Alter Kämpfer is a term referring to the earliest members of the Nazi Party, i.e. those who joined it before the Reichstag elections of September 1930, with many belonging to the Party as early as its first foundation in 1919–1923. Those who joined the Party after the electoral breakthrough of September 1930 were known to the Alte Kämpfer as Septemberlings while those who joined the Party after the assumption of power on January 30 1933 were known as the "March Violets". As the party's "Old Guard" and of proven dedication to the movement during its so-called "Period of Struggle" (Kampfzeit) in 1925–1933, they were distinguished from the flood of new members who joined in 1933 and later for opportunistic reasons. A number of special awards/insignia were instituted for this purpose:

• the Honour Chevron for the Old Guard
  Honour Chevron for the Old Guard
  The Honour Chevron for the Old Guard, or in German Ehrenwinkel für Alte Kämpfer, was a political decoration of the Nazi Party in Germany. It was authorised in February 1934, as a silver chevron to be worn on the upper right arm, by all members of the SS, who had joined the SS, NSDAP or any other...
  
  , awarded to those who had joined the Party or its affiliated organizations before 30 January 1933;
• the Golden Party Badge
  Golden Party Badge
  The Golden Party Badge was a special badge of the Nazi Party. The first 100,000 members who had joined and had uninterrupted service in the Party were given the right to wear it...
  
  , awarded to the first 100,000 members of the party;
• the oldest members, those who had participated in the abortive 1923 Beer Hall Putsch
  Beer Hall Putsch
  The Beer Hall Putsch was a failed attempt at revolution that occurred between the evening of 8 November and the early afternoon of 9 November 1923, when Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler, Generalquartiermeister Erich Ludendorff, and other heads of the Kampfbund unsuccessfully tried to seize power...
  
  , were further decorated with the Blood Order
  Blood Order
  The Blood Order , officially known as the Decoration of 9 November 1923 , was one of the most prestigious decorations in the Nazi Party...
  
  .

The Alte Kämpfer also enjoyed more tangible benefits of their status. Once the Nazis took power, they received preference in employment and promotion. Many were given jobs as electricians, plumbers and maintenance men in the opera houses, government buildings and universities of the Third Reich.

Nazi propaganda glorified them as a small handful of fighters against almost impossible odds.