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Nazi Minister of Armaments and War Production Albert Speer Attributed Uniform

Currency:USD Category:Firearms & Military Start Price:4,000.00 USD Estimated At:10,000.00 - 20,000.00 USD
Nazi Minister of Armaments and War Production Albert Speer Attributed Uniform

Estimate: $10000 - 20000
This is a very rare Nazi political leader uniform that belonged to Albert Speer, a German architect who became the Minister of Armaments and War Production for the Third Reich during World War II. In 1931 Speer joined the Nazi Party and his architectural skills quickly made Speer a member of Hitler's inner circle. His rapid rise in the Party and close proximity to Hitler guaranteed Speer numerous government building protects including the Reich Chancellery and the Zeppelinfeld stadium in Nuremberg where Party rallies were held. Speer's grand plans for reconstructing Berlin were suspended after Germany went to war. After the death of Fritz Todt in 1942, Speer was appointed the Minister of Armaments and War Production. It was under Speer's direction that Germany's war production continued to increase despite massive Allied bombing. After the war, Speer was tried for war crimes and was "the Nazi who said sorry", taking responsibility for his wartime actions. However, Speer's level of involvement in the persecution of the Jews continues to be a matter of dispute. Mainly for his role in forced labor, Speer was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He served his full sentence and after being released in 1966, wrote two bestselling autobiographies which provided details of his close friendship with Hitler and a unique perspective of the Nazi regime. Speer died of natural causes in 1981. As stated, this very rare Political Leader uniform with the rank of Kreisleiter or leader of NSDAP detachment belonged to and was worn by Albert Speer. Speer's name is handwritten on the Dienstrock tag which is sewn to the inside coat pocket. The uniform coat has white piping, a single row of gold buttons with political eagles, four flap pockets also with gold political buttons, and deep cuffs. The left sleeve has the red party armband along with the rare silver and black "ORG. TODT" cuff title sewn to the armband. The riding type breeches with wide flair at the thighs has button calves and gold political buttons on the pockets. The inside is stamped with the number "50" with the inside of the waist hand marked "474481" and the inside of the right pocket hand marked "53903" and ink stamped "248X/248X". The muster brown peaked visor has a golden brown velvet band, a brown bill and gold chinstrap. The visor has the correct gold plated eagle and political wreath lined with gold satin. The heavy brown leather belt has a large gold political leader buckle. The white dress shirt, however, was manufactured by Sears Prime Prest and is obviously not original to the uniform. A black tie is included with the uniform. Included are several copies of photographs presented in post-war publications showing Speer wearing a similar uniform. Also included is an affidavit from Dennis Walters, Jr., the director of the Atlanta Cyclorama, stating that this uniform belonged to Albert Speer. Walters contacted Speer after his release from prison and after several conversations (both verbal and written) Speer mailed this uniform to Walters. Speer's handwritten shipping label from the box which contained the uniform and a letter signed by Speer are also included with the uniform.
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Condition: The uniform coat is fine with some small areas of discoloration and a very small tear on the back near the collar. The breeches show dark staining mostly on the front. The visor is good with most of the bill stitching missing and an area of moth damage on top of the peak. The belt is very good with overall age cracking. Most of the gold remains on the buckle.
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