The history of the WWII German RAD Dagger -
Germany experienced a severe economic downturn during the 1930's. The unemployment was high, personal spending
was down, Large masses of people were going hungry. The German government decided to correct this problem by
creating an origanization that would put people to work rebuilding the infrastructure of the country and developing
large pubklic work programs which included the building of the Autobahn road system.
The name of the organization to orchestrate all this effort was the Reichsarbeitsdienst (RAD), also known as the
Reich labor Corps. The RAD was formed under the leadership of Konstantin Hierl.
Adolph Hitler repudiated the treaty of Versailles in the 1930's. Shortly after that compulsory military service
was instituted. Service in the RAD was viewed as a bridge between a person finishing school and going into
military service.
There were two different types of daggers issued by the RAD; The Subordinate Hewer and the Leader dagger.
The first design of the dagger was done by the Carl Eickhorn company. Eickhorn Logos stamped on the blade span
from 1934 to 1941.
RAD SUBORDINATE HEWER
The RAD subordinate Hewer was authorized for
use by all members of the RAD in 1934. The hewer consisted of stag horn handles, stylized eagle head pommel. crossguard
with a single upturned design. The scabbard is of metal construction with two large nicel plated fittings. One in the
throat area, the other is the finial. The throat fitting bears a celtic design. The finial has the RAD logo, which
consists of a spade with two sheaths of wheat.
There were at least three different variations that could be found in the handle. One is a full staghorn set, believed
to have been produced around 1935.
Both, leaders and enlisted personnel wore this dagger for the first three years of its inception. There is no way to
know which dagger was issued to leaders since no special markings were employed to distinguish that.
The blade of the subordinate dagger is of very stout construction. Of single edge design. The spine tapers
down near the end giving the tip a very unique appearance. The blade is chromed. A blood groove is present and
covers about 60% of the blade.
A motto is placed at about mid-point of the body. It reads "Arbeit Adelt" which translates to
"Labor enobles".
RAD LEADER DAGGER
The RAD Leader dagger was introduced for wear
by the RAD leadership in 1937. This was much lighter in weight than the hewer. It was also more highly
decorated. All the fittings in the scabbard were silver or nickel plated. The handle could be ordered in
different colors (white and yellow). the pommel depicts the head of an eagle.
The crossguard is of double turn down design. It bears the RAD logo in the center.
The blade of the RAD Leader dagger consisted of single edge construction. The spine of the blade tapers down
at the last few inches giving the tip a pronounced design.
A blood groove covers about 70% of the length of the blade. A motto is placed at about mid-point of the body.
It reads "Arbeit Adelt" which translates to "Labor enobles".
RAD HANGERS
The RAD dagger was issued with a variety of hangers. All the hangers were made of leather. They were also of
sturdy construction as they had to support the weight of fairly heavy blades.
The first dagger hanger employed proved to wear out too fast in the field. It was soon replaced by a more
robust type, which is illustrated here.
The following is a list of some of the companies that manufactured the RAD dagger during WWII.
| Count |
Number |
Company |
Description |
Logo |
Comments |
| 1 |
1 |
Carl Eickhorn |
Small squirrel inside double ovals |
 |
Solingen |
| 2 |
1 |
Ed Wusthof |
Trident inside double ovals |
 |
Solingen |
| 3 |
1 |
Carl Julius Krebs |
Crown above gothic letter "K" enclosed in single oval |
 |
Solingen |
| 4 |
1 |
Boker |
Tree without leaves inside double ovals. Name displayed in upper section. |
 |
Solingen |
| |
2 |
Boker |
Tree without leaves inside complex structure. Name displayed in lower section |
 |
Solingen |
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