Rottenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in the year 1932. The rank of Rottenführer was used by several Nazi paramilitary groups, among them 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), the 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) and was senior to the paramilitary rank of Sturmmann

Sturmmann

Sturmmann was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in the year 1921. The rank of Sturmmann was used by the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel ....

.

The insignia for Rottenführer consisted of two double silver stripes on a bare collar patch. On field grey SS uniforms, the sleeve chevrons of an Obergefreiter

Obergefreiter

Obergefreiter is a rank of the German and Swiss militaries which dates from the 19th century.The rank was only used in the German army's heavy artillery branch before 1919 and commonly established with the founding of the Reichswehr...

(Senior Lance-Corporal) were also worn.

Creation

Rottenführer was first established in 1932 as an SA rank

Ranks and insignia of the Sturmabteilung

The uniforms and insignia of the Sturmabteilung 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,...

 due to an expansion of the organisation requiring a greater number of enlisted positions. Since early SS ranks

Ranks 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....

 were identical to the ranks of the SA, Rottenführer became an SS rank at the same time.

Rottenführer was the first SS and SA position to have command over other paramilitary

Paramilitary

A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....

 troops. They commanded a Rotte ' onMouseout='HidePop("94512")' href="/topics/Squad">squad

Squad

In military terminology, a squad is a small military unit led by a non-commissioned officer that is subordinate to an infantry platoon. In countries following the British Army tradition this organization is referred to as a section...

 or section

Section (military unit)

A section is a small military unit in some armies. In many armies, it is a squad of seven to twelve soldiers. However in France and armies based on the French model, it is the sub-division of a company .-Australian Army:...

) usually numbering no more than five to seven persons. A Rottenführer, in turn, answered to a Scharführer

Scharführer

Scharführer was a Nazi Party title that was used by several paramilitary organizations from 1925 to 1945. Translated as “Squad Leader”, the title of Scharführer can trace its origins to the First World War, where a Scharführer was often a Sergeant or Corporal who commanded special action or shock...

.

After 1934, a restructure of SS ranks made Rottenführer junior to the new rank of SS-Unterscharführer

Unterscharführer

Unterscharführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party used by the Schutzstaffel between 1934 and 1945. The SS rank was created after the Night of the Long Knives...

, although in the SA the rank continued to rate immediately below that of Scharführer.

Uses

Within the Waffen-SS

Waffen-SS

The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...

, Rottenführer was considered equivalent to an Obergefreiter

Obergefreiter

Obergefreiter is a rank of the German and Swiss militaries which dates from the 19th century.The rank was only used in the German army's heavy artillery branch before 1919 and commonly established with the founding of the Reichswehr...

in the German 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:...

. While having command over some troops, a Rottenführer in the Waffen-SS was not considered a non-commissioned officer

Non-commissioned officer

A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...

 rank.

Those aspiring for promotion above Rottenführer were required to pass a promotion evaluation and combat skills assessment, during which time the Rottenführer was known by the title Unterführer-Anwärter . Waffen-SS Rottenführers also had the option to pursue an officer's commission through appointment as SS-Junker

Junker (SS rank)

Junker was a paramilitary Nazi rank that was used by the Schutzstaffel between the years of 1933 and 1945. The rank was a special position held by those aspiring for officer commissions in the armed wing of the SS, first known as the SS-Verfügungstruppe and later as the Waffen-SS.The SS rank of...

.

Rottenführer was also a rank of the Hitler Youth

Ranks and insignia of the Hitler Youth

The Ranks and insignia of the Hitler Youth were a Nazi Party paramilitary rank system that existed from 1932 to 1945. The Hitler Youth had existed for nearly a decade before, but the organization did not maintain any particular system of ranks. Such ranks were introduced in the early 1930s and...

 where the position was considered a junior squad leader title. A rank of Oberrottenführer

Oberrottenführer

Oberrottenführer was a Nazi paramilitary title which was used solely by the Hitler Youth . The rank based on the much more common rank of Rottenführer. An HJ-Oberrottenführer was a close equivalent to a junior corporal position....

also existed in the Hitler Youth

Hitler Youth

The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It existed from 1922 to 1945. The HJ was the second oldest paramilitary Nazi group, founded one year after its adult counterpart, the Sturmabteilung...

.

Junior Rank Sturmmann Sturmmann Sturmmann was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in the year 1921. The rank of Sturmmann was used by the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel ....	SS rank Ranks 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.... Rottenführer	Senior Rank Unterscharführer Unterscharführer Unterscharführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party used by the Schutzstaffel between 1934 and 1945. The SS rank was created after the Night of the Long Knives...
Junior Rank Sturmmann Sturmmann Sturmmann was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in the year 1921. The rank of Sturmmann was used by the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel ....	SA rank Ranks and insignia of the Sturmabteilung The uniforms and insignia of the Sturmabteilung 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,... Rottenführer	Senior Rank Scharführer Scharführer Scharführer was a Nazi Party title that was used by several paramilitary organizations from 1925 to 1945. Translated as “Squad Leader”, the title of Scharführer can trace its origins to the First World War, where a Scharführer was often a Sergeant or Corporal who commanded special action or shock...