#History of Germany in World War II #【Collection of History - German History World War II, No. 57: The Waffen-SS takes the stage of history】
If you put aside your position, the Waffen-SS is a very crazy, very capable, very elite German unit, and at the same time very hated by the Soviet Union and the Allies. In its heyday, a total of nearly 1 million combat troops were formed, although the number of them was not as large as the Wehrmacht, but the combat effectiveness was not worse than theirs, and even higher than the Wehrmacht in terms of will to fight and loyalty.
However, in the short 20-year career of the SS, its initial number of people is very few, and today we will see one of the earliest group photos of the SS, who are the Führer's most trusted old brothers and willing to give their lives for Hitler's dream.
117 Private Guards
The old photo below is the earliest group photo of the SS (it was the SS, not the ordinary SS, the SS has existed for a long time, but it is not a combat unit, the Waffen-SS is the combat unit of the SS), the number is 117, and all of its members are personally selected by a driver and bodyguard named Dietrich. This man had a very close personal relationship with Hitler, and had long followed him in politics, driving him, protecting him, and winning the trust of the Fuehrer.
Therefore, at the beginning of his rise to power in January 1933, Hitler entrusted him with the task of forming a private guard, and the formation of a bodyguard organization by private bodyguards was also the right person.
The requirements are to be loyal, to be of pure blood, to be taller than 1.8 meters, to have no criminal record, to be healthy, to be an ideal model among aryans. That is to say, the requirements for the "Royal Forest Army" must not only be loyal and forged, but also look flawless.
Therefore, Dietrich personally selected 117 comrades who were bright, smooth and comfortable in the SS independent brigade throughout the country, and formed the first batch of private guards with an armed nature of the Fuehrer.
Its members are all over 1 meter 8 tall, the average age is 25 years old, have no criminal record, are loyal to the Fuehrer, completely obedient, and do not hesitate to go to the soup, through the education of aryan national superiority philosophy, these people are willing to die even for the Fuehrer's faith collective.
After the formation of the Guard, every important place will appear in the core of politics, not far from the left and right, and its logistics, accommodation, clothing and other configurations are fully responsible for the Prussian State Police Department.
These 117-man SS organizations were the earliest prototypes of the Waffen-SS, the backbone of the backbone.
It is the Führer's initial ambition to build the army, the basis for fighting with the Wehrmacht, the soil for the SS to flourish and fall, and the essence of the SS.
Later, this guard developed into the first guard flag regiment armored division, with an absolute sense of honor, the bodyguard Dietrich also became the first division commander of this unit, deeply trusted and loved by the officers and men, and its officers and men also defended the number of the unit to an unquestionable extent, every time there was a war, it was a crazy output, of course, the Fuehrer also gave them the best equipment and honor.
At this time, all the 117 men who remained in the army had become the cornerstone, and many were transferred to form new SS units, such as the Second Imperial Division, the Third Skeleton Division, and the Fifth Viking Division.
However, with the outbreak and protracted war, those old brothers also began to wither, and few of them survived after the war.
For them, their own value is the benchmark and belief of the SS officers and men, the soul of the army, and the face of the Führer, even if others can fall, they must continue to hold on. Even if the war is ultimately a road of no return, it is necessary to complete the grace of the past.
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