Chapter VII: ), was made possible by the following Cabinet laws: Law of 4 (3)

Goering’s intention to employ the SA as a terroristic force to destroy political opponents is shown by a speech made by him on 3 March, 1933, at a Nazi demonstration in Frankfurt Am Main (_1856-PS_). Goering spoke as follows:

“Certainly, I shall use the power of the State and the police to
the utmost, my dear Communists! So you won’t draw any false
conclusions by the struggle to the death in which my fist will
grasp your necks, I shall lead with those down there. Those are
the Brown Shirts.” (_1856-PS_)

The importance of the SA under Goering in the early stages of the Nazi movement is shown by a letter written to Goering by Hitler (_3259-PS_):

“My dear Goering:

“When in November 1923 the Party tried for the first time to
conquer the power of the State, you as Commander of the SA
created within an extraordinarily short time that instrument
with which I could bear that struggle. Highest necessity had
forced us to act, but a wise providence at that time denied the
success. After receiving a grave wound you again entered the
ranks as soon as circumstances permitted as my most loyal
comrade in the battle for power. You contributed essentially to
creating the basis for the 30th of January. Therefore, at the
end of a year of the National Socialist Revolution, I desire to
thank you wholeheartedly, my dear Party Comrade Goering, for the
great values which you have for the National Socialist
Revolution and consequently for the German people.

“In cordial friendship and grateful appreciation.

“Yours,
“(s) Adolf Hitler!” (_3259-PS_)

Although Goering did not retain command of the SA, he at all times maintained a close affiliation with the organization. This is shown by the photographs of Goering participating in SA activities which have been mentioned previously. In 1937, Goering became Commander of the _Feldherrnhalle_ Regiment of the SA. This was the Regiment which was employed in the occupation of the Sudetenland. (_3214-PS_)

* * * * *

LEGAL REFERENCES AND LIST OF DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE STURMABTEILUNG
(SA)

│ │ │
Document │ Description │ Vol. │ Page
│ │ │
│Charter of the International Military │ │
│ Tribunal, Article 9. │ I │ 6
│International Military Tribunal, │ │
│ Indictment Number 1, Section IV (H);│ │
│ Appendix B. │ I │ 29, 72
│ ———— │ │
│Note: A single asterisk (*) before a │ │
│document indicates that the document │ │
│was received in evidence at the │ │
│Nurnberg trial. A double asterisk (**)│ │
│before a document number indicates │ │
│that the document was referred to │ │
│during the trial but was not formally │ │
│received in evidence, for the reason │ │
│given in parentheses following the │ │
│description of the document. The USA │ │
│series number, given in parentheses │ │
│following the description of the │ │
│document, is the official exhibit │ │
│number assigned by the court. │ │
│ ———— │ │
392-PS │Official NSDAP circular entitled “The │ │
│Social Life of New Germany with │ │
│Special Consideration of the German │ │
│Labor Front”, by Prof. Willy Mueller │ │
│(Berlin, 1938). (USA 326) │ III │ 380
│ │ │
*787-PS │Memorandum to Hitler from Public │ │
│Prosecutor of Dresden, 18 June 1935, │ │
│concerning criminal procedure against │ │
│Vogel on account of bodily injury │ │
│while in office. (USA 421) │ III │ 568
│ │ │
*1395-PS │Law to insure the unity of Party and │ │
│State, 1 December 1933. 1933 │ │
│Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, p. 1016. │ │
│(GB 252) │ III │ 978
│ │ │
*1721-PS │Confidential report of SA │ │
│Brigadefuehrer, November 1938, │ │
│concerning destruction of Jewish │ │
│property. (USA 425) │ IV │ 214
│ │ │
1725-PS │Decree enforcing law for securing the │ │
│unity of Party and State, 29 March │ │
│1935. 1935 Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, │ │
│p. 502. │ IV │ 224
│ │ │
*1759-PS │Affidavit of Raymond H. Geist. (USA │ │
│420) │ IV │ 288
│ │ │
*1856-PS │Extract from book entitled “Hermann │ │
│Goering—Speeches and Essays”, 3rd │ │
│edition 1939, p. 27. (USA 437) │ IV │ 496
│ │ │
*1893-PS │Extracts from Organization Book of the│ │
│NSDAP, 1943 edition. (USA 323) │ IV │ 529
│ │ │
*2168-PS │Book by SA Sturmfuehrer Dr. Ernst │ │
│Bayer, entitled “The SA”, depicting │ │
│the history, work, aim and │ │
│organization of the SA. (USA 411) │ IV │ 772
│ │ │
2260-PS │Settlement of Relationship between │ │
│NSDAP and Stahlhelm (Steel Helmets) │ │
│published in National Socialist Party │ │
│Press Service release, 21 June 1933. │ IV │ 933
│ │ │
*2354-PS │Extracts from Organization Book of │ │
│NSDAP, 5th, 6th and 7th editions, │ │
│concerning SA. (USA 430) (See Chart │ │
│No. 17.) │ IV │ 1091
│ │ │
*2383-PS │Ordinance for execution of decree of │ │
│Fuehrer concerning position of the │ │
│Head of Party Chancellery of 16 │ │
│January 1942, published in Decrees, │ │
│Regulations, Announcements. (USA 410) │ V │ 9
│ │ │
*2407-PS │Order concerning the Roehm purge and │ │
│appointment of Lutze as Chief of │ │
│Staff, published in Voelkischer │ │
│Beobachter, 1934. (USA 412) │ V │ 82
│ │ │
*2471-PS │Pamphlet No. 12 in a series entitled │ │
│“Here Speaks the New German”. Speech │ │
│made in January 1936 by Victor Lutze, │ │
│Chief of Staff of SA, subject: “The │ │
│Affairs and Tasks of SA”. (USA 413) │ V │ 211
│ │ │
2532-PS │Extract from The Third Reich, by Gerd │ │
│Ruehle. │ V │ 268
│ │ │
*2660-PS │Distribution Plan for Gaue, Kreise, │ │
│and Ortsgruppen, from The Bearers of │ │
│Sovereignty, 2nd Issue, 3rd Year, │ │
│February 1939. (USA 325) │ V │ 365
│ │ │
*2760-PS │Extract from Mein Kampf by Adolf │ │
│Hitler, 1933 edition. (USA 256) │ V │ 396
│ │ │
*2820-PS │General Service Regulations for the SA│ │
│of the NSDAP, published in Munich, 12 │ │
│December 1933. (USA 427) │ V │ 456
│ │ │
2821-PS │Memorandum from Supreme SA │ │
│Headquarters, 19 March 1934, │ │
│concerning organization of the SA and │ │
│collaboration between Wehrmacht and │ │
│SA. (USA 431) │ V │ 458
│ │ │
2822-PS │Letter from the Reich Military │ │
│Ministry, 26 May 1933, suggesting that│ │
│an SA branch and Reich Defense Council│ │
│be united. │ V │ 459
│ │ │
*2823-PS │Memorandum of SA Headquarters, January│ │
│1934, concerning assignment of │ │
│Wehrmacht officer to Training Division│ │
│of SA. (USA 429) │ V │ 459
│ │ │
*2824-PS │Extract from book entitled │ │
│“Concentration Camp Oranienburg”. (USA│ │
│423) │ V │ 461
│ │ │
**3036-PS │Affidavit of Gottlob Berger on the │ │
│composition and activity of the │ │
│Henlein Free Corps in September 1938. │ │
│(Objection to admission in evidence │ │
│upheld.) (USA 102) │ V │ 742
│ │ │
**3050-A-E-PS │Excerpts from The SA Man. (USA 414; │ │
│USA 415; USA 416; USA 417; USA 418) │ │
│(Referred to but not offered in │ │
│evidence.) │ V │ 777
│ │ │
*3054-PS │“The Nazi Plan”, script of a motion │ │
│picture composed of captured German │ │
│film. (USA 167) │ V │ 801
│ │ │
*3211-PS │Goebbels to the SA, 17 October 1935, │ │
│from The Archive, Vol. 19, October │ │
│1935, p. 939. (USA 419) │ V │ 928
│ │ │
3212-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 34, │ │
│January 1937, p. 1452. │ V │ 929
│ │ │
3213-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 50, May│ │
│1938, pp. 156-157. │ V │ 929
│ │ │
3214-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 55, │ │
│October 1938, p. 1069. (USA 432) │ V │ 930
│ │ │
*3215-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 60, │ │
│March 1939, p. 1834. (USA 426) │ V │ 930
│ │ │
*3216-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 97, │ │
│April 1942, p. 54. (USA 434) │ V │ 933
│ │ │
3217-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 97, │ │
│April 1942, p. 54. │ V │ 933
│ │ │
3218-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, October │ │
│1933, pp. 482-485. │ V │ 934
│ │ │
*3219-PS │Excerpt from The Archive, Vol. 125, │ │
│August 1944, p. 367. (USA 433) │ V │ 934
│ │ │
*3220-PS │Excerpt from Organization Book of │ │
│NSDAP, 1943 edition, p. 358. (USA 323)│ V │ 935
│ │ │
*3221-PS │Affidavit of William F. Sollman, 26 │ │
│October 1945. (USA 422) │ V │ 936
│ │ │
*3232-PS │Affidavit of Walter Schellenberg, 26 │ │
│November 1945. (USA 435) │ V │ 937
│ │ │
*3252-PS │Extract from book Hermann Goering, The│ │
│Man and His Work, by Eric Gritzbach, │ │
│1937. (USA 424) │ V │ 957
│ │ │
*3259-PS │Extract from book Hermann Goering, The│ │
│Man and His Work, by Eric Gritzbach, │ │
│p. 69. (USA 424) │ V │ 1007
│ │ │
*D-44 │Circular, 25 July 1933, referring to │ │
│publications of SA activities. (USA │ │
│428) │ VI │ 1024
│ │ │
Affidavit F │Affidavit of Josef Dietrich, 20-21 │ │
│November 1945. │ VIII │ 631
│ │ │
L-198 │State Department Dispatch by Consul │ │
│General Messersmith, 14 March 1933, │ │
│concerning molesting of American │ │
│citizens in Berlin. │ VII │ 1026
│ │ │
L-199 │Newspaper clippings from Berliner │ │
│Tageblatt, 29 March 1933, regarding │ │
│boycott action. │ VII │ 1034
│ │ │
Statement IX │My Relationship to Adolf Hitler and to│ │
│the Party, by Erich Raeder, Moscow, │ │
│fall 1945. │ VIII │ 707
│ │ │
Statement XIII │Outline of Defense of Dr. Robert Ley, │ │
│written in Nurnberg prison, 24 October│ │
│1945. │ VIII │ 749
│ │ │
**Chart No. 8 │Organization of the SA. (Enlargement │
│displayed to Tribunal.) │ End of VIII
│ │ │
*Chart No. 17 │Foreign Organization of the NSDAP. │
│(2354-PS; USA 430) │ End of VIII

5. THE SCHUTZSTAFFELN (SS)

In the early weeks of the trial, there appeared in a newspaper circulated in Nurnberg an account of a correspondent’s visit to a camp in which SS prisoners of war were confined. The thing which particularly struck the correspondent was the one question asked by the SS prisoners: Why are we charged as war criminals? What have we done except our normal duty?

The evidence which follows will answer that question. It will show that just as the Nazi Party was the core of the conspiracy, so the SS was the very essence of Nazism. For the SS was the elite group of the Party, composed of the most thorough-going adherents of the Nazi cause, pledged to blind devotion to Nazi principles, and prepared to carry them out without any question and at any cost. It was a group in which every ordinary value was so subverted that today its members can ask, what is there unlawful about the things we have done?

In the evidence of the conspirators’ program for aggressive war, for concentration camps, for the extermination of the Jews, for enslavement of foreign labor and illegal use of prisoners of war and for the deportation and Germanization of inhabitants of conquered territories, in all this evidence the name of the SS runs like a thread. Again and again that organization and its components are referred to. It performed a responsible role in each of these criminal activities, because it was and indeed had to be a criminal organization.

The creation and development of such an organization was essential for the execution of the conspirators’ plans. Their sweeping program and the measures they were prepared to use and did use, could be fully accomplished neither through the machinery of the government nor of the Party. Things had to be done for which no agency of government and no political party even the Nazi Party, would openly take full responsibility. A specialized type of apparatus was needed—an apparatus which was to some extent connected with the government and given official support, but which, at the same time, could maintain a quasi-independent status so that all its acts could be attributed neither to the government nor to the Party as a whole. The SS was that apparatus.

Like the SA, it was one of the seven components or formations of the Nazi Party referred to in the Decree on Enforcement of the Law for Securing the Unity of Party and State of 29 March 1935 (_1725-PS_). But its status was above that of the other formations. As the plans of the conspirators progressed, it acquired new functions, new responsibilities, and an increasingly more important place in the regime. It developed during the course of the conspiracy into a highly complex machine, the most powerful in the Nazi State, spreading its tentacles into every field of Nazi activity.

The evidence which follows will be directed toward showing first, the origin and early development of the SS; second, how it was organized—that is, its structure and its component parts; third, the basic principles governing the selection of its members and the obligations they undertook; and finally, its aims and the means used to accomplish them.

The history, organization, and publicly announced functions of the SS are not controversial matters. They are not matters to be learned only from secret files and captured documents. They were recounted in many publications, circulated widely throughout Germany and the world—in official books of the Nazi Party itself, and in books, pamphlets, and speeches by SS and State officials published with SS and Party approval. Throughout this section there will be frequent reference to and quotation from a few such publications.

A. _Origin and General Functions of the SS._

(1) _Origin._ The first aim of the conspirators was to gain a foothold in politically hostile territory, to acquire mastery of the street, and to combat any and all opponents with force. For that purpose they needed their own private, personal police organization. The SA was created to fill such a role. But the SA was outlawed in 1923. When Nazi Party activity was again resumed in 1925, the SA remained outlawed. To fill its place and to play the part of Hitler’s own personal police, small mobile groups known as protective squadrons—_Schutzstaffel_—were created. This was the origin of the SS in 1925. With the reinstatement of the SA in 1926, the SS for the next few years ceased to play a major role. But it continued to exist as an organization within the SA—under its own leader, however—the Reichsfuehrer SS.

This early history of the SS is related in two authoritative publications. The first is a book by SS Standartenfuehrer Gunter d’Alquen entitled “The SS” (_2284-PS_). This pamphlet of some 30 pages, published in 1939, is an authoritative account of the history, mission, and organization of the SS. As indicated on its fly leaf, it was written at the direction of the Reichsfuehrer SS, Heinrich Himmler. Its author was the editor of the official SS publication “_Das Schwarze Korps_”. The second publication is an article by Himmler, entitled “Organization and Obligations of the SS and the Police.” It was published in 1937 in a booklet containing a series of speeches or essays by important officials of the Party and the State, and known as “National Political Course for the Armed Forces from 15 to 23 January 1937”. (_1992-A-PS_)

As early as 1929, the conspirators recognized that their plans required an organization in which the main principles of the Nazi system, specifically the racial principles, would not only be jealously guarded but would be carried to such extremes as to inspire or intimidate the rest of the population. Such an organization would also have to be assured complete freedom on the part of the leaders and blind obedience on the part of the members. The SS was built up to meet this need. The following statement appears on page 7 of d’Alquen’s book, “_Die SS_” (_2284-PS_):

“On the 16th of January, 1929, Adolf Hitler appointed his tested
comrade of long standing, Heinrich Himmler, as Reichsfuehrer SS.
Heinrich Himmler assumed charge therewith of the entire
_Schutzstaffel_ totaling at the time 280 men, with the express
and particular commission of the Fuehrer to form of this
organization an elite troop of the Party, a troop dependable in
every circumstance. With this day the real history of the SS
begins as it stands before us today in all its deeper essential
features, firmly anchored into the national Socialist movement.
For the SS and its Reichsfuehrer, Heinrich Himmler, its first SS
man, have become inseparable in the course of these
battle-filled years.” (_2284-PS_)

Carrying out Hitler’s directive, Himmler proceeded to build up out of this small force of men an elite organization which, to use d’Alquen’s words, was “composed of the best physically, the most dependable, and the most faithful men in the Nazi movement.” As d’Alquen further states, at page 12 of his book:

“When the day of seizure of power had finally come, there were
52,000 SS men, who in this spirit bore the revolution in the
van, marched into the new State which they began to help form
everywhere, in their stations and positions, in profession and
in science, and in all their essential tasks.” (_2284-PS_)

(2) _General Functions._ The conspirators now had the machinery of government in their hands. The initial function of the SS—that of acting as their private army and personal police force—was thus completed. But its mission had in fact really just begun. That mission is described in the Organizations book of the NSDAP for 1943 as follows:

“_Missions_

“The most original and most eminent duty of the SS is to serve
as the protector of the Fuehrer.

“By order of the Fuehrer its sphere of duties has been amplified
to include the internal security of the Reich.” (_2640-PS_)

This new mission—protecting the internal security of the regime—was somewhat more colorfully described by Himmler in his pamphlet, “The SS as an Anti-bolshevist Fighting Organization,” published in 1936 (_1851-PS_):

“We shall unremittingly fulfill our task, the guaranty of the
security of Germany from the interior, just as the _Wehrmacht_
guarantees the safety, the honor, the greatness, and the peace
of the Reich from the exterior. We shall take care that never
again in Germany, the heart of Europe, will the
Jewish-Bolshevistic revolution of subhumans be able to be
kindled either from within or through emissaries from without.
Without pity we shall be a merciless sword of justice for all
those forces whose existence and activity we know, on the day of
the slightest attempt, may it be today, may it be in decades or
may it be in centuries.” (_1851-PS_)

This conception necessarily required an extension of the duties of the SS into many fields. It involved, of course, the performance of police functions. But it involved more. It required participation in the suppression and extermination of all internal opponents of the regime. It meant participation in extending the regime beyond the borders of Germany, and eventually, participation in every type of activity designed to secure a hold over those territories and populations which, through military conquest, had come under German domination.

B. _Organization and Branches of the SS._

The expansion of SS duties and activities resulted in the creation of several branches and numerous departments and the development of a highly complex machinery. Although those various branches and departments cannot be adequately described out of the context of their history, a few words about the structure of the SS may be useful.

For this purpose reference is made to the chart depicting the organization of the SS as it appeared in 1945. This chart was examined by Gottlob Berger, formerly Chief of the SS Main Office, who stated in an attached affidavit that it correctly represents the organization of the SS (_Chart Number 3_).

(1) _Supreme Command of the SS._ At the very top of the chart is Himmler, the Reichsfuehrer SS, who commanded the entire organization. Immediately below, running across the chart and down the right hand side, embraced within the heavy line, are the twelve main departments constituting the Supreme Command of the SS. Some of these departments have been broken down into the several offices of which they were composed, as indicated by the boxes beneath them. Other departments have not been so broken down. It is not intended to indicate that there were not subdivisions of these latter departments as well. The breakdown is shown only in those cases where the constituent offices of some department may have a particular significance in this case.

These departments and their functions are described in two official Nazi publications: The first is the Organizations Book of the NSDAP for 1943, at pages 419-422 (_2640-PS_). The second is an SS manual, which bears the title: “The Soldier Friend—Pocket Diary for the German Armed Forces—Edition D: Waffen SS” (_2825-PS_). It was prepared at the direction of the Reichsfuehrer SS and issued by the SS Main Office for the year ending 1942. In addition, the departments are listed in a directory of the SS published by one of the Main Departments of the SS (_2769-PS_). This document was found in the files of the Personal Staff of the Reichsfuehrer SS. It is entitled “Directory for the _Schutzstaffel_ of the NSDAP, 1 November 1944”, marked “Restricted”, and bears the notation “Published by SS Fuerhungshauptamt, Kommandant of the General SS. Berlin—Wilmersdorf.”

Returning to the chart, following down the central spine from the Reichsfuehrer SS to the regional level, the Higher SS and Police Leaders, the supreme SS commanders in each region are reached. Immediately below these officials is the breakdown of the organization of the Allgemeine or General SS. To the left are indicated two other branches of the SS—the Death Head Units (_Totenkopf Verbaende_) and the Waffen SS. To the right under the HSS Pf is the SD. All of which, together with the SS Police Regiments, are specifically named in the Indictment (Appendix B) as being included in the SS.

(2) _Principal Branches of the SS._ Up to 1933 there were no such specially designated branches. The SS was a single group, made up of “volunteer political soldiers.” It was out of this original nucleus that new units developed.

(_a_) _The Allgemeine SS._ The Allgemeine (General) SS was the main stem from which the various branches grew. It was composed of all members of the SS who did not belong to any of the special branches. It was the backbone of the entire organization. The personnel and officers of the Main Departments of the SS Supreme Command were members of this branch. Except for high ranking officers and those remaining in staff capacities, as in the Main Offices of the SS Supreme Command, its members were part-time volunteers. Its members were utilized in about every phase of SS activity. They were called upon in anti-Jewish pogroms of 1938; they took over the task of guarding concentration camps during the war; they participated in the colonization and resettlement program. In short, the term “SS” normally meant the General SS.

It was organized on military lines as will be seen from the chart (_Chart Number 3_), ranging from district and subdistrict down through the regiment, battalion, and company, to the platoon. Until after the beginning of the war it constituted numerically the largest branch of the SS. In 1939 d’Alquen, the official SS spokesmen, said, in his book, “The SS” (_2284-PS_):

“The strength of the General SS, 240,000 men, is subdivided
today into 14 corps, 38 divisions, 140 infantry regiments, 19
mounted regiments, 14 communication battalions and 19 engineer
battalions as well as motorized and medical units. This General
SS stands fully and wholly on call as in the fighting years,
except for one small part of the chief leaders and men. The
corps, which are presently led by a Lt. General or Major
General, are subdivided into divisions, regiments, battalions
and companies.” (_2284-PS_)

Similar reference to the military organization of the General SS will be found in Himmler’s speech, “Organization and Obligations of the SS and the Police” (_1992-A-PS_), and in the Organizations Book of the NSDAP for 1943 (_2640-PS_). Members of this branch, however,—with the exception of certain staff personnel—were subject to compulsory military service. As a result of the draft of members of the General SS of military age into the Army, the numerical strength of presently active members considerably declined during the war. Older SS men and those working in or holding high positions in the Main Departments of the Supreme Command of the SS remained. Its entire strength during the war was probably not in excess of 40,000 men.

(_b_) _The SD._ The second component to be mentioned is the Security Service of the Reichsfuehrer SS, almost always referred to as the SD. Himmler described the SD in these words (_1992-A-PS_):

“I now come to the Security Service (SD); it is the great
ideological intelligence service of the Party and, in the long
run, also that of the State. During the time of struggle for
power it was only the intelligence service of the SS. At that
time we had, for quite natural reasons, an intelligence service
with the regiments, battalions and companies. We had to know
what was going on on the opponents side, whether the Communists
intended to hold a meeting today or not, whether our people were
to be suddenly attacked or not, and similar things. I separated
this service already in 1931 from the troops, from the units of
the General SS, because I considered it to be wrong. For one
thing, the secrecy is endangered, then the individual men, or
even the companies, are too likely to discuss everyday
problems.” (_1992-A-PS_)

Although, as Himmler put it, the SD was only the intelligence service of the SS during the years preceding the accession of the Nazis to power, it became a much more important organization promptly thereafter. It had been developed into such a powerful and scientific espionage system under its chief, Reinhard Heydrich, that on 9 June 1934, just a few weeks before the bloody purge of the SA, it was made, by decree of Hess, the sole intelligence and counter-intelligence agency of the entire Nazi Party (_2284-PS_). Its organization and numbers, as they stood in 1937, were thus described by Himmler (_1992-A-PS_):

“The Security Service was already separated from the troop in
1931 and separately organized. Its higher headquarters, coincide
today with the _Oberabschnitte_ and _Abschnitte_—[that is, the
districts and subdistricts of the General SS]—and it has also
field offices, its own organization of officials with a great
many Command Posts, approximately three to four thousand men
strong, at least when it is built up.” (_1992-A-PS_)

Up to 1939 its headquarters was the SS Main Security Office (_Sicherheitshauptamt_), which became amalgamated in 1939 into the Reich Main Security Office (or RSHA), one of the SS main departments shown on the chart (_Chart Number 3_).

The closer and closer collaboration of the SD with the Gestapo and Criminal Police (Kripo), which eventually resulted in the creation of the RSHA, as well as the activities in which the SD engaged in partnership with the Gestapo are discussed in Section 6 on the Gestapo. The SD was, of course, at all times an integral and important component of the SS. But it is more practicable to deal with it in connection with the activities of the whole repressive police system with which it functioned.

(_c_) _The Waffen SS._ The third component is the Waffen SS, the combat arm of the SS, which was created, trained, and finally utilized for the purposes of aggressive war. The reason underlying the creation of this combat branch was described in the Organizations Book of the Nazi Party for 1943:

“The Waffen SS originated out of the thought: to create for the
Fuehrer a selected long service troop for the fulfillment of
special missions. It was to render it possible for members of
the General SS, as well as for volunteers who fulfill the
special requirements of the SS, to fight in the battle for the
evolution of the National Socialist idea, with weapon in hand,
in unified groups, partly within the framework of the Army.”
(_2640-PS_)

The term “Waffen SS” did not come into use until after the beginning of the war. Up to that time there were two branches of the SS composed of fulltime, professional, well-trained soldiers: the so-called _SS Verfuegungstruppe_, translatable perhaps as “SS Emergency Troops”; and the _SS Totenkopf Verbaende_, the “Death Head Units.” After the beginning of the war, the units of the _SS Verfuegungstruppe_ were brought up to division strength, and new divisions were added to them. Moreover, parts of the SS Death Head Units were formed into a division, the _SS Totenkopf Division_. All these divisions then came to be known collectively as the “Waffen SS”.

This development is traced in the Organization Book of the Nazi Party for 1943:

“The origin of the Waffen SS goes back to the decree of 17 March
1933, establishing the “Stabswache” with an original strength of
120 men. Out of this small group developed the later-called SS
Verfuegungstruppe (SS Emergency Force).” (_2640-PS_)

The function and status of the _SS Verfuegungstruppe_ are described in a Top Secret Hitler order, 17 August 1938 (_647-PS_). That order provides, in part:

* * * * * *

“II. The Armed Units of the SS.

“A. (The _SS Verfuegungstruppe_)

“1. The _SS Verfuegungstruppe_ is neither a part of the
Wehrmacht nor a part of the police. It is a standing armed unit
exclusively at my disposal. As such and as a unit of the NSDAP
its members are to be selected by the Reichsfuehrer SS according
to the philosophical and political standards which I have
ordered for the NSDAP and for the _Schutzstaffel_. Its members
are to be trained and its ranks filled with volunteers from
those who are subject to serve in the army who have finished
their duties in the obligatory labor service. The service period
for volunteers is for 4 years. It may be prolonged for _SS
Unterfuehrer_. Such regulations are in force for SS leaders. The
regular compulsory military service (par. 8 of the law relating
to military service) is fulfilled by service of the same amount
of time in the _SS Verfuegungstruppe_.”

* * * * * *

“III. Orders for the Case of Mobilization.

“A. The employment of the _SS Verfuegungstruppe_ in case of
mobilization is a double one.

“1. By the Supreme Commander of the Army within the wartime
army. In that case it comes completely under military laws and
regulations, but remains a unit of the NSDAP politically.

“2. In case of necessity in the interior according to my orders,
in that case it is under the Reichsfuehrer SS and chief of the
German Police.

“In case of mobilization I myself will make the decision about
the time, strength and manner of the incorporation of the _SS
Verfuegungstruppe_ into the wartime army, these things will
depend on the inner-political situation at that time.”
(_647-PS_)

Immediately after the issuance of this decree, this militarized force was employed with the Army for aggressive purposes—the taking over of the Sudetenland. Following this action, feverish preparations to motorize the force and to organize new units, such as antitank, machine gun, and reconnaissance battalions, were undertaken pursuant to further directives of the Fuehrer. By September 1939, the force was fully motorized, its units had been increased to division strength, and it was prepared for combat. These steps are described in the National Socialist Yearbook for the years 1940 (_2164-PS_) and 1941 (_2163-PS_). The Yearbook was an official publication of the Nazi Party, edited by Reichsleiter Robert Ley and published by the Nazi Party publishing company.

After the launching of the Polish invasion, and as the war progressed, still further divisions were added. The Organizations Book of the Nazi Party for 1943 (_2640-PS_) lists some eight divisions and two infantry brigades as existing at the end of 1942. This was no longer a mere emergency force. It was an SS army and hence came to be designated as the “Waffen SS” that is, “Armed” or “Combat” SS. Himmler referred to the spectacular development of this SS combat branch in his speech at Posen on 4 October 1943 to SS Gruppenfuehrers, in these terms:

“* * * Now I come to our own development, to that of the SS in
the past months. Looking back on the whole war, this development
was fantastic. It took place at an absolutely terrific speed.
Let us look back a little to 1939. At that time we were a few
regiments, guard units (_Wachverbande_) 8 to 9,000 strong,—that
is, not even a division, all in all 25 to 28,000 men at the
outside. True, we were armed, but really only got our artillery
regiment as our heavy arm two months before the war began.”

* * * * * *

“In the hard battles of this year, the Waffen-SS has been welded
together in the bitterest hours from the most varied divisions
and sections, and from these it formed: bodyguard units
(_Leibstandarte_), military SS (_Verfuegungstruppe_), Death’s
Head Units, and then the Germanic SS. Now when our ‘Reich’,
Death’s Head Cavalry Divisions and ‘Viking’ Divisions were
there, everyone knew in these last weeks: ‘Viking’ is at my
side, ‘Reich’ is at my side, ‘Death’s Head’ is at my
side,—‘Thank God’ now nothing can happen to us.” (_1919-PS_)

The transformation of a small emergency force into a vast combat Army did not result in any separation of this branch from the SS. Although tactically under the command of the _Wehrmacht_ while in the field, it remained as much a part of the SS as any other branch of that organization. Throughout the war it was recruited, trained, administered and supplied by the main offices of the SS Supreme Command. Ideologically and racially its members were selected in conformity with SS standards, as shown by the recruiting standards of the Waffen SS published in the SS manual, “The Soldier Friend” (_2825-PS_). A section of that manual entitled “The Way to the Waffen SS,” reads:

“Today at last is the longed-for day of the entrance examination
where the examiners and physicians decide whether or not the
candidate is ideologically and physically qualified to do
service in the Armed Forces SS.

“Everyone has acquainted himself with the comprehensive Manual
for the Waffen SS; the principal points are as follows:

“1. Service in the Armed Forces SS counts as military service.
Only volunteers are accepted.”

* * * * * *

“3. Every pure-blooded German in good health between the ages of
17 and 45 can become a member of the armed forces SS. He must
meet all the requirements of the SS, must be of excellent
character, have no criminal record, and be an ardent adherent to
all Nazi socialist doctrines. Members of the _Streifendienst_
and of the _Landdienst_ of the Hitler Youth will be given
preference because their aptitudes, qualities and schooling are
indicative that they have become acquainted very early with the
ideology of the SS.”

* * * * * *

“In all cases of doubt or difficulty the recruiting offices of
the Waffen SS will advise and aid volunteers. They have branches
over the entire Reich, always at the seat of the Service Command
Headquarters, and work closely with the recruiting of the Waffen
SS in the Main Office (SS Hauptamt) of the Reichsfuehrer SS.”
(_2825-PS_)

The recruiting activities of the SS Main Office are illustrated by its recruiting pamphlet, “The SS Calls You,” an elaborate illustrated booklet containing full information covering the Waffen SS:

“If you answer the call of the Waffen SS and volunteer to join
the ranks of the great Front of SS Divisions, you will belong to
a corps which has from the very beginning been directed toward
outstanding achievements, and, because of this fact, has
developed an especially deep feeling of comradeship. You will be
bearing arms with a corps that embraces the most valuable
elements of the young German generation. Over and above that you
will be especially bound to the National Socialist ideology.”
(_3429-PS_)

The SS Main Office, through which these recruiting activities were conducted, was one of the principal departments of the SS Supreme Command. It is shown on the chart (the second box from the left) (_Chart Number 3_). In the breakdown of that department, shown by the boxes underneath, will be found the central recruiting office.

Other departments of the Supreme Command performed other functions in connection with the Waffen SS. The SS Operational Headquarters (_SS Fuehrungshauptamt_)—the fifth box from the left—contains the Command Headquarters of the Waffen SS (_Chart Number 3_). The functions of this department are thus defined in the SS Manual, “The Soldier Friend”:

“In the _Fuehrungshauptamt_ the command office of the Waffen SS
handles tasks of military leadership: Training and organization
of the units of the Waffen SS, supply of the troops with arms,
equipment and ammunition, procurement of motor vehicles for the
Waffen SS and General SS, personnel and disciplinary affairs.”
(_2825-PS_)

The SS Legal Main Office (_Hauptamt SS Gericht_) (indicated on the chart by the second box from the top on the right hand side within the heavy embracing line—(_Chart Number 3_)) controlled the administration of courts-martial and discipline within the Waffen SS. The secret Hitler order of 17 August 1938 (_647-PS_) had, it is true, provided that in the event of mobilization the SS militarized forces should come completely under military laws and regulations. That provision was modified by subsequent enactments: The decree of 17 October 1939 relating to special jurisdiction in penal matters for members of the SS and for members of police groups on special tasks (_2946-PS_); and the decree of 17 April 1940, entitled “Second Decree for the Implementation of the Decree Relating to a Special Jurisdiction in Penal Matters for Members of the SS” (_2947-PS_). These two decrees established a special jurisdiction in penal matters for various classes of SS members, including members of the SS militarized units, in cases which would ordinarily fall under the jurisdiction of the _Wehrmacht_; and created special SS courts to handle such cases under the direction of the SS Legal Main Office. Thus, in the vital question of discipline, as well as in recruiting, administration, and supply, the Waffen SS was subject to the SS Supreme Command.

The place of the Waffen SS as an integral part of the entire SS organization was strongly emphasized by Himmler in his address to officers of the _SS Leibstandarte_ “Adolf Hitler” on the “Day of Metz”:

“You must also consider the following: I cannot concentrate my
mind solely on—now, please don’t become conceited—the most
splendid part of the SS because it _is_ the most positive part
and because the trade you are following _is_ the most positive
and most manly. I cannot do that. I must always have the
_entire_ SS in my mind.

“If I did not see this part, I would deny life to this most
positive and most manly part of our activity; i.e., the Armed
SS. I would deny your life. Because this armed SS will live only
if the entire SS is alive. If the entire corps is actually an
order which lives according to these laws and realizes that one
part cannot exist without the other—you are unimaginable
without the General SS, and the latter is not imaginable without
you. The police is not imaginable without the SS, nor are we
imaginable without this executive branch of the state which is
in our hands.” (_1918-PS_)

(_d_) _The Totenkopf Verbaende._

The fourth component to be mentioned is the SS Death Head Units (_SS Totenkopf Verbaende_). Their origin and purpose are succinctly described by d’Alquen on page 20 of his book, “_Die SS_”:

“The SS Death Head Units form one part of the garrisoned SS.
They arose from volunteers of the General SS who were recruited
for the guarding of concentration camps in 1933.

“Their mission, aside from the indoctrination of the armed
political soldier, is guarding enemies of the State who are held
in concentration camps.

“The SS Death Head Units obligate their members to 12 years
service. It is composed mainly of men who have already fulfilled
their duty to serve in the _Wehrmacht_. This time of service is
counted completely.” (_2284-PS_)

Since the Death Head Units, like the _SS Verfuegungstruppe_, were composed of well trained professional soldiers, they were also a valuable nucleus for the Waffen SS. The secret Hitler order of 17 August 1938 (_647-PS_) provided for this task in the event of mobilization. The _Totenkopf Verbaende_ were to be relieved from the duty of guarding concentration camps and transferred as a skeleton corps to the _SS Verfuegungstruppe_. Section II C, subparagraph 5, of that order provides: “5. _Regulations for the case of the Mobilization_.

“The _SS-Totenkopf Verbaende_ form the skeleton corps for the
reinforcement of the _SS-Totenkopf Verbaende_ (police
reinforcement), and will be replaced in the guarding of the
concentration camps by members of the General SS who are over 45
years of age and had military training.

“The skeleton corps—which up to now were units of the two
replacement units for the short time training of the
reinforcement of the _SS-Totenkopf Verbaende_—will be
transferred to the _SS-Verfuegungstruppe_ as skeleton crews of
the replacement units for that unit.” (_647-PS_)

(_e_) _The SS Polizei Regimente._

The final component specifically referred to in the Indictment is the SS Police Regiments. The SS eventually succeeded in assuming controls over the entire Reich Police. Out of the police, special militarized forces were formed, originally SS Police Battalions, and later expanded to SS Police Regiments. Himmler, in his Posen speech, declared:

“Now to deal briefly with the tasks of the regular uniformed
police and the Sipo [the Security Police] they still cover the
same field. I can see that great things have been achieved. We
have formed roughly 30 police regiments from police reservists
and former members of the police—police officials, as they used
to be called. The average age in our police battalions is not
lower than that of the security battalions of the Armed Forces.
Their achievements are beyond all praise. In addition, we have
formed Police Rifle Regiments by merging the police battalions
of the ‘savage peoples.’ Thus we did not leave these police
battalions untouched but blended them in the ratio of about 1 to
3.” (_1919-PS_)

The results of this blend of militarized SS police and “savage peoples” will be seen in the evidence, subsequently referred to, of the extermination actions conducted by them in the Eastern territories. These exterminations which were so successful and so ruthless that even Himmler could find no words adequate for their eulogy.

(3) _Unity of the Organization._

Each of the various components described above played its part in carrying out one or more functions of the SS. The personnel composing each differed. Some were part-time volunteers; others were professionals enlisted for different periods of time. But every branch, every department, every member was an integral part of the whole organization. Each performed his assigned role in the manifold tasks for which the organization had been created. No better witness to this fact could be called upon than the Reichsfuehrer SS, whose every endeavor was to insure the complete unity of the organization. The following words are taken from his Posen speech:

“It would be an evil day if the SS and police fell out. It would
be an evil day if the Main Offices, performing their tasks well
meaningly but mistakenly made themselves independent by each
having a downward chain of command. I really think that the day
of my overthrow would be the end of the SS. It must be, and so
come about, that this SS organization with all its branches—the
General SS which is the common basis of all of them, the
Waffen-SS, the regular uniformed police (_Ordnungspolizei_), the
SIPO (with the whole economic administration, schooling,
ideological training, the whole question of kindred), is, even
under the tenth Reichsfuehrer-SS _one_ bloc, _one_ body, _one_
organization.

* * * * * *

“The regular uniformed police and SIPO, General-SS and Waffen-SS
must now gradually amalgamate too, just as this is and must be
the case within the Waffen-SS. This applies to matters
concerning filling of posts, recruiting, schooling, economic
organization, and medical services. I am always doing something
towards this end, a bond is constantly being cast around these
sections of the whole to cause them to grow together. Alas, if
these bonds should ever be loosened—then everything—you may be
sure of this—would sink back into its old insignificance in one
generation, and in a short space of time.” (_1919-PS_)

C. _Selection, Training, and Obligations of Members._

To understand this organization, the theories upon which it was based must be kept clearly in mind. The underlying philosophy of the SS, the principles by which its members were selected, and the obligations imposed upon them furnish the key to all its activities. It is necessary, therefore, to consider them in some detail.

(1) _The Racial Basis of the SS._

(_a_) _The SS as a racial and biological elite._

The fundamental principle of selection was what Himmler called that of Blood and Elite. The SS was to be the living embodiment of the Nazi doctrine of the superiority of Nordic blood, and of the Nazi conception of a master race. In Himmler’s own words, the SS was to be a “National Socialist Soldierly Order of Nordic Men” (_1992-A-PS_). In describing to the _Wehrmacht_ the reasons behind his emphasis on racial standards of selection and the manner in which they were carried out, he said:

“* * * Accordingly, only good blood, blood which history has
proved to be leading and creative and the foundation of every
state and of all military activities, only Nordic blood, can be
considered. I said to myself that should I succeed in selecting
from the German people for this organization as many people as
possible a majority of whom possess this desired blood, in
teaching them military discipline and, in time, the
understanding of the value of blood and the entire ideology
which results from it, then it will be possible actually to
create such an elite organization which would successfully hold
its own in all cases of emergency.” (_1992-A-PS_)

Further on in the same speech, Himmler described the selection of candidates for his organization:

“* * * They are extremely thoroughly examined and checked. Of
100 men we can use on the average of 10 or 15, no more. We ask
for the political reputation record of his parents, brothers and
sisters, the record of his ancestry as far back as 1750 and
naturally the physical examination and his records from the
Hitler Youth. Further, we ask for a record of hereditary health
showing that no hereditary disease exists in his parents and in
his family. Last, but perhaps most important, is a certification
of the race commission. This examining commission is composed of
SS leaders, anthropologists and physicians.” (_1992-A-PS_)

This same strict selection process for the SS was somewhat similarly described in the Organizations Book of the Nazi Party for 1943:

“_Selection of Members_

“For the fulfillment of these missions a homogeneous firmly
welded fighting force has been created bound by ideological
oaths, whose fighters are selected out of the best Aryan
humanity.

“The conception of the value of the blood and soil serves as
directive for the selection into the SS. Every SS man must be
deeply imbued with the sense and essence of the National
Socialist Movement. He will be ideologically and physically
trained so that he can be employed individually or in groups in
the decisive battle for the National Socialist ideology.

“Only the best and thoroughbred Germans are suited for
commitment, in this battle. Therefore it is necessary that an
uninterrupted selection is retained within the ranks of the SS,
first superficially, then constantly more thoroughly.”
(_2640-PS_)

The creation of a racial and biological elite had some very practical reasons behind it. The conspirators’ plans for conquest and exploitation of the conquered territories required the development of a Nazi aristocracy which would dominate Germany and Europe for centuries to come. That purpose was explicitly stated by Himmler in his Posen speech:

“One thing must be clear, one thing I would like to say to you
today: the moment the war is over, we will really begin to weld
together our organization, this organization which we have built
up for 10 years, which we imbued and indoctrinated with the
first most important principles during the 10 years before the
war. We must continue to do this—we,—if I may say so, we older
men—for twenty years full of toil and work, so that a tradition
30, 35, 40 years, a generation, may be created. Then this
organization will march forward into the future young and
strong, revolutionary and efficient to fulfill the task of
giving the German people, the Germanic people, the superstratum
of society which will combine and hold together this Germanic
people and this Europe, and from which the brains which the
people need for industry, farming, politics, and as soldiers,
statesmen and technicians, will emerge. In addition this
superstratum must be so strong and vital that every generation
can unreservedly sacrifice two or three sons from every family
on the battle-field, and that never-the-less the continued
flowing of the bloodstream is assured.” (_1919-PS_)

He forcibly made the same point in his address to officers of the _SS Leibstandarte_ “Adolph Hitler” on the “Day of Metz”:

“The ultimate aim for these 11 years during which I have been
the Reichsfuehrer SS has been invariably the same: To create an
order of good blood which is able to serve Germany. Which
unfailingly and without sparing itself can be made use of
because the greatest losses can do no harm to the vitality of
this order, the vitality of these men, because they will always
be replaced. To create an order which will spread the idea of
nordic blood so far that we will attract all nordic blood in the
world, take away the blood from our adversaries, absorb it so
that never again, looking at it from the viewpoint of grand
policy, nordic blood in great quantities and to an extent worth
mentioning will fight against us. We must get it and the others
cannot have it. We never gave up the ideas and the aim conceived
so many years ago. Everything we did has taken us some distance
further on the way. Everything we are going to do will lead us
further on the way.” (_1918-PS_)

Since the SS was to be made a Nazi aristocracy which would dominate not only Germany but the world for centuries to come, it was essential that the SS stock be perpetuated. To insure the continuance of this good blood, the first step was to limit marriages of SS men to women meeting the same requirements as to health, descent, and ideological background as the SS man himself. This was accomplished by an order of the Reichsfuehrer SS issued on 31 December 1931. This SS marriage law is set out in full in d’Alquen’s Book, “The SS,” (_2284-PS_). But proper marriages were not enough without children. A series of orders took care of that. On 13 September 1936, Himmler issued an order entitled “Foundation of the Organization ‘_Lebensborn e.V._’”, published in the SS manual, “The Soldier Friend”:

“As early as December 13, 1934, I wrote to all SS leaders and
declared that we have fought in vain if political victory was
not to be followed by victory of birth of good blood. The
question of multiplicity of children is not a private affair of
the individual but his duty towards his ancestors and our
people.

“The SS has taken the first step in this direction long ago with
the engagement and marriage decree of December 1931. However,
the existence of sound marriage is futile if it does not result
in the creation of numerous descendants.”

* * * * * *

“The minimum amount of children for a good sound marriage is
four. Should unfortunate circumstances deny a married couple
their own children, then every SS leader should adopt racially
and hereditarily valuable children, educate them in the spirit
of National Socialism, let them have an education corresponding
to their ability.” (_2825-PS_)

The drive for perpetuation of SS stock was continued. A further order of Himmler, issued on 28 October 1939, directed to the entire SS and the Police, is also published in the SS manual, “The Soldier Friend”:

“The old saying that only those who have children can die in
peace must again become acknowledged truth in this war,
especially for the SS.

* * * * * *