Walter Stennes facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Walter Stennes
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| Regional commander in Eastern Germany | |
| In office 30 September 1927 – April 1931 |
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| Supreme SA Leader | Franz Pfeffer von Salomon Adolf Hitler |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Walter Franz Maria Stennes
12 April 1895 Bad Wünnenberg, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire |
| Died | 19 May 1983 (aged 88) Lüdenscheid, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany |
| Political party | German Social Party |
| Other political affiliations |
Nazi Party (1927–1931) |
| Spouse |
Hildegard Margarete Elisabeth Borkenhagen
(m. 1930) |
| Alma mater | Schloss Bensberg |
| Occupation | Officer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  German Empire |
| Branch/service | Imperial German Army |
| Rank | Leutnant |
| Unit | 3rd Westphalian Infantry Regiment |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Iron Cross First Class Knight's Cross of the House Order of Hohenzollern |
Walter Franz Maria Stennes (born April 12, 1895 – died May 19, 1983) was an important leader in the Sturmabteilung (SA). The SA was a large group of "stormtroopers" or "brownshirts" connected to the Nazi Party. Stennes was in charge of the SA in Berlin and nearby areas.
In August 1930, he led a protest known as the Stennes Revolt. This revolt was against Adolf Hitler, who was the leader of the Nazi Party. It was also against Joseph Goebbels, who was Hitler's main person in Berlin. Stennes and his SA members were unhappy with how Hitler was using the SA. They also disagreed about what the group's main purpose should be. Hitler managed to stop this first revolt peacefully. However, after a second protest in 1931, Stennes was removed from the SA and the Nazi Party.
Contents
Early Life and Military Service
Walter Stennes was born in 1895. His father, Fritz Stennes, was a bailiff and an officer in the German Army. Walter went to a special army school called a cadet school at Schloss Bensberg. In 1910, he moved to another important cadet school in Berlin. Famous people like Hermann Göring were his classmates there.
After finishing school in 1913, Stennes joined officer training. In August 1914, World War I began. He became a lieutenant in the 3rd Westphalian Infantry Regiment. He fought in Belgium and was wounded on August 23. In Flanders, he experienced the Christmas truce. This was when German and British soldiers stopped fighting to celebrate Christmas together.
Stennes received several awards during the war. In May 1915, he got the Iron Cross First Class. In June 1917, he earned the Knight's Cross of the House Order of Hohenzollern. He also received other awards in 1918.
After the war, Stennes left the army. He worked as a police captain. He also led some volunteer military groups called Freikorps. These groups were mostly made up of former soldiers.
Joining the Nazi Party
Stennes joined the Nazi Party in 1927. He became the leader of the Sturmabteilung (SA) in the Berlin region. He took over from Kurt Daluege. On September 30, 1927, he was made the main commander of the SA in eastern Germany. His title was OSAF Stellvertreter Ost, which means "Deputy Supreme SA Leader East." He was one of seven such regional deputies.
The Stennes Revolt
In August 1930, Stennes led a protest with SA members in Berlin. They were upset about the rules and goals of the SA, which were set by Hitler. The SA members wanted a revolution. However, Hitler wanted to gain power through legal ways after the Beer Hall Putsch. This slower approach frustrated the stormtroopers.
The SA members also complained about unfair treatment. They said there was "bossism" and that they were paid poorly. They felt the SA depended too much on the Nazi Party for money. They believed party leaders lived in "luxury" while SA members worked very hard. Stennes especially criticized Hitler for spending a lot of money on the Brown House in Munich, which was the party headquarters. He felt this money should have gone to the underpaid SA men. Similar complaints were starting to appear among SA members across Germany.
On August 27, Stennes told Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi Party head in Berlin, that he wanted three seats in the Reichstag (the German parliament). He also demanded more money and more political power for the SA. Hitler did not take these complaints seriously. He refused to meet with Stennes when Stennes came to Munich to discuss the issues. Franz von Pfeffer, who was the Supreme SA Leader, had already resigned on August 4 because his demands for Reichstag seats were denied. Hitler promised Goebbels that he would send Otto Wagener to fix the problems in the SA.
Stennes felt he needed to act strongly to be heard. So, the Berlin SA refused to protect Goebbels at his speech on August 30, 1930. Instead, Stennes's men held a parade to protest Goebbels. Goebbels then asked the SS for help. The SS was part of the SA at that time. They provided security for Goebbels's meeting and protected the Nazi Party office in Berlin.
The SA members then attacked the party office. They hurt the SS guards and damaged the building. Goebbels was very upset and told Hitler. Hitler immediately flew to Berlin. Goebbels told him that the SA problems needed to be solved quickly to stop them from spreading.
Hitler talked directly with some SA members. He then met with Stennes twice on August 31. The next day, Hitler spoke to about 2,000 stormtroopers. He announced that he would become the Supreme Leader of the SA himself. The SA members were very happy about this. Hitler asked them to be loyal to him and to the Führerprinzip (leader principle). The men then swore an oath of loyalty. Stennes read Hitler's promise that the SA would get more money from party dues. The stormtroopers would also get free legal help if they were arrested while on duty. With these promises, the crisis ended.
Stennes's Expulsion
In spring 1931, Stennes continued to complain. He said that the SA in Breslau could not attend an inspection because they did not have proper shoes. He also believed that Hitler's legal strategy was failing. He pointed out that the Nazi Party did not win a clear majority in the 1930 Reichstag elections.
Stennes rebelled again. On the night of March 31 – April 1, the SA once more attacked the Nazi Party offices in Berlin. They took control of the building. The SA also took over the offices of Goebbels's newspaper, Der Angriff. Versions of the newspaper supporting Stennes were printed on April 1 and April 2.
Hitler told Goebbels to do whatever was needed to stop the revolt. Goebbels and Hermann Göring removed many SA members in Berlin. Stennes was then expelled from the Nazi Party.
Life in Exile
After the Nazis took power in Germany in 1933, Stennes, his wife, and daughter left the country. Göring made him promise to leave Germany right away and not to settle in Switzerland.
Stennes then moved to China. He arrived in Shanghai with his wife on November 19, 1933. Stennes worked as a military advisor for Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang government until 1949. His job was to help reorganize the Chinese nationalist army and police. He used the model of the Prussian armed forces.
Return to Germany
Stennes came back to Germany in 1949. In 1951, he was a main member of a right-wing group called the German Social Party. After that, he lived a private life. He applied to be recognized as a victim of Nazi rule, but this was turned down in 1957. He lived in Lüdenscheid until he died in 1983.
See also
In Spanish: Walther Stennes para niños
