In July of 1940, the Tropical Institute of the University of Hamburg was tasked with developing an entirely new lightweight uniform suitable for service in tropical climates. The institute designed a novel lightweight cotton uniform along with a cork pith helmet. With the impending German entrance into the North African campaign in late 1940, tropical uniforms, headgear, and equipment were rapidly developed and issued in time for Deutsches Afrika Korps (DAK) personnel's arrival in Tripoli in February 1941.
The Deutsche Afrikakorps was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II. Under the command of Erwin Rommel, the DAK was dispatched to support the Italian army, which had been faced with heavy counter-offensives from Commonwealth Forces, particularly the British Eighth Army. The new pith helmet was designated the Model 1940 and would see service with members of the DAK until the theater's collapse in Tunis in May 1943.
On its introduction, the pith helmet was constructed of a formed cork base with a cotton twill covering. A second pattern was subsequently introduced, replacing the cotton twill with a felt covering. This second pattern followed the same basic design as the first but was modified to ease production time and reduce material costs. Distribution of the second model began in 1942, and manufacture was discontinued sometime during that same year.
The helmet consists of a pressed cork shell fully lined on the exterior with olive-drab felt. It features a central canister topped on the crown by a ventilation shaft hidden beneath a felt-lined dome. The helmet has a large dome shape with a large vented squatchee at the top and a broad brim around its circumference. The underside of the visor brim is lined in teal green felt, while the interior crown is lined in red felt. The interior houses a wide, light tan leather sweatband, secured in place by six small extended prongs with corresponding metal cotter retaining pins. Different branches of service — Heer (Army), Luftwaffe (Air Force), Kriegsmarine (Navy), and Waffen-SS — used different shield insignia.
The Tropenhelm is outfitted with two stamped alloy identification shields. The national eagle shield features a high-relief, embossed Wehrmacht-style eagle with down-swept wings on a slightly textured, black-painted background field. The national tri-color shield displays three diagonally angled bars in red, white, and black on a slightly textured background field.
The specific example described here is a second pattern helmet constructed of olive-colored felt, retaining both non-ferrous metal emblems and the original olive-green chinstrap. The interior features a light brown sweatband bearing the manufacturer's stamp “W” and a size label marked 57. It is accompanied by a dust protection pair of goggles.
The tropical sun helmet was issued to all troops serving in North Africa. Originally, the tropical uniforms were only intended for wear in North Africa, but this was later expanded to include personnel serving in southern areas of continental Europe during the summer months. Beyond Rommel's Afrikakorps, pith helmets were worn in all areas on the Southern Front where tropical uniforms were issued, including Italy, the Mediterranean, and southern Russia.
Despite its practical design, the Tropenhelm was never popular with the troops. It was bulky and difficult to stow, and consequently soldiers soon “misplaced” it in favor of the more practical tropical field cap. This widespread disdain among frontline soldiers makes well-preserved examples particularly noteworthy for collectors today.
One of the known manufacturers of the Tropenhelm was the firm of J. Hückel’s Söhne (JHS), based in Neutitschein (now Nový Jičín in the Czech Republic). Known examples produced by JHS carry the marking “JHS” along with size and date markings.
Due to the early prominence of Rommel's Afrika Korps in the war, supply depots were packed with these helmets, originally intended to equip German occupation forces. After Rommel's failure in North Africa, with supply depots still full of these helmets, a British entrepreneur purchased the entire lot of surplus helmets from the British Government and shipped them to dealers in England and America. However, the requirement was that these surplus helmets had to bear the marking “Germany” before being exported outside of Germany. This post-war surplus history accounts for the relatively wide availability of Tropenhelms on the collector market, though it also underscores the importance of careful examination when assessing originality and condition.
