Heer

Von Brauchitsch was the high army commander from 1938 to 1941

Heer (German: Heer [listen] ([Media helphelp]·[info])) is the german word for Army, though in English it refers to the Army branch of the Wehrmacht. In modern Germany the Heer is part of the Bundeswehr, however it was also the name for the Army of Wehrmacht, of Nazi Germany. In English, it usually refers to the latter meaning, similar to how Luftwaffe usually refers to the Air Force of Nazi Germany in English, even though it also the modern German name for its air force, as well as some other countries.

The Bundeswehr Heer was reformed in the 1950s as the Army of West Germany until 1990, and East and West Germany after. The army of East Germany was called the Landstreitkräfte, part of Nationale Volksarmee. See German Army for more on the modern Germany Army.

Wehrmacht flag

The Heer of the Wehrmacht was formed in 1935 from the Reichsheer, which had been part of the Reichswehr of the Weimarer Republik. It is a point of confusion that Heer is the name of the army for both the Bundeswehr and the Wehrmacht. Also, even though Nazi Germany is often called the Third Reich, and some organizations in Germany at that time used Reich in there name (e.g. Reichsluftfahrtministerium), it was the Weimar Republic that had armed forces named with 'reich' (see Reichswehr) not Nazi Germany.

Another source of confusion is that the Military of Austria is known as the Bundesheer, which includes several branches - not just the army. The Austrian Army itself is just called the Landesverteidigung. The Austrian armed forces were formed again during the 1950s, after having been dissolved and taken over in the late 1930s by Nazi Germany. Many Austrians were forced to serve in the Wehrmacht Heer by Hitler, which was dissolved in 1946.

In the German Empire, its armies were also called Heer, but they were split up between the Prussian, Bavarian, etc. armies.

Troops march through the streets of Warsaw, Poland

Heer

See also