War and Military Atlas

How Battles Were Fought
Armed Forces and Units

Wehrmacht

German, approximately VAIR-mahkt
Also Known As German Armed Forces (literal translation)
Modern, Nazi Germany

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The Wehrmacht was the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945, comprising three branches, the army (Heer), the navy (Kriegsmarine) and the air force (Luftwaffe), all under a single high command answering to Adolf Hitler as supreme commander.

Facts
Force Type
Unified national armed forces of three branches (army, navy, air force) under one high command (the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht), expanded through conscription to roughly 18 million men under arms over the war. 1
Founded Year
1935 1
Country
Nazi Germany 1
Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Blitzkrieg, Strategy and Doctrine

Why this is disputed. Senior German officers and postwar historians dispute whether Blitzkrieg was ever an officially adopted doctrine of the Wehrmacht rather than ad hoc practice given a name after the fact; see the dissent record on this entity.

Fought In

Sources
1. Wikipedia: Wehrmacht
WikipediaOpening paragraph
Quote, Opening paragraph
The Wehrmacht were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945.
View the Source
1. Wikipedia: Wehrmacht
WikipediaWorld War II section
Quote, World War II section
During World War II about 18 million men served in the Wehrmacht.
View the Source
1. Wikipedia: Wehrmacht
WikipediaHistory section
Quote, History section
the Reichswehr was officially renamed the Wehrmacht on 21 May 1935.
View the Source
Wiktionary: Wehrmacht
WiktionaryView the Source
Wikipedia: Eastern Front (World War II)
WikipediaFought In: Eastern Front (World War II)View the Source
Wikipedia: Blitzkrieg
WikipediaAssociated With: Blitzkrieg, Opening section
Quote, Associated With: Blitzkrieg, Opening section
the word Blitzkrieg was never used as an official military term by the Wehrmacht, except for propaganda, and it was never officially adopted as a concept or doctrine.
View the Source
Wikipedia: Mission-type tactics
WikipediaAssociated With: Auftragstaktik (Mission-Type Tactics)View the Source
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