FG-007 - Reichskriegsflagge – Transitional Model 1933–1935 ("alter Art")
Flag ID: FG-007
Flag facts
- Maker (stamp): Not identified
- Dimensions: 100 × 170 cm
- Materials: Coarse wool flag cloth
- Construction: Machine-sewn flag with reinforced hoist and printed design
- Layout: Reichskriegsflagge transitional model (“alter Art”)
- Markings (hoist): “Reichskriegs-Flg. alter Art 1,0 × 1,7”
- Legal stamp expansion (if relevant): Reichskriegsflagge, old pattern, 1.0 × 1.7 m
- Acceptance: No naval acceptance or depot marking observed
- Period: 1933–1935
- Condition: Used condition with normal age and handling wear
Historical framework
FG-007 belongs to the transitional period between the Weimar Republic and the early National Socialist state, during which the German navy continued to operate under the institutional structure of the Reichsmarine, despite the political transformation initiated in 1933.
Crucially, the Reichsmarine remained formally unchanged as an organisation until 21 May 1935. During this period, the navy retained its existing regulations and symbols, including a Reichskriegsflagge of Weimar origin, which continued to serve as the official naval war ensign. However, the version in use was not a direct continuation of the earlier Imperial or Weimar model, but a modified form, characterised by the introduction of a white border surrounding the Iron Cross and adjustments to the dimensions and proportions of the cross itself.
For a documented earlier naval comparison, see also the 1903 Gösch example, which preserves the older Iron Cross form without the added white edging.
The designation “alter Art” reflects this situation. It identifies the flag as part of the existing, still-valid system, while simultaneously indicating that it belonged to an earlier design category that was expected to be replaced. FG-007 is therefore best understood as a regulation-use transitional type, rather than a retrospective or improvised variant.
Within the German naval flag system, the Reichskriegsflagge could function both as a war ensign and, in smaller formats, as a Gösch. This helps explain why transitional “alter Art” examples are encountered in multiple sizes.
With the reorganisation of the German armed forces on 21 May 1935, the Reichsmarine was formally renamed the Kriegsmarine. However, the introduction of a new naval war ensign did not occur simultaneously. Instead, the existing flag system remained in use for a short interim period.
The definitive break came with the introduction of a new Reichskriegsflagge on 7 November 1935, incorporating the National Socialist state symbols. Only at this point was the earlier design fully replaced.
This sequence reflects a broader structural reality: the National Socialist regime did not immediately replace inherited naval institutions, but initially operated through the existing Reichsmarine framework while gradually redefining its symbolic system. FG-007 therefore represents a hybrid phase, where a new ideological regime made use of an established naval structure and its flag system, before introducing a fully aligned visual identity.
FG-007 thus represents both the last phase of the pre-1935 naval war flag system and the first naval war ensign used under National Socialist rule, occupying a clearly defined position between Reichsmarine continuity and Kriegsmarine standardisation.
Technical observations
The flag retains the core structure of the earlier Reichsmarine / Weimar-era Reichskriegsflagge. Its layout preserves the familiar black-white-red field system and the central Iron Cross motif, while the proportions remain consistent with the standard German naval format.
A notable visual feature is the thin white outline around the Iron Cross. This distinguishes the flag from the older Imperial-era model and appears to represent a modest but deliberate visual refinement rather than a complete redesign. The transitional model is therefore best understood as a continuation design with small adjustments, not a newly invented flag pattern.
Construction characteristics are consistent with period German flag manufacture: coarse wool cloth, machine stitching, a reinforced hoist edge, and an integrated rope attachment system. The design appears printed rather than appliquéd, which is compatible with practical use rather than purely decorative production.
These details support the conclusion that FG-007 is a genuine period flag. However, in the absence of a naval acceptance or depot marking, they do not by themselves prove formal shipboard issue or operational sea use.
Marking and classification
The hoist marking “Reichskriegs-Flg. alter Art 1,0 × 1,7” is one of the strongest diagnostic features of this flag. It confirms the period designation used on the flag, the “alter Art” wording, and the stated size format.
The wording “alter Art” is especially important because it reflects administrative classification rather than later collector terminology. It indicates a flag type that remained valid in service, but was already understood within the system as belonging to an older official pattern.
Surviving examples of this transitional flag type are known both with earlier Weimar-era depot or acceptance markings and with later Kriegsmarine acceptance marks, commonly referred to in the collecting record as “Adler über M” (eagle over M). This is historically plausible, since the naval administration and supply system did not reset overnight after 1933 and continued to operate through a period of institutional overlap.
naval depot / acceptance marking.
“Adler über M” / eagle over M.
The coexistence of these two marking systems is one of the clearest indicators that “alter Art” flags remained in circulation across the transition from Reichsmarine to Kriegsmarine. It reflects continuity in stock, supply and administrative practice rather than a clean break in 1933.
No primary source has yet been identified here that securely establishes the exact introduction date of the later Kriegsmarine acceptance mark “Adler über M” (eagle over M). The precise point at which this marking entered use on naval flags must therefore, for the moment, remain uncertain.
It is nevertheless reasonable to consider the possibility that the appearance of this mark belongs broadly to the period surrounding the formal transition from Reichsmarine to Kriegsmarine in May 1935. If so, examples of transitional “alter Art” flags bearing the later acceptance mark may represent some of the last production runs of this older flag type before it was fully replaced by the new war ensign introduced in November 1935.
At present, however, this should be treated as a logical working hypothesis based on surviving material evidence and the broader institutional transition, not as a documented regulatory fact. Further archival investigation is ongoing.
FG-007 therefore sits within a context of institutional continuity despite regime change, where inherited flag patterns, older depot markings and later naval acceptance systems could overlap during the first phase of National Socialist rule.
Transitional timeline
The development of German naval war flags can be divided into four broad phases, each reflecting a distinct political and institutional framework.
Imperial period
until 1918
Fully monarchic Reichskriegsflagge with imperial symbolism.
Weimar period
1921–1933
Revised Reichskriegsflagge adapted to republican state symbols.
Early NS transitional phase
1933–1935
Continued use of the older pattern as “alter Art”.
Kriegsmarine standardization
from 1935
First swastika-era Kriegsmarine war ensign introduced in November 1935.
FG-007 belongs unambiguously to the third phase. It represents the period in which the earlier Reichsmarine flag system remained in use under National Socialist rule, before the full Kriegsmarine redesign was introduced in November 1935.
Particularly important in this context is FG-008, a documented example of a Weimar-period Reichskriegsflagge physically altered into an “alter Art” transitional flag. That object provides especially strong evidence that existing flags were not simply discarded, but could be modified in period to match the new transitional standard.
Taken together, FG-007 and FG-008 form a particularly useful pair: one represents a transitional “alter Art” flag in finished form, while the other demonstrates that such flags could emerge through the physical reworking of earlier Weimar stock.
Flat flag illustrations used in this timeline are based on image material derived from Wikipedia: Reichskriegsflagge.
Assessment
FG-007 is best understood as an authentic transitional Reichskriegsflagge from the period 1933–1935.
Its importance lies not in radical redesign, but in the fact that it represents an early National Socialist transitional naval war ensign, still rooted in the Weimar-derived system, before the 1935 Kriegsmarine redesign introduced a fully new ideological model.
The marking, construction, size format and historical context together support classification as a genuine early NS-period transitional Reichskriegsflagge that still belongs structurally to the Weimar-derived design system.
In short, FG-007 is not merely an “old-style” war flag. It is a transitional state and military artifact documenting the overlap between two political systems.
Additional images
Sources & references
- Author’s documentation: physical inspection and measurement of specimen FG-007, including dimensions, textile structure, hoist marking, stitching, hoist reinforcement and rope attachments.
-
FG-008 – Altered Weimar Kriegsflagge:
documented FlagGeek example of a Weimar-period Reichskriegsflagge physically altered into an
“alter Art” transitional flag, including added white cross border and replaced upper hoist canton.
This provides strong comparative evidence that older Weimar stock could be modified in period to match
the transitional standard.
flaggeek.net -
Deutsches Reichsgesetzblatt 1935:
index entry including the
Verordnung über die Reichskriegsflagge, die Gösch der Kriegsschiffe,
die Handelsflagge mit dem Eisernen Kreuz und die Flagge des Reichskriegsministers
und Oberbefehlshabers der Wehrmacht, issued on 5 October 1935.
This is the key legal anchor for the formal introduction of the new Kriegsmarine-era war flag system.
de.wikisource.org -
Wikipedia – Reichskriegsflagge:
used here only for the flat comparative illustrations shown in the timeline section.
The image sequence is useful for quick visual comparison between the Imperial, Weimar,
transitional and 1935 Kriegsmarine designs.
wikipedia.org - Comparative material evidence: surviving examples of transitional flags are known both with Weimar-era depot markings and with later Kriegsmarine acceptance marks, commonly referred to in the collecting record as “Adler über M”. This supports the interpretation of institutional continuity across the Reichsmarine / Kriegsmarine transition, even though no primary regulation has yet been identified here that securely establishes the exact introduction date of the mark on naval flags.
- Historical framework: current interpretation based on the known sequence Weimar Reichskriegsflagge → transitional “alter Art” phase → 1935 Kriegsmarine redesign, combined with comparative physical evidence from surviving flags and altered examples.
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