In a continuing series, A. Kachevsky will investigate the footwear of the Wehrmacht. This issue's installment initially included partially clad reenactors frolicking in the footwear. The editor has decided not to release these pictures yet.

Panzerfuzzyslipperenmudercutenoseeuntfloppyearsbootsen (Armor Crew Boots)

These boots were designed by Rommel after the first Russian winter. He was home on convalescent leave with a hang nail, and he came up with this boot designed for the armor troops to wear during the Russian winter. The fur on the outside kept the feet warm and they were also padded to keep hanged toes from bumping against the sharp comers of the tank.

When they were first issued, they were a basic pink color, which caused many crew members to die due to the fact that they would not bail out of a burning tank, fearing that such vibrant a color would lose its vividness if exposed to the sun. Later the color was changed to field gray. In that color, their popularity swept the ranks. Infantry men in a statement of defiance and fashion donned cloth versions of the shoe.

Black market prices rose to dizzying heights. During the famed Wehrmacht Fashion Show, held in Stalingrad, the shoes swept the critics. By the end of the winter, a rage was on. The shoes were everywhere - except the Fuhrer's. This, of course, led to the plot to assassinate Hitler, not covered in this series.