A piece of SS regalia in excellent preservation

[Friedrich-Berthold]

This cap lives with a fine collector in the southern US, and remains in an excellent state of preservation. It is an early SS officer's cap, the property of a member of the Stammabteilung from the same unit, I believe, as Mr. Hritz's nice black tunic. We gratefully acknowledge the addition of this fine image.

[Friedrich-Berthold]

the interior of same cap, a very early example of a special purchase model cap. Note the RFSS tag as well as the fore head pressure free script

[Friedrich-Berthold]

To be sure, this kind of cap is also faked, but if one has this thing and a fake side-by-side, then there is no contest. These early caps used a silken interior of a very distinct quality. Mr. Coleman can illustrate other party caps of the era 1933-5 with similar linings, I am sure.

This sort of piece comes along infrequently. Later officers caps were of inferior materials and quality. That is, caps from about 1937 onward when the SS underwent its mobilization driven expansion.

Best wishes to its owner.

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Here is the tunic that came with the cap. The Stammabteilung was a pooled reserve of various SS men, either who were too senior for service in line Allgemeine SS units, or for others, i.e. police officers with SS rank, but not in a billet, who were also held in a generalized reserve. I think in the case of this man, granted how old was his cap, he was more in the senior category. A very rare piece of regalia.

Maybe colleague Lumsden can give a better summary of this regalia than can I. His books are especially strong on this sort of arcane thing.

The categories are also listed in the Organisationsbuch d. NSDAP. However, I do not have an image of the page. These categories are also contained in the Dienstalterlisten.


Maybe someone has a "zur Verfuegung" cuff title and can compare this status of officer with that of the Stammabteilung, vs. the regular reserve units that also existed with Allgem. SS Standarten.

My warm compliments to the colleague in the great state of Texas who owns this wonderful regalia.

Mr. Coleman also has a Stammabteilung uniform. There is also one in the all important David Delich collection, too, of which I am aware.

You have to hand it to the frustrated chicken farmer that he knew how to make gradations of elite service to a degree that is really quite hard to fathom for a beginner in the 21st century. However, these gradations and nuances of rank/privilege and whatnot merely duplicated the old system in which HH grew up at the Wittelsbach court, but the Nazis changed it all to a hierarchy of race and violence. This is somewhat different from a big clunky watch from Geneva or a new computer telephone from Cupertino

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Here is a second cap found with the first cap and the tunic. It is an enlisted cap adapted for the leader's role, i.e. with the Gehirnbremse.

I illustrated two similar pieces elsewhere. Colleague Coleman commented on this piece on another website.

I thought all these pieces were so remarkable, that they needed a wider audience. I also know their owner to be a very fine gentleman and an excellent colleague. All hail this nice regalia.

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Here is the interior of the second cap, also one of fairly early make, i.e. prior to about 1937/8. These RFSS tags seem to have been phased out around then, as near as I can tell.

However, an interesting case of thrift or reflective of the man's promotion and ability to get a hatter to modify his regalia. He was not alone in this conceit.

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Finally, also notice that this piece, too, is from western Germany. Where are ones from say Silesia, or maybe such a place as Magdeburg on the Elbe in Mitteldeutschland?

Once more, I do not want to promote collector dogma, as with the colored pipings on grey SS caps and what not; but these are merely empirical observations. Such also make a black uniform from Breslau or Magdeburg, or Frankfurt/Oder or Allenstein all the more extraordinary, when they do appear.

Maybe our colleagues from central and eastern Europe have something to show us?

Has not someone in Praha access to the Exponate in the army museum there?

[Bob Hritz]

The deluxe hats are certainly something to behold. But....the Stammabteilung tunic is enough to buckle the knees of an older collector, such as myself!

Bob Hritz

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Dear friend, you are quite right. A very impressive ensemble. We can all enjoy these pieces even in the distant electronic glass of the internet.

[Friedrich-Berthold]

Here is a close up of the cuff title to elucidate on my "West" theme with this black regalia. Also notice how the title is sewn to the cuff. I am sure this image would spark many tongue clucks and rolled eye balls from the thread and yarn Taliban that populate the other websites. For my taste, though, it all makes sense. He likely went from a line, active unit to the Stammabteilung and someone less than a tailor put on his insignia. Basta.


"...Wie es eigentlich gewesen," as Ranke said, did he not?