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The Insignia of the
German Police
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Fire
Protection Police |
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In 1938 fire-fighting organizations throughout
Germany were incorporated into the overall police system.
Prior to this time all German fire-fighting groups were
organized into independent brigades serving each municipality.
The
newly created Fire Protection Police (Feuerschutz-polizei) became a
branch of the Order Police (Ordnungspolizei) and members were
responsible for all fire-fighting related duties in towns or
cities large enough to support a fire-fighting unit.
These units were under the direct authority of the local
police system which provided greater authority to the
fire-fighting brigades.
The size of each Fire Protection Police unit
was determined based on the population as well as the general
operational area covered. In some cases larger units were
established in cities that were heavily industrialized or were
determined to be at particular risk for air-raid attacks.
Fire Protection Police played a critical role following the
onset of large scale Allied bombing attacks. Members were
responsible for fighting fires both day and night in addition
to keeping general order in conjunction with other police
units.
In cities that
required additional manpower, volunteer fire-fighting units
were established (Freiwillige Feuerwehren) to assist the Fire
Protection Police. Both the Volunteer Fire Protection Force and
the Fire Protection Police wore uniforms of similar nature
including light-weight Fire Protection helmets. In fact,
little changed in overall uniform or headgear save for the
addition of the cloth police eagle insignia sewn to the
various uniforms worn by fire-fighting personnel. Prior
to incorporation into the Order Police, regular fire-fighting
personnel wore standard protective helmets. These
helmets continued to be worn without modification. The
typical helmet was made of light-weight steel with various
liner systems. Most had a metal comb over the crown to
help prevent injury from falling debris. Helmets were
outfitted with leather tabs that could accommodate a black
leather neck flap. Helmets were painted satin black. |
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Overview
Each section of German-Helmets.com
is divided into separate Information Tracks that outline important
details, facts, and historical notes pertaining to steel helmets used by
the German Armed Forces during World War II.
Information Tracks are organized
by subject matter and their content is directly related to the service arm
or organization to which each topic is related. Topic areas that
bridge one subject matter to another are cross linked within each Information Track.
This Information Track provides historical
facts pertaining to helmets of the Fire Protection Police from 1938-1945.
Individual links related to this subject are outlined below.
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