Schutzstaffel

From Conservapedia

The Schutzstaffel, often abbreviated as the SS, was established in 1925 as Adolf Hitler's personal bodyguard and Heinrich Himmler was given command. Its idea was taken from the SA that was used for protecting Hitler. Although it originally had only 280 men, by 1933 Himmler had expanded its ranks to 52,000.

In 1939 the SS was key to the invading forces of Eastern Europe. The SS was given control over communications on the battlefield and secret missions. In December of 1940, they decided to make a branch of the SS, called the Waffen SS. Within 6 months this new SS division had over 150,000 soldiers. Instead of using regular and elite SS soldiers on the front, the Waffen was now the elite infantry force of the fronts and given control over communications. By June of 1944 the SS had over 800,000 men: Hitler's bodyguard 200,000, the Waffen SS 594,000, and the Death's Head units 24,000. However, at the Nuremberg Trials, the Schutzstaffel was declared a criminal organization and many of its leaders were executed.