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SS stands for Schutzstaffel (which literally means 'protective squadron').
It was first formed in 1923 as a unit of the the Nazi paramilitary SA (Sturmabteilung - Stormtroopers) and did not become fully independent till 1934. The original task of the SS was to act as bodyguards for senior Nazis, but in 1925 it became Hitler's personal bodyguard. From 1929 onwards it was headed by Himmler and expanded considerably.
In 1934 the SS assumed sole responsibility for running the concentration camps and it became a central element in the Nazi terror apparatus. It was the SS that organized the Holocaust.
After what was known as the Night of Long Knives that took place on June 30- July 1, 1934, in which major components of the SA had been disovled, the SS basically became a state within a state. There was litterally no aspect of German life that the SS did not have it's hand in. One of the key figures in the SS rise to power was Reinhardt Heydrich who was head of the SD (SS security services) and later became head of the RSHA (Reich Security Main Office). Heydrich was one of the architects of the Holocaust and it was through him that major members of the Nazi Party and of the SS met at the Wansee outside of Berlin in 1942. The purpose of the meeting, was to discuss the schematics of conducting the elimination of European Jews.
Forerunners of the Waffen SS emerged in the late 1930s. In 1940 this became a kind of a 'second' German army alongside the main army the Wehrmacht (Heer).
The SS liked to think of itself as an elite group. Germans who wanted to join the SS had to prove that none of their great-grandparents had ever been Jewish. As a matter of fact, officers had to prove their heritage was free of Jewish ancestors even further back then men Enlisted in the SS. In Nazi racial ideology the SS towered high above ordinary ('Aryan') Germans. However, in World War 2 the SS also became a kind of Nazi 'foreign legion', with Ukrainian, Latvian, Bosnian, Indian, Turkish, Spanish and many more units, etc as the regular armed forces (Wehrmacht) did not accept foreigners.
The Nazi SS were considered the elite of the Nazi soldiers.
Their leader, Heinrich Himmler, was, together with many of his fellow SS, directly responsible for designing and executing the Holocaust.
It was first formed in 1923 as a unit of the the Nazi paramilitary SA (Sturmabteilung - Stormtroopers) and did not become fully independent till 1934. The original task of the SS was to act as bodyguards for senior Nazis, but in 1925 it became Hitler's personal bodyguard. From 1929 onwards it was headed by Himmler and expanded considerably.
In 1934 the SS assumed sole responsibility for running the concentration camps and it became a central element in the Nazi terror apparatus. It was the SS that organized the Holocaust.
After what was known as the Night of Long Knives that took place on June 30- July 1, 1934, in which major components of the SA had been disovled, the SS basically became a state within a state. There was litterally no aspect of German life that the SS did not have it's hand in. One of the key figures in the SS rise to power was Reinhardt Heydrich who was head of the SD (SS security services) and later became head of the RSHA (Reich Security Main Office). Heydrich was one of the architects of the Holocaust and it was through him that major members of the Nazi Party and of the SS met at the Wansee outside of Berlin in 1942. The purpose of the meeting, was to discuss the schematics of conducting the elimination of European Jews.
Forerunners of the Waffen SS emerged in the late 1930s. In 1940 this became a kind of a 'second' German army alongside the main army the Wehrmacht (Heer).
The SS liked to think of itself as an elite group. Germans who wanted to join the SS had to prove that none of their great-grandparents had ever been Jewish. As a matter of fact, officers had to prove their heritage was free of Jewish ancestors even further back then men Enlisted in the SS. In Nazi racial ideology the SS towered high above ordinary ('Aryan') Germans. However, in World War 2 the SS also became a kind of Nazi 'foreign legion', with Ukrainian, Latvian, Bosnian, Indian, Turkish, Spanish and many more units, etc as the regular armed forces (Wehrmacht) did not accept foreigners.
The Nazi SS were considered the elite of the Nazi soldiers.
Their leader, Heinrich Himmler, was, together with many of his fellow SS, directly responsible for designing and executing the Holocaust.
First answer by ID3636769276. Last edit by Joncey. Contributor trust: 3171 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 105 [recommend question]
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