Original Item: Only One Available. This is an original German WWII NSDAP / SA multi-piece Ärmelbinde armband of high quality construction, made from red wool with a white rayon moiré center and separately applied black hook cross. Its longer approximately 17 1/2" length is consistent with the type often encountered for wear on overcoats, and the interior retains its original RZM tag with manufacturer code A4/275.

The armband measures approximately 17 1/2" x 4 1/2" and is sewn together at the rear. The white circular field is constructed from rayon moiré fabric, with the black multi-piece hook cross stitched over it. The outer edges of the red wool band are neatly finished with fine stitching, giving the piece a distinctly higher quality appearance than simpler printed or single-piece examples.

The interior retains the original RZM tag. The upper edge of the label was cut slightly too far during installation, leaving a portion of the printed information incomplete, but the principal markings remain visible. These include the RZM logo, the correct D tax code, and Hersteller manufacturer designation:

A4/275

and lot number:

E № 346784

Remnants of tan stitching survive along both edges of the armband and are consistent with previous attachment to a brown or tan uniform or overcoat. The exact garment from which it was removed cannot be determined from the surviving stitching alone.

Overall condition is very good, showing light wear to the wool, mild age toning to the central insignia, and scattered moth damage. This includes areas of nap loss and several small holes, but the armband remains structurally sound and retains strong color, crisp construction details, and a well preserved RZM label.

With its multi-piece wool and rayon construction, long overcoat style length, surviving tan attachment stitching, and original RZM A4/275 tag with lot number E Nr. 346784, this is a particularly appealing NSDAP / SA armband. The moth damage, light wear, age toning, and partially trimmed RZM label are all fully disclosed. It would display especially well in an SA uniform, NSDAP insignia, RZM marked textile, overcoat armband, or advanced German WWII political organization collection.

The Sturmabteilung, literally Storm Detachment, was the NSDAP Party's original paramilitary. It played a significant role in AH's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s. Its primary purposes were providing protection for NSDAP rallies and assemblies, disrupting the meetings of opposing parties, fighting against the paramilitary units of the opposing parties, especially the Red Front Fighters League (Rotfrontkämpferbund) of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD), and intimidating Romani, trade unionists, and, especially, Jews – for instance, during the NSDAP boycott of Jewish businesses.

The SA were also called the "Brownshirts" (Braunhemden) from the color of their uniform shirts, similar to Benito Mussolini's blackshirts. The SA developed pseudo-military titles for its members, with ranks that were later adopted by several other NSDAP Party groups, chief amongst them the Schutzstaffel (SS), which originated as a branch of the SA before being separated. Brown-colored shirts were chosen as the SA uniform because a large number of them were cheaply available after World War I, having originally been ordered during the war for colonial troops posted to Germany's former African colonies.

The SA became disempowered after Adolf AH ordered the "blood purge" of 1934. This event became known as the Night of the Long Knives (die Nacht der langen Messer). The SA continued to exist, but was effectively superseded by the SS, although it was not formally dissolved until after NSDAP Germany's final capitulation to the Allies in 1945.