The Cold War
Gallery 4
|
East German Air Force enlisted mans visor hat. |
|
Medaille für Treue Dienste in der Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse (Medal for Long Service in the Combat Groups of the Working Class - 15 Years), instituted in 1965. It was awarded in four levels: 10 years, 15 years, 20 years and 25 years service. Founded in 1953, the KdA was a paramilitary organization similar to a National Guard and strictly controlled by the Communist government. Large factories, along with many neighborhoods, had their own Kampfgruppen, each made up of about 100 workers who sought to "defend the property of the people". Membership was voluntary but many chose to enlist in the KdA to avoid being drafted into the Army. A KdA member trained with his group after work and on weekends for a total of 136 hours annually. They were organised like infantry, and were to join the military and police during political emergencies such as protests against the government. The largest use of the KdA for this purpose was during the construction of the Berlin Wall: KdA members stood in a line in front of the Wall, with orders to shoot anyone who tried to pass through. The KdA had at their disposal many of the weapons that the police would use such as armored personnel carriers, mortars, anti-aircraft and anti-tank guns. Politically reliable, KdA groups could be sent overseas to help train local militias, especially in African countries that received military aid from East Germany; large numbers of KdA members were sent to Brazzaville in particular. By 1989, one in 36 East Germans was a member. |
|
35 year jubilee commemorative stein from the Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse in the town of Eisenberg, East Germany. The Eisenberg KdA unit was named after Doctor Theodor Neubauer. A communist since the early 1920's, Neubauer had been imprisoned by the Nazis in 1933 in the Buchenwald concentration camp (near Eisenberg), and was released in 1939. He immediately formed a communist resistance cell, and was re-arrested in July 1944. Put on trial in January 1945, he was executed the following month. (Donated by the late Rolf Kormann) |
|
This edition of Collier's from October 1951 reflected the growing concern over the cold war relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union. The entire issue was devoted to a hypothetical World War III, ending in the defeat and occupation of the USSR, along with the nuclear destruction of America's major cities. |
|
Selection of insignia worn by the Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact: Top: Hungarian Army Captain shoulder strap. Middle row, left to right: Cap badges for Poland, Ukraine, Latvia and Hungary. Bottom row, left to right: Polish Officer Candidate School insignia, pocket badge for a member of the Slovenian General Staff, and a Czechoslovakian Army Officer Academy Graduates' pocket badge. |
|
These felt and plastic speciality badges were worn on the left arm of Soviet uniforms: Top row, left to right: Commissary troops, medical troops, and motorised infantry. Bottom row, left to right: chemical warfare troops, railway troops, and signals troops. |
