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A German Colonel General (known as a Generaloberst) was the designation of the second highest rank of General — below Field Marshal (Generalfeldmarschall) — in the Prussian Army and later in the Army of Imperial Germany (1871–1918), the Reichswehr (1918–1935), and the Wehrmacht (1935–1945).
In cases where a Colonel General was acting in the capacity of a Field Marshal, the rank was referred to as Generaloberst mit dem Ranges eines Generalfeldmarshall. Such persons were entitled to wear four pips on a shoulder board, compared to the normal three. The only known situation where such a title would have been authorized was during the Battle of Stalingrad when Friedrich Paulus assumed the duties of a Field Marshal before he was actual promoted (Paulus would be promoted to the rank at the close of the Battle but never wore the Field Marshal insignia).
The equivalent of a Colonel-General in the Kriegsmarine was a General Admiral (Generaladmiral). The Schutzstaffel (SS) refered to the rank as Oberstgruppenführer.
East GermanyFor the historical eastern German provinces, see Eastern Germany East Germany officially the German Democratic Republic GDR , German Deutsche Demokratische Republik DDR , was a Communist Party-led state that existed from 1949 to 1990 in the former Soviet's National People's Army1989 The National People's Army ( German: Nationale Volksarmee NVA was the army of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). It was founded in March 1, 1956. Its early roots were laid in 1952 in the founding of the NVA's predecessor, the Kasernierte retained this rank as its second-highest, second to the Armeegeneral. The BundeswehrThe Bundeswehr is the armed forces of Germany. It is a federal defense force with Army (Heer), Navy (Marine), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Medical Services Zentraler Sanitatsdienst and Command of the Armed Forces Streitkraftebasis branches. It employs some 250, (first in West GermanyWest Germany was the informal but almost universally used name for the Federal Republic of Germany from 1949 until 1990, during which years the Federal Republic did not yet include the eastern part of Germany. Since the German reunification of 1990, the F and since 1990 in a unified Germany) does not use this rank. Since the German Army had no Brigadier GeneralA Brigadier General or one-star general is the lowest rank of general officer in the United States and some other countries, ranking just above Colonel and just below Major General. The rank is equivalent to the US Navy rank Rear Admiral (lower half), fors, the rank of Generaloberst is often considered to equate to a full General in the British or United States Armies.