A satirical propaganda poster by the Polish Action "N" during WWII entitled Gott mit uns, after the Wehrmacht belt buckle inscription; Adolf Hitler on the left, Heinrich Himmler on the right A First World War-era Prussian enlisted man's belt buckle The Prussian coat of arms, 1933

Gott mit uns (meaning God with us) is a phrase commonly associated with the German military from the German Empire to the end of the Third Reich, although its historical origins are far older.

[edit] Origins

Nobiscum deus ('God with us') was a battle cry of the late Roman Empire and of the Byzantine Empire^[1]. In the 17th century, the phrase Gott mit uns was used as a 'field word', a means of recognition akin to a password^[2], by the army of Gustavus Adolphus at the battles of Breitenfeld (1631), Lützen (1632) and Wittstock (1636) in the Thirty Years' War^[3]. In 1701, Frederick I of Prussia changed his coat of arms as Prince-Elector of Brandenburg. The electoral scepter had its own shield under the electoral cap. Below, the motto Gott mit uns appeared on the pedestal.

[edit] Modern usage

Frederick I of Prussia's coat of arms from a woodcut, 1709

The Prussian Order of the Crown was Prussia's lowest ranking order of chivalry, and was instituted in 1861. The obverse gilt central disc bore the crown of Prussia, surrounded by a blue enamel ring bearing the motto of the German Empire Gott Mit Uns. At the time of the completion of German unification in 1871, the imperial standard bore the motto Gott mit uns on the arms of a Maltese cross^[4].

German soldiers had Gott mit uns inscribed on their helmets in the First World War^[5]. To the Germans it was a rallying cry, "a Protestant as well as an Imperial motto, the expression of German religious, political and ethnic single-mindedness, or the numerous unity of altar, throne and Volk"^[6]. The slogan entered the mindset on both sides; in 1916 a cartoon was printed in the New York Tribune captioned "Gott Mit Uns!", showing "a German officer in spiked helmet holding a smoking revolver as he stood over the bleeding form of a nurse. It symbolized the rising popular demand that the United States shed its neutrality"^[7].

In June 1920 George Grosz produced a lithographic collection in three editions entitled Gott mit uns. A satire on German society and the counterrevolution, the collection was swiftly banned. Grosz was charged with insulting the army, which resulted in a 300 German Mark fine and the destruction of the collection^[8].

During the Second World War Wehrmacht soldiers wore this slogan on their belt buckles^[9], as opposed to members of the Waffen SS, who wore the motto Meine Ehre heißt Treue ('My honour is loyalty')^[10]. On a 1994 painting by Russian nationalist artist Ilya Glazunov "Awake, Russia!", Russian soldier also has inscription "God with us" on his belt.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Gott Mit Uns Time Magazine archive article