National-Socialist Motor Corps Identification Card

Nationalsozialistisches Kraftfahrkorps, Ausweis

by Bruce Kipp

In April 1930, Nazi Party Chief of Staff Martin Bormann ordered creation of a National-Socialist Automobile Corps (Nationalsozialistisches Automobil Korps — NSAK), a nation-wide formation of Nazi Party members who owned a car or motorcycle and could provide transport to Nazi Party activities. As early as 1928, the Storm Troops (Sturmabteilung — SA), who already had motorized units for that purpose, saw NSAK as a rival. The SA organized its motor units into a branch, the Motor-SA, whose members were automatically enrolled in NSAK, but not the reverse.

The NSAK was led by Adolf Hühnlein who also led the Motor-SA. Ostensibly a civilian group, all NSAK leaders were SA officers. Late in 1930, Hühnlein changed the group’s name to the National-Socialist Motor Corps (Nationalsozialistisches Kraftfahrkorps — NSKK).

In July 1933, the NSKK took control of all civilian motoring clubs. During Hitler’s purge of the SA in mid-1934, the Motor-SA was transferred to the NSKK which became an independent Nazi Party auxiliary organization. When Austria was annexed into the Reich in March 1938, NSKK membership had reached more than 500,000.

A few months prior to the outbreak of WWII, it was decided that training of military drivers would take place at NSKK Motor Sports Schools. After war broke out in September 1939, the NSKK supported defensive military activities within Germany and offensive operations in the occupied territories with transportation services and traffic control of military convoys. In Germany, the NSKK held pre-induction driver’s training for the Hitler Youth, the National Labor Service and the National Air Raid Protection Service and assisted other organizations.

The NSKK was led by NSKK-Korpsführer Adolf Hühnlein from 1934 to 1942. He died of illness in 1942 and was succeeded by NSKK-Korpsführer Erwin Kraus from 1942 to 1945.