Flag Dipping and the Grand Tattoo: Bundeswehr Customs

Very few people realise that the Bundeswehr and life in the military are profoundly marked by customs. The hand salute, uniforms and the solemn pledge are a few examples of the Bundeswehr’s customs. Without them, the Bundeswehr would not be the organisation we know.

Many people are unaware of the Bundeswehr’s wealth of customs because they often mistakenly believe them to be the same as traditions. However, according to the Guidelines on Tradition and the Cultivation of Tradition in the Bundeswehr, “Many ways, conventions and practices that have been passed down are not traditions but rather customs, that is, military habits and formalities”. Traditions are the “core of the Bundeswehr’s culture of remembrance” and its “value-oriented identity”. By contrast, a custom does not convey any values. Customs in the Bundeswehr also prioritise form over substance: “Traditions have a core of values. Customs are merely the outer shell”, Colonel (General Staff) Dr Sven Lange from the Federal Ministry of Defence sums it up. As the historian from the Leadership and Civic Education division explains, traditions must refer back to values such as “freedom, democracy or the rule of law”.

Customs offer guidance and support

Military customs have developed and changed over a long period of time. They are handed down, and it is often impossible to say exactly when, how or why certain traditions emerged. Nevertheless, the Bundeswehr’s customs are important for the forces and for the military community. They promote solidarity and comradeship. They strengthen the sense of togetherness and “give us the ability to act with confidence in everyday military life”, says Sven Lange. In a world of constant change and growing uncertainty, customs offer military personnel guidance and support. Unlike traditions, many customs in the Bundeswehr are only practised in individual branches, armed services or units in order to underscore their unique features. The Navy, for example, has different customs than the Army, the Air Force or the Joint Support and Enabling Service. One example is flag dipping on ships and vessels, where the military personnel greet the German flag at the stern of the ship.

The Bundeswehr’s customs strengthen its identity. Uniforms are one example. Unlike civilians, military personnel wear uniforms. Uniforms distinguish them not only from civilians, but also from soldiers from different countries. In contrast, wearing the same uniform creates a deep bond among fellow soldiers. The colour and cut of uniforms are also customs. For example, all the branches of the Army wear the same field grey service dress, but the colours of the braids on the shoulder straps indicate the individual branches: green for infantry, for example, and golden yellow for reconnaissance forces. The colours were chosen at the beginning of the 20th century, but they are now an “identifying code for the soldiers”, as Colonel Dr Lange puts it. Other elements of the uniform, such as the aiguillette or the sword knot, once had practical purposes – keeping a rider’s hat in place or a sabre to hand – but are now purely ornamental since these purposes no longer apply.

One example of a custom practised throughout the entire Bundeswehr is the hand salute. Putting your hand to your forehead to greet a superior goes back to a medieval custom practised by knights. When two knights met, they would lift the visors of their helmets to identify themselves. Of course, military personnel can also simply greet each other with words or a handshake, but, by saluting, they are acting like soldiers. In addition, the hand salute calls to mind virtuous and honourable conduct.

Other examples of customs for the entire Bundeswehr include the solemn pledge and the grand tattoo. Yet these examples blur the line between custom and tradition. The custom of the pledge has become a tradition because it refers to values like justice and freedom. The pledge and the established procedure for it are a ritualised custom. A ritual marks the crossing of a threshold in development. In the pledge, recruits are accepted into the community of military personnel. While oaths and pledges no longer have any effect on legal status, the pledge is still a sign of being accepted into the military community and voluntarily taking on military duties. All military personnel in the Bundeswehr swear or pledge that they will “bravely defend the rights and freedom of the German people”.

The grand tattoo is the German armed forces’ most important ceremony. The entire force lines up together to honour a worthy official at the end of their service. The history of the grand tattoo dates back to the times of the Landsknecht mercenaries, when the provost would sweep his sabre over the taps of the beer and wine barrels, symbolically ending the sale of drinks and ordering the soldiers to go home for the night. The grand tattoo took on its formal ceremonial form in the 19th century.

Some customs stand the test of time, while others, such as officers’ swords or sabres, disappear. The custom of bestowing a sabre after candidates pass their officer examinations is derived from an early form of dubbing knights in which the knights received their weapons from the king. The ideal of knightly honour may still exist, but the sabre has outlived its usefulness as a weapon. Customs also fall out of use when legal and moral concepts change. Some soldier’s songs, for example, stop being sung if they are no longer compatible with the Bundeswehr’s traditions or value system. However, old customs can also be revived or whole new ones can be created, as illustrated by the Bundeswehr Memorial at the Berlin seat of the Federal Ministry of Defence. Inaugurated in 2009, the Bundeswehr Memorial commemorates the Bundeswehr’s dead. Guests and visitors leave wreaths and flowers there.