Gefreiter Gefreiter ( " abbr . " Gefr . ) is a German , Swiss and Austrian military rank that has existed since the 16th century . It is usually the second rank or grade to which an enlisted soldier , airman or sailor could be promoted . Within the combined NATO rank scale , the modern - day rank of " Gefreiter " is usually equivalent to the NATO - standard rank scale OR - 2 . History . Historically the military rank of " Gefreiter " ( also " Gefreite " ) emerged in 16th - century Europe for the German " Landsknechte " foot soldiers , predominantly made up of German and Swiss mercenary pike men and supporting infantry foot soldiers . Those soldiers who proved especially reliable and experienced were appointed to " gefreyten Knecht en " ( exempted Servants / Soldiers ; a cognate to ' knight ' ) and were installed in critical battle field positions , among their extra rank privileges they were exempted in general from guard watch duties . From the 18th century , " Gefreiters " were the first line members of a military company , and every " Gefreiter " lead and commanded a section or squad of " Gemeine " ( Ordinary - rank soldiers ) , the rank existed in the Cavalry , Infantry , Pioneer , and Artillery where the " Gefreiter " rank received a greater rank - class status . " Gefreiter " was the only enlisted rank up until 1918 within the Royal Prussian Army and respectively the imperial army of the German Empire to which an exceptional enlisted soldier could be promoted on the recommendation of the " Hauptmann " ( Captain ) or " Rittmeister " ( Cavalry - Master otherwise Captain ) and ultimately endorsed by the " Regiments - Commandeur " ( Regimental Colonel ) , with exception of the rank " Obergefreiter " ( since 1859 ) in the foot artillery which later replaced the artillery " Bombardier " ( Corporal ) rank . The " Gefreiter " rank was also considered a transition rank for promotion to and wherefrom replacements were selected to the " Unteroffizier " ( Corporal ) rank . Within the Royal Prussian Army and respectively the imperial army of the German Empire , the rank " Gefreiter " was a deputy to the " Unteroffizier " ( Corporal ) , and were distinguished by the wearing of a " Auszeichnungsknopf " ( " rank " Distinction - button ) known as the " Gefreitenknopf " ( Gefreiter - button ) on each side of their uniform collar , similar to the slightly larger rank collar side - buttons worn by both the " Sergeant " and " Feldwebel " ranks . In the Royal Prussian Army up until its reorganization after 1806 , there existed along with " Gefreiter " the rank of " Gefreite - Korporale " who wore a silver " Portepee " ( sword lanyard ) and were officer cadets specifically selected for higher advancement , they stood equal with their officer cadet counterpart the " Portepee - Fähnriche " . The " Gefreite - Korporale " was a rank that also existed along with " Gefreiter " in the Austrian Army during the Thirty Years ' War . From the 1920s the German rank of " Gefreiter " has expanded into several additional ranks and duties , those being " Obergefreiter " ( Senior Lance Corporal otherwise Second Corporal ; Prussian Army since 1859 ) , " Hauptgefreiter " ( Leading Lance Corporal ; Luftwaffe during 1935 - 1944 , Kriegsmarine during 1938 - 1945 , Heer from 1955 ) , " Stabsgefreiter " ( Staff Lance Corporal ; Reichswehr since 1927 . Kriegsmarine up until 1945 . Luftwaffe from 1944 temporarily replacing " Hauptgefreiter " rank ) and " Oberstabsgefreiter " ( Senior Staff Lance Corporal ; Kriegsmarine since 1940 . Not Heer or Luftwaffe until 1996 ) . All " Gefreiter " ranks are now in use with the German Army , Airforce and Navy . Germany . Throughout the periods of the Royal Prussian Army , imperial army of the German Empire , " Reichswehr " and the German " Wehrmacht " , the rank of " Gefreiter " was considered in English the equivalent to a British Army Lance Corporal rank , with " Obergefreiter " as Senior Lance Corporal or rather Second Corporal in the Artillery , and a full Corporal rank known as " Unteroffizier " ( Subordinate Non - Commissioned Officer ) which replaced the " Korporal " rank from 1856 . Within the army branch of the German " Wehrmacht " , a rank of " Oberschütze " ( Senior Rifleman ) once existed between the ranks of " Gefreiter " and " Schütze / Soldat " ( " [ enlisted ] Ordinary - rank rifleman / soldier " ) . In modern times the " Unteroffizier " rank is now considered in English the equivalent to a Sergeant and less a Corporal rank , under the NATO rank scale OR - 5 . One of the best - known holders of the rank of " Gefreiter " was Adolf Hitler , who held the rank in the Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment 16 of the Royal Bavarian Army during World War I . In the modern day Federal Defence Forces of Germany ( " Bundeswehr " ) , almost every enlisted soldier , airman or sailor under normal rank advancement conditions may be promoted after their primary recruit training ( usually after three or six months depending on the service unit ) to the rank of " Gefreiter " . Following the NATO ranking system , " Gefreiter " now equates to OR - 2 on the NATO - standard rank scale , thus making the rank equivalent to either private , private first class , vice corporal or corporal rank depending on the chosen NATO - allied force used for the comparison . Switzerland . See Swiss army ranks . Efreitor in Russia and the post - Soviet states . Efreitor ( , transliterated : ) is a German loanword in Russian and denotes a similar rank in the Russian army . In Russia , the rank of Efreitor was introduced by Peter I in 1716 in infantry , cavalry and engineer forces . However , the rank wasn ' t used after 1722 . During the reign of Paul I it was made an equivalent rank to Private senior salary , which after the reign of Alexander I was used only for the Imperial Guard . Efreitor was re - introduced in the course of the military reform of 1826 . In the armed forces of the USSR ( and later the Russian Federation ) Efreitor is higher than the Private rank and less than the Junior Sergeant rank . In independent Ukraine this rank was changed to " Senior soldier " .