The Sturmabteilung and Nazi Party Organisation, 1921-1923
As the Nazi Party grew after 1920, it needed a way to protect its meetings from rival political groups, especially communists, and to project an image of strength and discipline. In 1921, the party formed the Sturmabteilung (SA), or 'storm troopers', a paramilitary force of uniformed men, often recognisable by their brown shirts, initially led by Ernst Rohm. The SA guarded Nazi meetings, marched in organised formation at rallies, and frequently used violence and intimidation against communist and other rival political groups, both attracting recruits who wanted excitement and comradeship and frightening off some potential opponents. Alongside the SA's growth, the party built a more formal national organisation in these years, dividing Germany into regions and beginning to develop the disciplined structure and cult of personality around Hitler that would characterise the movement. This combination of political violence and growing organisation set the stage for the Nazis' attempted seizure of power in the Munich Putsch of November 1923.
Before you start
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Method
- Learn the SA's full name, founding date and early leader precisely: the Sturmabteilung, formed in 1921, initially led by Ernst Rohm.
- Learn the SA's two main early functions: protecting Nazi Party meetings from disruption, especially by communist opponents, and marching in organised, disciplined formation at rallies to project strength and unity.
- Learn how the SA affected the party's growth in two, opposite ways: it attracted recruits who wanted excitement, comradeship and a sense of belonging, while its use of violence and intimidation against rivals also frightened off some potential supporters and gave the party a reputation for disorder.
- Learn that the party was also developing a more formal national structure in these years, dividing Germany into regions, which laid organisational groundwork the party would need for future growth.
- For a 4-mark 'give two things you can infer' question, look carefully for what a source reveals about either the SA's methods or its effect on how the party was perceived by supporters and opponents.
- For a 12-mark 'explain why' question, treat the SA's protective/intimidating role and the party's growing national organisation as two separate, linked developments that together strengthened the party in the early 1920s.
Worked example
Explain why the Nazi Party created the Sturmabteilung (SA) in the early 1920s.
- Identify the immediate problem the party faced: as a small, controversial political movement, its meetings were vulnerable to disruption and violence, especially from communist opponents.
- Explain the protective function with detail: the SA, formed in 1921 under Ernst Rohm, guarded Nazi meetings and halls, physically preventing rival groups from breaking them up.
- Explain the intimidation function with detail: SA members also used violence and threats against communist and other political rivals, discouraging some opponents from organising against the Nazis at all.
- Explain the recruitment and image function with detail: marching in disciplined, uniformed formation at rallies gave the party a visible image of strength and order, attracting recruits who wanted excitement and a sense of belonging to a powerful movement.
- Conclude by linking these functions: the SA gave the small Nazi Party a practical means of self-defence and, at the same time, a tool for building both loyalty among supporters and fear among opponents.
Practice questions
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Q1What does SA stand for, and in what year was it formed?Show answer
Answer: Sturmabteilung (storm troopers), formed in 1921.
Q2Who initially led the SA?Show answer
Answer: Ernst Rohm.
Q3What colour shirt was commonly associated with the SA?Show answer
Answer: Brown.
Q4Give one of the SA's main functions in the early 1920s.Show answer
Answer: Protecting Nazi Party meetings from disruption (or marching at rallies to project strength, or using violence and intimidation against rival political groups).
Q5Give one way the SA's violence could work against the Nazi Party as well as for it.Show answer
Answer: It could frighten off some potential supporters and give the party a reputation for disorder and lawlessness.
Q6What else was the Nazi Party developing alongside the SA in the early 1920s?Show answer
Answer: A more formal national organisation, dividing Germany into regions.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE History exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Study Source A. Source A: from a Munich resident's account of a political meeting in 1922. 'A group of communist agitators arrived to break up the Nazi meeting, but were met at the door by rows of men in matching brown shirts who blocked their way and, when pushed, fought back with fists and clubs. Inside, the speeches continued without interruption, and I heard several bystanders remark admiringly on how disciplined the Nazi guards had seemed.' Give two things you can infer from Source A about the role of the SA in 1922. Complete the table below. Inference 1: Detail in the source that tells you this: Inference 2: Detail in the source that tells you this:
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Explain why the Nazi Party created the Sturmabteilung (SA) in the early 1920s.
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Study Sources B and C. Source B: an SA recruitment poster from 1922, showing rows of uniformed men marching in formation, with text reading: 'Join the ranks of Germany's true defenders. Strength. Order. Loyalty.' Source C: a Munich police report from 1922, describing a street clash: 'Officers were called to a disturbance in which uniformed SA members and a rival communist group exchanged blows for several minutes before order was restored. Three men required hospital treatment; no arrests were made among the SA members present.' How useful are Sources B and C for an enquiry into the role of the SA in the growth of the Nazi Party in the years 1921 to 1923? Explain your answer using Sources B and C and your contextual knowledge.
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