(1887--1934), Nazi leader and head of the Storm Troopers (SA). Originally, Rohm was an ally of Adolf Hitler. He was one of the first members of the Nazi Party, and joined the SA when it was established in 1921. In 1923 Rohm fought alongside Hitler in his unsuccessful bid to take over the Bavarian government. Rohm was found guilty of treason but was freed the same day.
After the coup, Rohm began calling for a violent seizure of power, while Hitler condoned using legal means. This disagreement led Rohm to resign the SA leadership and move to Bolivia. After the Nazi victory in the 1930 elections, Hitler called Rohm back to Germany to revitalize the SA. In less than four years Rohm helped it grow from 70,000 to 4.5 million members.
After Hitler rose to power in 1933, Rohm wanted to incorporate the SA into the German Army. Many army officers opposed this plan, and Hitler feared that Rohm would try to seize power as the head of a military government. Thus, Hitler ordered the liquidation of the SA. On June 30, 1934 Rohm and other SA leaders were arrested and shot---this purge was later called "The Night of the Long Knives."
