Original Item: Only One Available. The NSDAP or Nationalsozialistische Deutsche ArbeiterPartei, (National Socialist German Worker’s Party), was originally founded in Munich as the DAP, Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, (German Worker’s Party), on January 5TH 1919. When Adolf AH joined the DAP in the autumn of 1919 he was to reform what was basically a debating society into an active political party. Appointed as the first chairman of the party on July 29TH 1921, AH was to restructure it along para-military lines in a hierarchy.

This new NSDAP structure consisted of four ascending levels of government: the Ortsgruppenleitung (Local group leadership), the Kreisleitung (District leadership), the Gauleitung (Regional District leadership), and the Reichsleitung (National leadership). Each group was distinguished by a specific color of piping on the collar tabs and visor cap. From 1936 to 1939 in this scheme, light blue was for the Ortsgruppe level, black for Kreis level, burgundy red for Gau level, and gold yellow for the Reich level. After that the Kreis level changed to white piping.

This is a lovelymatched pair (left and right) of 1936-1939 Pattern Kragenspiegelen (Collar tabs), often called "Gorget Patches". These have the correct lacquered buckram internal stiffeners, with the front covered in red plush material. They are each piped in red for the Gauleitung (Regional District Leadership) level, with a single row of 10mm swas marked silver bullion tresse, which makes right angles at the lower corners. These indicate the rank of Stellenleiter (Head Department Leader), an administrative position in the NSDAP Gau leadership, which only existed between the years of 1936 and 1939.

The tabs are in very good condition, looking to have been glued to a uniform and later removed. They only look to have seen a short period of service, and were probably removed as the new ranks and insignia were coming into use, and were then put into storage.

A lovely set of NSDAP collar tabs, ready to add to your collection!

Stellenleiter (Department leader) was an NSDAP political rank which existed between 1936 and 1939. The rank was created as a mid-level political position intended to replace the older rank of Zellenwart ("cell guard"), also known as Zellenleiter. In the early NSDAP rank organization, the position of stellenleiter was senior to Mitarbeiter and junior to Amtsleiter. At the Orts, Kreis, and Gau level, they had Stellenleiter and Hauptstellenleiter ranks, while at the Reichs level, there was the additional rank of Hilfsstellenleiter (Assistant Department Leader).

The rank of stellenleiter was phased out of the NSDAP in 1939, replaced by a new series of para-military political ranks.

Responsibilities
On the county and town level of the NSDAP, the stellenleiter typically served in the positional role of Zellenleiter and was often referred to as such in contrast to their actual political rank. On higher levels of the NSDAP (County, Region, and National level), stellenleiter was an administrative staff officer type position.