Reichsbahn German Railway Armband
CATEGORY: Version
SKU: 72.GOR.03.02.03.001.000
Estimated market value:
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Constructed of green rayon, centering machine embroidered national eagle and the lettering "Reichsbahn" in black rayon threads, in near mint condition; an excellent example.
The Deutsche Reichsbahn (German National Railway) was created after the First World War in 1920 by combining the formerly independent state railways of the abolished German Empire into a national organisation. Under NSDAP rule, the German state railway system was reorganised in the 1930s to better meet the needs of the economy and to prepare for war, eventually supplying the front lines with soldiers and supplies. The Reichsbahn also had an infamous role to play in the Holocaust, transporting Jews and other “undesirables” to concentration and extermination camps.
The Bahnschutzpolizei (railway protection police) was founded in 1939 as a merger of the Bahnpolizei (railway police) and the Reichsbahnschutz (railway protection force), the latter being regular railway employees that, beyond their normal functions, additionally served as railway security personnel.
The Bahnschutzpolizei as a railway sub-organisation was made up of policemen that were employed by the Reichsbahn rather than the German police force. Their task was to ensure railway safety as well as preventing railway-related espionage and sabotage. During the war, most members of the Bahnschutzpolizei served in the occupied Eastern European territories.
The standard pattern armband of the Reichsbahn features a black eagle emblem on green with the black Latin letters “Reichsbahn” (national railway) underneath. Variations exist, for example with Gothic letters or with the inscription “Deutsche Reichsbahn” (German national railway), as well as different armband colours, for example white instead of green.
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