Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice example of a German Pre-WWII NSDAP Propaganda Medal, made to commemorate the 2 August 1934 death of German President Paul von Hindenburg. A supremely well decorated Field Marshall, had been the supreme commander of the Central Powers during WWI, and then was president of the Weimar Republic starting in 1925. It was he who appointed Adolf H as chancellor of Germany in January 1933, allowing them to take control of the government.

However, at the same time he also still held the power to remove him as chancellor if he so desired, and he also had the full backing of the military, so the NSDAP was very careful to stay on his good side. Once he passed away, Adolf H was finally able to merge the office's of President and Chancellor into one, and assume total control.

The medal measures 36mm in diameter with a thickness of 3mm, and is stamped on the side by maker BAYER. HAUPTMÜNZAMT, or the Bavarian State Mint, a known maker of these medals. The original designer of the medal was Karl Xaver Goetz, based in Munich, who designed many such medals during the WWI and WWII periods. This example looks to be made from gilt brass, making it very attractive. The front of the medal shows a bust of Paul von Hindenburg from the side, with a laurel leaf crown over his ears. This is surrounded by the following inscription:

GROSSER FELDHERR ZIEHE EIN IN WALHALL

This translates to "The Great Commander Enters Valhalla". The reverse shows an NSDAP Swas over two hands shaking, an image that cemented the Adolf H's seizer of power. This was the handshake between A H and Hindenburg on 21 March 1933 at the re-opening of the Reichstag parliament following the February 1933 fire. Following this were many parades by various NSDAP organizations, and then the assembly itself moved to the Kroll Opera House, which would house the Reichstag from 1933 until 1942. Surrounding the handshake is the following inscription:

ZU·VOLLER·ERFÜLLUNG·UND·VOLLENDUNG·DER·GESCHICHTLICHEN·SENDUNG·UNSERES·VOLKES

This translates to "For the full fulfillment and completion of the historical mission of our people".

Condition is very good, showing only some light oxidation spotting on both sides. A very interesting piece of Third Reich propaganda material!

NSDAP Party

The NSDAP, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of N**ism. Its precursor, the German Workers' Party (Deutsche Arbeiterpartei; DAP), existed from 1919 to 1920. The Party emerged from the extremist German nationalist, racist and populist Freikorps paramilitary culture, which fought against the communist uprisings in post–World War I Germany. The party was created to draw workers away from communism and into völkisch nationalism. Initially, N**i political strategy focused on anti–big business, anti‑bourgeois, and anti‑capitalist rhetoric. This was later downplayed to gain the support of business leaders, and in the 1930s the party's main focus shifted to antisemitic and anti‑Marxist themes.

Ad**f Hi**er, the party's leader since 1921, was appointed Chancellor of Germany by President Paul von Hindenburg on 30 January 1933. Hitl** rapidly established a totalitarian regime known as the Third Reich. Following the defeat of the Third Reich at the end of World War II in Europe, the party was "declared to be illegal" by the Allied powers, who carried out denazification in the years after the war both in Germany and in territories occupied by NSDAP forces. The use of any symbols associated with the party is now outlawed in many European countries, including Germany and Austria.