Jakob Grimminger (25 April 1892 – 28 January 1969) was a German

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

and

Schutzstaffel The ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS; also stylized as ''ᛋᛋ'' with Armanen runes; ; "Protection Squadron") was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, and later throughout German-occupied Europe d ...

(SS) member. As the official standard-bearer of the ''

Blutfahne The ''Blutfahne'' (), or Blood Flag, is or was a Nazi Party swastika flag that was carried during the attempted coup d’etat Beer Hall Putsch in Munich, Germany on 9 November 1923, during which it became soaked in the blood of one of the SA m ...

'', an iconic flag of the Nazi movement that had become bloodstained during the Munich Putsch in 1923, Grimminger often appeared nearby Hitler in photographs and during ceremonies.

Early life

Grimminger was born in

Augsburg Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ' ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

and entered the

Imperial German Army The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (german: Deutsches Heer), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the l ...

when he was sixteen years old. He served during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

as a mechanic in an air regiment from 1914 and 1917. He fought in the Gallipoli Campaign. He also served a year in Palestine after which he returned to Germany. Having been awarded the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...

(second class), Bavarian medals and the Turkish

Iron Crescent The Gallipolli Star is a military decoration awarded by the Ottoman Empire. It was known as the Ottoman War Medal ( tr, Harp Madalyası) or the Iron Crescent (from German ''Eiserner Halbmond'', in allusion to the Iron Cross). It was instituted b ...

, Grimminger was discharged from the German Imperial Army in 1919 after its defeat.

Nazi Party activity

Grimminger joined the

(NSDAP) in 1922 and became a member of the ''

Sturmabteilung The (; SA; literally "Storm Detachment") 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 1930s. Its primary purposes were providing protection for Nazi ral ...

'' (SA). He took part in street-fighting in Coburg in 1922 and in the

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

Beer Hall Putsch The Beer Hall Putsch, also known as the Munich Putsch,Dan Moorhouse, ed schoolshistory.org.uk, accessed 2008-05-31.Known in German as the or was a failed coup d'état by Nazi Party ( or NSDAP) leader Adolf Hitler, Erich Ludendorff and othe ...

of 8 November 1923. After serving in the '' Brown House'', the general headquarters of the NSDAP, he was selected in 1926 to become a member of the ''

'' (SS). Grimminger was promoted during his service in the SA and the SS, finally reaching the rank of SS-''

Standartenführer __NOTOC__ ''Standartenführer'' (short: ''Staf'', , ) was a Nazi Party (NSDAP) paramilitary rank that was used in several NSDAP organizations, such as the SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK. First founded as a title in 1925, in 1928 it became one of ...

'' (equivalent to colonel). As a member of the SS, he was appointed to carry the bloodstained ''Blutfahne'' from the Munich Putsch. He was decorated with the Golden Party Badge, the

Blood Order The Blood Order (german: Blutorden), officially known as the "Decoration in Memory (of the Munich putsch) of 9 November 1923" (), was one of the most prestigious decorations in the Nazi Party (NSDAP). During March 1934, Hitler authorized the Bl ...

(no. 714), and the

Coburg Badge The Coburg Badge (''Das Coburger Abzeichen'') was the first badge recognised as a national award of the Nazi Party (NSDAP). History On 14 October 1922 Adolf Hitler led 800 members of the SA from Munich and other Bavarian cities by train to Cobur ...

, three of the most prized decorations of the NSDAP. After the fall of the Third Reich in mid-1945, the fate of the "Blutfahne", of which Grimminger was the guardian, is unknown.

Post World War II

Grimminger survived World War II, and was put on trial by the Allies in 1946 for being a member of the SS and ceremonially carrying the ''Blutfahne'' for nineteen years as a part of the propaganda of the Nazi Party. For this, he was not sent to prison, but all of his property was confiscated. In later life, he reportedly attempted to enter politics and served as a Councillor in

, though his past prevented him from continuing this career. He died in obscurity in Munich on 28 January 1969 aged 76. His body was buried in Munich's Waldfriedhof, but the grave was subsequently reclaimed, and his body was relocated to an unmarked grave in

Herzebrock-Clarholz Herzebrock-Clarholz is a town in the district of Gütersloh in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located approximately 10 km west of Gütersloh. Adjacent towns *Bredeck *Harsewinkel *Gütersloh *Rheda-Wiedenbrück *Oelde * ...

.Biographical entry for Grimminger, 'WW2 Gravestone.com' website (2019). https://ww2gravestone.com/people/grimminger-jakob/

Honours

* Golden party badge of the NSDAP * Honour Chevron of the Old Guard * SS Honour Ring ( Deathshead ring) *

2nd Class 1914, * The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918

Ottoman Medals

* Gallipoli Star

Notes and references

;Notes ;References * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grimminger, Jakob 1892 births 1969 deaths Nazis who participated in the Beer Hall Putsch Military personnel from Augsburg People from the Kingdom of Bavaria SS-Standartenführer Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class Luftstreitkräfte personnel