“Regimental” beer steins commemorating one’s military service emanated from imperial Germany and go back to the late 19th century. Conscripts into the German military incorporated their service into a piece of iconic German culture, the beer stein. These were custom made, hand painted and specific to the unit in which the soldier served, along with his dates of service. Often, they were of high-grade German porcelain. They were elaborately decorated and, in some instances, even listed the names of all unit members. This practice seems to have been unique to the German military through the First World War.
However, with the Armistice of 1918 and under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, 250,000 American troops moved into Germany as part of the occupation of the Rhineland. They stayed there until 1923! It was during this period that U.S. troops “discovered” the regimental beer stein and began to incorporate the tradition into their service.
Beer steins reflecting one’s service, unit or special events soon became common within the U.S. military. This tradition really took hold among the U.S. troops who have been stationed in Germany the past 80 years, since the end of WW II, right up until today. Popular with the GIs, it was also popular with the Germans, who found they had a captive market for the sale of souvenir beer steins! Production was also encouraged in post-war Europe as a way to help jumpstart the devastated German economy.
After the end of WW II, my father’s company commander ordered custom beer steins for his unit. Each member received one as a Christmas present! It was a porcelain stein, replete with the unit’s distinctive insignia and a pewter lid. This was perhaps my father’s most cherished souvenir from his days in the Army. As a child, I broke it, throwing a baseball in the house.
While the number of U.S. troops in Germany have dwindled from 248,621 in 1989 to 35,457 in 2021, the “regimental” or commemorative military beer stein lives on today. Many units returning from Iraq to their home bases in Germany had commemorative beer steins made in remembrance of their Desert Storm service.
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