Includes bibliographical references (pages 659-672) and index.
Contents
1. Introduction -- 2. The Formation of the SS -- 3. Heinrich Himmler -- 4. From Bodyguard to Party Police Force -- 5. Seizure of Power -- 6. The Rohm Putsch -- 7. The Order of the SS -- 8. Heydrich and the Gestapo -- 9. The SD -- 10. The RSHA -- 11. The SS and Foreign Policy -- 12. Racial Policy in the East -- 13. The Jewish Question -- 14. The "Final Solution" -- 15. The Impotence of Power -- 16. The Waffen-SS -- 17. The SS and German Resistance -- 18. The End -- App. 3. Table of SS Ranks -- App. 4. Partition of Poland 1939-1942 -- App. 5. The Fate of German Jewry -- App. 6. Einsatzgruppen in Occupied Russia -- App. 7. The Destruction of European Jewry -- App. 8. The Victims of the "Final Solution" -- App. 9. The Military Situation at the End of January 1945.
Summary
Swearing eternal allegiance to Hitler, Germany's SS was the terror of Europe, infiltrating every aspect of German life and responsible for the deaths of millions. This gripping history recounts the true story of the SS, and details the chaotic political conditions that allowed it to assume and exercise power. Illustrations. Maps.
