Leibermuster is a German

military camouflage Military camouflage is the use of camouflage by an Military, armed force to protect personnel and equipment from observation by enemy forces. In practice, this means applying colour and materials to military equipment of all kinds, including ...

pattern first used in 1945. It was the last of a family of

German World War II camouflage patterns German World War II camouflage patterns formed a family of disruptively patterned military camouflage designs for clothing, used and in the main designed during the Second World War. The first pattern, ''Splittertarnmuster'' ("splinter camouflage ...

. The pattern (named after its designers, the Leiber brothers) was issued on a very limited basis to combat units before the war ended. It consists of bold irregular areas of black printed over brown and green on a pale background. Reproduction Leibermuster uniforms made in China and Turkey, created for collectors and reenactors, have become available on the market through European vendors.Richardson, Francis. (1945). ''Camouflage Fabrics both Plain and Printed for Military Use by the German SS and German Army''. Reprinted in: Borsarello, J. F. (Ed.). (1990?). ''SS & Wehrmacht Camouflage'', ISO Publications; London. After the war, Leibermuster was the basis for the " Alpenflage" issued to the

Swiss army The Swiss Armed Forces (; ; ; ; ) are the military and security force of Switzerland, consisting of land and air service branches. Under the country's militia system, regular soldiers constitute a small part of the military and the rest are ...

until the 1990s.

Development

The pattern was intended to provide some degree of camouflage in the

infrared Infrared (IR; sometimes called infrared light) is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than that of visible light but shorter than microwaves. The infrared spectral band begins with the waves that are just longer than those ...

. It was the first pattern to be issued to both regular army (

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

) and

Waffen-SS The (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...

units. All known original images of the Leibermuster depict Wehrmacht soldiers stationed in former

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. There are no known images of Waffen-SS members wearing the Leibermuster.

References

{{Camouflage Camouflage patterns German military uniforms Military equipment introduced from 1945 to 1949