Frontbann | |
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Dates of operation | April 1924 –February 27, 1925 |
Country | Weimar Republic |
Size | 30,000 |
The term Frontbann refers to a reorganized front organization of the Sturmabteilung or SA which was formed in April 1924. It was created to replace the SA which had been banned in the aftermath of the failed Munich Putsch. It was disbanded in February 1925 after the ban on the SA was lifted.
The Frontbann was a reorganized and renamed version of the SA. It was created in April 1924 as a substitute for the then banned SA in the aftermath of the failed "Beer Hall Putsch" of November 1923. [1] The Nazi Party (NSDAP) including the SA was outlawed by the Weimar Republic government following the putsch. The Nazi Party was briefly renamed the National Socialist Freedom Party to maintain its legality and the SA was similarly renamed. Like the party it served, the Frontbann included the same members and performed the same functions as its predecessor. It contained many of the original members of the SA and was still led by Ernst Röhm. Frontbann units were formed throughout Germany. Kurt Daluege was the leader of the Frontbann unit in Berlin and Martin Bormann was a member of the unit in Thüringen. [2] It had about 30,000 members across Germany. The Frontbann was disbanded on February 27, 1925 when the ban was lifted on the Nazi Party and was reformed back into the SA.
The Frontbann uniform was similar to the Nazi Party SA uniform. Instead of a brown shirt and brown cap, they wore a field grey shirt with a grey cap; otherwise, it was the same. The arm band was essentially the same as the one of the Nazi Party. The only change was the placement of a steel helmet at the centre of the red brassard, instead of the black swastika.
The Frontbann Badge (Frontbannabzeichen), was established in 1932 by the SA-Gruppe-Berlin-Brandenburg. It was a badge to commemorate the Frontbann. To be able to obtain and wear the badge, one had to have joined the Frontbann prior to December 31, 1927 and had membership in the Nazi Party or another right-wing paramilitary organisation prior to that date. The badge was silver in color, had a pin back and measured 20 mm. It consisted of a swastika with a German helmet in the middle; written on the arms of the swastika were the words, WIR-WOLLEN-FREI-WERDEN ("We want to be free"). It was listed as an official decoration of the Nazi Party in 1933. By the end of 1934 the authorization was removed. It was no longer a badge that could be worn by NSDAP members. [3]
The Sturmabteilung was the original paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party. It played a significant role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and early 1930s. Its primary purposes were providing protection for Nazi rallies and assemblies, disrupting the meetings of opposing parties, fighting against the paramilitary units of the opposing parties, especially the Roter Frontkämpferbund of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and the Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), and intimidating Romani, trade unionists, and especially Jews.
Der Stahlhelm, Bund der Frontsoldaten, commonly known as Der Stahlhelm, was a German First World War veteran's organisation existing from 1918 to 1935. In the late days of the Weimar Republic, it was closely affiliated to the monarchist German National People's Party (DNVP), placed at party gatherings in the position of armed security guards.
The uniforms and insignia of the Schutzstaffel (SS) served to distinguish its Nazi paramilitary ranks between 1925 and 1945 from the ranks of the Wehrmacht, the German state, and the Nazi Party.
Awards and decorations of Nazi Germany were military, political, and civilian decorations that were bestowed between 1923 and 1945, first by the Nazi Party and later the state of Nazi Germany.
The uniforms and insignia of the Sturmabteilung (SA) were Nazi Party paramilitary ranks and uniforms used by SA stormtroopers from 1921 until the fall of Nazi Germany in 1945. The titles and phrases used by the SA were the basis for paramilitary titles used by several other Nazi paramilitary groups, among them the Schutzstaffel (SS). Early SS ranks were identical to the SA, since the SS was originally considered a sub-organisation of the Sturmabteilung.
Julius Schreck was an early senior Nazi official and close confidant of Adolf Hitler.
Joseph Berchtold was an early senior Nazi Party member and a co-founder of both the Sturmabteilung (SA) and Schutzstaffel (SS).
The Blood Order, officially known as the Decoration in Memory of 9 November 1923, was one of the most prestigious decorations in the Nazi Party (NSDAP). During March 1934, Hitler authorized the Blood Order to commemorate the 9 November 1923 coup attempt of the Nazi Party. The medal is silver, with the obverse bearing a depiction of an eagle grasping an oak leaf wreath. Inside the wreath is the date 9.Nov. and to the right is the inscription München 1923–1933. The reverse shows the entrance of the Feldherrnhalle in relief, and directly above is the angled swastika with sun rays in the background. Along the top edge is the inscription: UND IHR HABT DOCH GESIEGT.
Konstantin Hierl was a major figure in the administration of Nazi Germany. He was the head of the Reich Labour Service a Reichsleiter of the Nazi Party and an associate of Adolf Hitler before he came to national power.
The Golden Party Badge was an award authorised by Adolf Hitler in a decree in October 1933. It was a special award given to all Nazi Party members who had, as of 9 November 1933, registered numbers from 1 to 100,000 and had unbroken Party membership. The recipient's party number was inscribed on the reverse of the badge. Only 20,487 men and 1,795 women were awarded the badge on these terms.
The Wound Badge was a German military decoration first promulgated by Wilhelm II, German Emperor on 3 March 1918, which was first awarded to soldiers of the German Army who were wounded during World War I. Between the world wars, it was awarded to members of the German armed forces who fought on the Nationalist side of the Spanish Civil War, 1938–39, and received combat related wounds. It was awarded to members in the Reichswehr, the Wehrmacht, SS and the auxiliary service organizations during World War II. After March 1943, due to the increasing number of Allied bombings, it was also awarded to civilians wounded in air raids. It was awarded when the wound was the result of enemy hostile action. In 1957, the West German government authorized a denazified version of the basic badges for wear on the Bundeswehr uniform, among other certain Nazi-era wartime awards.
The Eastern Medal, officially the Winter Battle in the East 1941–42 Medal, was a military award of the Wehrmacht which was created by ordinance of Adolf Hitler on 26 May 1942.
Political decorations of the Nazi Party were medals and awards issued by the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) between 1920 and 1945. Political awards were authorised for wear on any paramilitary uniform of Nazi Germany, as well as civilian attire, but were generally discouraged on Wehrmacht military uniforms. The Waffen-SS freely wore both political awards and military decorations on their uniforms.
The General Assault Badge was a military decoration awarded during World War II to personnel of the German Army, Waffen-SS and Ordnungspolizei who supported an infantry attack but were not part of specific infantry units and therefore did not qualify for the Infantry Assault Badge. It was instituted by General Walther von Brauchitsch on 1 June 1940.
The Coburg Badge was the first badge recognised as a national award of the Nazi Party (NSDAP). Subsequently, it formally was given precedence as the highest Party award.
The SA Sports Badge was a decoration of Nazi Germany that was issued between the years 1933 and 1945. It was a political version of the much more generic German Sports Badge, which was also issued in great numbers by the Nazis. At its center was a 57mm high Roman broad sword, superimposed over a Nazi swastika encircled by an wreath of oak leaves. It was a pin-back badge, but there was a cloth version, as well.
The Nuremberg Party Day Badge was the second badge recognised as a national award of the Nazi Party (NSDAP). Also known as the Nuremberg Party Badge of 1929, it was awarded to those Nazi Party members who had attended the 1929 national rally in the city of Nuremberg. After the establishment of Nazi Germany, it formally was given precedence as the second highest Party award in a decree of 6 November 1936.
The Wehrmacht Long Service Award was a military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service.
The Nazi Party Long Service Award, sometimes called the NSDAP Long Service Award, was a political award in the form of a badge of the Nazi Party.
Brunswick Rally Badge, also known as the Badge of the SA Rally at Brunswick 1931, was the third badge recognised as a national award of the Nazi Party (NSDAP). A special Party honour badge, it was awarded to those Party members who had attended the SA assembly at the city of Braunschweig in the Free State of Brunswick on 17–18 October 1931. After the establishment of Nazi Germany, the badge formally was given precedence as the third highest Party award in a decree of 6 November 1936.