Franz Pfeffer von Salomon was the first commander of the SA.
Franz Pfeffer von Salomon (February 19, 1888 in Düsseldorf - April 12, 1968 in München) was the first commander of the SA.
Von Salomon was a Freikorps member and veteran from World War I. He made a name for himself by organizing resistance groups to stop the French occupying the Ruhr. He was Gauleiter to Upper Bavaria and future leader of the SS; Heinrich Himmler was his secretary. Adolf Hitler made Salomon commander of the SA after he swore unconditional loyalty to him in 1926.
Salomon was fired in 1930 because he failed to stop fellow SA leader Walter Stennes from briefly occupying the Nazi Party's central offices in Berlin. This pleased Ernst Röhm because he was able to persuade SA to swear personal allegiance to him.
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