The SA Generals And The Rise Of Nazism [Paperback]

Bruce Campbell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0813190983 | ISBN-13: 978-0813190983 | Publication Date: November 1, 2004

" A History Book Club Alternative Selection No part of the Nazi movement contributed more to Hitler's success than the Sturmabteilung (SA) -- the notorious Brown Shirts. Bruce Campbell offers the first in-depth study in English of the men who held the three highest ranks in the SA. Organized on military lines and fired by radical nationalism, the Brown Shirts saw themselves as Germany's paramilitary saviors. Campbell reveals that the homogeneity of the SA leadership was based not on class or status, but on common experiences and training. Unlike other investigations of the Nazi party, The SA Generals and the Rise of Nazism focuses on the military and political activities of the Brown Shirts to show how they developed into SA Leaders. By tracing the activities, both individual and collective, of these men's adult lives through 1945, Campbell shows where members acquired the experience necessary to build, lead, and administer the SA. These men were instrumental in creating the Nazi concept of "political soldiering," combining military organization with political activism. Campbell's enlightening portrait of the SA, its history, and its relationship to the overall Nazi movement reveals how the organization's leaders reshaped the SA over time to adapt to Germany's changing political concerns.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Campbell's enlightening portrait of the SA, its history, and its relationship to the overall Nazi movement reveals how the organization's leaders reshaped the SA over time to adapt of Germany's changing political concern." -- Bulletin of the Arnold and Leona Institute of Holocaust Research

"Provides interesting material, especially about the upper echelons of the SA leadership as a whole." -- Central European History

"Based on archival research, Campbell's book offers an unusual insight into the lives and careers of the founding fathers of the SA." -- Choice

"By examining the backgrounds of the SA s top leadership between 1925-33, the author shows the changing nature of the SA and its process of growth within the broader rightist movement of the Weimar Republic." -- Don McKale

"Among the growing number of efforts to know the men who formed the Nazi Movement, Bruce Campbell has produced one of the better." -- George C. Browder

"Author Bruce Campbell offers the first in-depth study in English of men who held the three highest ranks in the SA -- men who saw themselves as Germany's paramilitary saviors." -- Library Lane

"Full of useful looks at some of the lesser known Nazi leaders, and provides some valuable insights into some obscurer corners of the history of the Nazi movement." -- New York Military Affairs Symposium Newsletter

"A captivating and thought provoking individual and collective portrait of the top leadership of the paramilitary wing of the Nazi party." -- WWII History

About the Author

Bruce Campbell is an independent scholar and adjunct assistant professor of history at Old Dominion University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky (November 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813190983
• ISBN-13: 978-0813190983
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,408,641 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars "Meine Ehre Heisst Treue, Du Braun Kompanie....", January 16, 2005

By 

M. G Watson "Miles Watson" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sa Generals and the Rise of Nazism (Hardcover)

This is one dry piece of reading, but given the dearth of material available on the SA, it is a necessary excursion for anyone interested in the men who got the Nazi Party into power....and then became its first victims.

It is important to note this is NOT a history of the SA proper: it is an examination of the men who made up the SA's most senior leadership (gruppenfuhrers, obergruppenfuhrers, & stabschefs) during the SA's era of power, roughly 1925 - 1934. Author Campbell divides his terse and somewhat mechanically-written text into sections which divide the SA's leadership into categories based on their background, record of service, and idelogoical motivation. He doesn't go into a biography of all the nearly 200 men who held these senior ranks, but rather picks men who best represent each category.

Although Campbell's writing style is about as dry as oatmeal, he makes some penetrating insights, such as how the SA's decision to use an entirely different system of ranks than the German army reflected Hitler's belief that leadership was not something you inherited by virtue of birth or by commission, but rather something based on merit. He also does a good, if terse, job of examining the backgrounds of the senior SA leaders, men like Rohm, Lutze, and von Salomon, as well as the often strained relationship between the SA and the Nazi Party.

Campbell's book is not a primer; it assumes a fair to good knowledge of Hitler, the Party, and the political situation in Germany following WWI. Of course, if you're reading this, you already have one. "SA Generals" will definetly build on that.

Unlike their progeny, the SS, the story of SA, the real "storm troopers" is largely untold; but without them, there would have been no Hitler. If the SS was the sword with which Hitler maintained his throne, the SA was the billy club that got him there. Campbell deserves praise for shedding some light on the subject.

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent review, September 18, 2011

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Richard E. Simon "Red Front" (Jacksonville, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sa Generals and the Rise of Nazism (Hardcover)

Book arrived very quickly and in perfect condition. Text was a bit wordy in some respects - more like a study, than a documentary - but quite interesting and insightful. Seller is highly recommended.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars effective like good medicine, December 22, 2006

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Michel Bisaillon "untamed1" (Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The SA Generals And The Rise Of Nazism (Paperback)

I got this book to help with a term paper. It gives a very detailed description of the SA leadership. However, it is a mountain to climb. You don't read this book as much as you survive it. I think I have read more readable phone books. It got to the point where I thought Campbell was going to separate the SA leaders according to height, weight and favorite colour. Having said all of this, it is a gem for the academic. For the serious student it is a must.