As shown above, Junior Officers wore shoulder straps made of white metallic lace cords with black and red threads on a colony coloured backing. Having no pips, one pip or two showed the grade of junior officer.

Senior Officers wore shoulder straps made of twisted white metallic braid on a backing of the colony colour. Again having no pips, one pip or two showed the grade of senior officer.

The colony colours of red for Cameroon, white for East Africa and blue for South West Africa are shown on these examples.

Notes on German Officers Ranking System

Errors in Rank Translation
As can be seen from the above table several ranks that sound similar in German and English do not exactly equate (eg. Leutnant/Lieutenant and Generalmajor/Major General). This has caused errors in translation in several English language sources (probably occasionally repeated on this website). This is one reason I prefer to stick to German rank titles on this website

Generals and the Highest Ranking Officers
The subject of General Officers and their rank insignia is covered on the Schutztruppe Generals Page although for the study of the German Colonies it is largely academic as very few officers of General rank ever served there. At the outbreak of the First World War the highest ranking active military officers in each colony were-

Oberstleutnant von Heydebrerck (South West Africa)
Oberstleutnant von Lettow-Vorbeck (East Africa)
Major Zimmerman (Cameroon)
Major von Kessinger (of the III. Seebataillon at Tsingtao)
Hauptmann Georg Pfähler (Togo)
Rittmeister von Klewitz (New Guinea)
Samoa had no active military officers

Pre-1899 Lieutenant Titles
Prior to 1st January 1899, the rank of Leutnant was called "Sekonde-Lieutenant", while Oberleutnant was known as "Premier-Lieutenant" in the Imperial army and also the Schutztruppe (see Axis History Forum). The Wissmantruppe had never made a difference between grades of Leutnant.

Rittmeister Cavalry Captain Title
The rank of Hauptmann was called a "Rittmeister" in cavalry units. While this did not apply to the Schutztruppe in Africa where no true cavalry units existed, it did apply to the East Asian cavalry in China and to the Asienkorps cavalry in Palestine. Also army officers were sometimes seconded to the colonies, keeping their original rank title, for example the commander of the German forces in New Guinea in the First World War, Carl von Klewitz, was a cavalry captain and bore the title Rittmeister von Klewitz.

Marine Infantry Insignia
Officer shoulder straps for the Seebataillon were similar to those of the Schutztruppe but had a yellow metal Imperial crown on the shoulder strap above any pips.

Overseas Imperial Army Officers Rank Insignia
The same system of shoulder straps with pips was used by the Schutztruppe was used by units of the Imperial army overseas including the East Asian Expeditionary Corps, Pascha Expeditions in the Ottoman Empire and army officers seconded overseas and to the colonies. The differences being that the army had state coloured threads in their shoulder straps (Prussia- black and white, Bavaria- blue and white, Saxony- green and white etc) and that they wore a yellow or white metal numeral or monogram of their unit above any pips.

First World War Variations
During the First World War white metallic lace shoulder straps were replaced in army (and naval) units with dull grey lace. This of course did not apply to officers in the colonies who were cut off from Germany throughout the war.

Privately Purchased Uniforms
Officers almost always had privately purchased uniforms. These were made by tailors in Germany following the regulations issued by the Colonial Office. This meant that they were usually of better quality than other ranks uniforms but also that they often varied slightly in cut and manufacture. The same principles were applied to footwear and weaponry.

Other Officers Uniform Distinctions
Officers were distinguished by having metallic insignia such as collar ands cuff Litzen while other ranks had plain white or yellow cloth. Small details such as more elaborate cockades and silver cords around the tropical helmet distinguished them though most uniforms were essentially the same cut as for other ranks.

Officers Weapons and Equipment
Officers carried swords with sword knots on parade with silk belts. On campaign they usually had pistols and Sam Brown belts. These were sometimes replaced with other ranks rifles so as not to make the officers so easy for enemy snipers to spot.

Schutztruppe Oberleutnant Shoulder Strap
Shown on a Schutztruppe 1897 officers grey home tunic. Note the single pip of an Oberleutnant on the white metallic lace shoulder strap with threads of red and black with blue (for South West Africa) as the underlay.
Photo by C Dale at the Bavarian Army Museum

East African Schutztruppe Hauptmann
Shown on a Schutztruppe 1897 officers grey home tunic. Note the two pips of a Hauptmann on the white metallic lace shoulder strap with threads of red and black with white (for East Africa) as the underlay.
Photo by C Dale at the Bavarian Army Museum

Marine Infantry Leutnant Shoulder Strap
 Shown on a Marine Infantry Officers white tropical tunic. Note lack of pips of a Leutnant but the Imperial Crown of the Marine Infantry on the white metallic lace shoulder strap with threads of red and black with white (for Marine Infantry) as the underlay.
(see Seebataillon Officers White Uniform Page)
Damien Doppler Collection

Prussian Railway Oberleutnant Shoulder Strap
Shown on the corduroy tunic of a Prussian officer, Oberleutnant Kloevekorn who worked on the Baghdad Railway during the First World War. Note the single pip of an Oberleutnant, the stylised E (for railway- "Eisenbahn") as a unit badge, the Prussian black and white threads in the grey wartime shoulder strap with the blue underlay of a railway officer.
(See Baghdad Railway Officers Uniform Page)
Photo © A Private US Collector

Fregattenkapitän Karl Nerger
Germany 1918
Nerger was the commander of the raider SMS Wolfe whose 451 day mission from Germany around Africa, across the Indian Ocean around Australia and back was the longest voyage of any warship in the First World War. Along the way he captured and sank numerous Entente merchant vessels. He wears a blue officers double breasted frock coat with his rank as Fregattenkapitän shown as four gold bars below an imperial crown. He wears the Prussian Pour-le-Mérite at his throat, the Iron Cross first class on his breast and second class in his buttonhole, and the Mecklenburg-Schwerin  Military Merit Cross again with the  first class on his breast and second class in his buttonhole.
Photo by Nicola Perscheid on Wikimedia