Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1977-030-35, Riga, PKW des ERR, Sturmführer Zwiebel

''Sturmführer'' (, "storm leader") was a paramilitary

rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * H ...

of the

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 ...

which began as a title used by 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) in 1925 and became an actual SA rank in 1928. Translated as "storm leader or assault leader", the origins of the rank dated to the

First World War 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 ...

when the title of ''Sturmführer'' was used by leaders of German

shock troops Shock troops or assault troops are formations created to lead an attack. They are often better trained and equipped than other infantry, and expected to take heavy casualties even in successful operations. "Shock troop" is a calque, a loose tra ...

and special action companies.Hermann Weiß (publisher) "Biographical lexicon to the Third Reich". Fischer pocket-book publishing house, Frankfurt on Main 2002 (appendix). By 1930, ''Sturmführer'' had become the lowest commissioned officer (CO) rank of several Nazi Party paramilitary organizations, including the SA. The title was also used as an

SS rank The uniforms and insignia of the ''Schutzstaffel'' served to distinguish the Nazi Germany paramilitary ranks, Nazi paramilitary ranks of the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) between 1925 and 1945 from the ranks of the ''Wehrmacht'' (the regular German arme ...

until 1934 when, after the

Night of the Long Knives The Night of the Long Knives (German: ), or the Röhm purge (German: ''Röhm-Putsch''), also called Operation Hummingbird (German: ''Unternehmen Kolibri''), was a purge that took place in Nazi Germany from 30 June to 2 July 1934. Chancellor Ad ...

, the SS renamed the rank ''

Untersturmführer (, ; short: ''Ustuf'') was a paramilitary rank of the German ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) first created in July 1934. The rank can trace its origins to the older SA rank of ''Sturmführer'' which had existed since the founding of the SA in 1921. ...

'', equivalent to a junior or second lieutenant (OF-1b) in the army. Other variations of ''Sturmführer'' included ''

Obersturmführer __NOTOC__ (, ; short: ''Ostuf'') was a Nazi Germany paramilitary rank that was used in several Nazi organisations, such as the SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK. The rank of ''Obersturmführer'' was first created in 1932 as the result of an expa ...

'' and ''

Hauptsturmführer __NOTOC__ (, ; short: ''Hstuf'') was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in several Nazi organizations such as the SS, NSKK and the NSFK. The rank of ''Hauptsturmführer'' was a mid-level commander and had equivalent seniority to a ...

'', ranks paralleling an army first lieutenant and captain respectively.

Insignia

SA-Sturmführer.svg, SA

Gorget patches Gorget patches (collar tabs, collar patches) are an insignia in the form of paired patches of cloth or metal on the collar of a uniform (gorget), used in the military and civil service in some countries. Collar tabs sign the military rank (group of ...

NSFK-Untersturmführer.svg, NSFK Gorget patch NSKK-Sturmführer.svg, NSKK Gorget patch

Notes

Bibliography

* * SS ranks {{mil-rank-stub

Insignia

See also

Notes

Bibliography