Ranks and insignia of the Nazi Party
Encyclopedia
Ranks and insignia of the Nazi Party were paramilitary titles
used by the National Socialist German Workers Party
(NSDAP) between approximately 1928 and the fall of Nazi Germany
in 1945. Such ranks were held within the political leadership corps of the Nazi Party, charged with the overseeing the regular Nazi Party members.
The first purpose of the Nazi party political ranks was to provide election district leadership positions during the years where the Nazis were attempting to come to power in Germany. After 1933, when the Third Reich had been established, Nazi Party ranks played a much more important role existing as a political chain of command operating side by side with the German government.
Contrary to modern day cinema and layman perceptions regarding the Nazi Party, which often portrays all Nazis as wearing brown shirts with swastika
armbands, Nazi ranks and titles were only used by a small minority within the Party, this being the political leadership corps. Regular Nazi Party members, unconnected with the political leadership, often wore no uniforms at all except for a standard Nazi Party Badge issued to all members (a golden version
of this badge also existed for early Nazi Party members).
The history of Nazi Party ranks and insignia can be divided into the ranks used during several different time periods as well as the positions held by senior Nazis who were, by default, the supreme leaders of the Party regardless of what title they choose to call themselves by.
counterparts. Between 1921 and 1923, considered the earliest time period that the Nazi Party existed, there were no titles or ranks used by the regular Nazi Party members although several members choose to wear World War I
uniforms at party meetings. When Adolf Hitler
replaced Anton Drexler
as the leader of the Nazi Party, Hitler began calling himself by the title of Führer
, thus establishing the first formal Nazi Party titles. A position of Deputy Führer
, held by Rudolf Hess
was created shortly thereafter, as well as a few administrative titles such as Party Secretary and Party Treasurer which had become formal titles by the time of the abortive Beer Hall Putsch
in 1923.
The Nazi Party was disbanded between 1923 and 1925, but upon returning the very first uniform and insignia regulations were published, albeit for the Nazi Party's paramilitary group the Sturmabteilung
(SA). These early regulations created some of the earliest paramilitary titles used by the Nazis, among them Gruppenführer
and Oberführer
, with the regular rank and file of the SA known by the title of Mann
. These titles, however, were confined to the SA while the rest of the Nazi Party still had no former ranks and insignia except for the titles used by senior Nazi leaders such as Hitler.
Between 1925 and 1929, it became common for Nazis to wear make-shift paramilitary uniforms at Party rallies and during this time the SA expanded its own system of insignia as did the fledgling SS (Schutzstaffel) which had begun to appear as a force within the Party. As the Nazis gained more support throughout Germany
, and moved outward for their power base in Munich
, regional Nazi cells began to appear in such major cities as Stuttgart
, Berlin
, and Heidelberg
. These "local Nazis" often adopted their own uniforms and titles with little standardization from the main Nazis operated out of Munich.
The first formal Nazi Party rank and insignia regulations were published in 1930 although standardization across the Nazi Party did not occur until 1932 and then still with limited success since regional Nazi leaders, far removed from Hitler in Munich, frequently spent little effort enforcing uniform guidelines and, in some cases, outright ignored them. The early regulations, however, called for the Nazi Party to be divided into two levels - the Politische Leitung (political leadership) and the Partei Mitglieder (Party Membership) with political leaders adopting standard uniforms and insignia. Hitler and his senior entourage were actually not included in the uniform regulations, and continued to wear paramilitary uniforms of their own choosing without special insignia. The Nazi Party paramilitary groups, such as the SA and SS, also by this time had their own uniform and insignia regulations separate from the main Nazi Party.
The first formal Nazi Party ranks were therefore as follows:
A higher rank, that of Reichsorganizationsleiter (National Organizational Leader) was created for the senior most Reich Inspector of the Nazi Party. The special rank did not entail any additional insignia other than that worn by the regular Reichsinspekteur rank.
By 1932, Nazi Party's uniform regulations had included a series of braided shoulder boards to be worn in conjunction with Nazi collar insignia. The next major change to Nazi uniforms would occur in 1934, a year after the Nazis had come to power in Germany.
to completely merge the civilian government of Germany with the political leadership of Nazi Germany. After the Night of the Long Knives
in 1934, the Nazi Party underwent a major reorganization as a prelude to Nazi leadership members merging their own positions with local, state, and federal government establishments.
The first step in this process was to divide the Nazi Party into several "levels" which were designed to act independently from each other. These levels in turn were:
Nazi Party political leaders were to choose a level in which they would make a career. Each level of the Nazi Party was self contained and separate from other levels. While, in theory, this was intended to avoid jurisdictional conflict, the result was that the level leaderships ignored the wishes of the others and, in some cases, came into direct conflict. Hitler and the senior Nazi leaders were also "outside the chain", giving orders to all levels simultaneously and sometimes different party levels were given orders to carry out the same task. This caused high levels of in-fighting and backstabbing in Nazi leadership circles, to such a degree that regulations had to be introduced preventing deputies from succeeding their own superiors therefore to discourage subordinates from intentionally sabotaging their leaders.
The new Nazi Party levels called for several new ranks and the Nazi Party titles were overhauled with several new positions. Some positions were duplicated on each level of the Party while others were unique to the local, county, state, or national level. The Nazis also created a supreme political rank, known as Reichsleiter
, considered the top rank of both the Reichsleitung (national) level as well as the senior most political rank in the party next to Hitler himself.
In all, the following were the primary Nazi political staff ranks used between 1933 and 1939:
The political leadership ranks were as follows:
Further additions included the creation of several positional titles which were not actual ranks but merely titles that a Nazi Party political leader could hold in addition to their own formal rank. There was at this time no outward system to denote these special titles, other than verbal and written correspondence. This would change in 1939 with the creation of the Nazi Party's armband system.
The pre-war positional titles included:
The system of Nazi Party ranks adopted in 1934 would remain unchanged throughout the remainder of the 1930s. It was not until 1939, at the start of World War II
, that Nazi Party ranks would change again for a final time.
, who personally oversaw the development of Nazi Party insignia through his position as head of the German Labour Front
, and put into effect in mid 1939. The new insignia pattern was a vast overhaul of previous designs beginning with a standardized set of twenty eight Nazi Party ranks that were to be uniform across all levels of the Party. To denote membership in a particular "level" of the Nazi Party (local, county, regional, or national) collar tabs would display a particular color on which the actual rank insignia would then be displayed.
This new design was intended to eliminate the manner in which different levels of the Nazi Party separated themselves and allow for command across all Party lines. For instance, an Abschnittsleiter (Section Leader) in the Ortsgruppen (local) level would now be seen as outranking and could issue directives to a junior rank, such as Arbeitsleiter (Work Leader) even if the junior rank served in a higher echelon of the Nazi Party, such as on the Gau (Regional) or Reich (National) level. The vast array of new ranks also allowed for a military appearance to the Nazi Party, in particular during World War II when political leaders were exempt for the conscription
. More ranks also involved more opportunity for promotion and served as a means to distinguish highly successful political leaders from others who might hold the same position in the Nazi Party.
Within each level of the Party, there was a cap on the highest possible rank one could achieve. The heads of the lower levels, the Ortsgruppenleiter and the Kreisleiter, now held standard Nazi Party ranks in addition to their leadership titles. The positions of Gauleiter
and Reichsleiter
held their own special insignia and these two positions were considered outside the promotion tier and were available only by direct appointment from Hitler. Gauleiters and Reichsleiters also outranked all other Party members, regardless of standard Nazi Party ranks. Thus, the highest possible rank in each level of the Party was as follows:
{| style="border:1px solid #8888aa; background-color:#f7f8ff; padding:5px; font-size:95%; margin: 0px 12px 12px 0px;"
|align="center"| Party Level
|align="center"| Rank Tab Color
|align="center"| Highest Rank in Tier
|align="center"| Translation
|-
|align="center"| Ortsgruppen
|align="center"| Light Yellow
|align="center"| Oberabschnittsleiter
|align="center"| Senior Section Leader
|-
|
|-
|align="center"| Kreisleitung
|align="center"| Dark Brown
|align="center"| Dienstleiter
|align="center"| Service Leader
|-
|
|-
|align="center"| Gauleitung
|align="center"| Orange
|align="center"| Oberbefehlsleiter
*
|align="center"| Senior Command Leader
|-
|
|-
|align="center"| Reichsleitung
|align="center"| Dark Red
|align="center"| Hauptbefehlsleiter
**
|align="center"| Head Command Leader
|-
|}
(*) The rank of Gauleiter was the senior most rank of the Gau level but outside the regular promotion tier
(**) The rank of Reichsleiter was the senior most rank of the Reich level but outside the regular promotion tier
Between 1939 and 1942, these new uniform regulations were slow to be implemented and Nazi Party leaders can frequently be seen in photographic evidence wearing pre-1939 insignia well after Ley had introduced the final insignia pattern. In was not until 1943 that most Nazi Party members had completely converted to the new insignia patterns.
By the start of World War II, Nazi Party paramilitary groups had also been expanding and developing their own uniform designs, such as SS uniforms and insignia
as well as uniforms used by such other Nazi groups such as the National Socialist Motor Corps
, the Organization Todt, and many others. In addition, as the Nazi Party and the German government became one and the same, each German ministry had the option to develop a standardized uniform and dress code with a state employee also having the choice to wear a Nazi party uniform, a uniform of a Nazi paramilitary group (such as the SS or SA), or (if the person was a reservist in the military) a uniform of the Wehrmacht
. This created an extremely confusing array of titles, ranks, and uniforms which has also caused historical difficulty in determining the various positions and titles which senior members of the German government held.
In addition to the array of Nazi titles and ranks there also existed the original government of Germany to include such historic positions as Burgermeister (town mayor). Such individuals could also hold the approximate equivalent of a Nazi Party position or be unconnected to the Party. Through the process of Gleichschaltung, Nazi officials existed side by side with local government authorities with the local government existing as a rubber stamp
to Nazi designs.
There were three groupings of armbands, classified as "operational", "administrative", and "command". The operational armbands were used by Nazi party political leaders on the local and county levels of the Party and were worn by those Party leaders directly engaged in implementing Party policies to the public. During World War II, this was most often associated with food rationing, war relief efforts, and civil defense
.
The administrative armbands were worn by office staffs across all levels of the party, although mostly were used by the regional staffs of the Gauleiters. The third, and least common of the armbands, were the command armbands worn by the Deputy Gauleiters, Gauleiters, and Reichsleiters.
The Nazi Party armbands were intended for immediate implementation upon the outbreak of World War II in 1939, although it was not until 1943 that the system was in total effect. Even then, photographic evidence reveals it was not uncommon for some political leaders to simply wear the pre-1939 bare swastika armband, with some photographs as late as 1945 revealing political leaders failing to wear the appropriate Nazi positional armband.
By pairing up a wearer's political collar tabs and armband, it was possible to determine exactly what their position and responsibilities were within the Nazi Party political leadership corps; the armband system was also used to differentiate between Party leaders who may have held the same political ranks, but were entrusted with vastly different responsibilities. For instance, a Hauptbereichsleiter who was serving as the Kriesleiter of a German county, would wear a more elaborate armband than a Nazi Party member of the same rank who was on the administrative staff of a Gauleitung.
On the local level of the Nazi Party, political armbands were often used to denote those Nazis holding the positions of Blockleiter
and Zellenleiter
. A further political position, unique only to the local level of the Nazi Party, was that of Betriebsobmann
which was a type of Shop Steward
position. At the top tier of the operational armbands was a unique armband worn by both the Ortsgruppenleiter
and the Kreisleiter
Administrative armbands were used across all levels of the Nazi Party, beginning with the position of Mitarbeiter which was a catch all staff position encompassing a wide variety of duties. Mitarbeiter had itself been a political rank prior to 1939, after which time the rank was phased out of the Nazi Party but survived as a political position. Leadership administrative armbands were worn by Office Leaders (Amtsleiter
s and Stellenleiter
s), of which there were eight levels of hierarchy. In all, the Nazi political offices, denoted by special armbands, were as follows:
A leader of a political office was known as a Leiter followed by the office name. For instance, Leiter eines Sachgebietes would indicate the leader of an administrative area office.
Command armbands matched up directly with the positions of Gauleiter and Reichsleiter, each of which was denoted by its own unique armband. The political position of Deputy Gauleiter (Stellvertreter Gauleiter) was phased out as a political rank in 1939 (explaining why there was no "one leaf" Gauleiter insignia during World War II), bur survived as a political armband denoting status as a Deputy Regional Leader.
The senior leadership of the Nazi Party were intentionally removed from Nazi Party political ranks, with such senior leaders unquestionably above and outranking all other members of the Party. This concept has been equated by historians that the leadership was the "spring" from which Nazi promotions, ranks, and awards
were granted, to be bestowed upon the lesser members of the Party. Under this concept, Adolf Hitler and his inner circle needed no grand titles, heaps of awards, or elaborate uniforms since they were already known as the most senior members of the state and party. It is for this reason that Hitler and his senior Nazis are frequently seen in photographic and film evidence as wearing uniforms with little insignia or uniforms without excessive decorations. This sets Hitler apart from other dictators of the time, such as Benito Mussolini
who appointed himself First Marshal of the Empire
and wore a full Italian military uniform with every possible state and military decoration displayed.
Adolf Hitler
, who served as Führer
of the Nazi Party, held the absolute highest possible Nazi Party position. Albert Speer
(in his book Inside the Third Reich) remarked that Hitler was the only party member to wear an embroidered "Eagle of Sovereignty Pin" on his civilian jackets (every other member wearing the round party badge), though the jacket design itself did not differ from other civilian jackets of the time. This "Führer Badge" was the only unique insignia ever created to denote Hitler's rank as Führer.
Prior to 1939, Hitler wore a brown paramilitary uniform, considered the uniform of the Oberste SA-Führer (Supreme Storm Trooper Commander). Upon the outbreak of World War II
, Hitler adopted a grey army style uniform, without any particular insignia, with Hitler pledging that he was the “first soldier” of the German Reich and would wear his army style uniform until “victory has been achieved or I will not survive the outcome”.
Heinrich Himmler
was a senior member of the Nazi Party and is most well known as the Reichsfuhrer-SS
; as a result, most of Himmler's attire is connected to his Schutzstaffel
(SS) uniform. In addition to being Reichsführer
and a Reichsleiter
, towards the end of World War II he held numerous high level positions including Commander of the Replacement Home Army and General Plenipotentiary for the entire Reich's administration (Generalbevollmächtigter für die Verwaltung). Himmler however, never chose to wear a Nazi party uniform and all photographs of him are in either civilian clothes or in his Schutzstaffel
(SS) uniform.
Other high Nazi positions, that did not entail any particular insignia, included the office of Deputy Führer
held by Rudolf Hess
until he personally flew his Messerschmitt Bf110 fighter plane to Scotland and crash landed at Eaglesham in 1941. He was captured, imprisoned and then sent to England. The office of Deputy Führer was thereafter abolished.
Martin Bormann
held the title of Party Secretary, during which time he wore the uniform of a Nazi Reichsleiter
. Bormann would later take up cabinet level positions in the German government, after which he wore the insignia of an SS-Obergruppenführer
. Albert Speer
, in his early days as the Party Architect, wore a brown Nazi party jacket similar to the insignia-less uniform that Joseph Goebbels
wore throughout his career as Nazi Propaganda Minister. As for Speer, he would later adopt the uniform of the Organisation Todt
, and towards the end of World War II wore a senior Nazi Party political uniform through his position as Minister of Armaments.
Some of the senior Nazis did incorporate themselves into the standard Nazi Party rank system, but only at the highest levels. Robert Ley
held the position of Reichsleiter and Julius Streicher
was a Gauleiter. Hermann Göring
is most associated with his rank of Reichsmarshal, but was also a Gruppenführer in the SA as well as the equivalent of a Reichsleiter through his position as Director of the Four Year Plan
. Göring was also offered the rank of Oberstgruppenführer by Himmler
, but he declined.
held solely by Adolf Hitler as supreme leader of the Party (a position of Deputy Führer
also existed until 1941).
The various political armband distribution, with primary designation listed first, was as follows
Nazi party paramilitary ranks
Nazi party paramilitary ranks were pseudo-military titles which were used by the National Socialist German Workers Party between the years of 1920 and 1945...
used by the National Socialist German Workers Party
National Socialist German Workers Party
The National Socialist German Workers' Party , commonly known in English as the Nazi Party, was a political party in Germany between 1920 and 1945. Its predecessor, the German Workers' Party , existed from 1919 to 1920...
(NSDAP) between approximately 1928 and the fall of Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in 1945. Such ranks were held within the political leadership corps of the Nazi Party, charged with the overseeing the regular Nazi Party members.
The first purpose of the Nazi party political ranks was to provide election district leadership positions during the years where the Nazis were attempting to come to power in Germany. After 1933, when the Third Reich had been established, Nazi Party ranks played a much more important role existing as a political chain of command operating side by side with the German government.
Contrary to modern day cinema and layman perceptions regarding the Nazi Party, which often portrays all Nazis as wearing brown shirts with swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
armbands, Nazi ranks and titles were only used by a small minority within the Party, this being the political leadership corps. Regular Nazi Party members, unconnected with the political leadership, often wore no uniforms at all except for a standard Nazi Party Badge issued to all members (a golden version
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...
of this badge also existed for early Nazi Party members).
The history of Nazi Party ranks and insignia can be divided into the ranks used during several different time periods as well as the positions held by senior Nazis who were, by default, the supreme leaders of the Party regardless of what title they choose to call themselves by.
Early Nazi Party titles
The early titles used by the Nazi Party were far removed for their late 1930s and World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
counterparts. Between 1921 and 1923, considered the earliest time period that the Nazi Party existed, there were no titles or ranks used by the regular Nazi Party members although several members choose to wear World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
uniforms at party meetings. When Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
replaced Anton Drexler
Anton Drexler
Anton Drexler was a German right-wing political leader of the 1920s, known for being Adolf Hitler's mentor during his early days in politics.-Biography:...
as the leader of the Nazi Party, Hitler began calling himself by the title of Führer
Führer
Führer , alternatively spelled Fuehrer in both English and German when the umlaut is not available, is a German title meaning leader or guide now most associated with Adolf Hitler, who modelled it on Benito Mussolini's title il Duce, as well as with Georg von Schönerer, whose followers also...
, thus establishing the first formal Nazi Party titles. A position of Deputy Führer
Deputy Führer
Deputy Führer was the title for the deputy head of the Nazi Party, which was held by Rudolf Hess until his flight to the United Kingdom in 1941. After this event, Adolf Hitler abolished the office and replaced it with the office of Party Chancellery, which was given to Martin Bormann....
, held by Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess was a prominent Nazi politician who was Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi Party during the 1930s and early 1940s...
was created shortly thereafter, as well as a few administrative titles such as Party Secretary and Party Treasurer which had become formal titles by the time of the abortive 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...
in 1923.
The Nazi Party was disbanded between 1923 and 1925, but upon returning the very first uniform and insignia regulations were published, albeit for the Nazi Party's paramilitary group the Sturmabteilung
Sturmabteilung
The Sturmabteilung functioned as a paramilitary organization of the National Socialist German Workers' Party . It played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s...
(SA). These early regulations created some of the earliest paramilitary titles used by the Nazis, among them Gruppenführer
Gruppenführer
Gruppenführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party, first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA.-SS rank:...
and Oberführer
Oberführer
Oberführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party dating back to 1921. Translated as “Senior Leader”, an Oberführer was typically a Nazi Party member in charge of a group of paramilitary units in a particular geographical region...
, with the regular rank and file of the SA known by the title of Mann
Mann (military rank)
Mann , was a paramilitary rank used by several Nazi Party paramilitary organizations between 1925 and 1945. The rank is most often associated with the SS, and also as a rank of the SA where Mann was the lowest enlisted rank and was the equivalent of a Private.In 1938, with the rise of the...
. These titles, however, were confined to the SA while the rest of the Nazi Party still had no former ranks and insignia except for the titles used by senior Nazi leaders such as Hitler.
Between 1925 and 1929, it became common for Nazis to wear make-shift paramilitary uniforms at Party rallies and during this time the SA expanded its own system of insignia as did the fledgling SS (Schutzstaffel) which had begun to appear as a force within the Party. As the Nazis gained more support throughout Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and moved outward for their power base in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, regional Nazi cells began to appear in such major cities as Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, and Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
. These "local Nazis" often adopted their own uniforms and titles with little standardization from the main Nazis operated out of Munich.
The first formal Nazi Party rank and insignia regulations were published in 1930 although standardization across the Nazi Party did not occur until 1932 and then still with limited success since regional Nazi leaders, far removed from Hitler in Munich, frequently spent little effort enforcing uniform guidelines and, in some cases, outright ignored them. The early regulations, however, called for the Nazi Party to be divided into two levels - the Politische Leitung (political leadership) and the Partei Mitglieder (Party Membership) with political leaders adopting standard uniforms and insignia. Hitler and his senior entourage were actually not included in the uniform regulations, and continued to wear paramilitary uniforms of their own choosing without special insignia. The Nazi Party paramilitary groups, such as the SA and SS, also by this time had their own uniform and insignia regulations separate from the main Nazi Party.
The first formal Nazi Party ranks were therefore as follows:
- BlockwartBlockleiterBlockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general...
(Block Leader) - ZellenwartZellenleiterZellenleiter was a Nazi Party political title which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. A Zellenleiter was higher in rank than a Blockleiter and was in charge of a "Nazi Cell", composed of eight to twelve blocks....
(Cell Leader) - OrtsgruppenleiterOrtsgruppenleiterOrtsgruppenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945. The term first came into being during the German elections of 1930, and was held by the head Nazi of a town or city for the purposes of election district organization...
(Local Group Leader) - KreisleiterKreisleiterKreisleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed as a political rank between 1930 and 1945 and as a Nazi Party title from as early as 1928...
(County Leader) - GauleiterGauleiterA Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
(Regional Leader) - Landesinspekteur (State Inspector)
- Reichsinspekteur (National Inspector)
A higher rank, that of Reichsorganizationsleiter (National Organizational Leader) was created for the senior most Reich Inspector of the Nazi Party. The special rank did not entail any additional insignia other than that worn by the regular Reichsinspekteur rank.
By 1932, Nazi Party's uniform regulations had included a series of braided shoulder boards to be worn in conjunction with Nazi collar insignia. The next major change to Nazi uniforms would occur in 1934, a year after the Nazis had come to power in Germany.
Nazi Germany political positions
In 1933, the Nazi Party took power in Germany and began a process known as GleichschaltungGleichschaltung
Gleichschaltung , meaning "coordination", "making the same", "bringing into line", is a Nazi term for the process by which the Nazi regime successively established a system of totalitarian control and tight coordination over all aspects of society. The historian Richard J...
to completely merge the civilian government of Germany with the political leadership of Nazi Germany. After the Night of the Long Knives
Night of the Long Knives
The Night of the Long Knives , sometimes called "Operation Hummingbird " or in Germany the "Röhm-Putsch," was a purge that took place in Nazi Germany between June 30 and July 2, 1934, when the Nazi regime carried out a series of political murders...
in 1934, the Nazi Party underwent a major reorganization as a prelude to Nazi leadership members merging their own positions with local, state, and federal government establishments.
The first step in this process was to divide the Nazi Party into several "levels" which were designed to act independently from each other. These levels in turn were:
- Orstgruppen (Local level - German towns and cities)
- Kreisleitung (District level - German counties)
- Gauleitung (Regional level - German states and their provinces)
- Reichsleitung (National level - German nation)
Nazi Party political leaders were to choose a level in which they would make a career. Each level of the Nazi Party was self contained and separate from other levels. While, in theory, this was intended to avoid jurisdictional conflict, the result was that the level leaderships ignored the wishes of the others and, in some cases, came into direct conflict. Hitler and the senior Nazi leaders were also "outside the chain", giving orders to all levels simultaneously and sometimes different party levels were given orders to carry out the same task. This caused high levels of in-fighting and backstabbing in Nazi leadership circles, to such a degree that regulations had to be introduced preventing deputies from succeeding their own superiors therefore to discourage subordinates from intentionally sabotaging their leaders.
The new Nazi Party levels called for several new ranks and the Nazi Party titles were overhauled with several new positions. Some positions were duplicated on each level of the Party while others were unique to the local, county, state, or national level. The Nazis also created a supreme political rank, known as Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose...
, considered the top rank of both the Reichsleitung (national) level as well as the senior most political rank in the party next to Hitler himself.
In all, the following were the primary Nazi political staff ranks used between 1933 and 1939:
- Mitarbeiter
- Hilfs-Stellenleiter
- StellenleiterStellenleiterStellenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as a mid-level political position intended to replace the older rank of Zellenwart, also known as Zellenleiter....
- Hauptstellenleiter
- AmtsleiterAmtsleiterAmtsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as a "catch all" political staff position across all levels of the Nazi Party and encompassed a wide array of duties and responsibilities.A special rank of Hauptamtsleiter existed on the...
- Hauptamtsleiter
- Dienstleiter
- Hauptdienstleiter
The political leadership ranks were as follows:
- StützpunktleiterStützpunktleiterStützpunktleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as an adjutant position to the Ortsgruppenleiter of a German town or city. In 1939, the rank of Stützpunktleiter was phased out and replaced by several new paramilitary political...
- OrtsgruppenleiterOrtsgruppenleiterOrtsgruppenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945. The term first came into being during the German elections of 1930, and was held by the head Nazi of a town or city for the purposes of election district organization...
- KreisleiterKreisleiterKreisleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed as a political rank between 1930 and 1945 and as a Nazi Party title from as early as 1928...
- Stellvertreter Gauleiter
- GauleiterGauleiterA Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
- ReichsleiterReichsleiterReichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose...
Further additions included the creation of several positional titles which were not actual ranks but merely titles that a Nazi Party political leader could hold in addition to their own formal rank. There was at this time no outward system to denote these special titles, other than verbal and written correspondence. This would change in 1939 with the creation of the Nazi Party's armband system.
The pre-war positional titles included:
- BlockleiterBlockleiterBlockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general...
(Block Leader) - Unterabteilungsleiter (Junior Section Leader)
- Abteilungsleiter (Section Leader)
- ZellenleiterZellenleiterZellenleiter was a Nazi Party political title which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. A Zellenleiter was higher in rank than a Blockleiter and was in charge of a "Nazi Cell", composed of eight to twelve blocks....
(Cell Leader)
The system of Nazi Party ranks adopted in 1934 would remain unchanged throughout the remainder of the 1930s. It was not until 1939, at the start of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, that Nazi Party ranks would change again for a final time.
Nazi ranks during World War II
The final pattern of Nazi Party ranks was designed in 1938 by Robert LeyRobert Ley
Robert Ley was a Nazi politician and head of the German Labour Front from 1933 to 1945. He committed suicide while awaiting trial for war crimes.- Early life :...
, who personally oversaw the development of Nazi Party insignia through his position as head of the German Labour Front
German Labour Front
The German Labour Front was the National Socialist trade union organisation which replaced the various trade unions of the Weimar Republic after Adolf Hitler's rise to power....
, and put into effect in mid 1939. The new insignia pattern was a vast overhaul of previous designs beginning with a standardized set of twenty eight Nazi Party ranks that were to be uniform across all levels of the Party. To denote membership in a particular "level" of the Nazi Party (local, county, regional, or national) collar tabs would display a particular color on which the actual rank insignia would then be displayed.
This new design was intended to eliminate the manner in which different levels of the Nazi Party separated themselves and allow for command across all Party lines. For instance, an Abschnittsleiter (Section Leader) in the Ortsgruppen (local) level would now be seen as outranking and could issue directives to a junior rank, such as Arbeitsleiter (Work Leader) even if the junior rank served in a higher echelon of the Nazi Party, such as on the Gau (Regional) or Reich (National) level. The vast array of new ranks also allowed for a military appearance to the Nazi Party, in particular during World War II when political leaders were exempt for the conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
. More ranks also involved more opportunity for promotion and served as a means to distinguish highly successful political leaders from others who might hold the same position in the Nazi Party.
Within each level of the Party, there was a cap on the highest possible rank one could achieve. The heads of the lower levels, the Ortsgruppenleiter and the Kreisleiter, now held standard Nazi Party ranks in addition to their leadership titles. The positions of Gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
and Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose...
held their own special insignia and these two positions were considered outside the promotion tier and were available only by direct appointment from Hitler. Gauleiters and Reichsleiters also outranked all other Party members, regardless of standard Nazi Party ranks. Thus, the highest possible rank in each level of the Party was as follows:
{| style="border:1px solid #8888aa; background-color:#f7f8ff; padding:5px; font-size:95%; margin: 0px 12px 12px 0px;"
|align="center"| Party Level
|align="center"| Rank Tab Color
|align="center"| Highest Rank in Tier
|align="center"| Translation
|-
|align="center"| Ortsgruppen
|align="center"| Light Yellow
|align="center"| Oberabschnittsleiter
|align="center"| Senior Section Leader
|-
|
|-
|align="center"| Kreisleitung
|align="center"| Dark Brown
|align="center"| Dienstleiter
|align="center"| Service Leader
|-
|
|-
|align="center"| Gauleitung
|align="center"| Orange
|align="center"| Oberbefehlsleiter
Befehlsleiter
Befehlsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank of Nazi Germany which existed between 1939 and 1945. Divided into three levels the rank was the highest possible paramilitary political rank, except for that of Gauleiter and Reichsleiter which were outside the regular promotion tier and available only...
*
|align="center"| Senior Command Leader
|-
|
|-
|align="center"| Reichsleitung
|align="center"| Dark Red
|align="center"| Hauptbefehlsleiter
Befehlsleiter
Befehlsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank of Nazi Germany which existed between 1939 and 1945. Divided into three levels the rank was the highest possible paramilitary political rank, except for that of Gauleiter and Reichsleiter which were outside the regular promotion tier and available only...
**
|align="center"| Head Command Leader
|-
|}
(*) The rank of Gauleiter was the senior most rank of the Gau level but outside the regular promotion tier
(**) The rank of Reichsleiter was the senior most rank of the Reich level but outside the regular promotion tier
Between 1939 and 1942, these new uniform regulations were slow to be implemented and Nazi Party leaders can frequently be seen in photographic evidence wearing pre-1939 insignia well after Ley had introduced the final insignia pattern. In was not until 1943 that most Nazi Party members had completely converted to the new insignia patterns.
By the start of World War II, Nazi Party paramilitary groups had also been expanding and developing their own uniform designs, such as SS uniforms and insignia
Uniforms and insignia of the Schutzstaffel
The uniforms and insignia of the Schutzstaffel were paramilitary ranks and uniforms used by the SS between 1925 and 1945 to differentiate that organization from the regular German armed forces, the German state, and the Nazi Party....
as well as uniforms used by such other Nazi groups such as the National Socialist Motor Corps
National Socialist Motor Corps
The National Socialist Motor Corps , also known as the National Socialist Drivers Corps, was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party that existed from 1931 to 1945. The group was a successor organization to the older National Socialist Automobile Corps, which had existed since the beginning...
, the Organization Todt, and many others. In addition, as the Nazi Party and the German government became one and the same, each German ministry had the option to develop a standardized uniform and dress code with a state employee also having the choice to wear a Nazi party uniform, a uniform of a Nazi paramilitary group (such as the SS or SA), or (if the person was a reservist in the military) a uniform of the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
. This created an extremely confusing array of titles, ranks, and uniforms which has also caused historical difficulty in determining the various positions and titles which senior members of the German government held.
In addition to the array of Nazi titles and ranks there also existed the original government of Germany to include such historic positions as Burgermeister (town mayor). Such individuals could also hold the approximate equivalent of a Nazi Party position or be unconnected to the Party. Through the process of Gleichschaltung, Nazi officials existed side by side with local government authorities with the local government existing as a rubber stamp
Rubber stamp (politics)
A rubber stamp, as a political metaphor, refers to a person or institution with considerable de jure power but little de facto power; one that rarely disagrees with more powerful organs....
to Nazi designs.
Armband System
The "armband system" was instituted by the Nazi Party in 1939 at the same time that the political leadership ranks were expanded into their final form. The purpose of the armband system was to denote positional titles within the Nazi Party in contrast to a party member's political rank.There were three groupings of armbands, classified as "operational", "administrative", and "command". The operational armbands were used by Nazi party political leaders on the local and county levels of the Party and were worn by those Party leaders directly engaged in implementing Party policies to the public. During World War II, this was most often associated with food rationing, war relief efforts, and civil defense
Civil defense
Civil defense, civil defence or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state from military attack. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, or emergency evacuation, and recovery...
.
The administrative armbands were worn by office staffs across all levels of the party, although mostly were used by the regional staffs of the Gauleiters. The third, and least common of the armbands, were the command armbands worn by the Deputy Gauleiters, Gauleiters, and Reichsleiters.
The Nazi Party armbands were intended for immediate implementation upon the outbreak of World War II in 1939, although it was not until 1943 that the system was in total effect. Even then, photographic evidence reveals it was not uncommon for some political leaders to simply wear the pre-1939 bare swastika armband, with some photographs as late as 1945 revealing political leaders failing to wear the appropriate Nazi positional armband.
By pairing up a wearer's political collar tabs and armband, it was possible to determine exactly what their position and responsibilities were within the Nazi Party political leadership corps; the armband system was also used to differentiate between Party leaders who may have held the same political ranks, but were entrusted with vastly different responsibilities. For instance, a Hauptbereichsleiter who was serving as the Kriesleiter of a German county, would wear a more elaborate armband than a Nazi Party member of the same rank who was on the administrative staff of a Gauleitung.
On the local level of the Nazi Party, political armbands were often used to denote those Nazis holding the positions of Blockleiter
Blockleiter
Blockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general...
and Zellenleiter
Zellenleiter
Zellenleiter was a Nazi Party political title which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. A Zellenleiter was higher in rank than a Blockleiter and was in charge of a "Nazi Cell", composed of eight to twelve blocks....
. A further political position, unique only to the local level of the Nazi Party, was that of Betriebsobmann
Betriebsobmann
Betriebsobmann was a political position of the Nazi Party which existed between the years 1939 and 1945. The term first came into being at the start of World War II and was unique only to the local level of the Nazi Party, known as the Ortsgruppen....
which was a type of Shop Steward
Union steward
A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company, who represents and defends the interests of her/his fellow employees but who is also a labor union official...
position. At the top tier of the operational armbands was a unique armband worn by both the Ortsgruppenleiter
Ortsgruppenleiter
Ortsgruppenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945. The term first came into being during the German elections of 1930, and was held by the head Nazi of a town or city for the purposes of election district organization...
and the Kreisleiter
Kreisleiter
Kreisleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed as a political rank between 1930 and 1945 and as a Nazi Party title from as early as 1928...
Administrative armbands were used across all levels of the Nazi Party, beginning with the position of Mitarbeiter which was a catch all staff position encompassing a wide variety of duties. Mitarbeiter had itself been a political rank prior to 1939, after which time the rank was phased out of the Nazi Party but survived as a political position. Leadership administrative armbands were worn by Office Leaders (Amtsleiter
Amtsleiter
Amtsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as a "catch all" political staff position across all levels of the Nazi Party and encompassed a wide array of duties and responsibilities.A special rank of Hauptamtsleiter existed on the...
s and Stellenleiter
Stellenleiter
Stellenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as a mid-level political position intended to replace the older rank of Zellenwart, also known as Zellenleiter....
s), of which there were eight levels of hierarchy. In all, the Nazi political offices, denoted by special armbands, were as follows:
- Hilfssachgebiet - Auxiliary Administrative Area
- SachgebietSachgebietSachgebiet was a term used by the Nazi Party to describe low level administrative offices of Nazi Germany. The term first appeared in 1939 and applied to the various administrative offices set up under the authority of the Nazi Party political leadership.The leader of a Sachgebiet was known as a...
- Administrative Area - Hilfsstelle - Auxiliary Area
- Stelle - Area
- Hauptstelle - Head Area
- Amtes - Office
- Hauptamtes- Head Office
- Oberst Amtes - Supreme Office
A leader of a political office was known as a Leiter followed by the office name. For instance, Leiter eines Sachgebietes would indicate the leader of an administrative area office.
Command armbands matched up directly with the positions of Gauleiter and Reichsleiter, each of which was denoted by its own unique armband. The political position of Deputy Gauleiter (Stellvertreter Gauleiter) was phased out as a political rank in 1939 (explaining why there was no "one leaf" Gauleiter insignia during World War II), bur survived as a political armband denoting status as a Deputy Regional Leader.
Senior Nazi Party Titles
Awards and decorations of Nazi Germany
Awards and Decorations of Nazi Germany were military, political and civilian decorations which were bestowed between 1923 and 1945 by the Nazi Party and later the state of Nazi Germany....
were granted, to be bestowed upon the lesser members of the Party. Under this concept, Adolf Hitler and his inner circle needed no grand titles, heaps of awards, or elaborate uniforms since they were already known as the most senior members of the state and party. It is for this reason that Hitler and his senior Nazis are frequently seen in photographic and film evidence as wearing uniforms with little insignia or uniforms without excessive decorations. This sets Hitler apart from other dictators of the time, such as Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
who appointed himself First Marshal of the Empire
First Marshal of the Empire
First marshal of the empire was a military rank established by the Italian Parliament on March 30, 1938. The highest rank in the Italian Military, it was only granted to Benito Mussolini and King Victor Emmanuel III...
and wore a full Italian military uniform with every possible state and military decoration displayed.
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, who served as Führer
Führer
Führer , alternatively spelled Fuehrer in both English and German when the umlaut is not available, is a German title meaning leader or guide now most associated with Adolf Hitler, who modelled it on Benito Mussolini's title il Duce, as well as with Georg von Schönerer, whose followers also...
of the Nazi Party, held the absolute highest possible Nazi Party position. Albert Speer
Albert Speer
Albert Speer, born Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer, was a German architect who was, for a part of World War II, Minister of Armaments and War Production for the Third Reich. Speer was Adolf Hitler's chief architect before assuming ministerial office...
(in his book Inside the Third Reich) remarked that Hitler was the only party member to wear an embroidered "Eagle of Sovereignty Pin" on his civilian jackets (every other member wearing the round party badge), though the jacket design itself did not differ from other civilian jackets of the time. This "Führer Badge" was the only unique insignia ever created to denote Hitler's rank as Führer.
Prior to 1939, Hitler wore a brown paramilitary uniform, considered the uniform of the Oberste SA-Führer (Supreme Storm Trooper Commander). Upon the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Hitler adopted a grey army style uniform, without any particular insignia, with Hitler pledging that he was the “first soldier” of the German Reich and would wear his army style uniform until “victory has been achieved or I will not survive the outcome”.
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
was a senior member of the Nazi Party and is most well known as the Reichsfuhrer-SS
Reichsführer-SS
was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945. Reichsführer-SS was a title from 1925 to 1933 and, after 1934, the highest rank of the German Schutzstaffel .-Definition:...
; as a result, most of Himmler's attire is connected to his Schutzstaffel
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
(SS) uniform. In addition to being Reichsführer
Reichsführer-SS
was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945. Reichsführer-SS was a title from 1925 to 1933 and, after 1934, the highest rank of the German Schutzstaffel .-Definition:...
and a Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose...
, towards the end of World War II he held numerous high level positions including Commander of the Replacement Home Army and General Plenipotentiary for the entire Reich's administration (Generalbevollmächtigter für die Verwaltung). Himmler however, never chose to wear a Nazi party uniform and all photographs of him are in either civilian clothes or in his Schutzstaffel
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
(SS) uniform.
Other high Nazi positions, that did not entail any particular insignia, included the office of Deputy Führer
Deputy Führer
Deputy Führer was the title for the deputy head of the Nazi Party, which was held by Rudolf Hess until his flight to the United Kingdom in 1941. After this event, Adolf Hitler abolished the office and replaced it with the office of Party Chancellery, which was given to Martin Bormann....
held by Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess was a prominent Nazi politician who was Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi Party during the 1930s and early 1940s...
until he personally flew his Messerschmitt Bf110 fighter plane to Scotland and crash landed at Eaglesham in 1941. He was captured, imprisoned and then sent to England. The office of Deputy Führer was thereafter abolished.
Martin Bormann
Martin Bormann
Martin Ludwig Bormann was a prominent Nazi official. He became head of the Party Chancellery and private secretary to Adolf Hitler...
held the title of Party Secretary, during which time he wore the uniform of a Nazi Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter
Reichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose...
. Bormann would later take up cabinet level positions in the German government, after which he wore the insignia of an SS-Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest SS rank inferior only to Reichsführer-SS...
. Albert Speer
Albert Speer
Albert Speer, born Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer, was a German architect who was, for a part of World War II, Minister of Armaments and War Production for the Third Reich. Speer was Adolf Hitler's chief architect before assuming ministerial office...
, in his early days as the Party Architect, wore a brown Nazi party jacket similar to the insignia-less uniform that Joseph Goebbels
Joseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
wore throughout his career as Nazi Propaganda Minister. As for Speer, he would later adopt the uniform of the Organisation Todt
Organisation Todt
The Todt Organisation, was a Third Reich civil and military engineering group in Germany named after its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior Nazi figure...
, and towards the end of World War II wore a senior Nazi Party political uniform through his position as Minister of Armaments.
Some of the senior Nazis did incorporate themselves into the standard Nazi Party rank system, but only at the highest levels. Robert Ley
Robert Ley
Robert Ley was a Nazi politician and head of the German Labour Front from 1933 to 1945. He committed suicide while awaiting trial for war crimes.- Early life :...
held the position of Reichsleiter and Julius Streicher
Julius Streicher
Julius Streicher was a prominent Nazi prior to World War II. He was the founder and publisher of Der Stürmer newspaper, which became a central element of the Nazi propaganda machine...
was a Gauleiter. Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
is most associated with his rank of Reichsmarshal, but was also a Gruppenführer in the SA as well as the equivalent of a Reichsleiter through his position as Director of the Four Year Plan
Four year plan
The Four Year Plan was a series of economic reforms created by the Nazi Party. The main aim of the four year plan was to prepare Germany for war in four years...
. Göring was also offered the rank of Oberstgruppenführer by Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
, but he declined.
Comparison Tables
In its simplest form, the Nazi Party command structure was divided into four basic levels: the general membership known as the Parteimitglieder, the political leadership corps known as the Politische Leiters, the upper command levels of the Party encompassed by the Gauleiters and Reichsleiters, and finally the position of FührerFührer
Führer , alternatively spelled Fuehrer in both English and German when the umlaut is not available, is a German title meaning leader or guide now most associated with Adolf Hitler, who modelled it on Benito Mussolini's title il Duce, as well as with Georg von Schönerer, whose followers also...
held solely by Adolf Hitler as supreme leader of the Party (a position of Deputy Führer
Deputy Führer
Deputy Führer was the title for the deputy head of the Nazi Party, which was held by Rudolf Hess until his flight to the United Kingdom in 1941. After this event, Adolf Hitler abolished the office and replaced it with the office of Party Chancellery, which was given to Martin Bormann....
also existed until 1941).
Political Ranks
Apart from this basic organization, the Nazi Party political ranks expanded over a period of twenty five years into a vast array of nomenclature detonated by a plethora of insignia and positions. From 1930 onward, this encompassed the political ranks, divided into the following time periods| Pre-1930 | 1930-1932 | 1933-1938 | 1939-1945 | |||
| Anwärter Anwärter Anwärter is a German title which translates as “Candidate”. In modern day Germany, the title of Anwärter is typically used by those applying for employment and also as a designation for members of the Bundeswehr who are under consideration for a leadership assignment.During the Third Reich,... (Nicht Partei) |
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| Mitglieder | ||||||
| Anwärter Anwärter Anwärter is a German title which translates as “Candidate”. In modern day Germany, the title of Anwärter is typically used by those applying for employment and also as a designation for members of the Bundeswehr who are under consideration for a leadership assignment.During the Third Reich,... |
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| Helfer | ||||||
| Oberhelfer | ||||||
| Blockwart Blockleiter Blockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general... |
Mitarbeiter | Arbeitsleiter | ||||
| Oberarbeitsleiter | ||||||
| Hilfs-Stellenleiter | Hauptarbeitsleiter | |||||
| Zellenwart Zellenleiter Zellenleiter was a Nazi Party political title which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. A Zellenleiter was higher in rank than a Blockleiter and was in charge of a "Nazi Cell", composed of eight to twelve blocks.... |
Stellenleiter Stellenleiter Stellenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as a mid-level political position intended to replace the older rank of Zellenwart, also known as Zellenleiter.... |
Bereitschaftsleiter Bereitschaftsleiter Bereitschaftsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1939 and 1945. There were three levels of the rank, known as Bereitschaftsleiter, Oberbereitschaftsleiter, and Hauptbereitschaftsleiter.... |
||||
| Hauptstellenleiter | Oberbereitschaftsleiter | |||||
| Hauptbereitschaftsleiter | ||||||
| Amtsleiter Amtsleiter Amtsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as a "catch all" political staff position across all levels of the Nazi Party and encompassed a wide array of duties and responsibilities.A special rank of Hauptamtsleiter existed on the... |
Einsatzleiter Einsatzleiter Einsatzleiter was a mid-level Nazi Party political rank created in 1939 as a replacement for the older rank of Amtsleiter. Like its predecessor, the rank of Einsatzleiter was a generic staff position common across all levels of the Party, typically assigned to administrative or clerical... |
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| Obereinsatzleiter | ||||||
| Haupteinsatzleiter | ||||||
| Stützpunktleiter Stützpunktleiter Stützpunktleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1933 and 1938. The rank was created as an adjutant position to the Ortsgruppenleiter of a German town or city. In 1939, the rank of Stützpunktleiter was phased out and replaced by several new paramilitary political... |
Gemeinschaftsleiter Gemeinschaftsleiter Gemeinschaftsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between 1939 and 1945. Created primary to replace the older rank of Stützpunktleiter, the rank of Gemeinschaftsleiter was often used on the local level of the Nazi Party to denote the second in command of a municipal region,... |
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| Obergemeinschaftsleiter | ||||||
| Hauptgemeinschaftsleiter | ||||||
| Politischer Leiter | Ortsgruppenleiter Ortsgruppenleiter Ortsgruppenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945. The term first came into being during the German elections of 1930, and was held by the head Nazi of a town or city for the purposes of election district organization... |
Abschnittsleiter | ||||
| Oberabschnittsleiter | ||||||
| Hauptabschnittsleiter | ||||||
| Kreisleiter Kreisleiter Kreisleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed as a political rank between 1930 and 1945 and as a Nazi Party title from as early as 1928... |
Bereichsleiter Bereichsleiter Bereichsleiter was a a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1939 and 1945. The rank of Bereichsleiter was created primarily to replace the older rank of Kreisleiter but was also was used on higher levels of the Nazi Party as a senior Chief of Staff position.Those... |
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| Oberbereichsleiter | ||||||
| Hauptamtsleiter | Hauptbereichsleiter | |||||
| Dienstleiter | ||||||
| Oberdienstleiter | ||||||
| Hauptdienstleiter | ||||||
| Befehlsleiter Befehlsleiter Befehlsleiter was a Nazi Party political rank of Nazi Germany which existed between 1939 and 1945. Divided into three levels the rank was the highest possible paramilitary political rank, except for that of Gauleiter and Reichsleiter which were outside the regular promotion tier and available only... |
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| Oberbefehlsleiter | ||||||
| Stellvertreter Gauleiter | Hauptbefehlsleiter | |||||
| Gauleiter Gauleiter A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:... |
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| Landesinspekteur | ||||||
| Reichsinspekteur | ||||||
| Reichsorganisationsleiter | Reichsleiter Reichsleiter Reichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose... |
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| Stellvertreter des Führers Deputy Führer Deputy Führer was the title for the deputy head of the Nazi Party, which was held by Rudolf Hess until his flight to the United Kingdom in 1941. After this event, Adolf Hitler abolished the office and replaced it with the office of Party Chancellery, which was given to Martin Bormann.... |
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| Der Führer Führer Führer , alternatively spelled Fuehrer in both English and German when the umlaut is not available, is a German title meaning leader or guide now most associated with Adolf Hitler, who modelled it on Benito Mussolini's title il Duce, as well as with Georg von Schönerer, whose followers also... |
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Political Armbands
The operational, administrative, and command armbands were utilized across all levels of the Nazi Party (Local, County, Regional, and National) with some armbands applying to multiple levels simultaneously and others specific to a particular Party level. In addition, depending on the specific duties of the political leader in question, an alternate positional title could be implied by a particular armband. When paired up with party member's political rank, this mixture of political titles and alternate positions resulted in a confusing array of titles and nomenclature.The various political armband distribution, with primary designation listed first, was as follows
| Armband Designation | Orstgruppen (Local) |
Kreisleitung (District) |
Gauleitung (Regional) |
Reichsleitung (National) |
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| Operational | |||||
| Political Leader Candidate | Politische Leiter Anwärter Anwärter Anwärter is a German title which translates as “Candidate”. In modern day Germany, the title of Anwärter is typically used by those applying for employment and also as a designation for members of the Bundeswehr who are under consideration for a leadership assignment.During the Third Reich,... |
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| Sonderbeauftragter Sonderbeauftragter Sonderbeauftragter was a Nazi Party political position which existed between the years of 1939 and 1945. The position of Sonderbeauftragter did not exist on the local level of the Nazi Party but was standard across County, Regional, and National Party lines.Holders of the position would also... |
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| Block Operations Foreman | Betriebsblockobmann | ||||
| Block Assistant | Blockhelfer Blockleiter Blockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general... Betriebsobmann Betriebsobmann Betriebsobmann was a political position of the Nazi Party which existed between the years 1939 and 1945. The term first came into being at the start of World War II and was unique only to the local level of the Nazi Party, known as the Ortsgruppen.... (A) |
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| Cell Operations Foreman | Betriebszellenobmann Hauptbetriebszellenobmann |
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| Cell/Block Leader | Blockleiter Blockleiter Blockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general... Betriebsobmann (B) Zellenleiter Zellenleiter Zellenleiter was a Nazi Party political title which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. A Zellenleiter was higher in rank than a Blockleiter and was in charge of a "Nazi Cell", composed of eight to twelve blocks.... Betriebsobmann (C & D) Hauptbetriebsobmann |
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| Regional Office Leader | Ortsgruppenleiter Ortsgruppenleiter Ortsgruppenleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945. The term first came into being during the German elections of 1930, and was held by the head Nazi of a town or city for the purposes of election district organization... |
Kreisleiter Kreisleiter Kreisleiter was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed as a political rank between 1930 and 1945 and as a Nazi Party title from as early as 1928... |
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| Administrative | |||||
| Sub Area Leader | Mitarbeiter Leiter eines Hilfssachgebietes Leiter eines Sachgebiet Sachgebiet Sachgebiet was a term used by the Nazi Party to describe low level administrative offices of Nazi Germany. The term first appeared in 1939 and applied to the various administrative offices set up under the authority of the Nazi Party political leadership.The leader of a Sachgebiet was known as a... es Leiter eines Hilfsstelle |
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| Blockwalter Blockleiter Blockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general... Blockobmann |
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| Area Leader | Leiter eine Stelle | ||||
| Zellenwalter Zellenleiter Zellenleiter was a Nazi Party political title which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. A Zellenleiter was higher in rank than a Blockleiter and was in charge of a "Nazi Cell", composed of eight to twelve blocks.... Zellenobmann |
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| Head Area Leader | Leiter einer Hauptstelle | ||||
| Department Leader | Leiter eines Amtes | ||||
| Head Department Leader | Leiter eines Hauptamtes | ||||
| Supreme Department Leader | Leiter eines Oberst Amtes | ||||
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| Deputy District Leader | Stellvertreter Gauleiter | ||||
| District Leader | Gauleiter Gauleiter A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:... |
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| National Leader | Reichsleiter Reichsleiter Reichsleiter , was the second highest political rank of the NSDAP next only to the office of Führer. Reichsleiter also served as a paramilitary rank, for the Nazi Party and was the highest position attainable in any Nazi-Organisation.The Reichsleiter reported directly to Adolf Hitler, in whose... |
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Sources
- Encyclopedia of the Third ReichEncyclopedia of the Third ReichThe Encyclopedia of the Third Reich is a two-volume text edited by Christian Zenter and Friedemann Bedürftig.The Encyclopedia of Third Reich is considered one of the leading source materials for information about Nazi Germany and the reign of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers...
- Deutsche UniformenDeutsche UniformenDeutsche Uniformen was a publication of the National Socialist German Workers Party which was published in 1938 and dealt with Nazi party paramilitary ranks as well as the ranks of the Wehrmacht. The text was published as a small booklet and had color drawings of all Nazi insignia for the...