Stormtroopers : A New History of Hitler's Brownshirts

The first full history of the Nazi Stormtroopers whose muscle brought Hitler to power, with revelations concerning their longevity and their contributions to the Holocaust Germany's Stormtroopers engaged in a vicious siege of violence that propelled the National Socialists to power in the 1930s. Known also as the SA or Brownshirts, these "ordinary" men waged a loosely structured campaign of intimidation and savagery across the nation from the 1920s to the "Night of the Long Knives" in 1934, when Chief of Staff Ernst Röhm and many other SA leaders were assassinated on Hitler's orders. In this deeply researched history, Daniel Siemens explores not only the roots of the SA and its swift decapitation but also its previously unrecognized transformation into a million-member Nazi organization, its activities in German-occupied territories during World War II, and its particular contributions to the Holocaust. The author provides portraits of individual members and their victims and examines their milieu, culture, and ideology. His book tells the long-overdue story of the SA and its devastating impact on German citizens and the fate of their country The first full history of the Nazi Stormtroopers whose muscle brought Hitler to power, with revelations concerning their longevity and their contributions to the Holocaust

Germany’s Stormtroopers engaged in a vicious siege of violence that propelled the National Socialists to power in the 1930s. Known also as the SA or Brownshirts, these “ordinary” men waged a loosely structured campaign of intimidation and savagery across the nation from the 1920s to the “Night of the Long Knives” in 1934, when Chief of Staff Ernst Röhm and many other SA leaders were assassinated on Hitler’s orders.

In this deeply researched history, Daniel Siemens explores not only the roots of the SA and its swift decapitation but also its previously unrecognized transformation into a million-member Nazi organization, its activities in German-occupied territories during World War II, and its particular contributions to the Holocaust. The author provides portraits of individual members and their victims and examines their milieu, culture, and ideology. His book tells the long-overdue story of the SA and its devastating impact on German citizens and the fate of their country. "Germany's Stormtroopers engaged in a vicious siege of violence that propelled the National Socialists to power in the 1930s. Known also as the SA or Brownshirts, these "ordinary" men waged a loosely structured campaign of intimidation and savagery across the nation from the 1920s to the "Night of the Long Knives" in 1934, when Chief of Staff Ernst Röhm and many other SA leaders were assassinated on Hitler's orders. In this deeply researched history, Daniel Siemens explores not only the roots of the SA and its swift decapitation but also its previously unrecognized transformation into a million-member Nazi organization, its activities in German-occupied territories during World War II, and its particular contributions to the Holocaust. The author provides portraits of individual members and their victims and examines their milieu, culture, and ideology. His book tells the long-overdue story of the SA and its devastating impact on German citizens and the fate of their country." -- Publisher's description Contributing to the Formation of a ‘People’s Community’ in Eastern Europe 8 STORMTROOPERS IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR The SA and the Wehrmacht The Beginning of the War The SA- Standarte Feldherrnhalle Communist Propaganda Auxiliary Police in the General Government, the Protectorate, and in Slovenia On the Home Front To the Last Man Confronting Defeat Everyday Fanaticism 9 SA DIPLOMATS AND THE HOLOCAUST IN SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE Stormtroopers in the Foreign Office Fighting behind the Scenes Organizing the Holocaust in Slovakia Deadly Varieties of a Pattern The Impact of the SA Diplomats The Struggle for Reputation PART IV 10 ‘NOT GUILTY’ The Legacy of the SA in Germany after the Second World War The SA at the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg Stormtroopers as Misguided Idealists Mutilated Stories Politics of Remembrance CONCLUSION Stormtroopers and National Socialism NOTES INDEX Introduction: A Night Of Violence -- Turmoil In Post-war Germany And The Origins Of The Nazi Sa -- Stormtrooper Street Politics: Mobilization In Times Of Crisis -- The Sa Cult Of Youth And Violence In The Weimar Republic -- Terror, Excitement, And Frustration -- The Röhm Purge And The Myth Of The Homosexual Nazi -- The Transformation Of The Sa Between 1934 And 1939 -- Streetfighters Into Farmers? The Sa And The Germanization Of The European East -- Stormtroopers In The Second World War -- Sa Diplomats And The Holocaust In Southeastern Europe -- Not Guilty: The Legacy Of The Sa In Germany After The Second World War -- Conclusion: The Sa And National Socialism. Daniel Siemens. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Introduction : a night of violence Turmoil in post-war Germany and the origins of the Nazi SA Stormtrooper street politics : mobilization in times of crisis The brown cult of youth and violence in the Weimar Republic Terror, excitement, and frustration The 'Röhm purge' and the myth of the homosexual Nazi The transformation of the SA between 1934 and 1939 Streetfighters into farmers? the brownshirts and the 'Germanization' of the European east Stormtroopers in the Second World War SA diplomats and the Holocaust in Southeastern Europe 'Not guilty' : the legacy of the SA in Germany after the Second World War Conclusion : Stormtroopers and National Socialism.