Schweizer Armee Frauenhilfsdienst (FHD/MFD/FDA)

A (somewhat) complete guide of the Swiss Army Womens’ Auxiliary Service

By Kerry (Major Fracture) - VERSION 0.8 DRAFT ONLY 02/01/25

ITS NOT REMOTELY FINISHED YET SO PLEASE DONT WORRY ABOUT IT

Updated 02/01/25 because turns out I got a lot of things wrong.

If you’re reading this, then one of two things has occurred. Either you have decided, rather foolishly, to delve into the inner workings of the shining staple of women’s suffrage in Switzerland and are willing on spending months looking for a uniform on ricardo.ch, or Kerry has just asked you to proofread it and she’s very proud of what she wrote at 2 in the morning.

This potentially vast document will cover everything from uniforms, structure, heads of office, everything I can remember.

All important terminology will be given in German as opposed to French because French is a silly language.

The Beginning

Before the idea of a Women’s Auxiliary Service came about, the Swiss Women's Federation and the Federation of Swiss Women's Organizations in the early 1900s advocated for compulsory national service for women in the armed forces, as to be on the same playing field as men who were already part of Switzerland’s Militia Model. It should however be noted that Switzerland is a heavily traditional country seated in firm unwavering values (at least one way of putting it) and the sheer notion of a woman serving in the army then was unthinkable, almost as much as a woman wearing trousers.

In 1903, this was about to change as women were allowed to join the revered Red Cross organisation of Switzerland. It is unknown how many women in fact served in the Red Cross during this time, but in 1914 basic housekeeping roles were opened up in the army to look after soldiers’ barracks at the advent of the First World War, and later on with the outbreak of Spanish Flu in 1918, in military hospitals. The women were not issued uniforms however outside of the typical nurse dresses of the era and no photos dating of this period are thought to exist.

At about the same time as this gradual opening of roles, came forth in prominence a woman who arguably had just as much of an impact as General Henri Guisan would have later on in the country’s history, despite lacking military credentials.

Founder of the Soldatenstube

Else Züblin-Spiller was born on November 1st 1881 to a ‘modest’ if not impoverished family in the district of Seen, Winterthur. Her father, a hardworking mechanic working for the Sulzer works, died from tuberculosis when she was a young age, and this event would prompt her to be ambitious to say the least.

At the age of 23 she would begin work for a local printing house, later rising through her career to later become the editor of the press service of the Salvation Army, whose values of temperance would later prompt her to campaign for the reform of the Swiss Army itself. Now you might be asking yourself “why is she going on about some random old lady from 150 years ago who just got around a lot”, just bear with me here.

Soldiers of the Swiss Army during the First World War had little options for catering that didn’t involve walking into a Gasthaus^[1] and getting completely hammered on poor quality sausages and beer, and then later tearing up the street in a stupor only described by some as a spider attempting to knit a web at speed.  In 1914, Else would found the Association for the Welfare of Soldiers (Schweizer Verband Soldatenwohl) as a non-profit organisation to provide healthy and affordable food to soldiers, but more so to combat the consumption of alcohol, in which Else and the Salvation Army were against.

These 700 or so ‘Soldiers’ Rooms’ (Soldatenstuben) would spring into existence up and down the country essentially acting as the Swiss equivalent of the British NAAFI canteens. The SVS would later also employ injured and sick soldiers to help assist their rehabilitation and also to spread their word to all ranks of army society. The SVS (now known as SV Group) now caters for factory staff today.

So, the woman who founded a leading chain of Soldiers’ Cafes, many of which were still in full use during the Cold War long after her passing, clearly was a force to be reckoned with. It was with this force, as it turned out, that she would be campaigning successfully for the Swiss Feminist movement in the 1930s, heading the Third Women’s Congress and the Swiss Exhibition of Womens’ Work (SAFFA), and becoming the Editor of the Swiss Women’s Magazine in 1939, as well as campaigning for employees rights everywhere in between.

However, in 1939, if you had been paying attention, Switzerland was about to face a rather large predicament coming right at them from all sides.

The Second Small Disagreement

General Henri Guisan had a predicament. The Swiss Federal Assembly, having noticed a brewing militaristic storm in Europe owing to Hitler’s rearming and land-grabbing, knew the target would be firmly on them next. Brushing the dust off the rank of General, rarely used outside of situations of extreme national emergencies (in this case, war), the Assembly bestowed this rarely used but highly esteemed rank to Henri Guisan, Corps Commander of Field Army Corps 1 (FAK1).

Guisan would immediately face opposition from the government; who were largely all for understated and riskless neutrality, whereas Guisan wanted a proper invasion prevention system (this would later take the form of the National Redoubt). He knew he had to get all the men he could on deck.

This proved an issue. Switzerland is a small country, with not many people now and especially not many people back then. Pulling most of the able-bodied men out of their jobs into the Army, presumably directly on the frontline, would completely ruin the whole defensive effort in the first place if there were no ‘rearline’ as it were to keep the supply chain running, keep the beds clean, keep the pigeons flying etc. This led to one option; let women in the army take up the slack whilst the men keep the defences going.

With the assistance of womens’ rights activists, prominently Else Züblin-Spiller leading the helm, the Swiss Women’s Auxiliary Services was founded in September 1939 and officially incorporated by the territorial services in January 27th 1940 as the Swiss Army Women’s Auxiliary Services (Frauenhilfsdienst - FHD). 6 days later on February 2nd, Henri Guisan published guidelines for the organisation not only covering menial tasks already undertaken by women at that time (Soldiers’ Rooms, Laundry), but medical services, air observation, communications, transport, field post, kitchens, and the highly-revered carrier pigeon service. Every woman that signed up would free up a man to guard the country from attack.

By the end of 1940, 18,000 women were deployed, increasing to 23,000 in 1941 and dropping to 17,000 in May 1945. At least 3,000 women were deployed at any given time on a rotating basis. Knowing they could serve their country meaningfully the first time led to such high numbers, as well as fleeing the rigidity of social norms enforced during the era. Guisan would later step down from his position as General in 1945, his position fulfilled. Switzerland was not invaded, and he was lauded as a national hero. Else Züblin-Spiller would largely go forgotten aside from a commemorative plaque and street name in Zurich.

However, with a suddenly new kind of society, where women would fight alongside women in one way or another, this did not settle well with much of the leadership of the Army. Women were often harassed and mocked in their roles, with heavy restrictions on physical appearance. Unlike the western armies which largely turned a blind-eye (and often used it for propaganda gain), FHD women were not allowed to wear makeup including lipstick and powder. A woman could be dismissed within four days for any reason, whereas this would not have applied to men. Numbers steadily fell in 1945 not because of Germany losing the war heavily, but rather the harshness of the conditions faced by recruits^[2]. The FHD would be regarded as beneath the men and not as equals, and this would continue in some way or another until significant improvements were made in the mid 1980s.

With World War 2 having drawn to a close, the argument of womens' rights^[3] and whether or not they had a significant commitment to the war effort led to many protests and debates.

Some considered that the commitment was simply just ordinary patriotism and did not mean women should be allowed to vote. The idea of this was proven (and brace yourself, this is pretty awful), that “women didn't deserve gratitude for their involvement in the war effort because they were the complement (or auxiliary) of man, who we should be thanking for” as quoted by Rudolph Briner, part of the federal commission of the army in the late 1940s. This argument would be the very centre of the FHD’s continued existence until women were granted the vote in 1971.

Unpleasant stuff, but has to be mentioned, because a lot of this sentiment towards women and sentiment held by women would ultimately shape the FHD’s entire structure and equipment as time progressed.

Cold Days

The threat of war continued long after WW2 had even concluded, although now it came from the east. Paranoid (and rightfully so) of being invaded by Warsaw Pact forces and the Soviet Union itself as an easy shortcut into the rest of Europe, Switzerland further pursued their tried-and-proven deterrent method of National Redoubt. That is, of course, lacing the whole country with hidden bunkers and explosives and digging lots of holes into the side of mountains. With this heightened activity, the FHD would be transferred to the leadership of the General Staff Services Group (Gruppe fur Generalstabdienste), who then had the power to mobilise thousands of women if needed in an emergency. Numbers would never return to the levels seen during the previous World War, with a peak of 2,600 women in 1989.

The sheer lack of active numbers of personnel did not mean complete stagnation however. The Red Cross services, having been merged with the FHD during the war, were again separated, whilst both branches would continue to use largely the same uniforms with some minor differences (more on this later).

Those enlisted on the services could apply for discharge after marriage and/or pregnancy or after 90 days of service where they would then be assigned to the reserves. The FHD was never made compulsory, unlike the Army itself which was and still is based entirely on conscription (this excludes the Red Cross service, which were to conscript women of suitable medical background in case of war, the only branch to do so).

The total list of roles the FHD had were as follows

• Warning service (Warndienst) - Early Warning Service for Incoming Attacks.
• Aircraft Observation and Reporting Service (Fliegerbeobachtungs-und Meldedienst) - Akin to the UK’s ROC.
• Transmission Service (Übermittlungsdienst) - Operating Telephone Exchanges and Radios.
• Administrative Service (Administrativerdienst) - Filing paperwork and typing out mobilisation letters for example.
• Field Post Service (Feldpostdienst) - Delivering parcels and letters for soldiers.
• Carrier Pigeon Service (Brieftaubendienst) - Looking after the messenger pigeons.
• Motor Driver Medical Service (Motorfahrer Sanitatsdienst) - Driving ambulances. Also included a sub-section for other drivers such as staff cars and radio vans.
• Veterinary Service (Veterinardienst) - Looking after various animals, predominantly horses.
• Material Service (Materialdienst) - Repairs to uniforms and equipment.
• Catering Service (Küchendienst) - Working in the vast kitchens supplying the forces.
• Welfare Service (Fursogedienst) - Looking after soldiers’ families and children.
• Soldiers' Rooms (Soldatenstube) - Staffing the cafes used by the soldiers in their free-time.
• Red Cross Service (Rotkreuzdienst) - General medical services for injured personnel.

1981-1986 Reforms (The MFD)

With the inclusion of Gender Equality in the Federal Constitution in 1981, the FHD would slowly but surely rebrand itself as less of an ‘auxiliary’ service and more of simply a section within the army itself. The uniforms changed slightly (again, more on this later), and in 1986 the Womens’ Auxiliary Service  (Frauenhilfsdienst - FHD) would be rebranded into the Women’s Military Service (Militärischen Frauendienst, MFD). Identical ranks to the army would be introduced as beforehand the highest rank an FHD recruit could obtain were in the guise of Functional Levels from 1 to 5.

It is however, still to this point, women were not usually armed. Women could however possess firearms and attend shooting clubs (which many did), but would hardly ever be seen carrying them in the army, and forbidden as there was no reason to as they weren’t regarded as fully fledged soldiers.

It was not until 1991 that for protection purposes only, women were voluntarily armed with Pistole 75s (better known as the SIG P220), but with the phasing out of TAZ83 for the more modern TAZ90, the MFD would be rebranded yet again.

1992 Reforms - the FDA

Before you wonder why the Food and Drug Administration got involved, this was in fact the new name for the MFD, simply known as Women in the Army Department (Frauen in der Armee). Known by name only, the MFD would use mixed schools and units and would simply exist only as a referral office, as the uniforms themselves were now fully incorporated with women and men both wearing TAZ90. Women were later armed fully in 1995 on those training in frontline roles, and the FDA name would be broken up by the advent of the Armee XXI reforms in 2003 through to 2005, with women being allowed to serve in the Swiss Contingent in Kosovo (KFOR-Swisscoy).

And now, the messy terminology that is the uniforms themselves.

Be warned, much information for uniforms in ALL eras of the FHD is upsettingly vague, so I’ve tried my absolute best to catalogue all the uniforms used. There will be collectors’ terms because the FHD, unlike the army, never really had proper designations for kit.

As I said, brace yourself.

FHD Uniforms 1939-1945

A lot of this era of the FHD’s uniforms was experimental, often entire units would be issued different uniforms to each other possibly either because of supply chain issues or simply that nobody in Switzerland quite knew how to make a uniform for women. Below are the uniforms I’ve catalogued for the most part, including some of the things I personally own.

FHD Arbeitsschürze 1940-1945

 Issued in 1940, this rather plain garment acted as the main ‘common work’ uniform for the FHD. Some variants had integrated belts whereas some had separated ones. Two large pockets are usually on the front, with a third breast pocket on one side. Commonly worn with opaque stockings or wool socks. Women were also issued green M18 helmets sparingly if outside, very occasionally ‘Duralumin’ lightweight M18s in grey-silver.

Worn with the uniform is typically an armband with FHD-SCF inscribed on it with the Swiss flag, and brown lace up ankle boots of some description, unknown origin. Occasionally variants of this crop up, such as the double breast pocketed one worn by the Red Cross, but the exact particulars are unknown.

Occasionally the dress was worn with the Ord.40 overcoats used by ambulance crews.

Unknown ‘Pfadfinderinnen’ Uniform - 1942

 As the nickname suggests, this curious uniform looking like a strange hybrid of the Girlguiding uniforms and elements from the British Women’s Land Army at the time could be seen at the FHD Conference in Zurich in 1942. Most details are unknown, but it is thought the shirts worked their way into the later ‘Proto-Arbeit-Tenu’ uniforms worn by the FHD in the 1950s.

Edit 19/10/2024: These really are just made from bits of surplus Schweiz Pfadi (Swiss Scouting) uniforms.

FHD Rotkreuz Ambulance Crew’s Winter Uniform, Basel 1939-1945

                         You will have to pardon the shameless using of stock images but generally these are the best examples. Ambulance crews deployed in the winter would wear Ord.40 overcoats with M18 helmets, occasionally also leather gloves to keep the cold at bay. Civilian clothes were mostly worn underneath just to keep warm, and in some photos you can tell the wildly varying differences in footwear, with some wearing horse riding boots and others low oxfords. Worn were the ‘salt-and-pepper’ satchel bags, and each crew would be assigned an adapted car (often American pre-war in origin) that would serve as the ambulance.

Overcoats sometimes varied in cut, but generally most of them were mens’ ones that were often too big on the women, but they kept warm well.

Unknown Ord.40-Style FHD-Rotkreuz Uniform - 1942-1945

Worn by presumably the Red Cross Service only (as when the Red Cross was part of the Army, confusingly), this uniform was styled after Ord.40 with the ranks and roles being displayed on the cuffs. It is believed that this uniform even down to the colour was directly responsible for the uniforms that replaced it in the 1950s, despite the fact the rest of the FHD weren’t issued them at all.

Occasionally seen worn with officers’ breeches and long boots supposedly over supply chain errors, the FHD-Rotkreuz wore Duralumin helmets as well. It's unknown how long these uniforms were in service for, but were possibly axed when the Red Cross separated from the FHD.

‘Proto-71’ FHD Dress Uniform, 1942

Nicknamed in this document simply for its shocking similarity for the later ‘Ord.51’ uniforms, two variants of this uniform are known to exist; a light and dark coloured version. The uniform is a relatively basic ensemble of a shirt, tie, blazer, and skirt. Interesting to note the difference between this and later uniforms worn post-war is the lack of any emblems and insignia aside from the FHD armband, and the service cap being a slightly different shape and lacking a tassel.

The dark one is more accurate to what the FHD would later adopt, with also some cues taken from the aforementioned Red Cross uniform. Main differences here being the footwear as the FHD would largely adopt heels when skirts were worn, and marching was never carried out in skirts, rather trousers.

You could probably imagine the nightmare it was to even try and march in such an ensemble.

FHD Uniforms 1951-1991

Now here is where it gets especially baffling. Wait and see what I mean.

FHD Ord.71 Uniform

The terms for these uniforms do not exactly correlate to when they were introduced or in fact used, but it is called Ord.71 despite the fact it's more commonly seen in the mid to late 1980s. It is characterised as being a rather bright blue blazer and trousers set, with skirt, shirt, and tie. The uniform also, for the first time, introduces ‘armpit loops’ (the numbers that show what detachment/group) and the collar tab insignia of role. The MFD ditched the shirts for turtleneck sweaters instead, but the uniforms were kept in circulation right until 1990. There are two colour variations of this uniform, one darker than the other, possibly down to manufacturing dates, though none can be seen on any uniform.

Examples of later Ord.71 being used by the FHD, on the right the distinct lack of shirts in favour of turtleneck base layers the MFD adopted to be worn under Ord.71 and TAZ83

FHD Ord.51 Uniform (Early Variants)

Before Ord.71 came the Ord.51 and its variants. The fabric is rougher and albeit tougher wearing than the Ord.71 uniform, and more resembles the men’s uniforms, specifically Ord.49.

Early variants are typically seen with ceinturon belts and longer skirts that extend past the knee down to halfway of the shin and were typically worn with dark blue ties as opposed to Ord.51 which were worn with black ones (though evidently this wasn’t always the case). Early variants are also typically shown as having a large gusset behind the shoulders extending down the back. Typically the uniforms were also seen cycled about with early blazers worn with late trousers and vice versa due to supply. Collar tabs and armpit loops continued on after on Ord.71.

Early in its development, an upside down green triangle with the swiss flag was used as the insignia for FHD uniforms, but this was later dropped.

The Red Cross also had this uniform issued, albeit lacking the armpit loops because as they had been separated from the army they no longer were assigned group numbers. The caps worn also differed which will be explored in detail in the next section.

FHD Ord.51 Uniform (Later Models)

Tiny changes occurred to Ord.51, such as the cut of trousers changing to a straight wide cut and the fabric changed slightly. Other changes were the tailoring the gusset was largely removed from most blazers manufactured past this point, the skirt was made shorter, and the shirts changed material ever so slightly. Other than that, this uniform continued to be used in one form or another until the reforms and full replacement by Ord.71 from 1980-ish onwards. The red cross continued to use a different belt.

FHD Work Uniform - ‘Proto-Arbeit-Tenu’ - 1951-1968

Used by repair teams, this very uncommon uniform vaguely resembling men’s ‘Tenu Blau’ is believed to have stemmed from the previously mentioned ‘Pfadfinderinnen’ uniform used in 1942. Not much information is known about this, apart from the fact it was not used very long and was quickly axed, which FHD-Tenu replaced and was used until 1986.

It is unknown if it ever had a designation or were simply generic work clothes of the period bought in bulk by the army.

FHD Work Uniform - ‘FHD-Tenu’ - 1968-1986

The standard ‘field uniform’ (or at least the closest example) of the FHD lay in the work uniform, nicknamed FHD-Tenu. Worn by those on orienteering exercises and any sort of work that involved being outdoors for extended periods, this uniform was made of a hard-wearing material and carried over the single-breasted pocket design from the FHD Arbeitsschürze from some years before. More commonly, the uniforms were worn with M71 helmets rather than the caps.

The belts usually worn were, oddly, upside down Ord.72 A-belts..

Pictured here after a fairly gruelling day training outdoors is the standard FHD Work Uniform ‘FHD-Tenu’, with M71 helmets. Note the LuGA reflective gaiters.

OH also totally forgot to mention, they had overcoats with separated hoods which look hilarious.

MFD Work Uniform - TAZ83 - 1986-1990

Despite being the most common uniform the MFD even had, with examples easily had for cheap today, there are very little in the way of photos of MFD recruits in TAZ83 and much of the photos floating about are in fact screenshots from old training reels.

TAZ83 is fairly self-explanatory, it was introduced in 1983 as a lighter uniform alternative from earlier M70s and M61s, for rearlines duty or rather simply when requiring 10 pockets wasn’t a priority. The MFD utilised this when on orienteering missions, and generally all work indoors and outdoors which largely replaced the role of the previous blue dress uniforms which were then relegated to ceremonies and walking-out dress. Black gaiters were worn, but oddly still with the brown FHD boots from years prior.

Ceinturon belts were commonly worn because the trousers often came in a waist size too big. The ‘baseball hats’ were also worn by the truck and ambulance drivers as seen here on the left. M71 helmets carried over from the FHD days were seldom used and only brought out in an invasion scenario.

FDA Work Uniform - TAZ90

Even though by this point the whole FHD/MFD thing was pretty much dissolved, it's still worth mentioning the TAZ90 as this was the first uniform that was actually ‘universal’, plus this was also the first time the women were armed, albeit with P220s, with proper guns arriving later.

Not much to say about it, apart from the fact they still continue to use this uniform today and wearing it in Switzerland as a tourist is immensely illegal. Similar cut to TAZ83 just with a lot more pockets going on, and a lack of having to tuck the jacket into your trousers.

Boots changed as well, as everyone uses KS90s as opposed to the FHD ones, which leads me onto the next section.

FHD Shoes, Accessories, Etc.

FHD uniforms are briefly mentioned in the back of the Ord.49 Reglement for Uniforms and Insignia, and not a lot is touched upon in terms of things outside of ‘this is the uniform, this is what you put on it, this is what you can and can't do’. To my knowledge however, things are easier to explain than the uniforms themselves.

The next section will touch upon 1951 onwards only, as WW2 predominantly used the same equipment as what the men were issued, and outside of that civilian footwear and bags were used in any given form due to the war effort.

FHD Boots, Brown - 1951-1989

Hardly changed in its entire existence, the FHD boots varied somewhat from the men's ones. Less eyelets for the laces, they were brown as opposed to black, and they had rubber soles as opposed to hobnailed ones. As a result, these boots are ironically superior in both comfort and practicality than the mens’ ones as not only can you walk for miles without bashing your toenails in^[4] but you can walk on surfaces other than dirt without ruining peoples’ floors and the inside of your truck. The boots largely never changed even with the introduction of gaiters with TAZ83. Occasionally they would have also been worn with the ‘LuGa’ reflective gaiters on manoeuvres when worn with the older FHD-Tenu uniforms.

Other shoes worn by the FHD

General consensus was that the skirt was to be worn at formal ceremonies, and that heels no taller than 5cm or oxfords were to be worn with them. These were private purchase items and as a result they vary a lot between each person in photos.

FHD Handbag, Black, Ord.71

A fairly rare item, with not much to say about it. Handbags were often worn with walking-out dress, not formal ceremonies and not usually when working either. They would hold amenities like makeup, documents, spare armpit loops, car keys, I don’t actually have to explain to you what they carry in them.

Made from a material that somewhat resembles leather but I doubt it actually is.

FHD Handbag, Blue, Ord.51 (all eras)

Used by the FHD with Ord.51 only, oddly two different handbags despite the fact either would fit either. The Blue bag is smaller than the Black one, and almost resembles the brown document cases with the clasp for the flap. Material is a bit higher quality than the Black one, but I’ve found it oddly gets sticky as it gets older, probably the material debinding itself (very likely mock-leather rubber like the previous one)

Swiss Army Document Case (All Eras)

Used extensively by the FHD during any sort of outdoorsy work that would require maps and notebooks and the like. Ambulance crews would never be seen without them in particular. They were issued a mix, some with pencil pockets (as issued to the ZS), but externally they are all identical. Fairly easy to find, especially considering many of them are sold as French ones by accident. Don’t ask about the hand, I'm not sure whose that is.

A full display of assorted kit that would have been issued to an FHD recruit in the 1970s and 80s is shown below^[5]

FHD ‘Policemütze’ Cap (1951-1989)

Shamelessly borrowing photos from our friend Andy who runs swissmilitaria.ch (hi Andy). These are the caps worn by the FHD pretty much all the way through until 1989. Orange piping usually dictates a high ranking recruit with the amount of ‘bars’ on the right hand side marking out the distinction level (this was before identical ranks were introduced, to my knowledge they ditched the orange piping when the MFD took over). Earlier ones displayed chevrons instead.

Caps are fairly uncommon, but not as rare as the uniforms themselves. Often most of them will be in ridiculously small sizes with the largest probably extending to a 58-59cm circumference. They were introduced with the advent of Ord.51 but were kept all the way through despite the fact Ord.71 basically ditched most things on its way through that Ord.51 introduced.

Even TAZ83 couldn’t kill it off.

FHD-Rotkreuzmütze (1951-????)

As mentioned a while back, as the Red Cross was in almost all senses detached from the army after WW2, the red cross never adopted group numbers or insignia outside of simply the red cross badges. To further differentiate themselves, the Red Cross wore these curious looking hats with fold-down ear flaps that probably didn’t do a great deal. I don’t know much about these only that the Swiss Red Cross gradually demilitarised themselves and this alongside the uniforms were quickly yet silently phased out in due course, though I do not know when.

Helmets Used by FHD/MFD (M18, M18/46, and M71)

Final Notes and Misc Items.

I’m personally writing this entire document from the perspective of the research I’ve done, which I mainly do for the ambulance division and comms services, so I decided ‘sure why not, I should put down that they drove and used and that in case I forget’. Because I will. No pressure if you decide to do any other services this is just handy.

This section is full of misc stuff and doesn’t really need to be read. You’ve come to the end of the book, well done, now relax.

Vehicles

The ambulance division predominantly drove MOWAG T1s, nicknamed as the wedge-truck because it’s basically a triangle. Used extensively from 1953 to 1985 by the FHD and until as late as 1995 for the army, the plucky little 4x4 was made using cannibalised Dodge WC-series parts, which the Swiss Army also bought in bulk. Other vehicles the ambulance division drove were the Pinzgauer which replaced this in most branches, the M38A1 jeep, very rarely the Berna 2VM/Saurer 2DM and subsequent Saurers, Puch Gs, various staff cars such as the Opel Rekord and Diplomat and various Mercedes, as well as Volkswagen Golfs which were used as personnel transport to and fro bases by the FHD and MFD. VW T1 and T2 vans were also driven occasionally at displays.

Unfortunately to my knowledge the FHD were not allowed to cause chaos with Rotinoff Super Atlantiques, Unimogs, Haflingers, Land Rovers, Magirus, or anything that had a gun on it. Or any motorcycle for that matter. Especially nothing that could fly either.

Other Regulations

Ord.49 Reglement is about as good as it's going to get for a reference into exactly what uniforms were worn around the 50s and 60s, but it doesn’t say a lot else. Judging from all the archival photos I’ve seen, I’ve created a bit of a mini-one as to other things missed out.

Makeup

Makeup was shunned in the 1940s but appeared to have been relaxed 1960 onwards. Makeup was to be discreet using natural shades, but occasionally you see the odd 1980s photo of someone with blue eyeshadow. Unlike the US and the UK during WW2, red lipstick was in fact avoided by most because it came off as needless decadence, whereas in the US and UK it was seen as a morale booster.

Hair

Hair regulations relaxed gradually from the 1940s onwards as well, so none of that 3 metre forehead angry eyebrows grandma curls look that every British WAAF/ATS girl had or even worse, 1940s weekend victory rolls. Fringes were allowed to extend just past the eyebrows but no further and so long as your hair didn’t get in the way of your work or annoy anyone it was generally fine (plaiting it or tying it to one side was perfectly adequate though earlier regs require the hair to not be touching the collar if possible). Wacky unnatural colours and styles weren’t allowed, but in the 1980s a lot of women were seen having perms done which could be tucked underneath the TAZ83 hats. It was the 80s, you can’t blame them.

Private Purchase Items

Unlike the army, the FHD really didn’t have many options in the way of private purchase. Private purchase boots were dissuaded and usually down to the commanding officer, and the allowance really only extended to underwear, stockings, and formal shoes. Sunglasses privately purchased however were commonly worn and many a FHD girl could be seen sporting aviators.

Others

Jewellery was fairly limited but MFD personnel especially ambulance drivers can be seen wearing earrings. Watches weren’t worn however. Unfortunately personal effects were few and far between as well, with nothing as much as a photo of a loved one inside a helmet. As mentioned before, firearms weren’t carried until 1992 where MFD personnel could carry P220s voluntarily, and later in 1995 the FDA would be trained to use the STGW90. Having said this however, this didn’t stop women learning how to shoot K31s and STGW57s and VERY RARELY some women could be seen taking their guns to the range in uniform, but not actually in service. The FHD had its own shooting club, but weren’t allowed to use the guns in service. Funny. Next page shows the shooting club in question.

Pages taken from Ord.49 Reglement

Ord.51 including Red Cross and Various Collar Insignia

OH I TOTALLY FORGOT THE RED CROSS HAD THEIR OWN POST-WAR ARBEITSSCHURZE god damn it there’s always something I’ve forgotten.

Congratulations

You scrolled this far

Psst go to this website theyve literally got all the old swiss army magazines from the 50s to the 80s https://www.e-periodica.ch/digbib/view?pid=sol-002%3A1983%3A58%3A%3A52#53 

Thanks for reading, its now 4:35am on 13/10/24 as of writing this, and I need to sleep. Any questions you know where to find me

-K.