WELCOME TO GERMAN BUCKLES ONLINE!  Our purpose is to promote the interest in - and collecting of - German military belt buckles.  Ours is an historical hobby, and the aim of this site is simply to provide an easy-to-use outlet for photographic reference and written commentary for militaria collectors - in an independent, online setting.    

In the pursuit of old authentic German buckles, I cannot over-emphasize the importance of the major reference material that is available today, especially the lavishly illustrated books by LTC (Ret) John R. Angolia and by Peter Nash - links to which may be found in the Links section of this site.  The trailblazing reference by Thomas Reid is also invaluable, and although out-of-print, it can still be found on Amazon from time to time. 

The two books by Angolia and Nash total almost 1,200 pages with thousands of photographs!  In the short space available for this site, we could not possibly hope to offer that kind of detail, nor do we want to—because GermanBuckles.com is a very different venue—with three differentiating factors that set us apart from books in general—and from virtually every other web site in the hobby. 

First, GermanBuckles.com is organic, meaning that the site is a growing work that changes from one point in time to another.  We have the ability to edit in real time, to add new material and to reset our gallery as needs arise.  Second, this site is not the sole product of one author—we invite other collectors to contribute comments, articles and photos.  If you disagree with any statement herein, please let us know—we will be happy to publish contrary opinions.  Lastly, this site has the ability to remain fresh and up-to-date, with news about new forgeries and fakes, new finds and the personal experience of our readers—and most importantly, a safe place for collectors to showcase their collections, even anonymously if they prefer.

So, why not join us?  There are links on this page and others that can take you to our discussion forum on Yahoo.  Alternatively, if you have an essay, a research paper, a document or photo—or just a brief comment that might be of interest to your fellow collectors—please send it to the email link below.  Please write if you have questions.

Last, but not least, have fun collecting.  If you see an error here, please let us know.  Although it’s been over 10 years since the publication of a certain prominent reference book, I will never forget the immediate, bitter, jealous, nasty review by a self-styled French expert who literally jumped on the most minute details, crying foul—and never once expressing one kind word of appreciation for the yeoman effort that went into researching and writing the book.  The author was unharmed by the vicious review and the book has gone on to become the hobby’s standard reference.  My point is, had the small-minded reviewer simply written directly to the author, citing his differences rather than publishing his long-forgotten diatribe on the internet, he would have displayed far greater courage, integrity and style.  His mean little rant is now lost in the past while the work he attacked is alive and still doing well—even after all this time.  Courage, integrity and style—life is too short—and collecting is no fun without them!