You can help expand this article with text translated from
the corresponding article in German. (June 2023) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
View a machine-translated version of the German article.
Machine translation, like
DeepL or
Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia.
Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article.
You must provide
copyright attribution in the
edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an
interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing German Wikipedia article at [[:de:Totenkopf (Symbol)]]; see its history for attribution.
You should also add the template {{Translated|de|Totenkopf (Symbol)}} to the
talk page.
Totenkopf (German:[ˈtoːtn̩ˌkɔpf], i.e. skull, literally "dead person's head") is the
German word for skull. The word is often used to denote a figurative, graphic or sculptural symbol, common in Western culture, consisting of the representation of a
human skull- usually frontal, more rarely in profile with or without the
mandible. In some cases, other human skeletal parts may be added, often including two crossed long bones (
femurs) depicted below or behind the skull. The human skull is an internationally used symbol for death, the defiance of death, danger, or the dead, as well as
piracy or
toxicity.
In English, the term Totenkopf is commonly associated with 19th- and 20th-century German military use, particularly in
Nazi Germany.
Naval use
In early modern sea warfare to early modern sea piracy,
buccaneers and
pirates used the Totenkopf as a pirate flag: a skull or other skeletal parts as a death threat and as a demand to hand over a ship. The symbol continues to be used by modern navies.
Use of the Totenkopf as a military emblem began under
Frederick the Great, who formed a regiment of
Hussar cavalry in the
Prussian army commanded by Colonel von Ruesch, the Husaren-Regiment Nr. 5 (von Ruesch). It adopted a black uniform with a Totenkopf emblazoned on the front of its
mirlitons and wore it on the field in the
War of Austrian Succession and in the
Seven Years' War.[2] The Totenkopf remained a part of the uniform when the regiment was reformed into Leib-Husaren Regiments Nr.1 and Nr.2 in 1808.[3]
The skull continued to be used by the Prussian and Brunswick armed forces until 1918, and some of the
stormtroopers that led the last German offensives on the Western Front in 1918 used skull badges.[5]Luftstreitkräfte fighter pilots
Georg von Hantelmann[6] and
Kurt Adolf Monnington[7] are just two of a number of
Central Powers military pilots who used the Totenkopf as their personal aircraft insignia.
Weimar Republic
The Totenkopf was used in Germany throughout the
interwar period, most prominently by the Freikorps. In 1933, it was in use by the regimental staff and the 1st, 5th, and 11th squadrons of the Reichswehr's 5th Cavalry Regiment as a continuation of a tradition from the Kaiserreich.[citation needed]
Nazi Germany
In the early days of the
Nazi Party,
Julius Schreck, the leader of the
Stabswache (
Adolf Hitler's bodyguard unit), resurrected the use of the Totenkopf as the unit's insignia. This unit grew into the Schutzstaffel (SS), which continued to use the Totenkopf as insignia throughout its history. According to a writing by
Reichsführer-SSHeinrich Himmler, the Totenkopf had the following meaning:
The Skull is the reminder that you shall always be willing to put your self at stake for the life of the whole community.[8]
SS-Totenkopfverbände ('Death's Head Units') was the Schutzstaffel (SS) organization responsible for administering the
Nazi concentration camps and
extermination camps for
Nazi Germany, among similar duties. While the Totenkopf was the universal cap badge of the SS, the SS-TV also wore this insignia on the right
collar tab to distinguish itself from other SS formations.
Both the
3rd SS Panzer Division of the
Waffen-SS, and the World War II era Luftwaffe's 54th Bomber Wing Kampfgeschwader 54 were given the unit name "Totenkopf", and used a strikingly similar-looking graphic skull-crossbones insignia as the
SS units of the same name. The 3rd SS Panzer Division also had skull patches on their uniform collars instead of the SS sieg rune.[citation needed]
The first version of the SS-Totenkopf; used from 1923 to 1934
The second version of the SS-Totenkopf; used from 1934 to 1945
A skull and crossbones has often been a symbol of pirates, especially in the form of the
Jolly Roger, but usually having the crossbones below the skull's lower mandibile (if present) rather than behind it, as used by pirate
Samuel Bellamy in one example.
The uniform of the
Spanish Army's Lusitania Dragoon Regiment during part of the 18th century included three skull and crossbones in the cuffs,[10] and in 1902 the skull and crossbones insignia was authorized again to replace the regiment number on the sides of the collar.[11]
Armenian fedayis, during the
First World War against the Ottoman Empire, used a skull with two bolt rifles under the words "revenge revenge" in their flags.
The British Army's
Royal Lancers continue to use the skull and crossbones in their emblem, inherited from its use by the
17th Lancers, a unit raised in 1759 following
General Wolfe's death in Quebec. The emblem contains an image of a death's head, and the words 'Or Glory', chosen in commemoration of Wolfe.[12]
In 1792, a regiment of Hussards de la Mort (Death Hussars) was formed during the
French Revolution by the
French National Assembly and were organized and named by
Kellerman. The group of 200 volunteers were from wealthy families and their horses were supplied from the King's Stables. They were formed to defend against various other European states in the wake of the revolution. They participated in the
Battle of Valmy and its members also participated in the
Battle of Fleurus (1794). They had the following mottos: Vaincre ou mourir, La liberté ou la mort and Vivre libre ou mourir – Victory or death; Freedom or death; and Live free or die.[13][14][15]
Although not exactly a Totenkopf per se, the
Chilean guerrilla leader
Manuel Rodríguez used the symbol on his elite forces called Husares de la muerte ("
Hussars of death"). It is still used by the
Chilean Army's 3rd Cavalry Regiment.
The primarily Prussian 41st Regiment New York Volunteer Infantry (mustered on 6 June 1861; mustered out 9 December 1865) wore a skull insignia.[16]
The Vengeurs de la Mort ("death avengers"), an irregular unit of
Commune de Paris, 1871.[17]
The Portuguese
Army Police2nd Lancers Regiment use a skull-and-crossbones image in their emblem, similar to the one used by the Queen's Royal Lancers.
The
Kingdom of Sweden's Hussar Regiments wore a death's head emblem in the Prussian Style on the front of the mirleton.
Ramón Cabrera's regiment adopted in 1838 a skull with crossbones flanked by an
olive branch and a sword on a black flag during the Spanish
Carlist Wars.
The Italian elite storm-troopers of the
Arditi used a skull with a dagger between its teeth as a symbol during World War I. Various versions of skulls were also later used by the Italian Fascists.[citation needed]
The Estonian
Kuperjanov's Partisan Battalion used the skull-and-crossbones as their insignia (since 1918); the Kuperjanov Infantry Battalion continues to use the skull and crossbones as their insignia today.
During 1943–1945 the Italian
Black Brigades and numerous other forces fighting for the
Italian Social Republic wore various versions of skulls on their uniforms, berets, and caps.
The
Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais, a special unit within the military police of Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, uses the skull emblem to differentiate their team from the regular units.
Many
United States Cavalry reconnaissance troops or squadrons utilize a skull insignia, often wearing the traditional Stetson hat, and backed by either crossed cavalry sabers, crossed rifles, or some other variation, as an unofficial unit logo. These logos are incorporated into troop T-shirts, challenge coins, or other items designed to enhance morale and esprit de corps.
Members of the
Azov Regiment of the Ukrainian National Guard have used the totenkopf.[19]
A French Hussard de la mort (1792)
Alexander Ypsilantis, founder of the military force
The Sacred Band, shown wearing the fighting force's uniform, complete with mandible-less totenkopf (1821)
The uniform of the
Ordnungspolizei -- Nazi Germany's uniformed
police could feature the totenkopf. Peaked visor cap of the
Sicherheitsdienst SD with skull emblem.
"
Punisher" variations of the totenkopf appear on police vehicles.[20]
Toten-Kopf translates literally to "Dead's Head", meaning exactly "dead person's head". Semantically, it refers to a skull, literally a Schädel. As a term, Totenkopf connotes the human skull as a symbol, typically one with crossed thigh bones as part of a grouping.
The common translation of "Totenkopf" as death's head is incorrect; it would be Todeskopf, but no such word is in use -- the English term
death squad is called
Todesschwadron,[24] not Totenschwadron. It would be a logical fallacy to conclude that usage varies only because of the German naming of the
death's-head hawkmoth, which is called skull hawkmoth (Totenkopfschwärmer)[25] in German, in the same way that it would be a fallacy to conclude that the German word for night candle (i.e. Nachtkerze) would mean willowherb, just because the
willowherb hawkmoth (Proserpinus proserpina) is called night candle hawkmoth (Nachtkerzenschwärmer, Proserpinus proserpina[26][27]) in German.
Contemporary German language meaning of the word Totenkopf has not changed for at least two centuries. For example, the German poet
Clemens Brentano (1778–1842) wrote in the story "Baron Hüpfenstich": "Lauter Totenbeine und Totenköpfe, die standen oben herum ..."[28] (i.e. "A lot of bones and skulls, they were placed above ...").
^van Wyngarden, Greg (2011). Osprey Elite Aviation Units #40: Jasta 18 - The Red Noses. Oxford UK: Osprey Publishing. pp. 85–86, 97.
ISBN978-1-84908-335-5.
^Heinrich Himmler: "Der Totenkopf ist die Mahnung, jederzeit bereit zu sein, das Leben unseres Ichs einzusetzen für das Leben der Gesamtheit."
^Angolia, John R., and Adolf Schlicht, Uniforms and Traditions of the Luftwaffe Volume 2, R. James Bender Publishing, San Jose, CA, 1997.
ISBN0-912138-71-8.
^Sonia Brough: Langenscheidts Großes Schulwörterbuch Deutsch-Englisch, revised by the Langenscheidt editorial staff, Langenscheidt KG, Berlin & Munich.
ISBN3-468-07129-9. P. 1047.
^Prof. Dr. Axel Karenberg: Amor, Äskulap & Co: klassische Mythologie in der Sprache der modernen Medizin. Schattauer, 2005. P. 21 (named for the skull-like spot)
Klaus D. Patzwall: Der SS-Totenkopfring. 5th edition: Patzwall, Melbeck 2010,
ISBN978-3-931533-07-6.
Joost Hølscher (Author, Illustrator): Death's Head, The History of the Military Skull & Crossbones Badge (The History of Uniform). 1st edition: Éditions Chamerelle 2013,
ISBN978-90-820326-0-4
Adrian Ruda: Der Totenkopf als Motiv. Eine historisch-kulturanthropologische Analyse zwischen Militär und Moden. Böhlau, Köln 2023,
ISBN978-3-412-52890-4.