SMGP-0005 Stahlhelm N.S.D. F.B.St. Member pin

A desirable little member pin.

“Der Stahlhelm, Bund der Frontsoldaten” was a paramilitary organization of WWI veterans, in the time of the Weimar Republic. It was founded in December of 1918 by reserve officer Franz Seldte, in Magdeburg. It was opposed to the Weimar political system, and though it was officially a non-party organization, after 1929 it served as an armed branch of the Deutschnationalen Volkspartei political party. Officers and men of the Stahlhelm served as a personnel reserve for the Reichswehr. By 1933, there were 1,500,000 members of the Stahlhelm. In 1934, the Stahlhelm became an official Nazi organization, and was renamed, with large parts transferring to the SA; the last Stahlhelm units were disbanded in 1935, and WWI veterans transferred to the Nazi sanctioned veterans organization. Stahlhelm members wore a wide variety of regalia including special uniforms and insignia that denoted their rank, role and specific group membership. As with all of the interwar paramilitary organizations, they had their own specific uniforms, belt buckles and headgear. Items pertaining to the Stahlhelm are collected today for their historical importance.