Background: I’ve translated about half of this interesting account of a Storm Troop
(S.A.) unit. The S.A. had played a critical role in the Nazi campaign for
power, but after 1933 it was somewhat at a loss for a mission. The Röhm purge
in 1934 didn’t help its standing. Still, it was a mass organization that
involved millions of men in Nazi activities. The diary writer was a full-time
staff member with the S.A., but his day job is scarcely mentioned here. Rather,
he records his work as the volunteer leader of an S.A. Sturm, with
something over 100 members. Nazi propaganda aimed at incorporating all of life
into the Nazi worldview, and this diary shows how the S.A. contributed to that
goal at the local level. The book was also serialized in the S.A.-Führer,
the monthly for S.A. leaders.
The source: Hans Snyckers, Tagebuch eines Sturmführers (Munich: Zentralverlag
der NSDAP., 1941).
Diary of an S.A. Leader
by Hans Snyckers
Foreword
Outsiders have had views — and quite differing ones — about the nature and
duties of the S.A. But they have one thing in common: they do not agree with
reality. One sees the core of the S.A.’s work in the political and worldview
training of S.A. men. The second sees the main task of the S.A. in the athletic
training of its members, while a third sees only its propaganda activity. There
may today even be a fourth view, which thinks that the S.A. fulfilled its task
as the shock troop of the National Socialist movement during the struggle for
power, and now has no real reason for existence. It looks around for some sort
of more or less useful service to perform for the people or the state. These
and similar opinions miss the point. The duties and nature of the S.A. are
determined primarily by two things: the drive to increase the military
readiness of German manhood both within and outside of the S.A., and the need
to maintain and extend the will, the spirit of genuine National Socialist
readiness for action and military camaraderie that have become known to our
people as the “S.A. spirit.” That is the goal of the work of the S.A., and that
is what determines its nature. The path the S.A. takes to its goal cannot be
described in a few words. To understand it, to see that it is heading straight
toward its goal with the full personal involvement of its members, one must
march for a while with the S.A. One must experience its everyday routine and
its unusual activities for a while if one wants to form an accurate impression
of its accomplishments and its attitudes. There is no other way to understand
the work of the S.A., which is as varied in its details as it is united in its
overall structure. This book follows the march of an S.A. Sturm [the
Nazi term for an S.A. unit of around 100 members] for fifteen months. The
experiences of an S.A. leader reflect accurately the life of an S.A. Sturm,
one of thousands in the Greater German Reich, thousands whose work takes a
similar course and whose spirit is the same.
If this diary contributes to an understanding of the nature and
accomplishments of the S.A., it will achieve its goal. May it help some to
understand why we S.A. men see it as a blessing and an honor to serve the
Führer in the S.A. This little book may be a memento for the S.A. man himself
of his service, and it may give lower-level S.A. leaders an occasional idea for
their labors.
***
24 February 1938. I assume
leadership of a Sturm! The order came yesterday. After long service on
the staff, I am delighted once again to lead a unit. Not only is it necessary
for the paid S.A. leadership to keep in the closest possible touch with the
volunteers, it is also good for his conscience as an S.A. man to take on
voluntary duties alongside his paid ones, making the sacrifice of time that was
natural before he became a paid staff member, and that is still natural for the
leaders and men of the front line S.A. For us mid-level S.A. staff members that
is certainly true. For those “further up,” it is practically impossible. I am
determined to use my full energies in front line S.A. service to see if I am
able to realize the demands of the staff for “proper S.A. leadership” under the
existing conditions. And I have sworn to use every possible way to complain if
I find that bureaucratic make-work is being required!
The only thing that I knew about my Sturm yesterday was that it is
located in my neighborhood to the north of the regional capital. Immediately
after work for the day, I headed out to meet my new Sturmbannführer [his
S.A. superior] and learn from him what was going on. My first question had
to do with the Sturm’s territory. It covered two suburbs of the capital
and five rural villages. There were three troops — one in each of the suburbs,
the third consisting of the rural villages — and nine groups. Total membership
on paper was 150 men. The initial condition of Troop I (the headquarters area
with 75 men on paper) was very poor. Troop II (the rural areas with about 40
men), so-so. Troop III (in the second suburb with about 35 men) was in good
shape. After some more information about subleaders and men, the meeting with
the Sturmbahnführer was over. But since it was Wednesday, the day of the
weekly evening meeting, the Sturmbannführer organized an introductory
tour. Each troop held a meeting. The five rural villages were close enough together
to make that possible for them as well. One can reach them all in an evening.
Good thing that I have my two-seater DKW — suitable for off-road travel! That
is a big advantage over most S.A. leaders, I realize, but I appreciate it since
I want to attempt to show up at every meeting of each troop. Without a motor
vehicle, it would be impossible, but I think it essential for a Sturmführer
who wants to personally “lead” his unit, which means overseeing its training
and building and maintaining its camaraderie.
At 8 p.m. I fetch the Stubaf [Nazi jargon for Sturmbannführer]and
head for Troop I. It meets at a school — as do the others. I do not think much
of schools as S.A. meeting places, though at least they are better than pub
back rooms. In schools the men have to sit in desk that are too small for them.
Grown up men feel like schoolboys again when they have to sit at desks. And
even if it happens unintentionally, the unit leader, when he stands in front of
the room, takes on the role of “teacher,” and schoolroom manners like raising
one’s hand to ask a question resurface. Still, such thoughts will not do much
good until it is generally realized that grown men are at least as influenced
by their surroundings as the youth, and until then there will be no large-scale
efforts to establish S.A. headquarters. It is not yet generally accepted that
the spiritual and physical success of a meeting depends on the readiness of the
men, and that that readiness is significantly influenced by the surroundings.
That is particularly true in the evening, when men are tired from their day’s labors
and weighed down with everyday concerns, and yet must still learn a mass of
stuff!
The arrival of the Sturmbannführer and the Sturmführer with
his red shoulder tabs astonishes the men! At least in so far as they are there.
All of 12 men have “come together.” I am somewhat surprised, and look carefully
at the troop leader. No cause for enthusiasm there. However, several of the
unit leaders and a few other men look capable of more. There are no old S.A.
men present — there are only a few of them in the whole Sturm.
The Sturmbannführer introduces me with a few words. The men observe
me rather critically — a young Sturmführer with red tabs. I speak
briefly about my view of the nature of the S.A. I do not feel that it brings me
any closer to the men. Have I spoken too quickly and forcefully, so that they
doubt I am serious about it all, or do they fear being overworked? More likely
the South Germans mistrust the differences between them and me.
After about 20 minutes we head for the second troop. 27 of the 35
registered members are present. That looks better. The troop leader makes an
excellent impression, and the men seem to get along with each other well. But I
sense the same strong reserve against the red-tabbed “outsider” from Central
Germany. Well, we will see, and get to know each other.
25 of the 40 men of Troop II are present. Not much can be said about that,
since it is a rural region with five villages. The troop leader, a North
German, is an old chief AW man [I am not sure what this means], and rather
snappy. He makes a slightly bitter impression. He seems to have the men well in
hand. I feel even less contact here than with the other troops.
Since the Sturmbannführer want to return to headquarters with me to
discuss several urgent matters, I have to skip talking with the men after the
meeting.
The Sturm headquarters are in the top floor of an old building.
There is a rather nice office for the Sturmführer, a very tiny business
office, and a well appointed Sturm room. All in all, a decent place to
work. There is even a telephone. I think that is absolutely necessary — at
least for a Sturm that is not compact.
We meet the bookkeeper and the janitor. I like both of them. The
“spotlight” is a small, wiry man with a big bald head and enormous eyes, which
look very suspiciously at “the new guy.” He seems conscientiousness
personified. The janitor looks like he will be easier to win over — he has
amused eyes. He is surely at least 40 years old — I must look very young to
him. He stands straight as a soldier, and his place seems in order.
There is apparently enough paperwork to handle — miserable stuff. But it
has to be. The best leadership is in vain when it is not based on organized
work at lower levels. But it has to be done at a desk. I look forward to it
with bitterness.
I am annoyed, and not for the first time, at the pile of unanswered mail,
that huge stream of mail that flows from the offices and departments of the
OSAF [the central S.A. headquarters], the groups, the brigades, the Standarten
and also the Sturmbannen. Individually it is certainly not a lot, or
at least no more than necessary, that each office puts out — but together?
Above all, each piece of paper seems to have a very short deadline
(“Yesterday”).
The Sturmbannführer leaves at 11 p.m. There is no point to trying to
find the men in a pub any more. So after he leaves, I head home.
I have told my wife that my spare time will be very limited in the future.
That is unpleasant only four weeks after returning from one’s honeymoon — but
thank God she is an old BDM [League of German Girls] leader, and she
understands.
4 March. My first ten days as leader of my Sturm
are behind me. My initial impressions have been confirmed. Troop I is the
problem child, with no cohesion at all. After the meeting, three separate
groups form. That is telling. One group goes home immediately. Nothing to be
said against that if one works hard and has to get up early. The second group
heads for a cafe, and the third to a pub 100 meters further on. There are
really four groups — the members of the fourth and largest group do not show up
at the meetings at all. I do not want to begin like a beserker, with new
appointments and innovations for the Sturm, as long as the men still do
not know me, so I shake my head and do nothing for the moment. Besides, I have
to know whom I can trust with which tasks. But things cannot continue as they
are with Truppführer I, unless he pulls himself together. I learn
nothing from him — he is completely taciturn — though he looks as if he should
be good for something. My assistant, who has been a member of the Sturm
for a long time, tells me at least that Troop I was in good shape not all that
long ago. Curious!
“My assistant” — he is the Obertruppführer, who holds one of the
most important offices in the Sturm, but for which there is no official
S.A. title. Some call him the “Sturm corporal,” others the “duty Obertruppführer”
the “office Obertruppführer,” etc. The chap was called the “Sturm corporal”
previously, but I think that a misnomer, half S.A., half army — neither fish
nor fowl. Be that as it may, this indispensable man should have some sort of
official title.
My first mistake is behind me. I think that in the lower-level units which
should display strong camaraderie — up to the Sturm level —one should
address one’s comrades outside duty hours with Du [the German pronoun
used with close friends] and rank, superiors included. The “number of
stars” and the office should play no role, for he who cannot get along with his
men without the wall of Sie [the formal second person pronoun] is
not an S.A. leader. I start out this way, greeting the office staff and the men
with Du. Sie and Sturmführer is what I hear back. Damn! At first
I thought that “Sie” was the general custom within the Sturm and
want to abolish it with an order, but then note than I am the only exception. I
do not know if it is uncertainty, or my red shoulder tabs, or a certain reserve
with regard to the “new guy.” Perhaps something of each. Still, I had the
feeling that it did not work, and decide to avoid Du until we know each
other better. Such misunderstandings must be avoided at all costs. The
camaraderie between my men and me should not be based in the pub or some
similar atmosphere, but rather on shared duty in which the leader and his men
must together give their full efforts. Under those conditions formality
gradually vanishes by itself. After these thoughts, I lay aside the Du,
and address my men more formally.
Things are downright hectic. I am determined to set a sharp pace that will
drive away those who are unwilling to go along. A unit of 80 or 100 men who
participate actively is worth twenty times as much as a group twice the size,
only 40% or 50% of whom show up!
7 March. For the past 14 days I’ve observed — there were no
Sunday meetings — and attacked the paperwork. It is enormous. Those of us on
the staff really have no idea of what goes on at the Sturm level! Report
after report to the most varied superior offices, regulations, bureaucratic
nonsense, correspondence with local party offices on social questions or
whatever, correspondence with the mayor or other offices, directives to the
troops and units and — heavily emphasized — the S.A. sports activities. I can
see that if this is only “spring storm.” If this tempo continues, the average Sturmführer
will have no time both to lead and deal with the desk work without paid
assistance. Either the Sturmführer drowns in paperwork and lets his Sturm
rot, or he keeps his Sturm together and ignores the paperwork. It is
a terrible choice: either lead or administer his Sturm, but to do both
is impossible! It is easy to order that S.A. sports activities be carried out
with all possible energy, and that every German of military age should earn the
S.A. sports badge, that the exercises are to be carefully organized, etc.
However, the paperwork alone could keep a man busy almost full-time, and that
man is not there.
I am supposed to take the training course in Dresden from 13-29 March.
Fortunately, I have already had the Sturmbannführer training course and
am safe. I will speak on the S.A. sports badge. We will see what S.A. leaders
have to say about the OSAF Leadership School.
11 March. Until the Dresden course if
finished, I leave the Sturm run in its accustomed way. After that, full
steam ahead.
My men and I have a kind of service action behind us. Last weekend was the
collection for the WHW [the Nazi Party charity]. It is great to see the
pleasure the men take in any such activity, as long as they can see its
usefulness. Even Troop I was better than usual.
I believe that the often poor attendance is partly due to the fact that
many men are not convinced of the real necessity of normal S.A. training. Let’s
be honest — even we S.A. leaders often wonder if it is useful. We certainly
recognize the enormous importance of a firm block of soldierly National
Socialists. Real political soldiers will develop only from a community of men
who work together to master a task whose fulfillment each of them can see is of
vital significance for the nation’s existence. From common effort toward a
great goal, that camaraderie of the front develops that is a requirement for
the life of our state. Does the S.A. currently have such a task? The closest
thing is S.A. sport activity. The S.A. sports badge will probably be the
starting point for later S.A. activities. The current situation is not
completely satisfactory. Voluntary participation is fine and good — but it
reaches those racial comrades who are least in need of military training and political
education. Those idealists who volunteer are probably already members of some
National Socialist organization and will be politically trained and will also
receive some sort of physical training. But we do not reach the large mass who
lack the idealistic desire to volunteer, even though they are the ones who most
need community training. True, even for those who do come to us, there is
something to be done in the area of military education and training. But the
current training period for the S.A. sports badge is not sufficient to fully
and permanently eliminate the deficiencies, nor does the refresher course in
its current form. There is much to be done in the S.A. itself in the area of
military education, and there is enough time for it, if it is systematically
used. But one thing is very clear: the military training methods of the S.A.
are in no way adequate. Sports, marching, field exercises, training in map
reading, using the compass and route finding, theoretical and practical
marksmanship with an air rifle, and who knows what all else, remain absolutely
necessary. But in their fifth year of training, the men will not have much
interest unless the training material is improved. But we don’t have anything.
Marksmanship is a particularly burning issue. Of course one can learn to aim
and other things, too, just as with a larger weapon. But a grownup man of
military age prefers to have a serious weapon in his hands. For a German above
all, it is a matter of honor to carry a weapon, and he is embarrassed to appear
with a weak one. It can easily give him an inferiority complex.
12 March. Today I met my new Standartenführer,
whom I already knew to be a solid front-line S.A. leader. He seemed pleased
to have a “gentleman of the group staff” as leader of one of his units, and
heartily welcomed me.
I seem to be fortunate with the Sturm staff. They all make an
orderly, reliable, and diligent impression. The Oberscharführer in
particular, who handles the personnel details, seems to be a fanatic S.A. man.
To my great pleasure, he exudes energy, and has made exemplary order of the
personnel paperwork. But I will have to see if it might be better to entrust
him over the long term with a leadership position.
2 April. The Dresden course is finished. It was excellent. One
was really well-equipped in Dresden. The needs of the front are known. I don’t
believe that anyone is going home without feeling that the training methods are
correct and that the front line service of leader and men is worth the effort.
It is good, too, that one got to work with the leaders of other organizations —
the Labor Service, the NSKK [the Nazi Party motorized unit], the NSFK [the
party’s aviation group], and also political leaders.
But we were all unhappy that we had no way to express our enthusiasm as
Austria returned to the Reich [the Anschluß]. Austria back in the
Reich! One can’t imagine that there is anyone in Germany — in the Greater
German Reich — who is not now ready to serve the Führer and his work with
complete devotion!
The Führer spoke yesterday in our Gau capital. I yelled myself half
hoarse, and was filled with the enthusiasm that captured hundreds of thousands.
What must the Führer feel now that he has brought his homeland into the Reich!
10 April. Busy days are behind me. And a lot
of marching! On 3 and 6 April, as well as yesterday and today, we marched back
and forth though our seven communities to remind every last citizen to be
thankful to the Führer. The first election results are coming over the radio,
and they are as one would expect [Hitler called a referendum to approve the
annexation of Austria].
And the coming days will be no relief. 24 April is the first refresher
course. There is a lot of paperwork to dispatch. We all love the list each S.A.
sports badge holder has to keep. There are 16 various tasks. The second level
has “only” 5 more, and the participant’s card has 8 more items. There are 400
applicants within and outside the S.A. in the district (that at least is how
many have applied after numerous newspaper announcements). 16 + 5 + 8 entries
per person: that is almost 12,000 written notes for S.A. sports badge holders.
And that is without any full-time help, and on top of the usual duties! It will
hopefully work out in my Sturm, although my wife was not all that happy
that I had to use the holidays from Good Friday to Easter Monday, except for
meals, to handle the paperwork by myself. It had to be done.
When the refresher course is finished, I have to get the SAG [the group
for those earning the S.A. sports badge] going, and then I have to develop
a long-term training program for my Sturm. In the long run, working
things out two days before the meeting won’t do. That results in no organized
plan. Besides, the men lose their enthusiasm when they do not know what to
prepare for.
24 April. It’s a good thing I put my diary
entries on the to-do list, or they’d never get done! OK, here goes. On 17 April
we dedicated a display case for the “S.A.-Mann” [the S.A. newspaper]
with Troop III. It is a large oak case, naturally stained, with the words “The
S.A. Man” neatly carved. The men of Troop III not only paid for it themselves,
but did all the work themselves. The display case is a good thing. The S.A.
newspaper, pictures of the work of the Sturm, etc., will keep us S.A.
men in constant touch with the population of the area.
The dedication was brief but dignified. Troop III, party political leaders,
and the HJ [Hitler Youth] were present, along with the party’s local
group leader, the mayor, HJ leaders, and myself. The troop leader reported to
me. I spoke for five minutes about the tasks of the S.A. to educate
politically, make propaganda for National Socialism, and made a few remarks
about the purpose of the display case. Sieg Heil! And it was over. Then a brief
propaganda march through the small town. The previous Sunday was election duty,
and the refresher course is approaching. Time was short. But the lunch with the
men of Troop III was a pleasure. They are slowly beginning to warm up! We began
by singing some songs. They can sing the old fighting songs very well — but the
new ones... They carelessly answer my question of what new fighting songs they
know by saying all of them. The troop leader attempts to change the subject,
and I can see by his concerned expression that he isn’t too confident. I ignore
his efforts and suggest several songs: “A Young People,” “Marching with the
S.A.,” “Our Lives Serve only Freedom,” “The Rotten Bones are Shaking,”
“Soldiers are Always Soldiers,” “The Columns are Marching” and “Listen to the
Thunder.” Concerned faces. Who knows what the men thought were new fighting
songs! A brave soul suggests something. “A Young People” goes tolerably well.
The “rotten bones,” too. The rest is silence. I make a few nasty remarks. The
men laugh a bit, and are a bit annoyed at the embarrassment. The troop leader
is a bit grim. But that does no harm. In four weeks they will sing like larks
to get their revenge!
In that expectation, I have worked on every possible song myself over the
past week, since to my embarrassment I had to admit that I didn’t know them all
very well either.
The last evening meeting was primarily concerned with sports. I am not satisfied
with the present opportunities for sport in the Sturm. One can do sports
without equipment, but it goes better with equipment. Yesterday I met with the
party’s local group leader and the mayors of the two suburbs, with happy
results. I can’t ask for a gift — that is forbidden — and the towns themselves
can’t give things away. But the towns can purchase equipment for general use to
advance sports and military training within the community. And we are not
prohibited from borrowing community property and from taking care of it. On
this “legal basis,” and with the support of the local group leader, my mayors
gave their approval, and yesterday the two communities approved a total of 1100
Reichsmarks for equipment. The mayors authorized me to select and purchase the
equipment, which comes to our office and is at the disposal of my Sturm.
Other groups can also use it, but they have to apply to the Sturm, and I
make the decision. I think this is an acceptable solution, and recommend it to
other Sturmführer.
24 April, evening. This afternoon
I, my secretary and two men from Troops I and III filled out the participant’s
cards for the refresher course. 400 cards are filled out, and I am ready for
bed. But the refresher course exercises of this morning deserve to be recorded.
The refresher course exercises are also a promotion for the S.A.sports badge.
The 15 kilometer march includes all significant places in the district. I don’t
think the propaganda effect is at all bad, for the “march of the 400” —
actually, there were 437 — was impressive. And the two bands — from the HJ and
the fire department — made a lot of noise. And the banners that the artists in
my Sturm prepared made a good impression, too.
To prevent the 15 kilometer march from being only propaganda and to give
the participants a sense of accomplishment, I was hard at work. Slower — faster
— still faster — slow again. Then a pause to estimate the distance. Then
uphill, downhill. A lot of fine citizens huffed and puffed and cursed all that
fat they’d eaten over the past few years!
We finished up the paperwork, and got through distance estimation for the
whole group in 45 minutes. It was a good thing that we had figured out in
advance how to break them into groups of 20 that could be handled by a subleader.
Thanks to the quick count and efficiently done paperwork, and the smooth
handling of distance estimation, the mood of the column was excellent.
I sent the participants off with a brief talk on the duties of the S.A.
sports badge wearer, which still annoys me! I neglected to have them form a
square, and therefore had to make myself audible to four hundred people in
three lines. That takes a lot of lung power outdoors with no loudspeaker. I’ll
be smarter next time!
I’ll admit I used my position as leader of the refresher course exercises.
The editor of our local National Socialist newspaper was one of the S.A. sports
badge participants. The chance to talk with him was there, since he was in my
group. And it worked out nicely. There was a page on the S.A. sports badge on
Wednesday. A message from the Sturmbannführer, a general story on the
S.A. sports badge, a few pictures, and an interview with me about the
developing S.A. sports badge community in my Sturm. That should be a
blow to the indolence of those capable men who have still not earned the S.A.
sports badge.
3 May. It is midnight, and I am back from the Sturm office.
Tuesday, the day I keep office hours, is behind me. After several citizens came
by who had to have a thousand questions answered before they could decide to
join the S.A. sports badge community, three newly arrived S.A. members from
Austria reported. Two of them were legionnaires, one from Steiermark, the other
from Vienna. The former made a good impression. Both seemed somewhat bitter.
After them came the third, from Tyrolia. The first thing that struck me were
his thick glasses, which gave him a somewhat unmilitary appearance. The left
eye was strangely fixed. He reported in exemplary fashion where he was coming
from and what unit he had belonged to there. Since that was a part of the Old
Reich, I asked him when and why he had left Austria. “After the events of July
1934,” he replied. Had he been persecuted? “Yes, I spent six months in jail in
1933, and they really were after me.” He had been unable to resume his job as a
miner in the Old Reich, so he worked as a laborer in various positions. He
never lasted too long, since he was no longer able to perform hard labor for
very long. — Why not? — Jail had been hard on him. And shortly after his
release, he had lost the sight of his left eye through a knife wound during a
meeting hall battle, and took a bullet just above his heart that left him in
poor condition for quite a while. — I’m startled, and look at the man carefully
— he says it all in a matter-of-fact way, as if it were entirely normal. It is
so unusual that I am a bit suspicious. But the man looks honest, not at all
like a swindler. — I ask if he has any evidence of his past. He pulls out a
tattered piece of paper. I note that he has a crooked finger, also a result of
the meeting hall battle. “You know, Sturmführer, “things were rough down
there in Hötting. The Innsbruck S.A. and the Heimwehr, the guys from
Penzplätten, they didn’t do too badly.” I read the statement from the German-Austrian
Assistance Society. It confirms everything he said with signatures and stamps.
“So what happened after you got to the Reich?” “What should have happened, Sturmführer
— nothing!” “Didn’t you ask for help?” “No, I didn’t. I’ve never asked for
help, Sturmführer. I did nothing more than my duty.” “But look, surely
you earned more as a miner than as a common laborer! You broke your bones for
the party, and it would surely help you if only it knew! What do you earn?” “I
work as a janitor for an armored regiment. I earn 68 pfennig an hour. I earned
more before, but the work was a lot harder.” “Are you married?” “Yes.”
“Children?” “A girl.” — I still don’t know whether I should believe him. — “Sturmführer,
I give you my word of honor that everything I have told you is true. And
I’ve not asked for help, because I did no more than others did. I just had a
little more bad luck, and that is surely no cause. I’ve gotten by.” — That’s
the way it is. An S.A. man stands in front of me, a corporal like hundreds of thousands
of others, who almost became a cripple fighting for National Socialism, who has
sacrificed a thousand times more than most of us — and he doesn’t think
anything of it. He has lived in the National Socialist Reich for nearly four
years, and hasn’t said anything about it. Hasn’t even tried to get compensation
for the injuries that hamper him every day. And why? — “I did no more than my
duty, and that is nothing special.”
The Reich is built on this foundation, and it will last as long as German
men think like this unknown S.A. man. Only rarely am I as proud to be an S.A.
man and an S.A. leader as I am this evening.
I hope that it will soon be possible to find this man a decent job, and
that the party will be able to provide at least material compensation for the
sacrifices he has made. I have taken the first steps, and will do the rest
tomorrow.
8 May. Another refresher course with several late-comers went
smoothly this afternoon. Now that is finished with in my district. The
negligent will get a “love letter” in the next few days — withdrawal of their
S.A. sports badge for failure to attend the refresher course. Be firm — don’t
turn weak. If one isn’t strict now, the reputation of the refresher course, and
that of the whole S.A. sports badge itself, will suffer!
I finally had a Sunday afternoon and evening free today. I took a walk this
afternoon — with my wife and in civilian dress — just like any normal citizen.
The recollection that it was the second such Sunday afternoon since February
consoled me somewhat. My wife keeps in touch with my parents, bothers and
sisters and friends, who are beginning to wonder if I have forgotten how to
write. If only they knew! Everyone in the Sturm office has learned to
write over the past few weeks, if they didn’t already know how. 143 men
responded to our propaganda for the S.A. sports badge by applying to the SAG [the
group for non-S.A. members who were working toward the sports badge]. I
really had wanted to limit it to 60, since I didn’t think we could handle more.
I wouldn’t have had any concern in stopping the flood, since it certainly
wouldn’t hurt the image of the S.A. sports badge to reply: “We’re sorry, but
there are too many applicants, and in the interest of doing things properly,
we’ve put you down for a later course.” But I missed the deadline. I had sign
up offices in three communities — which prevented a clear view of the total.
And groups of more than 30 political leaders [Nazi Party officials], 25
firemen, about as many workers and 12 HJ and DJ [the group for young boys]
leaders, and suddenly there were 90. It was 8 days before I saw the first list,
and there were already 140. We have to deal with them, although I shut off the
flood after that. But the thoroughness of the training cannot be allowed to
suffer.
Assuming that more than 40 men cannot be handled in an SAG, I have attached
an SAG to each of the three troops that will do the exercises each Wednesday
with the S.A. I therefore do not need special trainers for the SAGs, and they
will develop better relations with the S.A., which I think a good thing. I then
established a fourth SAG for those men in the whole district who were not free
on Wednesday evenings. They meet on Fridays. The necessary training personnel
are available — a subleader takes on the administrative matters and a variety
of trainers take the various subjects. The trainers thus will not be
overworked, and since I keep an eye on things, it will work out. There is one
catch. On Sundays, there can be different activities for the S.A. and the SAGs,
allowing for major S.A. tasks, and there can be additional Sunday meetings for
the SAGs. But on Wednesday evenings, I have to say the same things to both,
“bottle-feeding” the SAGs. I decided to accept that for three reasons. It can’t
hurt my unit, which is not yet entirely in order, if it hears again in brief
the same material it has heard for years, but in a systematic form. Second,
there are many S.A. men in the Sturm who do not yet have the S.A. sports
badge. I don’t want them to take the test without being sure that they will
pass it. An S.A. man certainly cannot fail, and after the test each member of
the Sturm has to have the S.A. sports badge. Third, I still do not have
an accurate overview of the condition of training throughout the district. It
seems to me to be somewhat uneven. Systematic SAG training will finally create
a firm foundation, and I will be able to see how far the men have come, and
where the problems are.
The Sturm bitches a bit about putting the S.A. and the SAG together.
Troop I in particular, the worst troop and the one with the least energy, is
noticeably dissatisfied. Its honor is wounded. From the troop leader on down.
Fine. I have good nerves, and within a few months I will know where the
bitching comes from. The troublemaker will go — he can rely on it!
The whole SAG process would be fine were it not for the terrible paperwork,
for which even the most primitive resources are lacking. Besides the SAG,
developing a plan for the S.A. and the SAG has occupied me. I finished it after
the rainy May Day parade and mass meeting. I typed the stencils into the early
hours of 2 May. On 2 May it is in the mail slots of the Scharführer. Each
now has a detailed plan that tells him when (day, hour, and minute), which unit
(troop, SAG, subleaders), where, what (exact content) and whom (office or
name). The plans are essentially the same for each unit. Only the order
differs, to allow me to reach at least two troops each evening with the
material I will present, without throwing off the schedule.
I think it a good idea for the Sturmführer to conduct at least one
session on each topic for the troops. That is better for the troop and group
leaders than lots of suggestions during inspections — though that has to be
there too. It also allows one to establish the routine he wants and is the best
way to implement his own “style.” Above all, the Sturmführer should keep
worldview training in his own hands as much as possible. I have split the work
with a very capable Scharführer, because I want the SAG men in
particular to go home with no less worldview training than technical training.
And it demands skills that not all troop leaders and Scharführer possess.
“Introduction to the S.A. sports badge.” “The S.A.’s mission and significance
from its origins until today.” “The realization of the party program since
1933” (two lectures). “The growth of the German Reich” (four lectures: 1.
“Borders, tribes and leaders of the first German Reich up to the Interregnum,”
2. “The concept of the Reich from Rudolf von Hapbsburg to the end of the Holy
Roman Empire of the German Nation,” 3. “The concept of the Reich from the Wars
of Liberation to Bismark,” 4. “The development of the concept of the Reich from
Bismark to its fulfillment by the Führer”). “Germandom outside the Reich and
its conditions.” “Germany’s geopolitical situation” (two lectures: 1. A general
introduction. 2. Military considerations). That is the prescribed material. I
will have to work hard myself to have something sensible to say — If one only
had the time!
17 May. This entry concerns training for the national S.A. competition.
22 May. The entry begins with a discussion of field exercises (marching,
map reading, concealment methods, etc.).
Over the last week, military personnel have moved into the new barracks.
Formerly, only a part of the staff was there. A tank regiment in the office
area, an air force intelligence unit near Troop III. The tank regiment invited
me to its arrival ceremony, and the contact with the officers was particularly
pleasant. At the last S.A. meeting before the troops arrived, I sent the
following written order to every member of the S.A.:
“Strong Wehrmacht units will be arriving in our Sturm’s territory in
the next few days. We S.A. men are delighted and extend our warm camaraderie as
the Führer’s political soldiers to the weapon-bearers of the nation, Germany’s
soldiers.
Our salutes must demonstrate our attitude. We S.A. men do not ask who has
the most seniority or who is the oldest before saluting. don’t wait to be
saluted. The only principle for us is: The better mannered person salutes
first.
I am convinced that the men of the Wehrmacht are of the same opinion, and
that for them as for us, there will be no problems in saluting. I require of
the men of my Sturm that they salute Wehrmacht members in an exemplary
fashion. I will take immediate action against anyone who violates this order.”
I sent a copy to the commander. The commander of the tank regiment told me
that he passed it along to his men, with the corresponding instructions.
26 May. The Sturmführer develops a newsletter to improve communication
within the Sturm.
30 May. More on training for the S.A. athletic competition.
Some good news. “My” Austrian has a new job in the Finance Department. There
will be no heavy labor, and he will earn half again more than before. And he
has gotten his first payment from the party, after queries to his old Innsbruck
S.A. leaders confirmed once again all that he had said.
6 June. Penetcost Monday — the whole day is entirely free!
One learns to appreciate that! Sleep in, out in nature for the afternoon, and
an evening at the theatre. It’s wonderful, but if it were the rule, it would
become boring.
Yesterday afternoon, I wandered around the field, accompanied by the leader
of Troop III and my “educational aide,” the future leader of Troop IV. (Troop I
has a paper membership of 80, of whom 15 show up. I plan to split it into Troop
I and a new Troop IV.) We quickly finished our preparations for the next
Sunday’s exercises — Pentecost could begin.
The last week went well enough, though not particularly quietly: Sunday
night there was a competition between the units; Tuesday evening I held office
hours; Wednesday the troops met; Friday evening, a meeting of SAG IV; Saturday
afternoon preparations for leader training on the coming Saturday and a lecture
on “borders, tribes and chiefs of the First Reich up to the Interregnum”;
Saturday evening to bed — sleep is wonderful!
12 June: Target practice and military exercises with his men.
22 June. The separation of Troop I into a new
Troop I and a new Troop IV, which primarily has the younger men, is finished.
About the same time, the matter of the troop leader is resolved. He simply
forgot to show up to lead an SAG meeting. The new leader of Troop I is, with
the approval of the Standarte, also my personal assistant. He is
delighted, and I am sure he can handle the troop. He will first attend the
group training school and earn the first certificate. The leader of Troop IV is
my “educational aide — only a Scharführer in rank, but a great chap
everyone in the Sturm likes.
I am delighted that I finally work well with all my subordinates —
particularly with the office staff (even the distrustful “spotlight” is on
board!) and the four troop leaders. Being constantly suspicious is a handicap.
I believe that there is now peace in Troop I as well, and that all will follow
the settled routine that had not entirely died out in those S.A. men. I will
give the troop leaders until the Nuremberg Party Rally to get their sheep in
order — after which I’ll clean house. Throw the trash overboard!
Yesterday evening was the summer solstice. More than 2,000 of the 17,000
citizens of the area went up to the ceremony site, high above town. Members of
party formations and the usual groups were the majority, but many civilians
were present as well. We S.A. men conducted the ceremony and made sure that it
was conducted in a simple and military manner, free of bombast and deep
mysticism. I gave the speech, a copy of which follows. People said to me
afterwards that some were pleased that I did not talk over their heads, but
spoke in a straightforward manner appropriate to the feelings of people today.
Summer
Solstice Speech
We have gathered around the bonfire for the summer solstice, and each of us
looks intensely into the flames. On the way up, some of us probably thought
about the meaning of the summer solstice. Some of us probably had the feeling
that people today lack a living connection to this festival of light. Now we
are all gathered around the fire, and it is time to think about the meaning and
significance of the festival of the summer solstice.
We think back to the distant past when our forefathers of the German
community of blood came to the heights on this the shortest night of the year
and, like us today, gathered around the bonfire. In that distant time, just as
today, fires greeted each other from hilltop to hilltop, building a bridge from
one small community of German blood to the next.
The very thought that the festival we celebrate today has come down to us
from the earliest days of our history, that it has been maintained over the
millennia, awakens in us a feeling of awe, and we sense something of the
eternal stream of blood that unites us to the people of our race from the
distant past to the far future. But we still do not fully realize what led our
ancestors to light the fires on the heights on the night of the summer
solstice.
The day of the summer solstice is the day on which the life-giving sun
shines the longest on the northerly realms of our race, and the dark of night
has the least power over our homeland. It is the day on which life, embodied in
the sun, celebrates its greatest victory over darkness. It is the day on which nature
most favors growth on earth, and most blesses the labor of those people who
work the soil to earn their daily bread. But it is also the day of the year on
which growing darkness begins — the season when people must more and more win
through work and struggle what nature will not provide. Thus it is clear why
our ancestors, closely tied to the cycle of nature, gathered on the heights of
their homeland to light a fire.
They gathered around the fire that reflects the strength of the sun to
thank the godly power that blessed their labors. But there was no weak
submission in their hearts, Within their hearts burned the will never to be
lazy and content, never to waste the gifts of nature, but rather to earn them
and use them through untiring effort. In the coming days as the gift of
providence ripened the harvest while the life-renewing force of light
diminished, no one could rest from his labors. They came to the summer solstice
ceremony to pledge renewed energy for their labors. And they came to receive strength
from the community in which the will of providence had placed them, from the
community of their tribe. And around them they saw the fires of their
neighbors. They experienced the larger community of those of their blood.
For us National Socialist Germans, the significance of the summer solstice
has become even greater: We stand here not as members of a small tribe that
senses only dimly its relationship to the larger community of like people — no,
we stand here as men and women, as boys and girls, of a united and powerful
people — we stand here as Germans, as men and women, boys and girls, of the
Greater German Reich.
For us the summer solstice is first of all an hour to contemplate the
god-ordained unity of all people of German blood — without regard to class,
occupation or origin. We here pledge to set aside our own good for the great
military camaraderie that must bind our people if we are to survive. And we
want to affirm proudly the idea from which alone this camaraderie can grow —
the National Socialist worldview. We gather courage, strength and determination
from everything that National Socialist Germany has gained in its five and a
half years of existence. This year we above all wish to express our joy and
pleasure in the fulfillment of our great German longing — our union with our
German brothers in Austria. And we pledge not to forget the suffering of those
racial comrades who live at the borders of the Reich in foreign states, who are
persecuted and suppressed.
All our thoughts turn to the man who changed the fate of our people and who
alone will lead our people to a blessed future, the Führer. In this solemn
hour, we pledge to him unbreakable loyalty, for we know and have experienced
that only he can unite all our individual efforts into a great work of
liberation for our German people. And we know that from our individual deeds,
the Führer forges the weapons of his battle. He himself said two years ago to
his old S.A. comrades: “Everything you are is because of me, and everything I
am is because of you alone.” We feel the deep and obligating truth, expressed
today for the whole German people in the words of a poet to the Führer:
You are many thousands who stand behind me,
And you are me and I am you.
I have no thoughts
That do not dwell in you.
And none of my words
Are not in accord with your will.
For I am you and you are me,
And we all believe in you, Germany!
We salute the Führer and pledge him our loyalty. To Adolf Hitler and his
National Socialist Greater German Reich — Sieg Heil!”
26 June. It’s his birthday, but the day is filled with various field
exercises.
5 July. The planned celebration of his birthday is interrupted by his
superiors.
7 July. Back from the Sturm. 12:30 a.m. That upset some
fine soul in the neighborhood. Yesterday our landlord passed on an anonymous
complaint that I drove up late every night at midnight. The noise of the motor
disburbs the neighbors, and I should please go on on foot when returning so
late. That would be something! As an S.A. leader, one is busy nearly every
night — there is time for a glass of beer only after the Wednesday meeting —
and this satisfied chap who goes to bed after dinner and never does anything
beyond what he is paid to do complains that an S.A. leader doesn’t take on an
evening march, but instead disturbs the well-deserved rest of his neighbors
with the noise of his car! I’d love to reward the cowardly chap in the “old
fashioned way” — but unfortunately I do not know who he is. These fine
neighbors should work more and go to bed later, and then they would not be
bothered by motor noise. A whole armored column couldn’t wake me up!
10 July. Preparations for major field exercises two weeks hence.
14 July. The new leader of Troop I is doing fine. The Sturmführer laments
that is it so hard for leaders to get time off from work to attend S.A.
leadership training courses.
17 July. More field exercises, including climbing hills while wearing gas
masks.
21 July. He finds gas masks for the rest of the Sturm.
25 July. More on field exercises.
28 July. A great deal more on field exercises, along with the text of a
morning ceremony on the theme: “Faith in the Führer leads to a readiness to
work and sacrifice.” That runs as follows:
The S.A. affirms: We believe in the Führer and on his idea. This is so
obvious to us S.A. men that we hardly know what to say when someone asks us why
we believe.
We affirm our belief in the Führer in everything that we think and do. But
if, as wearers of the brown shirt, we must give an answer to the question
“Why,” we proudly realize that this is less a matter of the cold reasoning of
superior intellect, but rather the voice of our blood and heart. These never
ask, but rather always call us to action and to sacrifice.
We S.A. men do not believe because the Führer succeeded in realizing our
National Socialist program, which is the heart of our idea. Nor do we believe
because the Führer gave us jobs and food, because he freed us from the chains
of shame, because he once again gave our German people a German face. No, we
believe in the Führer because he is the Führer. We believe blindly and without
reservation. We would believe in him even if he had done none of these things.
We believe in the Führer, and we would believe in him even if fate turned
against him. We would fight even harder for him then, for he is a part of us,
he is our very identity (unser ich).
We can only say to those who ask, to the doubters and those who do not
believe, that we were not converted to faith in the Führer because he solved
the social question, or any other question, but rather because those things
only proved, after the fact, that we rightly had believed. But we had, and
have, no doubts at all, it is damned hard for us to find a way to express this
in cold argument.
Our S.A. style of thinking comes from the heart. It is military.
We cannot prove our faith in the Führer through some kind of intellectual twaddle,
but rather only through our deeds, through our actions, through our duty.
However much the world may ask, the S.A. affirms: We believe in the Führer
— and we prove our faith through our deeds. The Führer may demand of us what he
will: all we possess, our bodies and lives, our spirit and our heart. For the
Führer comes from us, and we are made one through the Führer. He is the sum of
our strength, and we live through him. (taken from “Our Faith,” Der S.A.
Führer, April 1936).
This is followed by more material from the ceremony.
31 July. Things are hectic, but he manages to have a day in the country
with his wife.
4 August. It can no longer be denied: Troop
I, and Troop IV, which has been separated from it, are going somewhere!
Yesterday evening, 33 of its on paper membership of 52 were present, 25 of 35
for Troop IV. Given the season, that is as good as can be expected. That is
certainly a lot better than the 12 of 80 who showed up for the former leader of
Troop I! I expelled him yesterday, by the way. He lied to me, and hardly did
anything. Away with him. There are just five weeks left until the Reich party
rally, at which point the grace period for the remaining sluggards is over.
There are about 30 who will change from the shirt of an S.A. man into more
modest civilian garb in September. But I’ll really be able to do something with
the 120 who will be left!
Troops I and IV have also gotten over the habit of running off to different
pubs after the meeting. Since we usually finish before midnight, even the early
risers get to bed on time. I am happy to see that the men do not all run off in
different directions after the meeting. Even Troops I and IV, which have the
greatest range of members, like to stay together in a comradely fashion after
the meeting.
7 August. Target practice. He acquits himself well, to the disappointment
of his men
11 August. A discussion of summer S.A. clothing, and an argument that
richer S.A. men should not dress down to conceal their prosperity. If they do
their duty, all will be well, and National Socialism is not after the lowest
common denominator.
12 August. On 24 August we are to gather the largest
possible audience for the national S.A. film “National Socialist War Games
1937.” It has to be an event! I meet with the local group leader, a great chap
to work with, and he will make the evening an obligatory event for party
members. I’ve reserved the largest meeting place in the area, the new community
meeting hall — now we just haved to get “at least” 700 people to more or less
fill the hall up! It won’t be easy to get that many of the 17,000 people in the
area to show up for a film at this time of year. If only the tank regiment were
still here! But they are out on maneuvers. The local press will have to help
out. Fortunately, the Sturm works well with the editorial staff. They
promise to run not only the material from the OSAF, but also a daily story on
page 3. And I can provide several short articles on the S.A. That will give me
something to do on Sunday afternoon!
I use the opportunity to remind the public of what we are up to. The S.A.
should not keep too much to the background! Modesty is great, and is a virtue
for a soldier. But one can’t let one’s accomplishments go unnoticed.
We have to make a bit of noise. We are after all propagandists for the
movement — we have to constantly promote and persuade — and we can do that only
when a wider circle knows what we are doing. Therefore, the party press! It
happily prints our contributions!
14 August. Along with 70 men from my storm and
some SAG members, I did volunteer work this morning at the S.A. settlement just
outside town. A group gathered at 6 a.m. by the post office on Bahnhofstraße.
Dubious characters were standing around until 6:30, when a command brought
order to the gathering. I remember the surprised faces of some citizens who
were either late-to-bed or early-to-rise when they realized it was the S.A., or
something similar.We planned to work until noon, but heavy and long-lasting
rain forced us to stop work at 10. Well, at least we dug some holes.
Several of the settlers are members of the storm. They were delighted to
see their storm members helping them out. The digging made clear to me that
there is a certain difference between those who work with the pen and those who
use a shovel. I have more blisters on my hands than I have fingers. But the
work was both useful and pleasant.
18 August. First aid training.
20 August. Sports training.
21 August. Air guns and hand grenades.
25 August. The film showing yesterday was a
“hit”! 685 paid admissions, about 500 of whom were not S.A. members. That is a
record! Including the guests of honor, total attendance was over 700, the third
best in the area, even though it was shown in some big cities. My men are
justifiably proud, and I am, too. A lot of it is thanks to the local group
leader and the press, but it also shows that party members and the public take
a lively interest in our work. The 160 Hitler Youth were a particular pleasure.
I am curious how many of the 18-year-olds will join us on 9 November! [New
S.A. members were often accepted on 9 November, the anniversary of Hitler’s
1923 Beer Hall Putsch]. The program went smoothly and impressively. After
my introduction, the S.A. sang — even Sturm II A was there — “A Young People
Rises up.” They all knew it, and the HJ joined in promptly and on cue. After
that, I spoke briefly about the nature and significance of the work,
particularly the S.A.’s training exercises, directing my remarks to the
outsiders. The film, which is good and gripping, followed. It held the
audience’s attention at least as well as a good newreel. It occurred to me how good
it would be for the S.A. and its work — and therefore also for the National
Socialist military training of our people — if someone would make a cultural or
fictional film about the everyday activites of the S.A. (it would have to be
accurate!), and it played in public movie theaters. That would surely be no
less educational and effective than this film about life in the Wehrmacht.
After the film, the local group leader made some warm and friendly remarks.
He ended with an appeal on all those sympathetic to National Socialism, those
for whom, in the spirit of the S.A., have embodied the S.A. spirit in their
lives, to support the S.A., and particularly its efforts to increase the
military preparedness of our people.
Afterwards, we S.A. men stayed along with some of our guests in the hall of
the local party gathering spot. Two young men who had just finished their
Wehrmacht service came to me and said they had not known what to do next. They
asked to join the S.A. That is the best proof for the effectiveness, even the
necessity of such public S.A. meetings!
28 August. The activities of the week.
2 September. The sports training is in high gear.
5 September. More sports training.
7 September. Two bits of good news.
As of 1 September, all the men of the Sturm belong to the NSV [the
Nazi Party’s charitable organization]. Even the poorest of them, who would
themselves receive aid were they not too proud to ask for it, pay their 50
pfennig a month to the NSDAP’s great social welfare organization. I am as proud
of this new proof of the National Socialist sentiments of my comrades as if it
were my own doing! Many a more prosperous racial comrade could use a bit of
their willingness to sacrifice!
After last Sunday’s test, more than 95% of the Sturm have earned the
S.A. sports badge. None of the S.A. men failed. I feared somewhat for one with
more good will than intelligence, but he made it too. The fact that we did not
make 100% has to do with the rapid membership changes in the Sturm, since
there are always new men who have not earned the S.A. sports badge, and there
are two S.A. applicants who joined at the film evening who have not yet been
able to take the test. Only one of my old members lacks the badge and has no
likelihood of earning it, but he has been suffering from a serious tendon
injury in his leg for the past two months.
8 September. I use the calm of the Nuremberg
Party Rally week to prepare to expel those who are unsuited. The men in
question have not all committed offenses. Some have always had excuses for
their failures. I first left it to their discretion to resign. Some were smart
enough to do that, but the others will be “released as unsuited for the S.A.,”
which will teach them that an S.A. man does not meet his obligations by the
more or less timely payment of various fees. There are 32 on the “death list.”
13 have asked to resign. 19 will be expelled without asking, and immediately,
as my aide assures me. The Sturm will be reduced to 119 men. It has
never been as small. But those who remain are first rate!
10 September. My thoughts are with those who are
in Nuremberg. Tomorrow is the “Day of the S.A.,” with a march past the Führer.
I wish I could be there! My seven attendees are writing satisfied postcards. It
is interesting that each remarks that it would be good next year to have the
tea and rum mixed together rather then served separately as this year!!
I was in the office last night to deal with paperwork, and found
applications from four SAG men to join the S.A. They had enjoyed the SAG, and
the tasks of the S.A. seemed so important and the camaraderie within the S.A.
so good that they wanted to join in. I was delighted. Particularly because they
are good chaps. I really had not expected any of the SAG men to join us, since
all but 9 were already political leaders in the party, the HJ, the union, the
fire department, or the Red Cross, and all of them, including the 9 “full
civilians,” had given 1001 reasons just a few weeks ago as to why they could
not join the S.A.
There are other applicants. Back at the end of July when we made cutbacks
in the workload, I encouraged those who benefited to do some thinking about
good new members for their Sturm. I told them firmly, though, that it
was not just a matter of finding any old person who was half-alive. Nothing
happened up to the end of August. But early in September, several brought me a
total of six new applicants who, they claimed, were good chaps. Formerly, they
had lacked the necessary connections to find their way to one of the party’s
fighting formations. If they turn out well, then my men really did do the kind
of promotion that I want. I certainly am not interested in getting as many
involved as possible — otherwise, I would not have thrown 32 people out — but
it does seem to me that there are a lot of useful young chaps running around in
Germany who have not found their way into a fighting formation. They need a
kick in the ribs to wake them up. I think we can make S.A. men out of them.
12 September. Many have failed the refresher course for the S.A. sports
badge, even though several years before they had met the requirements. This
proves the necessity for constant military training.
15 September. Paperwork woes. The Sturmführer wants to get 100%
participation in target practice, but nearly a third of his members are in the
military or working outside the area. Getting the results from them all is a
challenge. He argues that S.A. duties should have the same legal standing as
military service.
18 September. More on target practice. I believe that
only a crisis will show what the S.A. has accomplished. Under the most
unfavorable conditions!
20 September. The Standarte approved the
expulsions, which take effect immediately. I can strike them all from the
membership list today, which is updated on the 20th of each month. I am
pleased, particularly with regards to the shooting competition, for I could not
and would not want to get those on the “death list,” who know their fate, up to
the mark.
22 September. Staffing changes.
27 September. I have been up here in the Black
Forest with my wife on vacation since yesterday, waiting to be called. I will
go to the hospital only when the danger of war is past [he has earlier
mentioned a leg injury]. It doesn’t look likely at the moment, but who can
tell what the Führer will do.
Before I close this diary, perhaps not opening it again for a long while, I
want to report on the summer’s activities.
100% of the Sturm participated in the shooting competition! 116 of
the 123 members “on paper” actually showed up. Nearly 30 of those away from
home or serving in the Wehrmacht took a Sunday leave and showed up. I was
absolutely delighted. 7 were missing. I have now gotten target sheets and
certifications from them. That makes 100%
The average score of the 123 with 5 shots was 6.84 rings. It could have
been better, but that’s not bad.
And their scores for hand grenade aiming and distance throws were also not
bad. Only a few failed to meet the requirements — a happy and striking contrast
with the results of the civilian S.A. sports badge holders!
I was so pleased with my men and so moved by the events of recent days that
I gave a short speech that was probably one of the best I have ever given. My
heart was overflowing, and I was deeply moved by the thought that this could be
the last time I saw my men in their current form.
I dismissed the Sturm at 2 p.m. A half hour later, the Standarte ordered
me to send them all our equipment by evening. A few minutes earlier, it would
have been easy, but now one had to chase them down to get their coats,
knapsacks, etc. Fortunately, there were enough volunteers still around on a
Sunday afternoon to gather everything and put it in order, so by 7 p.m.
everything was loaded onto two trucks and shipped off — to the field. The
afternoon showed us how serious things were!
We still had a pleasant evening with the SAGs and wives to mark the end of
the summer’s activities. I bade farewell to my aides and thanked my subleaders,
then gave a brief outline of what was coming. Then the men spouted off. They
ribbed me unmercifully, but never got nasty.
The evening went smoothly, a happy end to six months of hard work.
Our desire for action will only be greater in the coming days — whether we
wear a military or an S.A. uniform. Whatever may come, the work of the S.A. for
Führer and people will not have been in vain. As our old teacher always said:
“Quod di bene vertant!”
5 October. The political situation cleared up
at the last minute. It almost looks like a higher European reason took charge.
Still, one can’t be sure there will be peace. It is clear that Hitler and
Mussolini want peace. But perhaps the western democracies pulled back not only
because of the determination of the authoritarian states, but also in order to
be better prepared to stubbornly defend the status quo the next time.
Whatever the cause, our work continues as before. I can’t say that in my own
case, however. Since yesterday, I am here in the hospital in this old
university town in the Black Forest. The professor tells me that I should plan
on 8 weeks in bed. He thought it might be even more as he looked at my leg. But
things will work out — God doesn’t forget S.A. men!
I’ve been away from my Sturm for 8 days, and I am already beginning
to miss the familiar routine. I think of a thousand things that have to be
done, and worry that they won’t be done right. I have to get rid of these
thoughts. The Sturm is in the best of hands, and I overestimate myself
in thinking it can’t get along without me. It’s certainly going well.
As the political situation cleared up on 29 September, my last official
duty was to work out training goals for the winter months. I have left it to
the troop leaders to work out the details and fit it in with everything else.
We’ll see what they can do on their own, what they learned from the planning of
the exercises over the summer.
The rest of the entry lays out the exercises that will be part of the
coming season.
10 October. He sends in his promotion list.
13 October. His men send him enough presents so that the professor asks if
he plans to open a liquor shop.
15 October. He receives information that his men are planning well in
advance.
19 October. News that his Sturm has climbed higher on the list for
the shooting competition.
27 October. He receives a long report that all is going well back at the Sturm.
8 November. A report on charitable collections.
11 November. My recommendations for promotion
have been approved! I spent half of yesterday writing letters of
congratulation. And I have been promoted to Obersturmführer. They men
seem even happier than I am. In any event, I got congratulations as if I’d been
married.
16 November. Various HJ members, having turned 18, join the S.A.
19 November. 4 of his subleaders make the long drive to visit him in the
hospital.
2 December. He’s home from the hospital, and his wife is about to give
birth.
4 December. Hans-Hugo has arrived! 6 3/4
pounds, gifted with a loud voice. And my wife is recovering well.
10 December. Yesterday I took the first steps
back to “official life.” I have a talk and spent the evening with the officer
corps of our tank regiment. It was not only pleasant, but good for my S.A.
heart. I was well received, and there was a lively interest in the work of the
S.A. “What do you really do in the S.A.?” This question was asked repeatedly.
It proves to me that we are too modest, and have to present our training and
educational activities to the broader public.
After I gave a brief outline of our activities, the unit commander said:
“If that is what the S.A. does, it is exactly what we need to support our work.
In the two years of active service we have, and occasional reserve exercises,
the best we can do is provide the technical training our soldiers need. As
necessary as general military training may be, we have only a little time for
it. And we have no time at all for military-political and military-spiritual
education, other than what comes from living in the barracks and serving as a
soldier. I must also admit that I — and most officers — lack the training for
that. I never learned it in my 23 years as a soldier, and it is too late now.
But you are right. Your work is useful, even perhaps necessary, and we can only
be pleased that the S.A. is at our side.”
They shake their heads as I tell them how much time and money the men
sacrifice, above all the leaders, and what minimal resources are available to
us.
I leave the temporary officer’s quarters — the permanent is not yet ready,
and the temporary quarters will become the home of NCOs — with some envy. If we
had a tenth of what this building cost, we could build our own S.A.
headquarters! We would have a few offices, a meeting room and above all several
classrooms. What a boost it would be to our work if we had our own space!
Lacking such a space, he invites 30 of his subordinates to his small
apartment for a social evening.
16 December. The gathering goes well, but even though all is quiet, a
neighbor comes to complain at 12:45 a.m. The diary writer is incensed.
18 December. He attends the Sturm Christmas party, and is surprised
by the gift of a splendid oak cradle made by the men for his new baby boy.
23 December. He distributes Christmas packages from the party charity.
30 December. He is trying to get 30 air rifles for his group, but can’t
take up a collection of ask for money in his official capacity. He thus in his
“private” capacity speaks with acquaintances, hoping they will purchase the
weapons and donate them.
1 January 1939. We celebrated
the new year with a few good friends. The new year starts out well. As of
midnight, I again am the leader of my Sturm!
3 January. Heil three times over! 37 more air
guns!
5 January. He works out the plan for the next three months, and issues a
newsletter to all members, part of which is included in the diary.
From
Sturm Order #1/1939
To the Sturm:
...1939 will demand even more of us than 1938. Only if from the start we
give up some private pleasures and comforts will we be up to its challenges. I
will use every available means, regardless of the cost, to help us meet those
challenges.... He who is not ready to give his best to serve his S.A. Sturm,
and thereby National Socialism and its Führer, will be a dangerous weakling
unless he is immediately expelled. He who is not yet a soldier or for some
reason is not a member of the S.A., or who resigns from it, can certainly still
be a decent and honorable man. He who stays in the S.A. without giving it his
full devotion betrays its work and camaraderie, and will be a scoundrel in the
eyes of real S.A. men and National Socialists, someone who must be thrown
out...
Introduction of new S.A. men:
I have often been displeased that new S.A. men joining the Sturm are
not introduced at the first meeting by the leaders. That increases the feeling
of strangeness that one always has in new surroundings in an unnecessary and
unfriendly way, and gives the impression of being unwanted. And the “old”
members have less connection to the new than is desirable. It is obvious that,
with the constant coming and going in our Sturm, leaders must do
everything they can to make newcomers feel at home. That means that leaders
must be informed of the personal and S.A. background of new members before
their first meeting at the latest, and that during the meeting they should say
a few words to introduce the newcomer and welcome him to the group.
Rules for vacations, resignations and transfers:
It seems to be a hard to abolish weakness in military behavior that some
S.A. men still seem to believe that turning in a request for vacation,
resignation or transfer is all that they need to do, and are thus immediately
relieved of their S.A. obligations. For anyone who thinks like a soldier, it is
obvious that one is relieved of S.A. obligations only when he has received
written notification. A leave before receiving written permission is possible
only in exceptional circumstances and with my oral approval.
He who misses a meeting without such approval is guilty of an unexcused
absence and is punishable for dereliction of duty. In a ruling dated 3 December
1938, the Standarte ruled that in such cases, the absence will be denied
and disciplinary measures culminating in the expulsion of the S.A. man
concerned will be instituted!
Institution of a “Report System”:
Details on an attendance policy for S.A. activities. Those who miss
meetings without excellent reason will be called to account.
Shooting courses:
Several levels of classes will be established.
Weapon training:
Details on same.
8 January. Complaints about orders from above. I strongly object to the principle: “Demand the impossible to achieve the
possible.” I think there is nothing worse than leadership that is satisfied
with 40% of what it asks for. I prefer to ask for what is possible, and then go
at it with every available resource to achieve 100%.
10 January. A surprise inspection by his superior, the Obergruppenführer.
Although the writer is nervous, everything runs smoothly.
12 January. Yesterday numerous party members
received this letter signed by the local group leader and myself:
“Party comrade!
We have noted that although you are an adult party member, you are not
serving the party or its divisions in any way. Since we have no reason to doubt
your National Socialist willingness to serve, we assume that you have not yet
found the appropriate form of service.
For you as a man and party comrade of military age, the best way you can
and should demonstrate your willingness to serve the movement is to join the
S.A. It is by the Führer’s will the movement’s school, which demonstrates the
strength of National Socialists to serve the political ideas of National
Socialism and tests and hardens our people’s military preparedness. The corps
of political leaders should be renewed from those men who have proved
themselves in the S.A.
We expect therefore, party comrade, that you will join the community of the
movement’s political soldiers. We think that there will have to be compelling
reasons for you to remain an inactive member of the party.
Whatever you decide, we expect that you will notify us of your decision by
Monday, 23 January 1939 at the latest.”
One should involve broader circles. We can’t take everyone into the S.A.,
but it would be good if our educational work could be extended to all men of
military age!
15 January. Marksmanship training matters.
19 January. Our town council responded quickly
to a little suggestion and today approved renaming “Town Hall Square” the “S.A.
Square.” That will remain confidential until it is announced at a ceremony of
the S.A., party and public. The planned date is 30 January [the holiday
commemorating the Nazi assumption of power in 1933], since it seems there
will not be a speech by the Führer this year. At the same time, sports badges
will be awarded to SAG participants of last year.
The square is being rebuilt at the moment and will later get a fountain
with an S.A. relief or the figure of an S.A. man or something similar that
reflects the new name. Since our town is generous once it has decided to do
something, something decent will surely result.
20 January. A morning appeal from the Sturmführer
in the city. He wants to encourage us poor front-line guys, and urge us on.
Unfortunately, the line once more is: “Keep working, don’t give up, do your
best; the great task we’ve been longing for for five years will surely come!”
But so what. S.A. work is worth our full efforts even today, and there are
difficulties to be overcome.
22 January 1939. I still can
hardly believe it: The major task for the S.A. that we have longed for is here!
The Führer has given the S.A. responsibility for all pre- and post-military
training! The S.A. has been given a task within the framework of the state that
it deserves. What we are to do, by god, is no less significant that that which
the Wehrmacht, the Labor Service, and the Hitler Youth have to do! We S.A. men
are responsible for maintaining the military attitudes and abilities of those
released from active military service. We S.A. men must ensure that the
foundation of any people and Reich is never lost in National Socialist Germany:
that military attitudes, hardness, and capabilities remain vibrant life forces.
The Führer has given us the talk of maintaining the military preparedness of
all those released from military service. In doing so, he has made the S.A. the
final guarantee for the survival of the Greater German Reich. Only when we
succeed in keeping each man ready for action and useful militarily up to the
limits of age will the German people be ready to survive its battle for
existence for all time. Only then will the Führer’s Reich become the
thousand-year Reich of the Germans, which is the meaning and goal of his work
and ours. Alongside the major (and very difficult!) work of post-military
training, we have to establish a firm foundation for the Wehrmacht through
pre-military training. Even before the Labor Service and military service, the
military instincts of the young German man must be awakened. Even boys must
cease to be “civilians.” The Wehrmacht must take in recruits that it can
quickly turn into soldiers. Soldiers even more superior to those of other
nations than they already are. — All that has been put in our hands. How proud
we S.A. men can be! But the confidence the Führer has placed in us, and the
greatness of our task, are an obligation.
I will never forget the leadership meeting yesterday at the state theater.
After some introductory words that left us expectant, the Obergruppenführer read
a telegram from the Chief of Staff: “The Führer has just signed a decree giving
all pre- and post-military training to the S.A.” Then he read the decree, which
was the best possible justification for our previous work and the fulfillment
of our hopes. We 800 S.A. leaders broke out in jubilation. The new task was
liberating. Nothing had moved me so deeply for a long time as this modest but significant
decree by the Führer. Now the slogan is “Get your butts in gear!” We have to
have something to offer men returning from two years of military service. The
state may force all of them into our hands, but our goal is to turn them into
“volunteers” though our education and training.
This morning, advanced marksmanship Nr. 1 with about 45 men. It was a
pleasure to see the men’s shining eyes. Every S.A. man knows the scale of the
Führer’s order!
27 January. The Führer will speak on 30 January
after all. There is enormous curiosity about what he will say to the First
Reichstag of the Greater German Reich and his people. Our ceremony at “S.A.
Square” is of course canceled.
On Monday subleaders begin a seven lecture series on racial science. By
order, the racial question is the center of this year’s worldview education.
One has to provide subleaders with more information on this central aspect of
National Socialist teaching than is possible in normal training.
The leader of Troop IV takes on the lecture. He does the first lecture
well. It helps a lot that he can show slides.
2 February. “I consider the most important task
of National Socialist state leadership to do everything possible to strengthen
our military capacity.” These words from the Führer’s major serious speech on
30 January are directed to us as well. It gives us direction for the future,
and confirms what we have done in the past.
3 February. The S.A. will be collecting for the party charity.
6 February. We had 5690 badges to distribute,
and 5690 were distributed. [Contributors to the party charity got a small
badge they could wear to prove they had given.] We were supposed to raise
1138 RM, and we actually collected 1440.29 RM. My Sturm gave out 3170
badges. We collected 914.76 RM. We get to keep 280.96 RM of the 302.29 RM above
the goal. Sturm A II is in second place, with 1422 badges given out and
297.45 RM collected. Third was the S.A. equestrian unit, with 300 badges and
64.05 RM, followed by the NSKK with 292 badges and 58.85 RM, the SS with 250
badges and 51.10 RM, No reason to be dissatisfied with my men!
I got angry several times while collecting. It is always the same thing:
the women in fur coats and the men in their furs and top hats “have already
given.” They are not ashamed of themselves when they see the collectors walking
up and down the street, half frozen, but still smiling as they clink their
tins. But there are also happy experiences. I met an old woman who looked so
poor that I tried to sneak past her like a guilty boy. But she was waiting for
me: “You have to sell me a badge, S.A. man. I am on a pension and don’t have
much, but I give gladly to the Führer!”
12 February. More sports equipment is secured.
16 February. On boxing.
18 February. A gathering with the officers, and he again regrets the lack
of an S.A. headquarters.
19 February. Badges for military training are distributed.
26 February. More field exercises.
4 March. Today we had a subscription campaign
for the “S.A. Mann.” The press helped out. We got 148 new subscribers, which
should get us a bonus. In 1937, we were already third best at getting
subscriptions.
5 March. He works on the emergency plan for the Sturm.
6 March. Damn! The “S.A. Mann” campaign was canceled,
and that after we got our 150 new subscriptions!
12 March. On the celebration of Heroes’ Memorial Day.
16 March. “The Protectorate of Bohemia and
Moravia!” The Führer finally broke the fist that plunged into the middle of the
Reich! Ancient German cultural territory returns to the Reich! What a wonderful
time! But foreign countries are outraged, and it is not in vain that the Führer
has proclaimed increasing our military preparedness to be the prime goal. Once
again we S.A. men see the larger context of our efforts.
The Führer is in Prague at the head of his troops. Splendid and wonderful,
but one worries too. A year ago he entered a jubilant Austria — but this time
he is traveling through enemy territory. Still, nothing will happen to the
Führer before he fulfills his mission.
18 March. A wave of meetings in the county
from yesterday until tomorrow, Tomorrow is out turn. Nothing much will be left
of Sunday, since during the day I will be out scouting the terrain with the
leader of Troop III for the maneuvers that will take place on 2 April. Happily,
the leader of Troop III will do most of the technical work — drawing tables,
lists, etc., which is a big relief.
22 March. Preparations for the field exercises on 2 April.
23 March 1939. Hitler secures the return of the Memel District.
25 March. Extensive details on the upcoming field exercises.
29 March. Swimming matters.
3 April. The field exercises are a great success.
4 April. Plans for a weekend trip with his men.
6 April. More on the results of the 2 April field exercises.
14 April. As a result of Hitler’s decree, the S.A. is being somewhat
reorganized, and he is likely to command a new Sturmbann. And he has a
nasty cold.
20 April. The Führer’s 50th birthday. My men
participate in a torchlight procession — I have to stay home. But the day after
tomorrow, I can travel. The doctor approves.
The railway coach is reserved, as is the boat trip on the Bodensee. And
there is enough money. And none of my men was stingy — everyone gave according
to his income. Even those who could not go along! S.A. camaraderie!
24 April. A report on the weekend excursion.
29 April. The radio will carry a report on our
competition! An astonished world will hear it on 5 May on the program “Aus Zeit
und Leben”!
30 April 1939. I got the news
today. I will take over Sturmbann II on 2 May, and will give up my old Sturm.
I hate to leave, but look forward of course to the Sturmbann.
This ends the diary of a Sturm. I can conclude it in no better way
than by thanking my S.A. men. They march year in, year out, physical laborers
and white collar workers, joined in camaraderie, all filled only with the will
to serve the Führer and Germany. Ten thousand S.A. Stürme with the same
attitudes march today in the Greater German Reich, and do the same things.
These hundreds of thousands of unknown S.A. men are the mortar that holds the
Führer’s work together, and there is no greater joy than serving as a leader in
this community of Adolf Hitler’s most loyal soldiers.
