NASDAP Long Service medals

[JoeW]

25 Jahre DAZ

Thanks for the interesting comments. As I had mentioned before, I found no listings from 1943 on for any Party DAZ in Gau Koln-Aachen. Whether that was the same in other Gaues I do not know. I have found no orders canceling the awards after the 1942 presentations.
Thanks for the notice of the Police Rank List thread. It was interesting reading. I posted there some info.

[McCulloh]

There was an application form!

Not unironically, the file of SA General Dr. Heinrich Benneke (a noted journalist and post-war historian:author of "Hitler und die SA") at the BDC (and on microfilm at the National Archives in College Park, MD) answers one question. In it is the "Antrag auf Erwerb der Dienstauszeichnung der NSDAP fuer (10,15,25) jahrige Tatigkeit". Benneke received all 3 NSDAP awards.
See also the file of Hans Georg Hofmann for an example of this application form.
Interestingly, he also received the Blood Order for his service in the 1923 Putsch and the Coburg badge (see BDC Schumaker Collection, Ordener 256 for a list of all 436 Coburg badge recipients.) as well as Gold Party Badge # 4,840.
Like his friend and fellow-journalist, he served in the Wehrmacht in Russia in 1941-43.
Cheers,
JeMc

[JoeW]

Long Service App

Do you have Bennecke's app that you can scan for inclusion in this thread? It seems most of the party awards were generated by applications. Would the Blood Order have been an exception? Most definitely the A.H. Goldene Ehrenzeichen was, as those were generated by senior Party Administration: Reichsleiters & Gauleiters.

[McCulloh]

Alas no..

I am hampered by a lack of photo posting abilites here. This is frustrating both to me and Rick-who nags me to post things I have bought.
However, what I have are xeroxes-not actual photos.
Lastly, in reviewing the notes and the books, I have noted a MAJOR mistake in Party numbers in the secondary sources. I have revised my earlier posts accordingly, but it appears as if NSDAP party #100,000 was given out no later than October 1, 1928! This means that the party grew from Feb. 1925 to Oct 1928 quite rapidly (@25,000 a year) and that Ricks' "Golden Party badge" list are the prime candidates for the award.
I still hold however, that there it is possible that others in the SA and auxi formations may have received their medals.
Apparently in Aprill, 1944 the NSDAP also authorized award of the 25 medal to party officials who were killed in bomb raids and in military service.

[JoeW]

number crunching

I think if you examine the last paragraph of my post to GD.com re. the reguirements for award, you will read that members of party formations who had the required service time could apply for the DAZ if they joined the party. So those senior officers of say the SA, who had belonged before 1925 and had survived June 30, 1934, were eligible if they joined the party. What formations were around that early? Too bad about the scanning capabilities. Could you fax the photo copy to Rick for posting?

[McCulloh]

crunch crunch

Well, I can try. I have issues with the size of the pics when I send scans to Rick. Rick has likened them to an elephant or a "stove door".
If it doesn't work then I'll give Rick a copy at Lowell next month.
The HJ and SA were around that early. I think the motorized SA was too and the SS split off in @ '27.
The SA had about 7,500-12,500 hard core members in 1927 and while they were supposed to be NSDAP members, many were not. They could not afford it.
In "Stormtroopers" the author followed the membership for one Gau (Saxony?) and found that upwards of 20% changed every month (!) in some towns. Many of the officers also ran the local HJ.

[Matt Gibbs]

numbers game

Hello folks;
Sorry to drag up this, but could not find any more info.
Did any number crunching get finished?
Matt Gibbs

[McCulloh]

...Three years later-yes it did and the numbers went down for the 25 LS cross.
Dramatically downwards too-

[McCulloh]

Joe! Here it is:
From Loooooong ago-
.....we said more about this at the GMIC forum last year I think.
The subsequent docs/books that RR turned up made HIS numbers far more accurate than my figurings and indeed, they were probably too generous.
Now, we have located two other sources of information......and we shall see after my/our trip to the DC archives in the Spring. there is also an interesting sociology article on female members of the NSDAP in Bavaria that had some interesting statistics too.
Oh and you were right-it wasn't the 25 LS award for goldenpheasants killed in air raids-it was the german order!
Perhaps this should be transferrred to the "political organizations" forum?

Stay tuned.

[JoeW]

Okay, so this is just a tease until your trip to the archives? Spring has sprung. Get going.