History

The headgear, uniforms, and insignia worn by members of the Kriegsmarine were based upon the designs utilized by the Kaiserliche Marine and the Reichsmarine. The official regulations governing the uniforms of the Reichsmarine were issued on April 5, 1921, and they were embraced, with a few alterations, as the Kriegsmarine uniforms in 1935.

These armbands were worn by personnel within all branches of the Third Reich Armed Forces, and they were meant to indicate the wearer’s duty, specific position or function. The official regulations stated that the armbands should be worn on the upper left sleeve of outer garment layers, but there are many documented instances of personnel wearing the armband on the right sleeve.

While the majority of armbands were machine-woven, they were also produced via machine-embroidery, hand-sewing, or printing. The armbands were often stamped on the reverse with the issuing office's or unit's seal.

The Duty Armbands were worn by Kriegsmarine personnel only during active duty.

The Duty Non-Commissioned Officer Armbands were worn on the field-grey uniform, and thus the colour of the armband cloth is field-grey. These armbands also feature the inscription “U v D,” which was sewn onto the cloth in silver-coloured (aluminum) tress, and have horizontal borders along the top and bottom of the armband composed of silver-coloured (aluminum) or matte-silver tress.