Early NSDAP political leader's brownshirt for a Hauptstellenleiter

[NSDAP Sammler]

I totally agree with what you have said. Just a quick Google search of this term I have seen it used in various places from the VW factory to Hitler Youth and different Women’s organisations etc.

I understand the term “Einsatzbereitschaft” can refer to anything from military rearmament to food production, and the endless list of tasks carried out in the TR period.

My thoughts were if it was added in 1936 (as it’s a 1936 style of shirt) the original owner could of been tasked with preparing Germany for war in some way, not necessarily militarily. But if it was added in 1939 when the shirt was updated (after the war had started) he could of been tasked with various civil defence duties like TJ pointed out.

It’s entirely speculative on my part, it was just seeing various dates been used on dealers sites for the production of the narrow armbands, I wasn’t sure if anyone knew definitively when they were produced / primarily being used. Pre 1939 or post 1939 as there’s conflicting information online.

All of this shows the dilemma that one has hardly any information available. I also suspect that what dealers write about the pieces they offer cannot always be trusted. There is also a lot of blah blah with it.

But in general one can assume that the wearers of these armbands were used for all kinds of tasks. There were also a number of opportunities for a special assignment as part of the party. Certainly the armband must have been sewn on after 1936 because this pattern of brownshirt for PLs was not introduced until around 1936.

I do have a three photos here on the subject of the PL's brown shirt. Two illustrations from the organization book of the NSDAP 1937 and 1940. You can clearly see the differences and the two different ties. Then another photo of an NSDAP event, particularly interesting are the PLs with brownshirts in the background, wearing a wild mix of insignia, 1938 and 1939 patterns mixed. But everyone wears brown ties!

[3rdreich]

Thank you for that. The period photographs are always helpful and informative.
It’s an impossible task to fully research such things as so much information was lost or destroyed over the years. But this forum never fails to amaze me with the truly knowledgable authors and contributors. Thank you once again gentleman.
I’ll continue to look for additional items to make my uniform complete and add further photographs of my shirt upon arrival.

[NSDAP Sammler]

Thank you for that. The period photographs are always helpful and informative.
It’s an impossible task to fully research such things as so much information was lost or destroyed over the years. But this forum never fails to amaze me with the truly knowledgable authors and contributors. Thank you once again gentleman.
I’ll continue to look for additional items to make my uniform complete and add further photographs of my shirt upon arrival.

You're welcome! That's right, research is one of those things, so it's helpful if you have the relevant literature at hand. I do also always download any photo that is interesting in connection with my collecting area and save it for later reference purposes. I don't know if you already know it, but I can recommend the book 'Uniforms of the NSDAP' by the American collector and author Jeff Clark. It is a standard work for every NSDAP collector.

You should just be patient, you will for sure find the additional items for your brownshirt! It's always great to see an ensemble grow. Some of my uniforms have taken me many years to complete.

And of course I would be glad to see more pictures of your amazing brownshirt because it is definitely an exceptional and rare piece!