|
|country = (1935–45) (1945–46) |allegiance = Nazi Germany |branch = ''Heer'' Kriegsmarine Luftwaffe |type = |role = Armed forces of Nazi Germany |size = 20,700,000 (total who served at any time) 2,200,000 (1945) |command_structure = |garrison = Zossen |past_commanders = |ceremonial_chief = Adolf Hitler |notable_commanders = Adolf Hitler Hermann Göring Wilhelm Keitel Erich Raeder Karl Dönitz Robert Ritter von Greim Erwin Rommel |identification_symbol = ''Balkenkreuz'' |identification_symbol_2 = Swastika |nickname = |patron = Adolf Hitler | Unnofficial motto = "Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer" |colors = ''Feldgrau'' |march = |mascot = |battles = Spanish Civil War World War II |anniversaries = |decorations = See full list. |battle_honors = }} The Wehrmacht (, lit. "defence force")〔From (ドイツ語:wehren), "to defend" and ドイツ語:'' Macht'', "power, force". See the Wiktionary article for more information.〕 was the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1946. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force).〔''Die Verfassungen in Deutschland'' (Constitution ) online. ''Reichsgesetzblatt'' (RGB). RGB1 1935, I, no. 52, p. 609 See: http://www.verfassungen.de/de/de33-45/wehrmachtaufbau35.htm〕 The designation ''Wehrmacht'' for Nazi Germany's military replaced the previously used term, Reichswehr (1919–1935), and constituted the Third Reich’s efforts to rearm the nation to a greater extent than the Treaty of Versailles permitted.〔Taylor, Telford. ''Sword and Swastika: Generals and Nazis in the Third Reich'', pp. 90–119.〕 Following Germany’s defeat in the First World War, the country was relegated by the Versailles treaty to a limited army of only 100,000, one barely sufficient for home defense. The Reichswehr, formed under the newly formed Weimar Republic was the precursor to the Wehrmacht. After the Nazis seizure of power, one of Hitler’s most overt and audacious moves was to establish a mighty fighting force (the Wehrmacht), a modern armed forces fully capable of offensive use. Fulfilling the Nazi regime’s long-term goals of regaining lost territory and dominating its neighbors required massive investment and spending on the armaments industry, as well as military conscription to expand Hitler’s fighting machine.〔See: "The Economics of Warfare: from Blitzkrieg to Total War," in Kitchen, Martin (1994). ''Nazi Germany at War'', pp. 39–65.〕 In December 1941, Hitler designated himself as commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht.〔Williamson, David G. (2002). ''The Third Reich'', p. 178.〕 The Wehrmacht formed the heart of Germany’s politico-military power. In the early part of World War II, Hitler's generals employed the Wehrmacht through innovative combined arms tactics (close cover air-support, mechanized armor, and infantry) to devastating effect in what was called a Blitzkrieg (lightning war). The Wehrmacht's new military structure,〔The High Command of the Wehrmacht was known as the ''Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' (OKW) after 1938. See: Stackelberg, Roderick (2007). ''The Routledge Companion to Nazi Germany'', p. 311.〕 unique combat techniques, newly developed weapons, and unprecedented speed and brutality crushed their opponents.〔Palmer, Michael (2010). ''The German Wars: A Concise History, 1859–1945'', pp. 169–175.〕 At the height of their success in 1942, the Nazis dominated more than 3,898,000 square kilometers of territory,〔See the graphical illustration, "Nazi Germany and Europe, 1942," in Michael Freeman (1987). ''Atlas of Nazi Germany'', p. 135.〕 an accomplishment made possible by the combined German forces firmly securing conquered territory. Working hand-in-hand at times with the SS, soldiers on the front (especially during the Eastern campaign) sometimes participated in war atrocities, despite later denials.〔Bessel, Richard (2006). ''Nazism and War'', pp. 198–203.〕 By the time the war ended in Europe in May 1945, the Wehrmacht had lost approximately 11,300,000 men,〔Fritz, Stephen G. (2011). ''Ostkrieg: Hitler's War of Extermination in the East'', p. 470.〕 of which about half were killed in action. Only a few of the Wehrmacht’s upper leadership were tried for war crimes, although the evidence suggests that more were involved in illegal actions.〔See: "The Legend of the Wehrmacht’s Clean Hands," in Wette, Wolfram (2007). ''The Wehrmacht: History, Myth, Reality'', pp. 195–250.〕 More or less having ceased to exist by September 1945, the Wehrmacht was officially dissolved by ACC Law 34 on 20 August 1946.〔Large, David Clay (1996). ''Germans to the Front: West German Rearmament in the Adenauer Era'', p. 25.〕 The Wehrmacht did not have a direct successor in post-World War II Germany, and was wholly replaced by the Bundeswehr in that era who shunned the traditions of the dissolved Wehrmacht. == Origin and use of the term == The German term ''Wehrmacht'' generically describes any nation's armed forces, thus ''Britische Wehrmacht'' denotes "British Armed Forces." The Frankfurt Constitution of 1848 (''Paulskirchenverfassung'') designated all German military forces as the "German Wehrmacht", consisting of the ''Seemacht'' (''sea force'') and the ''Landmacht'' (''land force''). In 1919, the term Wehrmacht also appears in Article 47 of the Weimar Constitution, establishing that: ''The Reich's President holds supreme command of all armed forces (the Wehrmacht ) of the Reich'' ("Der Reichspräsident hat den Oberbefehl über die gesamte Wehrmacht des Reiches"). From 1919, Germany's national defense force was known as the Reichswehr, which name was dropped in favor of Wehrmacht on 16 March 1935. In modern-day Germany the name Wehrmacht is considered a proper noun for the 1935–45 armed forces, and the term ''Streitkräfte'' is used for any nation's "armed forces"; however, this was not so even some decades after 1945. In English writing Wehrmacht is often used to refer specifically to the land forces (army); the correct German for this is ''Heer''. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Wehrmacht」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|