, and could also be worn on top of the Greatcoat. The cape length extended to a few inches below the wearer’s knee.

Wearers of this cape were responsible for purchasing the item themselves, and it was not sold following the beginning of the Second World War.

The cape is composed of several main elements, including the cloth, the underlay, the fastener, the buttons, and the insignia.

The cape is generally composed of fine quality blue-grey cloth, such as doeskin or worsted wool, but there are also rare examples of the cape which are made from waterproof rubberized materials.

The cape’s collar may be lined with an underlay whose colour matches the wearer’s branch of service colour (Waffenfarbe).

The cape features a fastener (Spanierschloss) below the collar which is composed of two circular disks, each containing the image of an eagle’s head. The disks are joined by a chain. The disks and chain are gold-coloured (gilt) for Generals, and silver-coloured (silvered) for Officers.

There are five horn buttons located along the top of the left seam and they are essentially hidden by the front closure.

The cape’s insignia includes a left facing Luftwaffe pattern national emblem eagle, which is located below the wearer’s left shoulder. The eagle is very large, measuring approximately 175x125mm, and composed of hand-embroidered gold-coloured (gilt) bullion wire for Generals, and aluminum-silver bullion wire for Officers.