History

The SA (Sturmabteilung, storm detachment) was established in 1921 as a paramilitary protection squad of the NSDAP. The members of the SA were tasked with protecting party leaders at political rallies and meetings from the paramilitary forces of the opposing political factions. The SA was first utilised on November 4, 1921 at a meeting held in Munich’s "Hofbräuhaus" beer hall. The organisation was banned after the failed putsch in 1923 and was reactivated in February 1925.

The eagle emblem on a triangle backing was introduced in 1937. The eagle itself is white, silver-grey, or silver-coloured. The triangle-shaped cloth backing is in the colour of the wearer’s region.

Region colours are as follows:

Pink-red: Ostmark and Südmark
Crimson: Wachstandarte
Dark wine-red: Ostland and Westfalen
Red-brown: Österreich and Donau
Dark brown: Westmark and Niedersachsen
Orange-yellow: Mitte and Südwest
Yellow: Schlesien and Franken
Apple-green: Pommern and Thüringen
Emerald-green: Sachsen and Nordmark
Steel-green: Nordsee and Kurpfalz
Light blue: Hochland and Bayerische Ostmark
Blue-grey: Sudetenland and Weichsel
Cornflower blue: Warthe and Oberrhein
Navy blue: Hansa and Hessen
Black: Niederrhein and Berlin-Brandenburg
Grey: Generalgouvernment