''Befehlsleiter'' (Command Leader) was a Nazi Party political rank of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Ranks

A ''Befehlsleiter'' was the highest possible party political rank achievable in the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

(NSDAP). Only ''

Gauleiter A ''Gauleiter'' () was a regional leader of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) who served as the head of a '' Gau'' or '' Reichsgau''. ''Gauleiter'' was the third-highest rank in the Nazi political leadership, subordinate only to '' Reichsleiter'' and to ...

'' (party official) and '' Reichsleiter'' (state appointment) were higher, but these titles were not within the Nazi Party's regular promotional pathway because these positions were only by direct appointment from

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

. Until 1939, ''

Kreisleiter ''Kreisleiter'' (; "District Leader") 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. The position of ''Kreisleiter'' was first formed to provide ...

'' and ''

Ortsgruppenleiter ''Ortsgruppenleiter'' (Local Group Leader) 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, or in ...

'', were the fourth and fifth tier of the Nazi Party hierarchy, but they had become titular positions at the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. Albert Speer, the Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production, was promoted to ''Befehlsleiter'' in 1942 and ''Oberbefehlsleiter'' in 1944.

Tiers

# ''Hauptbefehlsleiter'' - Head Command Leader # ''Oberbefehlsleiter'' - Higher Command Leader # ''Befehlsleiter'' - Command Leader

Sources

* Clark, J. (2007). Uniforms of the NSDAP. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing Nazi political ranks {{nazi-stub