Original Item: Only One Available. Prior to his "unmasking" as a traitor, Ernst Röhm was the leader of the Sturmabteilung (SA). In 1934, he distributed approximately 100,000 SA daggers with his personal inscription on the reverse blade. This was etched into the blade, and read In herzlicher kameradschaft Ernst Röhm (In cordial companionship Ernst Röhm). These daggers were to honor individuals who had served with the SA prior to December, 1931. At this time, the Schutzstaffel (SS) was an Elite Unit within the SA, so longtime members were among those who received these daggers as well.

Other than the inscription, these pieces were identical to the standard M1933 SS dagger. After the Röhm purge in mid 1934, the inscription was ordered to be removed, and failure to comply would be considered treason. Some were simply ground in the field by whatever means were available. Many other examples, as we suspect this is one of, were returned to the factory or retailer for grinding and refinishing. Often, this would remove the maker logo as well, however the logo on this example is still partly present. Examples will occasionally be encountered with remnants of the original inscription remaining on the blade, but mostly none will remain. Some blades exist with an intact inscription, exhibiting only the removal of the Röhm signature. Very, very rarely is an example seen with a full, untouched inscription, as the holder would have surely risked a charge of treason.

The SS (Schutzstaffel - 'Protection Squadron') was originally formed in 1925, ostensibly to act as a small, loyal bodyguard unit to protect the Führer, Adolf AH. Under the direction of the infamous Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, the SS grew to be the most ruthless and feared organization of the 20th century. They were the vanguard of NSDAP and eventually controlled nearly every function of German life and much of Occupied Europe. The SS dagger was introduced in 1933. Early on, members of the SS were awarded their daggers during a ceremony at the Feldherrnhalle Memorial in Munich. The annual ritual, charged with mysticism and meant to evoke the traditions of medieval Teutonic knights, was held on 9 November, the date of the unsuccessful Munich Putsch of 1923. Both officers and enlisted men wore the identical dagger until 1936. After this time, only enlisted men wore the M1933 dagger.

The SS Dagger was equipped with nickel cross guards with an ebony wood grip. The black grip contained a National eagle with swas insignia recessed in the center area and an ᛋᛋ doppelte Siegrune (Double Sig/Victory Rune) button inset at the top. On early examples the scabbard shell surface was factory blackened using a metal bluing process. The scabbard had nickel mounts. The SS blade was a polished type containing the SS motto, Meine Ehre Heisst Treue (My Honor is Loyalty). Early examples bore one of three district stampings on the lower reverse crossguard of I, II, or III. Early examples were mostly hand-fit. Production of later examples was more standardized, using cheaper, nickel-plated fittings with black painted scabbard shells. They could be held with a standard belt hanger, or a much rarer vertical hanger.

The blade on this example has seen some wear and light corrosion from water stains, now polished and cleaned away. This has made the factory polish final grind cross grain on the obverse somewhat faint, but it still can be seen in the light on areas of the surface of the blade, particularly near the cross guard. This texture is iconic, and is the definitive identifying characteristic for a real WWII German Blade. The acid etched SS motto, Meine Ehre heißt Treue, is clear with much of the factory darkening still intact. The edge of the blade does not show any sharpening after the original factory grind except for some cleaning up of the edge near the tip, and is still in very good condition. The blade shoulders perfectly meet the lower crossguard contour, and there is just a bit of movement in the grip.

The reverse of the blade, like the front, has been cleaned and polished, and the cross grain is really only apparent on the last inch or so closest to the cross guard, where the maker logo is. Sighting down this side of the blade however shows clear variations in the surface level, starting 2 1/2 inches from the tip to just above the logo. We believe this is because it was originally issued with the inscription "In Herzlicher Freundschaft Ernst Röhm" (In heartfelt friendship Ernst Röhm) on the back. It was then returned to the factory or retailer, where the entire rear of the blade was re-ground, removing the all of the etched signature, which required removing a bit more of the blade where the signature took up more space.

This fine early example was produced by a well-known maker: Richard Abraham Herder, located in Solingen. This is a known producer of SS daggers during the Pre-WWII period and after. They are also one of the 16 contractors known to have made Röhm signed SA and SS daggers. The rear of the dagger is marked with their oval trademark logo:

RICH. ABR. HERDER
(DIAMOND LOGO)
SOLINGEN

The Herder name is well known in Solingen, and this branch originally registered in 1884 as a steelware maker. As time went on they specialized in Drop Forging, and supplied blade blanks to Erfurt Arsenal and other companies. During the Third Reich period, they continued to make their own edged weapons, as well as supply blades to smaller makers. The "oval" style trademark was specifically used on the blades of early SS and SA daggers made during the Third Reich, per J. Anthony Carter's work GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS.

The crossguards of this dagger and tang nut are in good condition throughout, and are of the earliest solid nickel silver construction. They have smooth surfaces, good crisp edges and precise accent grooves. They show just a bit of oxidation, which gives them a "warm" look, opposed to the cold "blue" look of chrome plating. The cross guard is marked with a Roman numeral I on the side, for the third SS district. There is also the number 7273 marked on the rear top of the guard, the serial number of the SS Mann who it was issued to, a great opportunity for further research! There is no lifting of the finish, showing these are indeed solid nickel silver. Per a customer request, we checked the inside of the guards, and both are marked P. A. on the inside, as with other examples we have handled from Herder.

The ebony grip is a nice example showing in very good shape, showing wear consistent with service, but no major chunks missing. There are some hairline cracks on both sides near the pommel guard, and also pressure denting on the wood, with a small gouge on the side, which has been smoothed out. The ebony wood is unfortunately brittle, and the treatment used to give it a uniform look exacerbates this. The color is very good, and wood grain can be seen. The symbol button is positioned at about 7:00 o'clock, as it should be. The silvered SS symbol and double circles around them have a nice matching patina with the nickel still intact, with a little verdigris and complete enamel. The nickel grip eagle is the "high-necked" type with the beak pointing slightly up. It remains in crisp condition, showing little wear to the bird's head, breast and wing feathering and to the talons, wreath or swas.

The scabbard shell is a solid example, with a straight steel shell showing little to no denting or other damage. The shell originally had a black "anodized" blued finish, which was then lacquered to protect it. This example has had most of the lacquer wear away, however the anodized finish is still very well retained overall. There are scattered small spots of oxidation, but nothing more. The matching solid nickel silver scabbard mounts are in good condition, with a lightly oxidized patina. The lower ball is a bit dented in, common with the softer nickel alloy. All four dome headed screws are still present and in good shape.

The scabbard is held securely in the extremely rare leather vertical hanger, topped with a zinc alloy hanger clip. The leather is in very good condition, showing just a bit of finish wear on the securing strap, which features a plated steel buckle. There is no maker marking we can see, just DRGM on the back of the clip, indicating that it is a design protected by German patent law. These are extremely rare in any condition, but especially when they are fully intact.

A very nice early "Numbered" SS dagger by a rare Solingen maker which is very likely a great "Sanitized" ground Röhm example, complete with scabbard and rare vertical belt hanger! Lots of history to this fine well-worn dagger, as well as some great research potential!. Ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 8 3/4"
Overall length: 13 3/4”
Crossguard: 3”
Scabbard Length: 10”