The Allgemeine SS (Men-at-arms)

by PaulHannon (Illustrator), RobinLumsden (Author), PaulHannan (Illustrator)

• Used

  Paperback
  1993

  $12.97

  The SS originated as Hitler's personal bodyguard and following his rise to power in 1933 the organisation divided into two: the Waffen-SS, which comprised the military wing, and the Allgemeine-SS, whose role was to support the police in maintaining order. The Allgemeine-SS had a wide-ranging effect on all aspects of life in Nazi Germany, from enforcing Hitler's racial policies through to the running of over 500 factories in Germany and occupied Europe. While the more visible armed SS combat units naturally received all the publicity, especially during World War II, it was the rather faceless Allgemeine-SS which wielded the real power.

• Used

  Paperback
  2002

  $15.07

  This authoritative account of the history of the SS will be invaluable to anyone interested in collecting militaria. Robin Lumsden takes us through each of the uniforms worn by the various divisions and explains the significance of all the symbols and accessories from the obscure Totenkopfring der SS to the more familiar yet equally abhorrent flags and banners. By revealing the source of such accountrements as The Death's Head Ring the author unveils the roots of Nazi ideology, in this case pagan German mythology. This book goes on to take a closer look at the symbolism which inspired the SS battle hymn SS Wir Alle which includes the line - We all stand ready for battle, inspired by runes and death's head- The 'rune' , Lumsden tells us derives from the Old Norse 'run' meaning 'secret script' . The Hakenkreuz or swastika was originally a runic symbol it was the Germanic sign of Donner (or Thor),the god of adventures, being the main badge of the Nazi party it obviously, featured on SS uniforms and remains the symbol most closely associated with Nazis. Although obviously written for a particular market this book could appeal to anyone who is interested in the history of World War 2.