View source for SS-Stabsscharführer

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{{Infobox military rank
| name           = ''Stabsscharführer''<br><small>(position title or appointment)</small>
| image          = Statuszeichen HptFw WMacht, NVA und Stascha SS.svg
| caption        = appointment insignia ("double piston rings")
| image2         = 
| image3         =
| caption2       = 
| country        = {{flag|Nazi Germany}}
| service branch = {{flagicon image|Flag Schutzstaffel.svg}} [[Waffen-SS]]
| abbreviation   = Staschf
| rank           = 
senior NCOs, e.g.
*[[Sturmscharführer]]
*[[Hauptscharführer]]
*[[Oberscharführer]]
| NATO rank      = 
| Non-NATO rank  = 
| formation      = 1938
| abolished      = 1945
| higher rank    = 
| lower rank     = 
| equivalents    = ''[[Hauptfeldwebel]]''
| history        =
}}

{{multiple image
| align   = right
| caption_align = center
| header_align = center
| header    = Company sergeant major<br>(Waffen-SS / Wehrmacht)
| footer  = 
| footer_align = center
| image2  = Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-219-0597-10, Josef Niemitz.jpg
| caption2 = Heer, Luftwaffe<br>''Hauptfeldwebel''
| width2   = 140
| image1  = SS Stabsscharfuehrer Insignia.png
| caption1 = Waffen-SS<br>''SS-Stabsscharführer''
| width1   = 135
}}

'''SS-Stabsscharführer''' (short: '''Stascha'''; address: ''Stabsscharführer'' {{IPA|de|ˈʃtaːpsʃaːɐ̯fyːʁɐ|}}; {{literally|Staff squad leader}}) was not a [[Military rank|rank]],<ref>Williamson, Gordon. ''The SS: Hitler's Instrument of Terror. The Full Story from Street Fighters to the Waffen-SS.'' Osceola, WI: Motorbooks, 1994, p. 250.</ref> but a position title or appointment, mainly used in the [[Waffen-SS]], equivalent to the ''[[Hauptfeldwebel]]'' of the [[Wehrmacht]] (Heer and Luftwaffe) between the years of 1938 to 1945.

Usually it was the senior [[Non-commissioned officer|NCO]] ("senior squad leader") of his [[Company (military unit)|company-sized]] SS subunit. His duties were largely administrative and he was not expected to accompany his unit into combat. Those holding the function of SS-''Stabsscharführer'' had to be addressed ''Stabsscharführer'' regardless of the actual rank title, e.g. ''Sturmscharführer'', ''Hauptscharführer'', or infrequent ''Oberscharfüher''. The position of SS-''Stabsscharführer'' was unique to the Waffen-SS or SS command of concentration camps, and was not used by branches of the ''[[Allgemeine-SS]]'' (general SS).

In accordance with ''Hauptfeldwebel'' of Heer and Luftwaffe, the ''SS-Stabsscharführer'' had many nicknames, including ''Spieß'' ("Spear") and ''Mutter der Kompanie'' ("company mother"). He also wore two rings of NCO braid around the cuff of his sleeves, similar to the Wehrmacht.

The position of ''Stabsscharführer'' is most often considered equivalent to a [[first sergeant]] in the militaries of other nations, e.g. Commonwealth [[company sergeant major]] or U.S. company-level first sergeant.

==References==
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{{Nazi Germany Paramilitary Ranks}}

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[[Category:SS ranks]]
[[Category:Nazi paramilitary ranks]]

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