Brigadeführer

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Brigadeführer
Post April 1942 gorget patch
Shoulder and camo insignia
Country Nazi Germany
Service branch Schutzstaffel
Sturmabteilung
National Socialist Motor Corps
National Socialist Flyers Corps
AbbreviationBrif
RankOne-star
NATO rank codeOF-6
Non-NATO rankO-7
Formation1933
Abolished1945
Next higher rankGruppenführer
Next lower rankOberführer
Equivalent ranksGeneralmajor

Brigadeführer (German: [bʁiˈɡaːdəfyːʁɐ], lit.'brigade leader') was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) that was used between 1932 and 1945.[1] It was mainly known for its use as an SS rank. As an SA rank,[2] it was used after briefly being known as Untergruppenführer in late 1929 and 1930.

History[edit]

The rank was first created due to an expansion of the SS and assigned to those officers in command of SS-Brigaden. In 1933, the SS-Brigaden were changed in name to SS-Abschnitte; however, the rank of Brigadeführer remained the same.

Originally, Brigadeführer was considered the second general officer rank of the SS and ranked between Oberführer and Gruppenführer.[3] This changed with the rise of the Waffen-SS and the Ordnungspolizei. In both of those organizations, Brigadeführer was the equivalent to a Generalmajor and ranked above an Oberst in the German Army or police. The rank of Generalmajor was the equivalent of brigadier general, a one-star general in the US Army.[4]The insignia for Brigadeführer was at first two oak leaves and a silver pip; however, the design was changed to three oak leaves in April 1942 after the creation of the rank SS-Oberst-Gruppenführer. Brigadeführer in the Waffen-SS or police also wore the shoulder insignia of a Generalmajor and were referred to as such after their SS rank (e.g. SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS und Polizei).[5]

Insignia[edit]

Junior Rank
Oberführer
SS rank and SA rank
Brigadeführer
Senior Rank
Gruppenführer

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ McNab 2009, pp. 29, 30.
  2. ^ McNab 2009b, p. 15.
  3. ^ McNab 2009, p. 29.
  4. ^ Flaherty 2004, p. 148.
  5. ^ Stein 2002, pp. 297, 298 chart, 300 chart.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Flaherty, T. H. (2004) [1988]. The Third Reich: The SS. Time-Life Books, Inc. ISBN 1-84447-073-3.
  • McNab, Chris (2009). The SS: 1923–1945. Amber Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-906626-49-5.
  • McNab, Chris (2009b). The Third Reich. Amber Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-906626-51-8.
  • Stein, George (2002) [1966]. The Waffen-SS: Hitler's Elite Guard at War 1939–1945. Cerberus Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1841451008.