The SS was created in 1925 after Hitler ordered a new formation of a small personal bodyguard unit of the Nazi Party. The SS was originally only a sub-branch of the [[Brownshirts|SA]]. It was a small exclusive group who only had loyalty to Adolf Hitler, not the Nazi Party or the SA. When the Nazi Party came to national power in 1933, the SS became a part of the German Government.<ref>[http://www.theholocaustexplained.org/ks4/the-nazification-of-germany/the-nazis-consolidate-power/the-role-of-the-ss-and-gestapo/#.WGUZKXpOlhE The role of the SS and Gestapo]</ref><ref>[Reinhard Heydrich: The Biography, Volume 1], p. 77</ref> The SS officially became as independent organization from the SA after the purge of [[Night of the Long Knives]] in July 1934.
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The SS was created in 1925 after Hitler ordered a new formation of a small personal bodyguard unit of the Nazi Party. The SS was originally only a sub-branch of the [[Brownshirts|SA]]. It was a small exclusive group who only had loyalty to Adolf Hitler, not the Nazi Party or the SA. When the Nazi Party came to national power in 1933, the SS became a part of the German Government.<ref>[http://www.theholocaustexplained.org/ks4/the-nazification-of-germany/the-nazis-consolidate-power/the-role-of-the-ss-and-gestapo/#.WGUZKXpOlhE The role of the SS and Gestapo]</ref><ref>[Reinhard Heydrich: The Biography, Volume 1], p. 77</ref> In July 1934, the SS officially became as independent organization from the SA after the purge of its leadership in [[Night of the Long Knives]].