''Soldat'' ( short: ''S'', plural ''Soldaten'') is the lowest rank of
enlisted men
An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or warrant officers, except in United States mi ...
in the land-based armed forces of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It is usually grouped as OR-1 within the
NATO ranking system, excluding the Swiss armed services which is not part of NATO.
[Official Website (Bundeswehr): Dienstgrade und Uniformen der Bundeswehr (Service Ranks and Uniforms of the German Federal Defence Forces), in German]
/ref>
Germany
The German term ''Soldat'' (equivalent to '' Soldier#Etymology, Soldier'' in English) has its roots as far back as the 16th-century, where it was a common designation for a paid or remunerated ''ordinary-rank'' member of a military infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
, especially one who was not an officer. In the German language ''Sold'' implies "pay", and as such the term ''Soldat'' designated a person in pay (being paid) for providing armed service.
Bundeswehr
In the Federal armed forces of Germany (''Bundeswehr
The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...
'') it can be the collective term to any person in uniform, e.g. Officers (de: Offiziere), Non-Commissioned Officers (de: Unteroffiziere), and enlisted men (de: Mannschaften).
In the Bundeswehr it is used to describe conscripts
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
(de: Wehrpflichtiger), short/long term serving volunteers (de: Zeitsoldat, or Soldat auf Zeit), and career or regular servicemen (de: Berufssoldat).[BROCKHAUS, The encyclopedia in 24 volumes (1796–2001), Volume 20: 3-7653-3680-7, page 396; definition «Soldat».]
It is grade A3 in the pay rules of the Federal Ministry of Defence
The Federal Ministry of Defence (german: Bundesministerium der Verteidigung, ), abbreviated BMVg, is a top-level federal agency, headed by the Federal Minister of Defence as a member of the Cabinet of Germany. The ministry is headquartered at ...
.
The sequence of ranks (top-down approach) in that particular group is as follows:
*OR-4a: Oberstabsgefreiter
(abbreviated OStGefr, on lists OSG; "Senior Staff Gefreiter") was the highest enlisted rank in the German Bundeswehr before the new ranks Korporal and Stabskorporal were introduced in October 2021. The rank can be comparable to corporal
Cor ...
*OR-4b: Stabsgefreiter
''Stabsgefreiter'' (''abbr.'' StGefr, on lists SG) is the second highest rank of enlisted men in the German Bundeswehr, which might be comparable to Corporal (OR-4) in Anglophone armed forces.
History
In the 19th century German Army the ''Gefre ...
*OR-3a: Hauptgefreiter
Gefreiter (, abbr. Gefr.; plural ''Gefreite'') is a German, Swiss and Austrian military rank that has existed since the 16th century. It is usually the second rank or grade to which an enlisted soldier, airman or sailor could be promoted.Duden; D ...
*OR-3b: Obergefreiter
Obergefreiter (''abbr.'' OGefr.) is an enlisted rank of the German and Swiss militaries which dates from the 19th century.
In today's Bundeswehr, every ''Gefreiter'' is normally promoted ''Obergefreiter'' after six months. The NATO-Code is OR-3 ...
*OR-2: Gefreiter
Gefreiter (, abbr. Gefr.; plural ''Gefreite'') is a German, Swiss and Austrian military rank that has existed since the 16th century. It is usually the second rank or grade to which an enlisted soldier, airman or sailor could be promoted.Duden; D ...
*OR-1: Soldat (Army, Air Force, Navy)
Designation
The designation of the particular OR1-rank depends on the individual branch and career of the soldier
A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer.
Etymology
The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...
as regulated in the Zentrale Dienstvorschrift 14/5. The sole OR1-rank designation in the Marine is Matrose, and ''Sanitätssoldat'' in the ''Bundeswehr medical service''. Other OR1-designations are descript in the table below.
Wehrmacht until 1945
See also
* Soldat (Romania)
Soldat (''soldier'') is the lowest rank in the Romanian Land Forces. It is the equivalent of jandarm ( en, gendarme) in the Romanian Gendarmerie.
In day-to-day usage, the term ''soldat'' denotes every man or woman enrolled in the Romanian Armed ...
* Ranks of the German Bundeswehr
The ranks of the German Armed Forces, (in German: Bundeswehr), were set up by the President with the '' Anordnung des Bundespräsidenten über die Dienstgradbezeichnungen und die Uniform der Soldaten'' on the basis osection 4 paragraph 3 of the ''S ...
* Rank insignia of the German Bundeswehr
The rank insignia of the federal armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany indicate rank and branch of service in the German Army (), German Air Force (), or the German Navy ().
They are regulated by the "presidential order on rank designat ...
* Ranks and insignia of NATO armies enlisted
This page lists the enlisted ranks and insignia of NATO member armies. For the comparison chart of the commissioned officers, see Ranks and insignia of NATO armies officers.
Other and enlisted ranks (OR 1–9)
See also
* NATO
* Ranks and insign ...
* Ranks and insignia of enlisted personnel in NATO air forces
References
{{Authority control
Military ranks of Germany
Military ranks of Switzerland