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The Schutzstaffel (German: [ˈʃʊtsˌʃtafl̩] ⓘ; lit. ' Protection Squadron '; SS; also stylised with Armanen runes as ᛋᛋ) was a major paramilitary organisation under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, and later throughout German-occupied Europe during World War II.
This table contains the final ranks and insignia of the Waffen-SS, which were in use from April 1942 to May 1945, in comparison to the Wehrmacht. [1] The highest ranks of the combined SS (German: Gesamt-SS) was that of Reichsführer-SS and Oberster Führer der SS; however, there was no Waffen-SS equivalent to these positions.
The 6th Panzer Army was made up of the I SS Panzer Corps (the 1st and 12th SS Panzer Divisions) and the II SS Panzer Corps (the 2nd and 10th SS Panzer Divisions). Also present but not part of the 6th Panzer Army was the IV SS Panzer Corps (the 3rd and 5th SS Panzer Divisions). This final German offensive in the east began on 6 March.
The Allgemeine SS used unique names for these formations which were different from standard military terms in use by the German military. Initially, General-SS formations were operated strictly in Germany and Austria but were later formed in occupied countries during World War II.
2nd pattern SS Totenkopf, 1934–45. While different uniforms existed [1] for the SS over time, the all-black SS uniform adopted in 1932 is the most well known. [2] The black–white–red colour scheme was characteristic of the German Empire, and it was later adopted by the Nazi Party.
The term Leibstandarte was derived partly from Leibgarde – a somewhat archaic German translation of "Guard of Corps" or personal bodyguard of a military leader ("Leib" = lit. "body, torso") – and Standarte: the Schutzstaffel (SS) or Sturmabteilung (SA) term for a regiment-sized unit, also the German word for a specific type of heraldic flag .
The Waffen-SS (Armed SS) was created as the militarised wing of the Schutzstaffel (SS; "Protective Squadron") of the Nazi Party.Its origins can be traced back to the selection of a group of 120 SS men in 1933 by Sepp Dietrich to form the Sonderkommando Berlin, which became the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH). [4]
A German poster showing uniforms and insignia of Sturmabteilung (to the left) and Schutzstaffel (SS, to the right), two paramilitary branches of the Nazi Party, published in English by the Chicago Sunday Tribune 1933.