The Pohl trial against the Nazi German administration of the " Final Solution " (also known as the WVHA Trial and officially The United States of America vs. Oswald Pohl, et al. ) was the fourth of the thirteen trials for war crimes that the United States authorities held in their occupation zone in Germany in Nuremberg after the end of World War II . The thirteen trials were all held before U.S. military courts, not before the International Military Tribunal , although both courts presided in the same rooms at the Palace of Justice . They are known collectively as the " Subsequent Nuremberg Trials " or more formally, as the "Trials of War Criminals before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals" (NMT).
86-632: In the Pohl case, SS- Obergruppenführer Oswald Pohl and 17 other SS officers employed by the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office (abbreviated in German as SS-WVHA), were tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the time of the Nazi regime. The main charge against them was their active involvement in and administration of the so-called " Final Solution ". The WVHA
172-607: A black uniform was introduced by the blackshirts in Italy before the creation of the SS. There was a traditional reason, too: just as the Prussian kings' and emperors' life-guard cavalry ( Leibhusaren ) had worn black uniforms with skull-and-crossbones badges , so would the Führer ' s bodyguard unit. These SS uniforms were tailored to project authority and foster fear. During the war,
258-523: A braided silver shoulderboard by the two Obergruppenführers . By 1931, Himmler was secure (or independent) enough to reorganise the SS, formerly one SA-Gruppe , into five SS-Gruppen divided into several Brigaden led by officers with the new rank of Brigadeführer ; its insignia was the two oak leaves of an Oberführer with a pip. In 1932, the SS introduced its best-known uniform, the black ensemble designed by Karl Diebitsch and graphic designer and SS member Walter Heck . The shirt remained brown as
344-408: A comprehensive system of rank insignia. A basic squad unit, the 10-man Schar , was grouped into platoon-sized Truppen , and these into company-sized Stürme which in turn made up battalion-sized Sturmbanne. New ranks went with the new formations: Scharführer , with one pip worn on the left collar patch, Truppführer , two pips, Sturmführer , three pips, and Sturmbannführer , four pips. On
430-529: A hearing before an SS and police court; Wilhelm Höttl was one such example. As a result of Allgemeine SS members transferring into the Waffen-SS , SS members held two separate ranks – one in the Allgemeine SS and another in the Waffen-SS . Waffen-SS officers could also hold a regular or reserve commission, with most Allgemeine SS members being appointed to the Waffen-SS reserves (the intent
516-668: A large store of war-surplus brown denim shirts in Austria, originally intended for tropical uniforms. When the SA (which included the nascent SS) was re-founded in 1925 following Hitler's release from prison, these brown shirts were issued as part of the uniforms. In 1925, Hitler ordered the formation of a new bodyguard unit, the Schutzkommando (protection command). It was formed by Julius Schreck and included old Stoßtrupp members, Emil Maurice and Erhard Heiden . The only insignia
602-411: A leader with a new general-officer rank, Gruppenführer ; its insignia was the three oak leaf collar patch. At this time the former rank of Gauführer was renamed Oberführer (senior leader). The collar patches of the SA were color-coded: each Gruppe had its own distinctive color. The SS was considered to be a Gruppe unto itself; its color, naturally, was black, and Reichsführer-SS Heiden held
688-506: A lower functionary. He was hanged on June 7, 1951, at Landsberg Prison . The head of Amt D: Konzentrationslagerwesen of the WVHA (the department of concentration camps), Richard Glücks , who had been the direct superior of all commanders of concentration camps and as such directly responsible for all the atrocities committed there, was not tried. On May 10, 1945, two days after the unconditional surrender of Germany, he had committed suicide in
774-420: A nod to the SA, of which the SS was still nominally a part, but all else was black from high boots to the new military-style peaked cap, aside from the red armband. SS men were also issued black wool greatcoats for inclement weather, which similarly carried the armband, epaulette, and collar patches. Around this time, a belt buckle featuring the motto Meine Ehre heißt Treue (My honour is loyalty) in its design
860-400: A non-issue after a common ground was found amongst SS leaders in their general hatred of the SA. Udo von Woyrsch and Friedrich-Wilhelm Krüger were promoted to SS- Obergruppenführer in 1935 while Josias, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont , and Max Amann received the rank a year later along with Karl von Eberstein and Philipp Bouhler . The year 1936 saw several promotions to
946-476: A ranking system that could be derived from that of their superordinate SA. This is why the SS also used the system that represented the function of the SS leader with the help of stripes on the armband ( Dienststellungs-Armbinde ). All strips (gold and silver) had a uniform height of 1 cm. What all armbands had in common was that they also had 1 black ribbed stripe on each edge. Under the above system, basic SS troopers were organised into 10-man Staffeln, each under
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#17327759160571032-592: A result, the Waffen-SS and Totenkopfverbande frequently wore uniforms drawn from army stocks, with the addition of SS insignia. By the middle of World War II, a wide variety of uniforms could be observed, even within the same unit. Waffen-SS and SS-TV members during this period wore army-style shoulderboards with SS collar patches; edging of enlisted collar tabs was discontinued in 1940 while SS officers' collar patches continued to be trimmed in silver. Enlisted shoulderboards were made of black fabric as opposed to army dark green or field-grey (grey-green), and officers had
1118-431: A silver stripe to the collar pips of the next-lower rank. A 1930 change to the SS uniform was the addition of a single narrow shoulder strap worn on the right side. There were four grades of shoulder strap: until 1933 a black-and-white pattern was worn by SS troopers, an epaulette of parallel silver cords by Sturm and Sturmbann leaders, a twisted pattern in silver cord by standarten- , ober- , and Gruppenführers , and
1204-469: A system of oak leaves displayed on both collars of the brown SA shirt. One oak leaf signified a Standartenführer , two a Gauführer , and three oak leaves were worn by Reichsführer-SS Berchtold and his successor Erhard Heiden , who reported directly to the Oberste SA-Führer . Over the course of the next year, the burgeoning SA saw the emergence of new units and ranks, and for the first time
1290-699: A variation of the Waffen-SS uniform or the grey-green SS service tunic. Branches with personnel that normally would wear civilian attire in the Reich (such as the Gestapo and Kripo ) were issued grey-green SS uniforms in occupied territory to avoid being mistaken for civilians. SS uniforms used a variety of insignia, the most standard of which were collar patches , to denote rank, and shoulder knots (which acted as shoulder boards ), to denote both rank and position, along with sleeve cuff titles and "sleeve diamond" patches, to indicate membership in specific branches of
1376-409: A vast array of over 30 cuffbands and more than 12 sleeve diamonds. When World War II began in 1939, the Allgemeine SS grey service uniforms took on a more military appearance with the somewhat "ad-hoc" adoption of Wehrmacht -style shoulderboards, except for SS generals, who, until 1942, continued to wear the narrow braided silver SS shoulderboards to denote general rank. It was also at this time that
1462-577: A year later. All five promotions were honorary SS ranks with the first promotion of an active SS officer occurring in September 1941 when the rank was granted to Reinhard Heydrich . The Waffen-SS commander, Paul Hausser was promoted to the rank of SS- Obergruppenführer on 1 October 1941. Waffen-SS commander Theodor Eicke was promoted to SS- Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS on 20 April 1942. Sepp Dietrich remained senior, having served as General der SS-VT ( SS-Verfügungstruppe ) upon
1548-517: The Anschluss , it was also authorised for Austrians who had joined the DNSAP prior to 18 February 1938. It took the form of a silver lace chevron worn on the right sleeve. During this period, the principal SS insignia also underwent design changes. The ancient jawless Danziger style of Totenkopf was gradually replaced by the 'classic' SS skull, a naturalistic design with grinning jaws; the old form
1634-466: The Berlin Police . While holding SA membership, Helldorff was never actually an SS member although for administrative purposes he held SS rank and was ranked as the 15th most senior SS officer. A total of 107 men would eventually hold the rank of SS- Obergruppenführer with 97 such officers listed on the SS seniority list in 1944. Several men with the rank would die during World War II; some of
1720-468: The Der Führer regiment. These insignia would survive throughout World War II and were kept in use after the three original regiments had expanded to full-sized military regimental strength in the war-time 2nd SS Division " Das Reich " , roughly equivalent in size to their German Army counterparts. In addition to the expansion of the collar unit insignia system, the SS by 1934 had also greatly expanded
1806-726: The Führer ’s name in Sütterlin script , which was worn solely by members of the Leibstandarte . An event that significantly altered the SS rank and insignia structure was the Night of the Long Knives , which occurred from 30 June to 2 July 1934. As a result of SS participation in the purge and execution of the SA leadership, the SS was declared an independent formation of the Nazi Party that answered only to Hitler. Several of
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#17327759160571892-670: The Night of the Long Knives in July 1934, Sepp Dietrich was promoted to the rank. On 9 September 1934, so as to prevent a power struggle within the SS, Hitler further promoted Kurt Daluege who commanded most of the SS in the Berlin region. Daluege's promotion was to avoid the SS splitting into two separate entities, one based in Northern Germany under Daluege and the other in Bavaria under Himmler. This early SS disunity became
1978-625: The Stahlhelm , the SA leadership adopted its first collar insignia and also added a new SA rank of Standartenführer ( standard leader) in charge of regiment-sized Standarten (incorporating the company sized Staffeln ); the SS at this time adopted the same rank as well. The 1927 ranks had no insignia for SA/SS troopers (still known by the title " Mann ") and the previous rank of Staffelführer had become shortened to simply Führer (leader). The higher SS ranks of Standartenführer , Gauführer , and Reichsführer like their SA counterparts now used
2064-536: The Sturmabteilung had greatly increased its numbers and had standardised the "brown shirt" uniform, which would thereafter be permanently associated with that group: shirt, tie, breeches, boots, and cylindrical kepi, all brown. The SS was at this time a small unit within the SA and wore the same brown SA uniform, with the addition of a black tie and a black cap with a Totenkopf skull and bones symbol to distinguish themselves. By this time, with influences from
2150-549: The Stürme , Truppen , and Scharen . For the lower ranks, the SS also specified that a patch showing the wearer's regiment ( Standarte ) would be worn opposite the badge of rank while the higher SS leaders would continue to wear oak leaf insignia on both collars. Collar tabs below the rank of Sturmführer were edged in black-and-white twist cord; those of Sturm and Sturmbann leaders used black-and-silver while those of senior leaders were edged in solid silver cord. In addition to
2236-483: The Waffen-SS , the rank of SS- Gruppenführer was equivalent to a Generalleutnant , and an SS- Obergruppenführer came to be considered the equivalent of a General ; holders were titled in full SS- Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS . SS rank The uniforms and insignia of the Schutzstaffel (SS) served to distinguish its Nazi paramilitary ranks between 1925 and 1945 from
2322-470: The Waffen-SS . This feldanzug was very similar to the Model 1936 army field uniform ; however, the SS version had a somewhat wider collar in feldgrau (field-grey) rather than Heer bottle-green, the lower pockets were of the SS angled slash type, and the second button was placed lower to permit the collar optionally to be worn open with a necktie like the service-dress uniforms. The Totenkopf branch, which
2408-724: The kepi hat. The 8-man Stabswache (staff guard), Adolf Hitler 's bodyguard, soon renamed the Stoßtrupp (shock troop), also adopted in May 1923 the Totenkopf (death's head) and oak leaf as a means of insignia, both of which were already deeply rooted in European military history. In 1924, while the Nazi Party was legally banned following the Beer Hall Putsch , Frontbann (underground SA) leader Gerhard Roßbach located
2494-486: The German clothing factory that eventually became the international menswear powerhouse Hugo Boss produced thousands of SS and other uniforms. Once the war began, the black uniform was seldom worn. The combat units of the SS-Verfügungstruppe (SS-VT) and the later Waffen-SS wore a variation of the field-grey (grey-green) ( feldgrau ) army uniform with SS insignia. The majority of SS personnel wore
2580-476: The Prosecution was Telford Taylor ; James M. McHaney and Jack W. Robbins were the principal prosecutors. The indictment was presented on January 13, 1947; the trial began on April 8, and sentences were handed down on November 3, 1947. Four people, including Oswald Pohl, were sentenced to death by hanging. Three were acquitted. The others received sentences of imprisonment between 10 years and lifetime. At
2666-455: The SA attacked the Berlin party Gau headquarters which was defended by the SS, had profound consequences for the SA and its relationship to its subordinate organisation. In an open letter to Berlin SS leader Kurt Daluege , Hitler proclaimed SS Mann, deine Ehre heißt Treue! (SS soldier, your honour is called loyalty!). Subsequently, Meine Ehre heißt Treue (My honour is loyalty) was adopted by
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2752-399: The SA, to which the SS was still subordinated. Although Himmler usually referred to himself as Reichsführer-SS , before the summer of 1934, this was simply a title for the SS commander, and not yet an actual rank. Shortly after Himmler's promotion, Hitler further promoted Franz Xaver Schwarz , with Himmler's date of rank backdated to 1 January 1933 in order to confirm his seniority as
2838-470: The SS as an SS-Mann . With membership continuing to increase, Röhm invented two new officer ranks: Obersturmführer and Obersturmbannführer . In 1933, after Hitler had become Chancellor , the SS began to make more of a distinction between 'officers' and 'enlisted men;' an SS man could now only be promoted to Sturmführer with Himmler's approval, based upon the Reichsführer ’s personal review of
2924-484: The SS as its motto. More significantly, Hitler cashiered SA head Franz Pfeffer von Salomon and assumed the position of Oberste SA-Führer personally, and simultaneously promoted both Himmler and Daluege to the new rank of SS- Obergruppenführer . Daluege was the SS leader of Northern Germany while Himmler controlled southern SS units out of Munich while serving as the National Leader for the SS; this move had
3010-556: The SS military formations (the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler and the SS-Verfügungstruppe ) adopted a service uniform in what was termed "earth-grey" ( erdgrau ). This also was based on the black uniform, but without the red swastika armband, its place on the left sleeve being taken by an eagle-and-swastika patch, and worn with trousers and shoes or calf-high jackboots . In June 1938 this uniform
3096-645: The SS. The SS could trace its origins to several early Freikorps and Nazi Party formations, among them the Erhardt Naval Brigade , Der Stahlhelm , and most significantly the Sturmabteilung (SA), of which the SS was originally a subordinate organisation. The very first SA uniforms and insignia were paramilitary uniforms fashioned by early Nazis which incorporated parts from World War I uniforms to include such features used by other Freikorps formation such as high boots, daggers, and
3182-605: The SS. By 1943, the SS had made a determined effort that most field personnel (including concentration camp staffs) were granted Waffen-SS ranks and, in 1944, any Allgemeine SS who served in an area that commanded SS combat troops, was granted a Waffen-SS commission. Another uniform insignia change occurred in April 1942 with the creation of the rank of SS-Oberst-Gruppenführer . This necessitated an insignia change for SS generals and all SS generals at this time began wearing Wehrmacht -style gold shoulder boards; Oberführers wore
3268-640: The Second World War, there were 88 promotions to the rank, of which 22 were considered regular officers of the Waffen-SS and the rest members of the Allgemeine SS . The first wartime promotions to SS- Obergruppenführer occurred in April 1940 when the rank was granted to Joachim von Ribbentrop , Martin Bormann and Hans Lammers ; Arthur Seyss-Inquart and Otto Dietrich were promoted
3354-486: The authority of a Staffelführer . SS districts, known as SS-Gaus , were under the authority of a Gauführer while all SS district leaders answered to a national leader of the SS called the Reichsführer , at this time Joseph Berchtold . In line with the Führerprinzip (leader principle) of the Nazi Party's ideology, the word Führer was incorporated into all ranks except those for basic SS troopers. By 1927,
3440-558: The black uniform proving impractical for daily service wear, the Inspectorate of Concentration Camps adopted a working uniform in "earth-brown" ( erdbraun ), which was identical in cut to the black tunic except for shoulderboards on both sides. In March 1936, the camp "service" was formally established as the third branch of the SS, the Totenkopfverbände or Death's Head units At about this same time, for similar reasons,
3526-520: The black uniforms recalled and stripped of insignia. They were sent east for use by the native auxiliary police units and sent west to be used by Germanic SS units such as the ones in the Netherlands and Denmark. In 1937, the LSSAH and SS-VT had adopted a closed-collar feldgrau (grey-green) field uniform for combat wear, which with the outbreak of war became the standard uniform of what would soon be
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3612-522: The bodyguard unit from the rank and file of the Allgemeine SS (General SS) units throughout Germany. At the same time Dietrich and the Leibstandarte adopted the SS runes as their unit insignia, the full-time SS headquarters and command staffs began using a blank collar patch, without a unit number, to differentiate themselves from the "rank and file" SS units in Germany which were still using regiment Standarten numbers as their unit insignia. Thus, by
3698-400: The candidate's application. Himmler always detested the army's class distinctions. It was forbidden for SS men to follow the army custom of addressing superior officers by prefixing Herr to their rank, and Kamerad was an approved form of address under most circumstances. Also in 1933, the [REDACTED] runes insignia was introduced, which would eventually become known as the symbol for
3784-616: The centralisation of the Reichszeugmeisterei (RZM; national quartermaster office) under NSDAP Treasurer Franz Xaver Schwarz , and to Himmler's expansion and reorganisation of the fast-growing SS (from 280 members to 52,000 between 1929 and 1932) into several brigade-sized Brigaden throughout Germany, each comprising three to five regiment-sized Standarten . Within the Standarten now existed two to three battalion-sized Sturmbanne (storm units), and beneath this level were
3870-481: The collar unit insignia, the SS now created a cuffband system which was worn on the lower left sleeve. These cuffbands were black and displayed the bearer's Sturm number together with color-coded edges indicating the Sturmbann , which in conjunction with the collar insignia showed regiment, battalion, and company affiliation. Leaders above the company level did not at this time use the cuffband system. The holder of
3956-532: The conversion of the paramilitary Sturmabteilung into an army. With his expansions, promotions, and changes to the SA, a revision of the SA rank system was required although the uniforms and titles essentially stayed the same. The first major change was the addition of new ranks modeled on the original titles created in 1928 but with the addition of "senior" and "head" designators ( ober and haupt ): these were Oberscharführer , Obertruppführer , and Sturmhauptführer . The new rank insignia were created by adding
4042-482: The cuffband further denoted in which battalion ( Sturmbann ) a member served. For those personnel serving above the regiment level, a bare cuffband was worn or a cuffband bearing a Roman numeral could be displayed. The Roman numeral cuffband indicated membership on the staff of the SS-Brigade so numbered, which by the end of 1934 had become known as an SS-Abschnitt . For the even higher levels, such as Himmler or
4128-539: The defendants with the following. All defendants were charged on all counts of the indictment, except Hohberg, who was not charged on count 4. Charge 1 (conspiracy) was largely disregarded by the tribunal and no judgments on this count were passed. All convicts were found guilty on charges 2, 3, and 4, except Hohberg (who was not charged on count 4, but found guilty on counts 2 and 3). Three defendants were acquitted on all charges: Vogt, Scheide, and Klein. Hohberg's sentence of 10 years included time already served—he
4214-499: The effect of rendering the loyal SS practically independent of the suspect SA, since Himmler and Daluege now outranked all SA commanders. Another result of the Stennes revolt was Hitler's recall of his old Putsch comrade Ernst Röhm from South America to take over the day-to-day running of the SA with the title of SA-Stabschef . While Hitler thought that this would bind the SA more firmly to him, Röhm had other ambitions, including
4300-403: The end of 1933, there were three unit collar insignia patches in existence: the SS runes used by the Leibstandarte , the blank collar patch used by the SS headquarters and command staff, and the numbered SS unit insignia worn by regular SS companies throughout Germany. In 1934, with the rise of the SS-Verfügungstruppe (SS-VT), the SS runes unit insignia was expanded to these other formations of
4386-602: The entire SS. The first use of the SS runes was as a unit insignia limited only to members of the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler which had replaced the Army Chancellery Guard to become Hitler's main protectors. It was at this time that the Leibstandarte moved from being a "paramilitary" formation armed with pistols and truncheons to "military", equipped with rifles, bayonets, and steel helmets. The adaptation of this particular unit insignia
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#17327759160574472-399: The following year adopted its first recognisable rank insignia system, with the rank and file of the SS, like the rest of the SA, still wearing a variety of brown shirts or paramilitary uniforms. The early rank system of 1926 consisted of a swastika armband worn with yellow (gold) and white (silver) stripes, with the number of stripes determining the rank of the bearer. Thus, the early SS used
4558-483: The last days of the war. Approximately fifteen SS generals were ranked as SS- Obergruppenführer und General der Polizei und Waffen-SS . SS- Obergruppenführer was considered the highest rank of the Allgemeine SS until April 1942; equivalent to a lieutenant general (three-star general) in the American and British armies. It was only outranked by Himmler's special rank of Reichsführer-SS . However, within
4644-451: The more notable being Heydrich, Eicke, and Artur Phleps . The last promotion was made in March 1945 to Hans Kammler . The rank of Obergruppenführer was used by four major paramilitary groups of the Nazi Party, these being the SA, SS, National Socialist Motor Corps , and National Socialist Flyers Corps . The rank would remain the highest SS general officer rank until April 1942, when
4730-519: The navy hospital of Flensburg . Glücks's predecessor Theodor Eicke was killed in action near Lozova in 1943. Obergruppenf%C3%BChrer Obergruppenführer ( German: [ˈoːbɐˌɡʁʊpm̩fyːʁɐ] , lit. ' senior group leader ' ) was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the Sturmabteilung (SA) and adopted by the Schutzstaffel (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it
4816-436: The original SS rank titles were renamed (although retained the same insignia), bringing about the final nomenclature of SS ranks which would be used until the SS was disbanded at the end of World War II. The change in SS rank titles applied mainly to the non-commissioned officer ranks as well as the ranks of Sturmführer and Sturmhauptführer which received new names. The titles of the remaining ranks remained unchanged. In
4902-492: The outbreak of World War II in 1939. Two SS officers would be demoted from the rank of SS- Obergruppenführer : Rudolf Hess and Wolf-Heinrich Graf von Helldorff . Hess was stripped of his rank and expelled from both the SS and Nazi Party after his abortive flight to Scotland in 1941. Helldorff was stricken from the SS rolls in 1944 after the 20 July plot against Hitler. Helldorff was a unique case, in that his SS rank had been bestowed for technical reasons in order to command
4988-410: The outbreak of war and now wished to serve with the Waffen-SS . With such persons being SS members already, it was expected that they would join the Waffen-SS in order to serve in combat; some members in fact had no choice and were drafted for combat service due to their Allgemeine SS billet being done away with or, in situations involving disciplinary actions, transferred into combat as the result of
5074-501: The rank of SS-Oberst-Gruppenführer was created. Standard practice for SS generals serving as an SS and police leader , as well as those senior SS personnel of the RSHA , was to hold dual police rank as SS- Obergruppenführer und General der Polizei . SS- Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS was the equivalent in the armed SS; in 1944, most active SS generals received this designation in order to command military troops during
5160-469: The rank of Gruppenfuhrer and wore its three oak leaf insignia. In 1929, under new Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler , the SS codified its first uniform regulations: the signature black color was extended to breeches, boots, armband edges, and belt and crossbelt; the shirt collar was edged in black-and-white twist cord except for those of senior leaders, which were trimmed in silver. The ability to produce and issue complete uniforms came about due both to
5246-478: The rank of SS- Oberführer lost its status as a general officer rank and was instead now regarded as a senior colonel position. The black uniform was increasingly seldom seen, eventually being worn only by part-time Allgemeine SS reservists. The last ceremonial event at which the black uniforms were worn "en masse" was the Berlin victory parade following the fall of France in June 1940. In 1942, Himmler ordered most of
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#17327759160575332-518: The rank titles were renamed to completely separate the SS from its SA origins. The most significant rank change was the creation of the rank of Reichsführer-SS to denote the commander of the SS. The new rank was the equivalent of a field marshal in the army. Prior to 1934, Himmler had been regarded simply as an SS- Obergruppenführer . Reichsführer was merely a title and not a rank prior to 1934, though Himmler preferred to use his title more than his rank. In addition to Himmler’s new rank, several of
5418-489: The rank, including Friedrich Jeckeln who would become one of the most infamous SS and police leaders on the Eastern Front during World War II . The last pre-war promotion to the rank of SS- Obergruppenführer was in April 1939 for Friedrich Graf von der Schulenburg who died the following month. Upon the outbreak of World War II, there were seventeen men who held the rank of SS- Obergruppenführer . During
5504-636: The ranks of the Wehrmacht (the German armed forces from 1935), the German state , and the Nazi Party . While different uniforms existed for the SS over time, the all-black SS uniform adopted in 1932 is the most well known. The black–white–red colour scheme was characteristic of the German Empire , and it was later adopted by the Nazi Party . Further, black was popular with fascist movements :
5590-416: The request of the judges, the court reconvened on July 14, 1948, to consider additional material presented by the defense. On August 11, 1948, the tribunal issued its final sentences, confirming most of its earlier sentences, but slightly reducing some of the prison sentences and changing the death sentence of Georg Lörner into a sentence of life imprisonment. The indictment presented by a grand jury charged
5676-543: The right collar of SA uniforms was worn a patch with two numbers indicating Standarte and Sturmbann affiliation. As the SS numbered fewer than a thousand men, it did not adopt the Sturmbann unit at this time, and right-hand SS collar patches displayed the number of the Standarte only. At the higher end of the organisation, in 1928 the SA Gau-Stürme were restructured into regional Gruppen, each commanded by
5762-411: The senior SS-Gruppe leaders (later known by the title SS-Oberabschnitt Führer ) a solid silver cuffband was worn. Within the early military SS, which included the Leibstandarte and the formations of the SS-Verfügungstruppe , a series of cuffbands were introduced which bore the name of the regiment to which the bearer was assigned. The most coveted of these was the "Adolf Hitler" cuffband, carrying
5848-528: The shoulderboards of an army Oberst (colonel), just as Standartenführers did. The sole exception was Himmler who continued to wear the silver braided shoulderboard with oak leaves of his rank as Reichsführer-SS . At the same time the collar patches for general officers were revised; the 1942 pattern used three oak leaves, rather straighter than the old style, with zero to three pips indicating rank from Brigadeführer through Oberstgruppenführer . SS uniform suppliers could not keep up with wartime demand and, as
5934-499: The system of sleeve cuffbands which were now a standard part of the black uniform, worn on the lower left sleeve. Within the Allgemeine SS companies, cuffbands were worn in conjunction with a unit collar patch to denote regiment, battalion, and company affiliation. While the unit collar patch displayed the wearer's Standarte (regiment) number, the number denoted on the cuffband indicated the Sturm , or company, while collared piping along
6020-647: The then fledgling military arm of the SS (later to become known as the Waffen-SS ). To separate these new military formations from the main Leibstandarte regiment under Dietrich, the SS runes worn by the Verfügungstruppe displayed a small number corresponding to the particular SS-VT regiment of the bearer. In all, there were three possible numbers: [REDACTED] 1 for members of the Deutschland regiment, [REDACTED] 2 for Germania personnel, and (from 1938) [REDACTED] 3 for members of
6106-533: The three newly created SS-Oberführerbereiche , east, west and south; and so a senior Standartenführer was promoted to command each SS-Brigade . Hitler's personal guard, known at this stage by the original SS name of Stabswache (later to be known as the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler ), was also expressing its independence and increasing its size under the leadership of Sepp Dietrich . The Stennes revolt of August 1930, in which members of
6192-445: The title of Reichsführer was still considered an SA- Gruppenführer , with Reichsführer itself not yet an actual rank. In addition, for a brief period in 1929, the rank of Standartenführer was divided into two separate grades, known as Standartenführer (I) and Standartenführer (II) ; the insignia of one oak leaf was used for both positions. This situation was another reflection of the SS' rapid expansion: Oberführers now commanded
6278-448: The top officer within the SS. Shortly after Rudolf Hess was appointed as his deputy in April 1933, Hitler promoted him to SS- Obergruppenführer . However, in September, Hitler decreed that Hess should no longer use the title of Obergruppenführer but only use the title of Deputy Führer. A number of men were promoted to SS- Obergruppenführer in 1934, these being Fritz Weitzel , Richard Walther Darré and Walter Buch . After
6364-490: The wake of the " Röhm-Putsch " , the SS officially took over the concentration camps from the SA and police. Soon thereafter, camp guards began wearing the Totenkopf on the right collar patch, to distinguish themselves from the numbered Allgemeine-SS Standarten . This was inconsistent in the early days; some guards instead wore tabs with the initial of their camp (e. g. "D" for Dachau), and some wore blank tabs. About 1935,
6450-578: Was authorised for full-time Allgemeine SS cadres as well; the LSSAH and SS-VT then adopted army-pattern shoulderboards to distinguish themselves from the general SS and emphasise their military role. In February 1934, the Honour Chevron for the Old Guard ( Ehrenwinkel für Alte Kämpfer ; honour chevron for old campaigners) was introduced for all SS men who had joined the Nazi Party or a Party-affiliated organisation prior to January 30, 1933; after
6536-696: Was created in 1932 by Ernst Röhm and was intended as a seniormost rank of the Nazi stormtroopers for use by Röhm and his top SA generals. In its initial concept, the rank was intended to be held by members of the Oberste SA-Führung (Supreme SA Command) and also by veteran commanders of certain SA-Gruppen (SA groups). Some of the early promotions to the rank included Ernst Röhm , Viktor Lutze , Edmund Heines , August Schneidhuber , and Fritz Ritter von Kraußer . The rank of SA- Obergruppenführer
6622-625: Was designated the reserve for the Waffen-SS , also adopted this uniform. Waffen-SS Panzer troops wore a double-breasted black uniform similar to the army model , but somewhat different in cut; the SS also made extensive use of camouflage clothing as the war progressed. The full-time Allgemeine SS cadres, especially Reich Security Main Office (RSHA) personnel, continued to wear the earth-grey service-dress uniform. A unique situation developed during World War II with regards to SS ranks held by those who had served in Allgemeine SS positions from before
6708-495: Was imprisoned on October 22, 1945—because he was not a member of the SS. The defense counsel for Karl Sommer filed a petition to modify the sentence to General Lucius D. Clay , the Commander-in-Chief for the U.S. occupation zone. In response to this appeal, Clay ordered Sommer's death sentence to be commuted into a lifetime imprisonment on May 11, 1949. Pohl kept proclaiming his innocence, saying he had been only
6794-487: Was largely the work of Sepp Dietrich who on 4 November 1933, declared the unit an independent formation and, although a part of the SS, answerable to Hitler alone. Dietrich even went so far as to forbid Himmler from entering the Berlin Leibstandarte barracks and, for a brief few months in 1933, ordered his Leibstandarte soldiers to wear the black uniform without a swastika armband in order to differentiate
6880-476: Was produced by the Overhoff firm to replace the SA buckle. Two new junior positions were introduced: Sturmmann and Rottenführer . By this time, Himmler had also increased scrutiny on SS membership with a particular focus on proof of "Aryan" ancestry, and created a "candidate" position known as SS- Anwärter , which prospective SS members were required to hold for at least six months before formally joining
6966-446: Was taken up by the army's newly formed Panzerwaffe . Additionally, in March 1936, Hitler approved a new art deco eagle with staggered wingtips for the SS, which was worn through the end of the war as a cap badge and on the sleeve. By the end of 1938, the SS had also adopted a new insignia feature of sleeve diamonds worn on the bottom of the left sleeve. Between 1939 and 1940, the SS expanded its cuffband and sleeve diamond system into
7052-498: Was the Nazi government office that ran the concentration and extermination camps . It also handled the procurement for the Waffen-SS and, as of 1942, the administration of the SS-Totenkopfverbände . The judges in this case, heard before Military Tribunal II, were Robert M. Toms (presiding judge), Fitzroy Donald Phillips, Michael A. Musmanno , and John J. Speight as an alternate judge. The Chief of Counsel for
7138-475: Was the highest commissioned SS rank after only Reichsführer-SS . Translated as "senior group leader", the rank of Obergruppenführer was senior to Gruppenführer . A similarly named rank of Untergruppenführer existed in the SA from 1929 to 1930 and as a title until 1933. In April 1942, the new rank of SS-Oberst-Gruppenführer was created which was above Obergruppenführer and below Reichsführer-SS . The rank of Obergruppenführer
7224-473: Was the most senior rank of the Sturmabteilung until the spring of 1933, when Röhm made the title position of Stabschef (SA Chief of Staff) into a rank and promoted himself accordingly. Also in the summer of 1933, Heinrich Himmler was promoted by Adolf Hitler to the newly created rank of SS- Obergruppenführer with the intent being to make Himmler the equivalent of the senior commanders of
7310-493: Was the swastika armband, usually homemade, except for the handful of men constituting the Stoßtrupp successor, the Schutzkommando , who continued the use of the Totenkopf pinned to cap or collar. That same year, the Schutzkommando was expanded to a national level. It was renamed successively the Sturmstaffel (storm squadron), and finally the Schutzstaffel (protection squadron), abbreviated to SS (on 9 November). In
7396-586: Was to easily be able to place such members on inactive duty once the war had ended). The security forces of the SS, such as SD troops that were part of the Einsatzgruppen , were also all considered part of the Allgemeine SS , even though many of these persons (especially in the field) wore uniforms nearly identical to the Waffen-SS ; to further the confusion, many agents of the security police ( SiPo ) in such "field" roles wore Waffen-SS uniform even though they were not ex officio members of any branch of
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