Army general (East Germany)

Army general (German: Armeegeneral), was the highest peacetime general officer rank in the so-called armed organs of the GDR (Bewaffnete Organe der DDR), that is, the Ministry of National Defence, the Stasi, and the Ministry of the Interior. It is comparable to the four-star rank in many NATO armed forces. It was aligned with Soviet military doctrine and other armed forces of the Warsaw Pact.

Army general
Armeegeneral
collar patches / shoulder board
Country German Democratic Republic
Service branch
RankFour-star
NATO rank codeOF-9
Formation1 March 1956
Abolished2 October 1990
Next higher rankMarshal of the German Democratic Republic
Next lower rankGeneraloberst
Equivalent ranksFlottenadmiral

The rank was reserved to minister level exclusively. Consequently, in the National People's Army service branches, Landstreitkräfte, Luftstreitkräfte/Luftverteidigung, Border troops, and Volksmarine there was no equivalent. However, if a Navy flag officer was designated or appointed Minister of National Defence he would be promoted to Flottenadmiral. When the armed organs of the GDR were disbanded in October 1990, the rank was abolished.

Rankholders

East German officers who achieved the rank were:

Name Portrait Position Year of Rank
Willi Stoph Minister of National Defence 1959
Heinz Hoffmann Minister of National Defence 1961
Erich Mielke Minister for State Security 1980
Friedrich Dickel Minister of Interior 1984
Heinz Kessler Minister of National Defence 1985

Insignia
Armeegeneral / Flottenadmiral (OF-9)
GDR MFS GDR MOD  GDR Ministry of Interior
Armeegeneral Flottenadmiral Armeegeneral

Army general in other countries

The four-star rank OF-9 was widely used in other armed forces of socialist countries, such as:

Junior Rank
Generaloberst		  GDR
Armeegeneral
(Flottenadmiral)		 Senior rank
Marshal of the GDR
(wartime only)

See also

References
  1. "Ranks". Ministry of Defence & Armed Forces of the Czech Republic. 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2020.

Bibliography
  • Keubke, Klaus-Ulrich; Kunz, Manfred (2005). Militärische Uniformen in der DDR 1949–1990 (in German). E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0915-0.
  • Wollert, Günter (1984). NVA Kalender 1985 (in German). Militärverlag der DDR.
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