Golden Party Badge
Overview
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
to certain members of the party who merited special attention.
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Encyclopedia
The Golden Party Badge was a special badge of the Nazi Party. The first 100,000 members who had joined and had uninterrupted service in the Party were given the right to wear it (these were denoted by the party members' number stamped on the reverse). Other Golden Party Badges (with the initials 'A.H.' stamped on the reverse) were awarded at the discretion of Adolf Hitler
to certain members of the party who merited special attention. An identical badge was awarded each year on 30 January to persons who had shown outstanding service to the Party or State.
The Golden Party Badge was the basic Nazi Party Badge with the addition of a gold wreath completely encircling the badge. The badge was awarded in two sizes: 30.5 mm for uniforms and 24 mm for civilian jackets.
The badge was associated with the Alte Kämpfer and those favored by the Führer
, the Nazi Party elite. The Alte Kämpfer
(Old Fighters) was the term used to describe those who joined the NSDAP before 1930. Those who joined the Nazi Party after the party's electoral breakthrough in the September 1930 Reichstag elections were referred to with contempt as Septemberlinge by the Alte Kämpfer. After Adolf Hitler came to power
in 1933, there were a rush of applications from Germans to join the NSDAP. The "Golden Pheasants" regarded these new members with contempt, seeing their applications as more opportunism than idealism. The basic Nazi Party badge that these newer members wore were sarcastically referred to as "Die Angstbrosche" (The Badge of Fear) by the Old Guard.
Adolf Hitler's Golden Party Badge had the number '1'. He awarded it to Magda Goebbels
on 27 April 1945, less than 48 hours before he committed suicide
in his Führerbunker
. She called it, "The greatest honour any German could receive". It was awarded to her for being "The Greatest Mother in the Reich". The '1' badge was stolen from a display in Russia in 2005. The guards thought the burglar that set off alarms was a cat and allowed him to escape.
The only makers of the Golden Party Badge were the firms Joseph Fuess and Deschler & Sohn, both located in Munich.
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
to certain members of the party who merited special attention. An identical badge was awarded each year on 30 January to persons who had shown outstanding service to the Party or State.
The Golden Party Badge was the basic Nazi Party Badge with the addition of a gold wreath completely encircling the badge. The badge was awarded in two sizes: 30.5 mm for uniforms and 24 mm for civilian jackets.
The badge was associated with the Alte Kämpfer and those favored by the Führer
Führer
Führer , alternatively spelled Fuehrer in both English and German when the umlaut is not available, is a German title meaning leader or guide now most associated with Adolf Hitler, who modelled it on Benito Mussolini's title il Duce, as well as with Georg von Schönerer, whose followers also...
, the Nazi Party elite. The Alte Kämpfer
Alter Kämpfer
Alter Kämpfer is a term referring to the earliest members of the Nazi Party, i.e. those who joined it before the Reichstag elections of September 1930, with many belonging to the Party as early as its first foundation in 1919–1923...
(Old Fighters) was the term used to describe those who joined the NSDAP before 1930. Those who joined the Nazi Party after the party's electoral breakthrough in the September 1930 Reichstag elections were referred to with contempt as Septemberlinge by the Alte Kämpfer. After Adolf Hitler came to power
Machtergreifung
Machtergreifung is a German word meaning "seizure of power". It is normally used specifically to refer to the Nazi takeover of power in the democratic Weimar Republic on 30 January 1933, the day Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of Germany, turning it into the Nazi German dictatorship.-Term:The...
in 1933, there were a rush of applications from Germans to join the NSDAP. The "Golden Pheasants" regarded these new members with contempt, seeing their applications as more opportunism than idealism. The basic Nazi Party badge that these newer members wore were sarcastically referred to as "Die Angstbrosche" (The Badge of Fear) by the Old Guard.
Adolf Hitler's Golden Party Badge had the number '1'. He awarded it to Magda Goebbels
Magda Goebbels
Johanna Maria Magdalena "Magda" Goebbels was the wife of Nazi Germany's Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels...
on 27 April 1945, less than 48 hours before he committed suicide
Death of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler committed suicide by gunshot on Monday, 30 April 1945 in his Führerbunker in Berlin. His wife Eva , committed suicide with him by ingesting cyanide...
in his Führerbunker
Führerbunker
The Führerbunker was located beneath Hitler's New Reich Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. It was part of a subterranean bunker complex which was constructed in two major phases, one part in 1936 and the other in 1943...
. She called it, "The greatest honour any German could receive". It was awarded to her for being "The Greatest Mother in the Reich". The '1' badge was stolen from a display in Russia in 2005. The guards thought the burglar that set off alarms was a cat and allowed him to escape.
The only makers of the Golden Party Badge were the firms Joseph Fuess and Deschler & Sohn, both located in Munich.
Notable Recipients
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