Editing Waffen-SS

{{short description|Military branch of the Nazi SS}}
{{Distinguish|Schutzstaffel|Wehrmacht}}
{{italic title}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name                     = {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}}
| image                         = File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Wiegand-117-02, Russland, Kradschütze, Beiwagenkrad.jpg
| caption                       = {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} troops in the [[Soviet Union]], 1941
| start_date                    = 17 March 1933
| end_date                      = 10 May 1945
| country                       = {{Flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}
| allegiance                    = {{Flagicon image|Standarte Adolf Hitlers.svg|size=23px}} [[Adolf Hitler]]
| branch                        = {{Flagicon image|Flag of the Schutzstaffel.svg|size=23px}} ''[[Schutzstaffel]]''
| type                          = {{bulleted list |{{lang|de|[[Panzer division|Panzerdivision]]}}|{{lang|de|[[Panzergrenadier]]}}|{{lang|de|[[SS Cavalry Brigade|SS-Kavallerie-Brigade]]}}|{{lang|de|[[SS Medical Corps|Sanitätsstaffel]]}}|{{lang|de|[[Gebirgsjäger]]}}}}
| role                          = 
| size                          = 900,000 [[Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts|including foreign volunteers and conscripts]]{{sfn|Neitzel|Welzer|2012|p=290}}<br/> [[List of Waffen SS units]]
| command_structure             = [[Schutzstaffel|SS]]: under operational control of the [[OKW]] and {{lang|de|[[Kommandostab Reichsführer-SS]]}}
| garrison                      = {{lang|de|[[SS-Führungshauptamt]]}}, [[Berlin]]
| nickname                      = 
| patron                        = 
| motto                         = {{lang|de|[[Meine Ehre heißt Treue]]}}<ref>{{cite book|editor-last=McConnell |editor-first=Winder |year=1998 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wu0B6_XO3boC&pg=PA1 |title=A Companion to the Nibelungenlied |publisher=Boydell & Brewer |page=1 |isbn=978-1-57113-151-5 |access-date=20 May 2022}}</ref><br />{{nowrap|({{translation|"My honor is called loyalty"}})}}
| colours                       = {{color box|#000000|border=darkgray}} [[Black]] {{color box|#FFFFFF|border=darkgray}} [[White]] {{color box|#DD0000|border=darkgray}} [[Red]]
| battles                       = [[World War II]]
| ceremonial_chief              = [[Heinrich Himmler]]
| notable_commanders            = {{bulleted list|[[Sepp Dietrich]]|[[Paul Hausser]]|[[Felix Steiner]]}}
}}

The '''{{lang|de|Waffen-SS}}''' ({{IPA|de|ˈvafn̩ʔɛsˌʔɛs|lang}}; {{lit|Armed SS}}) was the [[military branch|combat branch]] of the [[Nazi Party]]'s [[paramilitary]] ''[[Schutzstaffel]]'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from [[Nazi Germany]], along with [[Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts|volunteers and conscripts]] from both [[German-occupied Europe]] and unoccupied lands.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=xxiv, xxv, 150, 153}} With the start of World War II, tactical control was exercised by the {{lang|de|[[Oberkommando der Wehrmacht]]}} (OKW, "High Command of the Armed Forces"),{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=23}} with some units being subordinated to the {{lang|de|[[Kommandostab Reichsführer-SS]]}} (Command Staff ''Reichsführer-SS'') directly under Himmler's control.{{sfn|Marrus|1989|p=459}} It was disbanded in May 1945.

The {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} grew from three [[regiment]]s to over 38 [[division (military)|divisions]] during [[World War II]]. Combining combat and police functions, it served alongside the [[German Army (1935–1945)|German Army]] (''Heer''), ''[[Ordnungspolizei]]'' (Order Police), and other security units. Originally, it was under the control of the {{lang|de|[[SS Führungshauptamt]]}} (SS operational command office) beneath {{lang|de|[[Reichsführer-SS]]}} [[Heinrich Himmler]], the head of the SS. 

Initially, in keeping with the [[racial policy of Nazi Germany]], membership was open only to people of Germanic origin (so-called "[[Nazi racial theories#Racial hierarchy|Aryan ancestry]]").{{sfn|Stackelberg|2002|p=116}} The rules were partially relaxed in 1940,{{sfn|Langer|Rudowski|2008|p=263}}{{sfn|Król|2006|pp=452, 545}} and after the [[invasion of the Soviet Union]] in June 1941, Nazi propaganda claimed that the war was a "European crusade against [[Bolshevism]]" and subsequently units consisting largely or solely of foreign volunteers and conscripts were also raised.{{sfn|Müller|Ueberschär|1997|p=244}} These {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} units were made up of men mainly from among the nationals of Nazi-occupied Europe. Despite relaxation of the rules, the {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} was still based on the racist ideology of [[Nazism]], and ethnic Poles (who were viewed as [[Untermensch|subhumans]]) were specifically barred from the formations.{{sfn|Borodziej|1985a}}{{sfn|Król|2006|p=452}}{{sfn|Borodziej|1985|page=86}}

The {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} were involved in numerous atrocities.{{sfn|Spajić|2010|p=9}} It was declared a criminal organisation by the [[Nuremberg trials|International Military Tribunal]] in Nuremberg in 1946,{{sfn|Laar|2005}}<ref name=proceedings>{{cite web |title=Nuremberg Trial Proceedings, Volume 22 'Two Hundred and Seventeenth Day: Monday, 30 September 1946' |volume=22 |work=[[Avalon Project]] |publisher=Lillian Goldman Law Library |url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/imt/09-30-46.asp}}</ref>{{sfn|McDonald|Swaak-Goldman|2000|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZzYznOEiZmcC&pg=PA695 695]}} due to its involvement in the [[The Holocaust|Holocaust]], the [[Romani Holocaust|Porajmos]], and numerous war crimes and crimes against the civilian population, including [[torture]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Oskar Dirlewanger: The Nazi Who Even Other Nazis Thought Was Cruel And Depraved|url=https://allthatsinteresting.com/oskar-dirlewanger|website=All That's Interesting|date=2017-11-27|access-date=2024-02-17|language=en-US|author-first1=Katie|author-last1=Serena|editor-first1=John|editor-last1=Kuroski}}</ref> [[Nazi human experimentation|human experimentation]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Timeline of Dachau|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/timeline-of-dachau|website=www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org|access-date=2024-02-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Did Nazis Study Insects for Use in Biological Warfare?|url=https://www.livescience.com/43568-did-nazis-study-insect-biowarfare.html|website=livescience.com|date=2014-02-21|access-date=2024-02-17|language=en|author1=Wynne Parry}}</ref> [[Kidnapping of children by Nazi Germany|kidnapping of children]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stolen Children|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/stolen-children|website=www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org|access-date=2024-02-17}}</ref> [[mass rape]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Holocaust|url=https://womensmediacenter.com/women-under-siege/conflicts/holocaust|website=Women’s Media Center|access-date=2024-02-17|language=en}}</ref> [[child sexual abuse]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/documentary-reveals-secrets-of-sexual-abuse-of-children-in-the-holocaust/|title=Holocaust film reveals long-hushed child sex abuse|last=Ghert-Zand|first=Renee|date=15 April 2015|website=[[The Times of Israel]]|language=en|access-date=17 February 2024}}</ref> and [[mass murder]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Einsatzgruppen|url=http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/einsatz/|website=www.holocaustresearchproject.org|access-date=2024-02-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Operation Reinhard|url=https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/timeline-event/operation-reinhard|website=encyclopedia.ushmm.org|access-date=2024-02-17|language=en}}</ref>  Therefore {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} members, with the exception of conscripts, who comprised about one-third of the membership, were denied many of the rights afforded to military veterans.{{sfn|Laar|2005}}<ref name=proceedings />{{sfn|McDonald|Swaak-Goldman|2000|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZzYznOEiZmcC&pg=PA695 695]}} 
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==Origins (1929–39)==
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 119-01-03, Berlin, Parade zum dritten Jahrestag LSSHA crop.jpg|thumb|left|Parade for the third anniversary of the [[1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler|LSSAH]] on the barracks' grounds with [[Sepp Dietrich]] at the lectern, May 1935]]
The origins of the ''Waffen-SS'' can be traced back to the selection of a group of 120 SS men on 17 March 1933 by [[Sepp Dietrich]] to form the ''Sonderkommando'' Berlin.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=144}} By November 1933 the formation had 800 men, and at a commemorative ceremony in Munich for the tenth anniversary of the failed [[Beer Hall Putsch]] the regiment swore allegiance to [[Adolf Hitler]]. The oaths pledged were "Pledging loyalty to him alone" and "Obedience unto death".{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=144}} The formation was given the title {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} ({{translation|Bodyguard Regiment}}) ''Adolf Hitler'' (LAH).{{sfn|Cook|Bender|1994|pp=17, 19}} On 13 April 1934, by order of Himmler, the regiment became known as the ''[[1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler|Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler]]'' (LSSAH).{{sfn|Cook|Bender|1994|pp=17, 19}}

The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} demonstrated their loyalty to Hitler in 1934 during the "[[Night of the Long Knives]]", when the Nazi regime carried out a series of political murders and the purge of the {{lang|de|[[Sturmabteilung]]}} (SA).{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=144}} Led by one of Hitler's oldest comrades, [[Ernst Röhm]], the SA was seen as a threat by Hitler to his newly gained political power. Hitler also wanted to appease leaders of the ''[[Reichswehr]]'' (the Weimar Republic's armed forces) and conservatives of the country, people whose support Hitler needed to solidify his position. When Hitler decided to act against the SA, the SS was put in charge of killing Röhm and the other high-ranking SA officers.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=306–313}} The Night of the Long Knives occurred between 30 June and 2 July 1934, claiming up to 200 victims and murdering almost the entire SA leadership, effectively ending its power. This action was largely carried out by SS personnel (including the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}) and the [[Gestapo]].{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=309–313}}

In September 1934, Hitler authorised the formation of the paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party and approved the formation of the {{lang|de|[[SS-Verfügungstruppe]]}} (SS-VT), a special service troop under Hitler's overall command.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=144}} The SS-VT had to depend on the German Army for its supply of weapons and military training, and its local draft boards responsible for assigning conscripts to the different branches of the ''Wehrmacht'' to meet quotas set by the German High Command ({{Lang|de|Oberkommando der Wehrmacht}} or OKW in German); the SS was given the lowest priority for recruits.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=145}}

Even with the difficulties presented by the quota system, Heinrich Himmler formed two new SS regiments, the {{lang|de|SS Germania}} and {{lang|de|SS Deutschland}}, which together with the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} and a communications unit made up the SS-VT.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=145}} At the same time Himmler established two [[SS-Junker Schools]] (SS officer training camps) that, under the direction of former Lieutenant General [[Paul Hausser]], prepared future SS leaders.{{sfn|Westemeier|2007|p=25}} In addition to military training, the courses aimed to instill a proper ideological worldview, with antisemitism being the main tenet. Instructors such as [[Matthias Kleinheisterkamp]], or future war criminals, such as [[Franz Magill]] of the notorious [[SS Cavalry Brigade]] were of questionable competence.{{sfn|Parker|2014|pp=14–17}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1972-061-38, Berlin, vor Krolloper, Hitler mit Leibstandarte.jpg|thumb|The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte SS}} ''Adolf Hitler'' on parade in Berlin, 1938]]
In 1934, Himmler set stringent requirements for recruits. They were to be German nationals who could prove their Aryan ancestry back to 1800, unmarried, and without a criminal record.{{sfn|Weale|2012|p=202}} A four-year commitment was required for the SS-VT and LSSAH. Recruits had to be between the ages of 17 and 23, at least {{convert|1.74|m|ftin}} tall ({{convert|1.78|m|ftin}} for the LSSAH). Concentration camp guards had to make a one-year commitment, be between the ages of 16 and 23, and at least {{convert|1.72|m|ftin}} tall. All recruits were required to have [[Visual acuity|20/20 eyesight]], no dental fillings, and to provide a medical certificate.{{sfn|Weale|2012|pp=201–204}} By 1938, the height restrictions were relaxed, up to six dental fillings were permitted, and eyeglasses for astigmatism and mild vision correction were allowed. Once the war commenced, the physical requirements were no longer strictly enforced, and any recruit who could pass a basic medical exam was considered for service.{{sfn|Weale|2010|p=204}} Members of the SS could be of any religion except [[Judaism]], but atheists were not allowed according to Himmler in 1937.{{sfn|Longerich|2012|p=220}} Hitler expounded on the attitude he wanted during a talk in the [[Wolf's Lair]]: "I have six divisions of SS composed of men absolutely indifferent in matters of religion. It doesn't prevent them from going to their deaths with serenity in their souls."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Trevor-Roper |first=Hugh |title=HITLER'S TABLE TALK 1941–1944 His Private Conversations |publisher=Enigma Books |year=2000 |pages=143}}</ref>

Historian [[Bernd Wegner]] found in his study of officers that a large majority of the senior officers corps of the {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} were from an upper-middle-class background and would have been considered for commissioning by traditional standards. Among later {{lang|de|Waffen-SS}} generals, approximately six out of ten had a "university entrance qualification (Abitur), and no less than one-fifth a university degree".{{sfn|Wegner|1990|pp=240 – table 14.2, 243–244, 247, 248 – table 14.4, 261, 262}}

Hausser became the Inspector of the SS-VT in 1936.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=146}} In this role, Hausser was in charge of the troops' military and ideological training but did not have command authority. The decision on deployment of the troops remained in Himmler's hands. This aligned with Hitler's intentions to maintain these troops exclusively at his disposal, "neither [a part] of the army, nor of the police", according to Hitler's order of 17 August 1938.{{sfn|Tauber Volume I|1967|pp=335–336}}

On 17 August 1938, Hitler declared that the SS-VT would have a role in domestic as well as foreign affairs, which transformed this growing armed force into the rival that the army had feared.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=147}} He decreed that service in the SS-VT qualified to fulfill military service obligations, although service in the {{lang|de|[[SS-Totenkopfverbände]]}} (SS-TV) would not. Some units of the SS-TV would, in the case of war, be used as reserves for the SS-VT, which did not have its own reserves.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=148}} For all its training, the SS-VT was untested in combat. In 1938, a battalion of the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was chosen to accompany the army troops in occupying [[Federal State of Austria|Austria]] during the ''[[Anschluss]]'', and the three regiments of the SS-VT participated in the occupation of the [[Sudetenland]] that same year in October. In both actions no resistance was met.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=148}}{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|pp=7–8}}

Recruiting ethnic Germans from other countries began in April 1940, and units consisting of non-Germanic recruits were formed beginning in 1942.{{sfn|Longerich|2012|pp=500, 674}} Non-Germanic units were not considered to be part of the SS, which still maintained its racial criteria, but rather were considered to be foreign nationals serving under the command of the SS.{{sfn|Longerich|2012|p=769}} As a general rule, an "SS Division" was made up of Germans or other Germanic peoples, while a "Division of the SS" was made up of non-Germanic volunteers and conscripts.{{sfn|Gerwarth|Böhler|2016|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=QYKuDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA200 200]}}

==World War II==
===1939===
====Invasion of Poland====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1968-034-19A, Exekution von polnischen Geiseln.jpg|thumb|Members of the ''[[Einsatzgruppen]]'' murdering Polish civilians in [[Kórnik]] shortly after the outbreak of World War II in Europe]]
Himmler's military formations at the outbreak of the war comprised several subgroups that would become the basis of the ''Waffen-SS'':
* The ''Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler'' (LSSAH), under then SS-''[[Obergruppenführer]]''{{efn|Equivalent to a full general. The independence of the LSSAH can be partly explained by Dietrich's rank, as well as his personal friendship with Hitler.}} Josef "Sepp" Dietrich{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=4–8, 27}}
* The Inspectorate of ''Verfügungstruppe'' (SS-VT), under then SS-''Gruppenführer'' Paul Hausser, which commanded the ''Deutschland'', ''Germania'' and ''Der Führer'' regiments. The latter was recruited in Austria after the ''Anschluss'' and was not yet combat-ready.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}}
* The Inspectorate of Concentration Camps, under SS-''Gruppenführer'' [[Theodor Eicke]], which fielded four infantry and one cavalry [[3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf|Death's Head ''Standarten'']], comprising camp guards of the ''SS-Totenkopfverbände'' (SS-TV). These troops wore the SS-TV skull and crossbones rather than the SS-VT "SS" runes.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=27, 28, 33, 34}}
* Police units of ''Obergruppenführer und General der Polizei'' [[Kurt Daluege]]'s ''Ordnungspolizei'', which reported to Himmler in his capacity as Chief of German Police. These troops used police [[Ranks and insignia of the Ordnungspolizei|ranks and insignia]] rather than those of the SS.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=xxii, 35, 36}}

In August 1939, Hitler placed the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} and the SS-VT under the operational control of the Army High Command ([[Oberkommando des Heeres|OKH]]).{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} Himmler retained command of the {{lang|de|Totenkopfstandarten}} for employment behind the advancing combat units in what were euphemistically called "special tasks of a police nature".{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=24}}

In spite of the swift military victory over [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]] in September 1939, the regular army felt that the performance of the SS-VT left much to be desired; its units took unnecessary risks and had a higher casualty rate than the army.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} They also stated that the SS-VT was poorly trained and its officers unsuitable for combat command. As an example, the OKW noted that the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} had to be rescued by an army regiment after becoming surrounded by the Poles at [[Pabianice]].{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} In its defence, the SS insisted that it had been hampered by having to fight piecemeal instead of as one formation, and was improperly equipped by the army to carry out its objectives.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} Himmler insisted that the SS-VT should be allowed to fight in its own formations under its own commanders, while the OKW tried to have the SS-VT disbanded altogether.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} Hitler was unwilling to upset either the army or Himmler, and chose a third path. He ordered that the SS-VT form its own divisions but that the divisions would be under army command.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} Hitler resisted integrating the ''Waffen-SS'' into the army, as it was intended to remain the armed wing of the party and to become an elite police force once the war was won.{{sfn|Reitlinger|1989|p=84}}

During the invasion, numerous war crimes were committed against the Polish people. The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} became notorious for torching villages without military justification.{{sfn|Butler|2001|p=45}} Members of the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} also committed atrocities in numerous towns, including the murder of 50 Polish Jews in [[Błonie]] and the massacre of 200 civilians, including children, who were machine gunned in [[Złoczew]]. Shootings also took place in [[Bolesławiec]], [[Torzeniec]], [[Goworowo, Płońsk County|Goworowo]], [[Mława]], and [[Włocławek]].{{sfn|Rossino|2003|pp=114, 159–161}} Eicke's SS-TV field forces were not military. 
{{blockquote|Their military capabilities were employed instead in terrorizing the civilian population through acts that included hunting down straggling Polish soldiers, confiscating agricultural produce and livestock, and torturing and murdering large numbers of Polish political leaders, aristocrats, businessmen, priests, intellectuals, and Jews.{{sfn|Sydnor|1990|p=37}}}}
His {{lang|de|Totenkopfverbände}} troops were called on to carry out "police and security measures" in the rear areas. What these measures involved is demonstrated by the record of ''SS Totenkopf Standarte "Brandenburg"''. It arrived in Włocławek on 22 September 1939 and embarked on a four-day "Jewish action" that included the burning of synagogues and the execution en-masse of the leaders of the Jewish community. On 29 September the ''Standarte'' travelled to Bydgoszcz to conduct an "[[Intelligenzaktion|intelligentsia action]]".<ref>{{harvnb|Wardzyńska|2009|pp=8–10}}. "Oblicza się, że akcja "Inteligencja" pochłonęła ponad 100 tys. ofiar. [It is estimated that ''Intelligenzaktion'' took the lives of 100,000 Poles.]" [p. 8.]</ref>

====First divisions====
In October 1939, the ''Deutschland'', ''Germania'', and ''Der Führer'' regiments were reorganised into the ''[[2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich|SS-Verfügungs-Division]]''. The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} remained independent and was increased in strength to a reinforced motorised regiment.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=149}} Hitler authorised the creation of two new divisions: the [[3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf|SS ''Totenkopf'' Division]], formed from militarised ''Standarten'' of the ''SS-Totenkopfverbände'', and the [[4th SS Polizei Panzergrenadier Division|Polizei Division]], formed from members of the national police force.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=149–150}} Almost overnight the force that the OKW had tried to disband had increased from 18,000 to over 100,000 men.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=150}} Hitler next authorised the creation of four motorised artillery battalions in March 1940, one for each division and the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}. The OKW was supposed to supply these new battalions with artillery, but was reluctant to hand over guns from its own arsenal. The weapons arrived only slowly and, by the time of the [[Battle of France]], only the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} battalion was up to strength.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=151}}

===1940===
====France and the Netherlands====
The three SS divisions and the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} spent the winter of 1939 and the spring of 1940 training and preparing for the coming war in the west. In May, they moved to the front, and the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was attached to the army's [[227th Infantry Division]]. The ''Der Führer'' Regiment was detached from the SS-VT Division and attached to the [[207th Security Division|207th Infantry Division]]. The SS-VT Division minus ''Der Führer'' was concentrated near [[Münster]] awaiting the invasion of the [[Netherlands]]. The SS ''Totenkopf'' and Polizei Divisions were held in reserve.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=152}}

On 10 May, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} overcame Dutch border guards to spearhead the German advance of X Corps into the Netherlands, north of the rivers towards the Dutch [[Grebbe Line]] and subsequently the Amsterdam region. The neighbouring ''Der Führer'' Regiment advanced towards the Grebbe Line in the sector of the [[Grebbeberg]] with as a follow-up objective the city of [[Utrecht]]. The [[Battle of the Grebbeberg]] lasted three days and took a toll on ''Der Führer''. On 11 May, the SS-VT Division crossed into the Netherlands south of the rivers and headed towards [[Breda]]. It fought a series of skirmishes before ''Germania'' advanced into the Dutch province of Zeeland on 14 May. The rest of the SS-VT Division joined the northern front against the forces in [[Antwerp]]. On the same day, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} entered [[Rotterdam]].{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=62–64}} After the surrender of Rotterdam, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} left for [[The Hague]], which they reached on 15 May, capturing 3,500 Dutch soldiers as [[Prisoner of war|prisoners of war]].{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=154}}

In France, the SS ''Totenkopf'' Division was involved in the only Allied tank counterattack in the Battle of France. On 21 May, units of the [[1st Army Tank Brigade (United Kingdom)|1st Army Tank Brigade]], supported by the [[50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division]], took part in the [[Battle of Arras (1940)|Battle of Arras]]. The SS ''Totenkopf'', on the southern flank of the [[7th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)|7th Panzer Division]], was overrun, finding their standard [[anti-tank gun]], the [[3.7 cm Pak 36|3.7 cm PaK 36]], was no match for the British [[Matilda II]] tank.{{sfn|Harman|1980|p=100}}

After the Dutch surrender, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} moved south to France on 24 May. Becoming part of the [[XIX Army Corps|XIX Panzer Corps]] under the command of General [[Heinz Guderian]], they took up a position 15 miles south west of [[Dunkirk]] along the line of the Aa Canal, facing the Allied defensive line near Watten.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=154}} A patrol from the SS-VT Division crossed the canal at [[Saint-Venant]], but was destroyed by British armour. A larger force from the SS-VT Division then crossed the canal and formed a bridgehead at Saint-Venant; 30 miles from Dunkirk.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=154}} That night the OKW ordered the advance to halt, with the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War II)|British Expeditionary Force]] trapped. The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} paused for the night. However, on the following day, in defiance of Hitler's orders, Dietrich ordered his 3rd Battalion to cross the canal and take the heights beyond, where British artillery observers were putting the regiment at risk. They assaulted the heights and drove the observers off. Instead of being censured for his act of defiance, Dietrich was awarded the [[Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross]].{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=143, 154}} On that same day, British forces attacked Saint-Venant, forcing the SS-VT Division to retreat.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=154}}

On 26 May, the German advance resumed. On 27 May, the ''Deutschland'' Regiment of the SS-VT Division reached the Allied defensive line on the [[Lys (river)|Leie River]] at [[Merville, Nord|Merville]]. They forced a bridgehead across the river and waited for the SS ''Totenkopf'' Division to arrive to cover their flank. What arrived first was a unit of British tanks, which penetrated their position. The SS-VT managed to hold on against the British tank force, which got to within 15 feet of commander [[Felix Steiner]]'s position. Only the arrival of the ''Totenkopf'' ''[[Panzerjäger]]'' platoon saved the ''Deutschland'' Regiment from being destroyed and their bridgehead lost.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=155}}

That same day, as the SS ''Totenkopf'' Division advanced near Merville, they encountered stubborn resistance from British Army units, which slowed their advance.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=155}} The SS ''Totenkopf'' 4 Company, then committed the [[Le Paradis massacre]], where 97 captured men of the 2nd Battalion, [[Royal Norfolk Regiment]] were machine gunned after surrendering, with survivors finished off with [[bayonet]]s. Only two men survived.{{sfn|Jackson|2001|pp=285–288}}

By 28 May, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} had taken the village of [[Wormhout]], only ten miles from Dunkirk.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=154}} After their surrender, soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, [[Royal Warwickshire Regiment]], along with some other units (including French soldiers), were taken to a barn in ''La Plaine au Bois'' near Wormhout and [[Esquelbecq]]. It was there that troops of the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}'s 2nd Battalion committed the [[Wormhoudt massacre]], where 81 British and French prisoners of war were murdered.{{sfn|Butler|2001|pp=81–83}}{{sfn|Weale|2012|pp=251–253}}

By 30 May, the British were [[Dunkirk evacuation|cornered at Dunkirk]], and the SS divisions continued the advance into France. The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} reached [[Saint-Étienne]], 250 miles south of Paris, and had advanced further into France than any other unit.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=143}} By the next day, the fighting was all but over.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=156}} German forces arrived in Paris unopposed on 14 June and France formally surrendered on 25 June. Hitler expressed his pleasure with the performance of the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} in the Netherlands and France, telling them, "Henceforth it will be an honour for you, who bear my name, to lead every German attack."{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=143}}

====1940 expansion and naming====
{{see also|Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts}}
On 19 July 1940, Hitler gave a speech to the ''Reichstag'', where he gave a summary of the western campaign and praised the German forces involved. He used the term "''Waffen-SS''" when describing the units of the LSSAH and SS-VT that took part. From that day forward, the term ''Waffen-SS'' became the official designation for the SS combat formations.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=87–88}} Himmler gained approval for the ''Waffen-SS'' to form its own high command, the ''Kommandoamt der Waffen-SS'' within the ''[[SS Führungshauptamt]]'', which was created in August 1940.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=102}} It received command of the SS-VT (the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} and the ''Verfügungs-Division'', renamed ''Reich'') and the armed SS-TV regiments (the ''Totenkopf'' Division together with several independent ''Totenkopf-Standarten'').{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=7, 103–106}}

In 1940, SS chief of staff [[Gottlob Berger]] approached Himmler with a plan to recruit volunteers in the conquered territories from the ethnic German and Germanic populations. At first, Hitler had doubts about recruiting foreigners, but he was persuaded by Himmler and Berger.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=150, 153}} He gave approval for a new division to be formed from foreign nationals with German officers. By June 1940, Danish and Norwegian volunteers had formed the SS Regiment ''[[11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland|Nordland]]'', with Dutch and Flemish volunteers forming the SS Regiment ''Westland''. The two regiments, together with ''Germania'' (transferred from the ''Reich'' Division), formed the [[5th SS Panzer Division Wiking|SS Division ''Wiking'']].{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=160, 161}} A sufficient number of volunteers came forward requiring the SS to open a new training camp just for foreign volunteers at [[Cernay, Haut-Rhin|Sennheim]] in [[Alsace–Lorraine|Alsace-Lorraine]].{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=160, 161}}

===1941===
[[File:Waffen-SS poster.jpg|thumb|left|Recruitment poster.]]
At the beginning of the new year, the ''Polizei'' Division was brought under FHA administration, although it would not be formally merged into the ''Waffen-SS'' until 1942. At the same time, the ''Totenkopf-Standarten'', aside from the three constituting the TK-Division, lost their Death's Head designation and insignia and were reclassified ''SS-Infanterie-'' (or ''Kavallerie-'') ''Regimente''. The 11th Regiment was transferred into the ''Reich'' Division to replace ''Germania''; the remainder were grouped into three independent brigades and a battle group in Norway.

By the spring of 1941, the ''Waffen-SS'' consisted of the equivalent of six or seven divisions: the ''[[2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich|Reich]]'', ''Totenkopf'', ''Polizei'', and ''Wiking'' Divisions and [[6th SS Mountain Division Nord|''Kampfgruppe'' (later Division) ''Nord'']], and the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}, [[1st SS Infantry Brigade|1st SS Infantry]], [[2nd SS Infantry Brigade|2nd SS Infantry]], and [[SS Cavalry Brigade|SS Cavalry]] Brigades.

====Balkans====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-158-0094-35, Balkan, PKW der Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler.jpg|thumb|Troops of the [[1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler|''Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler'' Division]] advancing into the [[Balkans]], 1941]]
In March 1941, a major Italian counterattack against Greek forces failed, and Germany came to the aid of its ally. [[German invasion of Greece|Operation Marita]] began on 6 April 1941, with German troops invading Greece through [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]] and [[Yugoslavia]] in an effort to secure its southern flank.{{sfn|Evans|2008|p=153}}

''Reich'' was ordered to leave France and head for [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]], and the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was ordered to Bulgaria. The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}, attached to the [[XXXX Panzer Corps|XL Panzer Corps]], advanced west then south from Bulgaria into the mountains, and by 9 April had reached [[Prilep]] in Yugoslavia, 30 miles from the Greek border.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=163}} Further north the ''Reich'' Division, with the [[XXXXI Panzer Corps|XLI Panzer Corps]], crossed the Romanian border and advanced on [[Belgrade]], the Yugoslav capital. [[Fritz Klingenberg]], a company commander in the ''Reich'', led his men into Belgrade, where a small group in the vanguard accepted the surrender of the city on 13 April. A few days later the [[Royal Yugoslav Army]] surrendered.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=162, 163}}{{sfn|Weale|2012|p=297}}

The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} had now crossed into Greece, and on 10 April engaged the [[6th Division (Australia)|6th Australian Division]] in the [[Battle of Vevi (1941)|Battle of the Klidi Pass]]. For 48 hours they fought for control of the heights, often engaging in hand-to-hand combat, eventually gaining control with the capture of Height 997, which opened the pass and allowed the German Army to advance into the Greek interior.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=165}} This victory gained praise from the OKW: in the order of the day they were commended for their "unshakable offensive spirit" and told that "the present victory signifies for the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} a new and imperishable page of honour in its history."{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=165}}

The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} continued the advance on 13 May. When the Reconnaissance Battalion under the command of [[Kurt Meyer]] came under heavy fire from the Greek Army [[Capture of Klisura Pass|defending the Klisura Pass]], they broke through the defenders and captured 1,000 prisoners of war at the cost of only six dead and nine wounded.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=165}} The next day, Meyer captured [[Kastoria]] and took another 11,000 prisoners of war. By 20 May, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} had cut off the retreating Greek Army at [[Metsovo]] and accepted the surrender of the Greek Epirus-Macedonian Army.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=165}} As a reward, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was nominally redesignated as a full motorised division, although few additional elements had been added by the start of the Soviet campaign and the "division" remained effectively a reinforced brigade.

====Soviet Union====
[[Operation Barbarossa]], the German invasion of the Soviet Union, started on 22 June 1941, and all the ''Waffen-SS'' formations participated (including the ''Reich'' Division, which was formally renamed to ''Das Reich'' by the fall of 1941).{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=104}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-A0706-0018-030, Ukraine, ermordete Familie.jpg|thumb|''Einsatzgruppen'' members at a murder site of Jews in the village of [[Zboriv]], Ukraine, 1941]]
SS Division Nord, which was in northern [[Finland]], took part in [[Operation Arctic Fox]] with the Finnish Army and fought at the battle of [[Salla]], where against strong Soviet forces they suffered 300 killed and 400 wounded in the first two days of the invasion. Thick forests and heavy smoke from forest fires disoriented the troops and the division's units completely fell apart.{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|p=9}} By the end of 1941, ''Nord'' had suffered severe casualties. Over the winter of 1941–42 it received replacements from the general pool of ''Waffen-SS'' recruits, who were supposedly younger and better trained than the SS men of the original formation, which had been drawn largely from ''Totenkopfstandarten'' of [[Nazi concentration camps|Nazi concentration camp]] guards.

The rest of the ''Waffen-SS'' divisions and brigades fared better. The ''Totenkopf'' and ''Polizei'' divisions were attached to [[Army Group North]], with the mission to advance through the [[Baltic states]] and on to [[Saint Petersburg|Leningrad]].{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|pp=7–8}}{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=166}} The ''Das Reich'' Division was with [[Army Group Centre]] and headed towards [[Moscow]].{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|pp=7–8}}{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=166}} The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} and ''Wiking'' Divisions were with [[Army Group South]], heading for [[Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic|Ukraine]] and the city of [[Kyiv|Kiev]].{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|pp=7–8}}{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=166}}

The invasion of the Soviet Union proceeded well at first, but the cost to the ''Waffen-SS'' was extreme: by late October, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was at half strength due to enemy action and [[dysentery]] that swept through the ranks.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=168}} ''Das Reich'' lost 60% of its strength and was still to take part in the [[Battle of Moscow]]. The unit was later decimated in the following Soviet offensive. The ''Der Führer'' Regiment was reduced to 35 men out of the 2,000 that had started the campaign in June.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=168}} Altogether, the ''Waffen-SS'' had suffered 43,000 casualties.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=168}}

While the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} and the SS divisions were fighting in the front line, behind the lines it was a different story. The 1st SS Infantry and 2nd SS Infantry Brigades, which had been formed from surplus concentration camp guards of the SS-TV, and the SS Cavalry Brigade moved into the Soviet Union behind the advancing armies. At first, they fought [[Soviet partisans]] and cut off units of the [[Red Army]] in the rear of Army Group South, capturing 7,000 prisoners of war, but from mid-August 1941 until late 1942 they were assigned to the [[Reich Security Main Office]] headed by [[Reinhard Heydrich]].{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|p=9}}{{sfn|Hannes|Naumann|2000|p=136}} The brigades were now used for rear area security and policing, and were no longer under army or ''Waffen-SS'' command. In the autumn of 1941, they left the anti-partisan role to other units and actively took part in the [[The Holocaust|Holocaust]]. While assisting the ''[[Einsatzgruppen]]'', they participated in the extermination of the Jewish population of the Soviet Union, forming firing parties when required. The three brigades were responsible for the murder of tens of thousands by the end of 1941.{{sfn|Hannes|Naumann|2000|p=136}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Adendorff-002-18A, Russland, SS-Kavallerie-Brigade.jpg|thumb|Cavalrymen of the [[SS Cavalry Brigade]], September 1941]]

Because it was more mobile and better able to carry out large-scale operations, the SS Cavalry Brigade had 2 regiments with a strength of 3500 men and played a pivotal role in the transition to the wholesale extermination of the Jewish population.{{sfn|Browning|2007|p=279}} In the summer of 1941, Himmler assigned [[Hermann Fegelein]] to be in charge of both regiments.{{sfn|Pieper|2015|pp=52–53}} On 19 July 1941, Himmler assigned Fegelein's regiments to the general command of HSSPF [[Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski]] for the "systematic combing" of the [[Pripyat Marshes massacres|Pripyat swamps]], an operation designed to round up and exterminate Jews, partisans, and civilians in that area of the [[Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic|Byelorussian SSR]].{{sfn|Pieper|2015|pp=62, 80}}

Fegelein split the territory to be covered into two sections divided by the [[Pripyat (river)|Pripyat River]], with the 1st Regiment taking the northern half and the 2nd Regiment the south.{{sfn|Pieper|2015|p=81}} The regiments worked their way from east to west through their assigned territory, and filed daily reports on the number of people killed and taken prisoner. By 1 August, 1st SS Cavalry Regiment under the command of [[Gustav Lombard]] was responsible for the death of 800 people; by 6 August, this total had reached 3,000 "Jews and partisans".{{sfn|Browning|2007|p=280}} Throughout the following weeks, the regiment's personnel under Lombard's command murdered an estimated 11,000 Jews and more than 400 dispersed soldiers of the Red Army.{{sfn|Cuppers|2006|p=279}} Thus Fegelein's units were among the first in the Holocaust to wipe out entire Jewish communities.{{sfn|Pieper|2015|pp=86, 88–89}} Fegelein's final operational report dated 18 September 1941, states that they killed 14,178 Jews, 1,001 partisans, 699 Red Army soldiers, with 830 prisoners taken and losses of 17 dead, 36 wounded, and 3 missing.{{sfn|Pieper|2015|pp=119–120}}{{sfn|Miller|2006|p=310}} Historian Henning Pieper estimates the actual number of Jews killed was closer to 23,700.{{sfn|Pieper|2015|p=120}}

===1942===
====1942 expansion====
[[File:Demjansk Einkesselung.png|thumb|Offensive of the Red Army south of Lake Ilmen, 7 January – 21 February 1942, which created the [[Demyansk Pocket]] ]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1977-143-15, Russland, Angehörige der Waffen-SS.jpg|thumb|Troops of the [[3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf|3rd SS Division]] on the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]], 1942 ]]
In 1942, the ''Waffen-SS'' was further expanded and a new division was entered on the rolls in March. By the second half of 1942, an increasing number of foreigners, many of whom were not volunteers, began entering the ranks.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=171}} The [[7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen|7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division ''Prinz Eugen'']] was recruited from ''[[Volksdeutsche]]'' (ethnic Germans) drafted under threat of punishment by the local German leadership{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=171}} from [[Independent State of Croatia|Croatia]], [[Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia|Serbia]], [[Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary]], and Romania and used for anti-partisan operations in the Balkans.{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|p=9}}{{sfn|Mitcham|2007|p=148}} Himmler approved the introduction of formal compulsory service for the ''Volksdeutsche'' in German-occupied Serbia.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=171}} Another new division was formed at the same time, when the SS Cavalry Brigade was used as the [[Cadre (military)|cadre]] in the formation of the [[8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer|8th SS Cavalry Division ''Florian Geyer'']].{{sfn|Windrow|Burn|1992|p=9}}

====''Panzergrenadier'' divisions====
The front line divisions of the ''Waffen-SS'' that had suffered losses through the winter of 1941–1942 and during the Soviet counter-offensive were withdrawn to France to recover and be reformed as ''[[Panzergrenadier]]'' divisions.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=9}} Due to the efforts of Himmler and Hausser, the new commander of the [[II SS Panzer Corps|SS Panzer Corps]], the three SS ''Panzergrenadier'' divisions {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}, ''Das Reich'', and ''Totenkopf'' were to be formed with a full regiment of tanks rather than only a battalion. This meant that the SS ''Panzergrenadier'' divisions were full-strength Panzer divisions in all but name. They each received nine [[Tiger I|Tiger tank]]s, which were formed into the [[German heavy tank battalion#Combat performance|heavy panzer companies]].{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=9}}

====Demyansk Pocket====
The Soviet offensive of January 1942 trapped a number of German divisions in the [[Demyansk Pocket]] between February and April 1942; the 3rd SS ''Totenkopf'' Division was one of the divisions encircled by the Red Army. The Red Army liberated [[Demyansk]] on 1 March 1943 with the retreat of German troops. "For his excellence in command and the particularly fierce fighting of the ''Totenkopf''", Eicke was awarded Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 20 May 1942.{{sfn|Fellgiebel|2000|p=59}}

===1943===
====1943 expansion====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Mielke-036-23, Waffen-SS, 13. Gebirgs-Div. "Handschar".jpg|thumb|left|Bosnian Muslims (ethnic Bosniaks), members of the [[13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)|''Handschar'']] Division, the first non-Germanic, multi-ethnic ''Waffen-SS'' division in 1943]]
[[File:Униатский епископ Иосиф Иосафат Коциловский благославляет добровольцев дивизии СС "Галичина".jpg|thumb|left|Uniate Catholic Bishop Joseph Iosafat Kotsilovsky blesses the troops of the [[14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)|''Galician'']] Division]]
The ''Waffen-SS'' expanded further in 1943: in February the [[9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen|9th SS Panzer Division ''Hohenstaufen'']] and its sister division, the [[10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg|10th SS Panzer Division ''Frundsberg'']], were formed in France. They were followed in July by the [[11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland|11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division ''Nordland'']] created from Norwegian and Danish volunteers. September saw the formation of the [[12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend|12th SS Panzer Division ''Hitlerjugend'']] using volunteers from the [[Hitler Youth]]. Himmler and Berger successfully appealed to Hitler to form a [[Bosniaks|Bosnian Muslim]] division, and the [[13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)|13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS ''Handschar'' (1st Croatian)]], the first non-Germanic division, was formed, to fight [[Josip Broz Tito]]'s [[Yugoslav Partisans]]. This was followed by the [[14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)]] formed from volunteers from [[Galicia (Eastern Europe)|Galicia]] in western Ukraine. The [[15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Latvian)]] was created in 1943, using compulsory military service in the [[Reichskommissariat Ostland|''Ostland'']]. The final new division of 1943 was the [[16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS|16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ''Reichsführer-SS'']], which was created using the ''Sturmbrigade Reichsführer SS'' as a cadre. By the end of the year, the ''Waffen-SS'' had increased in size from eight divisions and some brigades to 16 divisions. By 1943 the ''Waffen-SS'' could no longer claim to be an "elite" fighting force. Recruitment and conscription based on "numerical over qualitative expansion" took place, with many of the "foreign" units being good for only rear-guard duty.{{sfn|Wegner|1990|pp=307, 313, 325, 327–331}}

====Kharkov====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Zschaeckel-189-13, Russland, Charkow, Waffen-SS mit Panzer IV.jpg|thumb|left|German tanks at Kharkov, 1943]]
On the Eastern Front, the Germans suffered a devastating defeat when the [[6th Army (Wehrmacht)|6th Army]] was destroyed during the [[Battle of Stalingrad]]. Hitler ordered the SS Panzer Corps back to the Eastern Front for a counter-attack with the city of [[Kharkiv|Kharkov]] as its objective.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=173}} The SS Panzer Corps was in full retreat on 19 February, having been attacked by the [[6th Combined Arms Army|Soviet 6th Army]], when they received the order to counter-attack.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=173}} Disobeying Hitler's order to [[Last stand|"stand fast and fight to the death"]], Hausser withdrew in front of the Red Army. During Field Marshal [[Erich von Manstein]]'s counteroffensive, the SS Panzer Corps, without support from the ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' or neighbouring German formations, broke through the Soviet line and advanced on Kharkov.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=173–174}} Despite orders to encircle Kharkov from the north, the SS Panzer Corps directly attacked in the [[Third Battle of Kharkov]] on 11 March.{{sfn|Margry|2001|p=20}} This led to four days of house-to-house fighting before Kharkov was recaptured by the ''Leibstandarte'' Division on 15 March. Two days later, the Germans recaptured [[Belgorod]], creating the [[Salient (military)|salient]] that, in July 1943, led to the [[Battle of Kursk]]. The German offensive cost the Red Army an estimated 70,000 casualties but the house-to-house fighting in Kharkov was particularly bloody for the SS Panzer Corps, which lost approximately 44% of its strength by the time operations ended in late March.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=10}}

====Warsaw Ghetto uprising====
[[File:Stroop Report - Warsaw Ghetto Uprising 03.jpg|thumb|Original caption from the [[Stroop Report]]: "The leader of the grand operation." ''SS-[[Brigadeführer]]'' [[Jürgen Stroop]] (center) watches housing blocks burn.]]
The [[Warsaw Ghetto Uprising]] was a Jewish [[insurgency]] that arose within the [[Warsaw Ghetto]] from 19 April to 16 May, an effort to prevent the transportation of the remaining population of the ghetto to [[Treblinka extermination camp]]. Units involved from the ''Waffen-SS'' were 821 ''Waffen-SS'' ''Panzergrenadiers'' from five reserve and training battalions and one cavalry reserve and training battalion.{{sfn|Stroop|1943}}{{sfn|Holocaust Memorial Museum}}

====Kursk====
For the Battle of Kursk, the SS Panzer Corps was renamed the II SS Panzer Corps and was part of the [[4th Panzer Army]]. The II SS Panzer Corps spearheaded the attack through the Soviet defences. The attack penetrated to a depth of {{convert|35|km|mi}} and was then stopped by the [[1st Guards Tank Army|Soviet 1st Tank Army]].

The Soviet reserves had been sent south to defend against a German attack by the [[III Army Corps (Wehrmacht)|III Panzer Corps]]. With the loss of their reserves, any hope they may have had of dealing a major defeat to the II SS Panzer Corps ended. But the German advances now failed – despite appalling losses, the Soviet tank armies held the line and prevented the II SS Panzer Corps from making the expected breakthrough.{{sfn|Bergstrom|2007|p=81}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Zschaeckel-207-12, Schlacht um Kursk, Panzer VI (Tiger I).jpg|thumb|[[Tiger I]] tank company of the ''[[2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich|Das Reich]]'' division during the [[Battle of Kursk]], July 1943 ]]

The failure to break through the Soviet tactical zone and the need to break off the assault by the German 9th Army on the northern shoulder of the Kursk salient due to [[Operation Kutuzov]] contributed to Hitler's decision to halt the offensive. A parallel attack by the Red Army against the new 6th Army on the Mius river south of Kharkov necessitated the withdrawal of reserve forces held to exploit any success on the southern shoulder of Kursk. The OKW also had to draw on some German troops from the Eastern Front to bolster the Mediterranean theatre following the Allied [[Allied invasion of Sicily|invasion of Sicily]].{{sfn|Fritz|2011|p=350}} On 17 July, Hitler called off the operation and ordered a withdrawal.{{sfn|Evans|2008|pp=488–489}} The Soviet Union was not beaten, and the strategic initiative had swung to the Red Army. The Germans were forced onto the defensive as the Red Army began the liberation of Western Russia.{{sfn|McNab|2009|pp=68, 70}}

====Italy====
The {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was thereafter sent to Italy to help stabilise the situation there following the disposal of [[Benito Mussolini]] by the [[Pietro Badoglio|Badoglio]] government and the Allied invasion of Sicily, which marked the beginning of the [[Italian campaign (World War II)|Italian campaign]]. The division left behind its armour and equipment, which was given to the ''Das Reich'' and ''Totenkopf'' Divisions.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=15}} After the [[Armistice of Cassibile|Italian surrender]] and collapse of 8 September 1943, the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was ordered to begin disarming nearby Italian units.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=15}} It also had the task of guarding vital road and rail junctions in the north of Italy and was involved in several skirmishes with partisans.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=15}} This went smoothly, with the exception of a brief skirmish with Italian troops stationed in [[Parma]] on 9 September. By 19 September, all Italian forces in the [[Po Valley|Po River plain]] had been disarmed, but the OKW received reports that elements of the [[4th Army (Italy)|Italian 4th Army]] were regrouping in [[Piedmont]], near the French border. [[Joachim Peiper]]'s mechanised 3rd Battalion, 2nd SS ''Panzergrenadier'' Regiment, was sent to disarm these units.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=15}} On arriving in the province of [[Cuneo]], Peiper was met by an Italian officer who warned that his forces would attack unless Peiper's unit vacated the province immediately. After Peiper refused, the Italians attacked. Peiper's battalion defeated the Italians, and subsequently shelled and burnt down the village of [[Boves, Piedmont|Boves]], killing at least 34 civilians.{{sfn|Bishop|Williams|2003|p=98}} Peiper's battalion then disarmed the remaining Italian forces in the area.

While the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} was operating in the north, the 16th SS ''Reichsführer-SS'' Division sent a small battlegroup to contain the [[Battle of Anzio|Anzio landings]] in January 1944. In March, the bulk of the 1st ''Italienische Freiwilligen Sturmbrigade'' (or ''Brigata d'Assalto, Volontari'' in Italian) was sent to the Anzio beachhead, where they fought alongside their German allies, receiving favourable reports and taking heavy losses. In recognition of their performance, Himmler declared the unit to be fully integrated into the ''Waffen-SS''.

===1944===
====1944 expansion====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J16696, Soldaten der Legion "Freies Indien".jpg|thumb|After D-Day, the [[Indian Legion]] was transferred from the ''Heer'' to the ''Waffen-SS''.{{sfn|Thomson|2004}}]]
The ''Waffen-SS'' expanded again during 1944. January saw the formation of the [[19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian)]], formed from the two SS infantry brigades as cadre with Latvian conscripts. The [[20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian)]] was formed via general conscription in February 1944, around a cadre from the [[3rd Estonian SS Volunteer Brigade]]. The [[21st Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Skanderbeg|21st Waffen Mountain Division of the SS ''Skanderbeg'' (1st Albanian)]] was formed in March 1944 from Albanian and Kosovan volunteers, which as with other "eastern formations" were intended for use against "irregular forces".{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=184, 185, 194}} A second ''Waffen-SS'' cavalry division followed in April 1944, the [[22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division Maria Theresia|22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division ''Maria Theresia'']]. The bulk of the troops were [[Royal Hungarian Army|Hungarian Army]] ''Volksdeutsche'' conscripts transferred to the ''Waffen-SS'' following an agreement between Germany and Hungary. The [[Volunteer Legion Netherlands|23rd SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division ''Nederland'']] followed, formed from the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade ''Nederland'', but it was never more than a large brigade. The [[24th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Karstjäger|24th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS ''Karstjäger'']] was another division that was never more than brigade size, consisting mainly of ethnic German volunteers from Italy and Yugoslavia, along with volunteers from Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, and Ukraine. They were primarily involved in fighting partisans in the [[Karst Plateau|Kras]] region of the [[Alps]] on the frontiers of Slovenia, Italy, and Austria, the mountainous terrain requiring specialised mountain troops and equipment.{{sfn|Williamson|Andrew|2004|p=4}} Two Hungarian divisions followed: the [[25th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Hunyadi (1st Hungarian)|25th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS ''Hunyadi'' (1st Hungarian)]] and the [[26th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Hungarian)]]. These were formed under the authority of the Hungarian defence minister, at the request of Himmler. One regiment from the Hungarian Army was ordered to join, but they mostly consisted of Hungarian and Romanian volunteers.{{sfn|Williamson|Andrew|2004|pp=5–6}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-721-0387-05A, Frankreich, SS-Panzersoldaten vor Panzer.jpg|thumb|Members of the ''Waffen-SS'' in front of a camouflaged tank in France, June 1944]]

The [[Flemish Legion|SS Division ''Langemarck'']] was formed next in October 1944, from Flemish volunteers added to the 6th SS Volunteer Assault Brigade ''Langemarck'', but again it was nothing more than a large brigade. The 5th SS Volunteer Assault Brigade ''Wallonien'' was also upgraded to the [[Walloon Legion|SS Division ''Wallonien'']], but it too was never more than a large brigade. Plans to convert the Kaminski Brigade into the [[Kaminski Brigade|29th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS RONA (1st Russian)]] were dropped after the execution of their commander, [[Bronislav Kaminski]]; instead the Waffen Grenadier Brigade of SS (Italian no. 1) became the [[29th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Italian)]]. The [[30th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS|30th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Russian)]] was formed from the ''Schutzmannschaft-Brigade Siegling''. The final new division of late 1944 was the [[31st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division]], formed from Hungarians and conscripted ''Volksdeutsche''.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=189}}

In November 1944 the [[1st SS Cossack Cavalry Division|1st Cossack Division]], originally mustered by the German Army in 1943, was taken over by the ''Waffen-SS''. The ''SS Führungshauptamt'' reorganised the division and used further Cossack combat units from the army and the ''Ordnungspolizei'' to form a 2nd Cossack Division. Both divisions were placed under the command of the [[XV SS Cossack Cavalry Corps]] on 1 February 1945. With the transfer of the 5th Volunteer ''Cossack-Stamm-Regiment'' from the ''[[Freiwilligen-Stamm-Division]]'' on the same day the takeover of the Cossack units by the ''Waffen-SS'' was complete.{{sfn|Tessin|1977|p=400}}{{sfn|Tessin|1966|p=37}}{{sfn|Tessin|1970|p=5}}

====Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket====
The [[Battle of Korsun–Cherkassy|Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket]] was formed in January 1944 when units of the [[8th Army (Wehrmacht)|8th Army]] withdrew to the [[Panther–Wotan line|Panther-Wotan Line]], a defensive position along the [[Dnieper|Dnieper River]] in Ukraine. Two army corps were left holding a salient into the Soviet lines extending some {{convert|100|km|mi}}. The Red Army's [[1st Ukrainian Front|1st]] and [[2nd Ukrainian Front]]s encircled the pocket. Trapped in the pocket were a total of six German divisions, including the 5th SS ''Wiking'' Division, with the attached 5th SS Volunteer Assault Brigade ''Wallonien'', and the Estonian SS Battalion ''Narwa''.{{sfn|Zetterling|Frankson|2008|p=335}} The Germans broke out in coordination with other German forces from the outside, including the 1st SS Panzer Division {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}. Roughly two out of every three encircled men successfully escaped the pocket.{{sfn|Nash|2002|p=366}}

====Raid on Drvar====
The [[Operation Rösselsprung (1944)|Raid on Drvar]], codenamed Operation ''Rösselsprung'', was an attack by the ''Waffen-SS'' and ''Luftwaffe'' on the command structure of the Yugoslav partisans. Their objective was the elimination of the partisan-controlled Supreme Headquarters and the capture of Tito. The offensive took place in April and May 1944. The ''Waffen-SS'' units involved were the [[500th SS Parachute Battalion]] and the 7th SS ''Prinz Eugen'' Division.

The assault started when a small group parachuted into [[Drvar]] to secure landing grounds for the following [[Glider (aircraft)|glider]] force. The 500th SS Parachute Battalion fought their way to Tito's cave headquarters and exchanged heavy gunfire resulting in numerous casualties on both sides. By the time German forces had penetrated into the cave, Tito had already escaped. At the end of the battle, only 200 men of the 500th SS Parachute Battalion remained unwounded.{{sfn|Eyre|2006|pp=343–376}}

====Baltic states====
In Estonia, the [[Battle of Narva (1944)|Battle of Narva]] started in February. The battle can be divided into two phases: the [[Battle for Narva Bridgehead]] from February to July and the [[Battle of Tannenberg Line]] from July to September. A number of volunteer and conscript ''Waffen-SS'' units from Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Estonia fought in Narva. The units were all part of the [[III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps|III SS (Germanic) Panzer Corps]] in Army Group North, which consisted of the 11th SS Panzergrenadier Division ''Nordland'', the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade ''Nederland'', the 5th SS Volunteer Assault Brigade ''Wallonien'', the 6th SS Volunteer Assault Brigade ''Langemarck'', and the conscript 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian), under the command of ''Obergruppenführer'' Felix Steiner.{{sfn|Mitcham|2001|pp=261–262}}

Also in Army Group North was the [[VI SS Army Corps (Latvian)|VI SS Corps]], which consisted of the 15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Latvian) and the 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian). Latvian ''Waffen SS'' and German Army units held out in the [[Courland Pocket]] until the end of the war.

====Normandy====
[[File:Operation Spring.png|thumb|The starting lines of [[Operation Spring]]. ''Waffen-SS'' units identified are the 1st, 9th, 10th, and 12th ''SS'' Divisions and the 101st and 102nd SS Heavy Panzer Battalions.]]
[[Operation Overlord]], the Allied [[Normandy landings|"D-Day" landings]] in [[Normandy]], took place on 6 June 1944. In preparation for the expected landings, the I SS Panzer Corps was moved to [[Septeuil]] to the west of Paris in April 1944. The corps had the 1st SS Panzer Division ''Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler'', the 12th SS Panzer Division ''Hitlerjugend'', and the 17th SS Panzergrenadier ''Götz von Berlichingen'' Divisions, along with the army's [[Panzer Lehr Division|Panzer-Lehr-Division]] assigned to it.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=131}} The corps was to form a part of General [[Leo Geyr von Schweppenburg]]'s [[5th Panzer Army|Panzer Group West]], the Western theatre's armoured reserve.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=131}} The corps was restructured on 4 July 1944 and only the 1st SS {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} and the 12th SS ''Hitlerjugend'' Divisions remained on strength.{{sfn|Reynolds|1997|p=145}}

After the landings, the first ''Waffen-SS'' unit in action was the 12th SS ''Hitlerjugend'' Division, which arrived at the invasion front on 7 June, in the [[Caen]] area. That same day they committed the [[Ardenne Abbey massacre]] against [[Canadian Army]] prisoners of war.{{sfn|Latimer|2001}} The next unit to arrive was the 17th SS Division ''Götz von Berlichingen'' on 11 June, which came into contact with the US [[101st Airborne Division]].<ref>* {{cite web |title=''Götz von Berlichingen'' Diary |url=http://www.waffen-ss.no/diary-17-SS-Gotz-von-Berlichingen.htm |access-date=24 May 2013}}</ref> The [[101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion]] arrived next to protect the left wing of the I SS Panzer Corps. The 1st SS Division {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} arrived towards the end of the month with lead elements becoming embroiled in the British offensive [[Operation Epsom]].

The only other ''Waffen-SS'' unit in France at this time was the 2nd SS Panzer Division ''Das Reich'', in [[Montauban]], north of [[Toulouse]]. They were ordered north to the landing beaches and on 9 June were responsible for the [[Tulle massacre]], where 99 men were murdered. The next day, they reached the village of [[Oradour-sur-Glane]] where they [[Oradour-sur-Glane massacre|massacred 642 civilians]] including 247 children.

The II SS Panzer Corps, consisting of the 9th SS ''Hohenstaufen'' and 10th SS ''Frundsberg'' Panzer Divisions and the [[102nd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion]], was transferred from the Eastern Front to spearhead an offensive to destroy the Allied beachhead. However, the British launched [[Operation Epsom]] and the two divisions were fed piecemeal into the battle, and launched several counterattacks over the following days.

[[File:Falaise Pocket German Counterattack.png|thumb|left|German counterattacks against Canadian-Polish positions on 20 August 1944]]

Without any further reinforcements in men or materiel, the ''Waffen-SS'' divisions could not stop the Allied advance. Both the 1st SS and 2nd SS Panzer Divisions took part in the failed [[Operation Lüttich]] in early August.{{sfn|Fey|2003|p=145}} The end came in mid August when the German Army was encircled and trapped in the [[Falaise pocket]], including the 1st SS, 10th SS, 12th SS, and 17th SS Divisions, while the 2nd SS and 9th SS Panzer Divisions were ordered to attack [[Hill 262]] from the outside in order to keep the gap open.{{sfn|Jarymowycz|2001|p=196}} By 22 August, the Falaise pocket had been closed, and all German forces west of the Allied lines were either dead or in captivity.{{sfn|Hastings|2006|p=306}} In the fighting around Hill 262 alone, casualties totalled 2,000 killed and 5,000 taken prisoner.{{sfn|McGilvray|2005|p=54}} The 12th SS Panzer Division ''Hitlerjugend'' had lost 94 per cent of its armour, nearly all of its artillery, and 70 per cent of its vehicles.{{sfn|Bercuson|2004|p=233}} The division had close to 20,000 men and 150 tanks before the campaign started, and was now reduced to just 300 men and 10 tanks.{{sfn|Bercuson|2004|p=233}}
[[File:German prisoners SS-Panzerdivision Hitlerjugend.jpg|thumb|12 SS ''Hitlerjugend'' troops taken prisoner in Normandy]]

With the German Army in full retreat, two further ''Waffen-SS'' formations entered the battle in France, the [[SS Panzergrenadier Brigade 49]] and the [[SS Panzergrenadier Brigade 51]]. Both had been formed in June 1944 from staff and students at the SS Junker Schools. They were stationed in Denmark to allow the garrison there to move into France, but were brought forward at the beginning of August to the area south and east of Paris. Both brigades were tasked to hold crossings over the [[Seine|Seine River]] allowing the army to retreat. Eventually, they were forced back and then withdrew, the surviving troops being incorporated into the 17th SS Division.

====Greece====
While the bulk of the ''Waffen-SS'' was now on the Eastern Front or in Normandy, the 4th SS Polizei Panzergrenadier Division was stationed in [[Greece]] on [[internal security]] duties and anti-partisan operations. On 10 June, they committed the [[Distomo massacre]], when over a period of two hours they went door to door and massacred Greek civilians, reportedly in revenge for a [[Greek resistance]] attack. In total, 218 men, women, and children were murdered. According to survivors, the SS forces "bayoneted babies in their cribs, stabbed pregnant women, and beheaded the village priest."<ref>{{cite news |title=Greeks lose Nazi massacre claim |work=BBC News |date=26 June 2003 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3023144.stm |access-date=2 June 2013 }}</ref>

====Italy====
On the Italian Front, the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ''Reichsführer-SS'', conducting anti-partisan operations, is remembered more for the atrocities it perpetrated than its fighting ability; the division committed the [[Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre]] in August 1944{{sfn|Jewish Virtual Library, Sant'Anna massacre}} and the [[Marzabotto massacre]] between September and October 1944.<ref>{{cite news |title=Italy convicts Nazis of massacre |work=BBC News |date=13 January 2007 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6259987.stm |access-date=2 June 2013  }}</ref>

====Finland====
In Finland, the 6th SS Mountain Division ''Nord'' had held its lines during the Soviet summer offensive until it was ordered to withdraw from Finland upon the conclusion of an armistice between Finland and the Soviet Union in September 1944. It then formed the rear guard for the three German corps withdrawing from Finland in Operation Birch, and from September to November 1944 marched 1,600 kilometres to [[Mo i Rana]], Norway, where it entrained for the southern end of the country, crossing the [[Skagerrak]] to Denmark.

====Arnhem and Operation Market Garden====
In early September 1944, the II SS Panzer Corps (comprising the 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions) was pulled out of the line and sent to the [[Arnhem]] area in the Netherlands.{{sfn|Harclerode|2005|pp=455–456}} Upon arrival, they began the task of refitting, and the majority of the remaining armoured vehicles were loaded onto trains in preparation for transport to repair depots in Germany. On 17 September 1944, the Allies launched [[Operation Market Garden]], and the British [[1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom)|1st Airborne Division]] was dropped in [[Oosterbeek]], to the west of Arnhem. Realizing the threat, [[Wilhelm Bittrich]], commander of the II SS Panzer Corps, ordered the ''Hohenstaufen'' and ''Frundsberg'' divisions to ready themselves for combat. Also in the area was the Training and Reserve Battalion of the 16th SS Division. The Allied airborne operation was a failure, and [[Liberation of Arnhem|Arnhem was not liberated]] until 14 April 1945.{{sfn|Ellis|2004|pp=313–315}}

====Warsaw Uprising====
[[File:Warsaw Old Town 1945.jpg|upright=1.2|thumb|Ruins of Warsaw's [[Old Town Market Place, Warsaw|Old Town Market Square]]. In total, eighty-five per cent of the city [[Destruction of Warsaw|was destroyed]] and nearly 200,000 civilians killed.]]
At the other end of Europe, the ''Waffen-SS'' was dealing with the [[Warsaw Uprising]]. Between August and October 1944, the [[Dirlewanger Brigade|SS-Sonderregiment Dirlewanger]] (recruited from probationary troops, common criminals and the mentally ill throughout Germany), which included the [[Azerbaijani Legion]] (part of the ''[[Ostlegionen]]''),<ref>Rolf Michaelis Die SS-Sturmbrigade „Dirlewanger“. Vom Warschauer Aufstand bis zum Kessel von Halbe. Band II. 1. Auflage. Verlag Rolf Michaelis, 2003, {{ISBN|3-930849-32-1}}</ref> and the [[Kaminski Brigade|SS Assault Brigade RONA]] (Russian National Liberation Army),<ref>{{cite web |title=RONA – Russian National Liberation Army (Russkaya Osvoboditelnaya Narodnaya Armiya) |website=Warsaw Uprising 1944 |url=http://www.warsawuprising.com/paper/rona.htm |access-date=21 July 2019 |archive-date=22 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722115516/http://www.warsawuprising.com/paper/rona.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> which was made up of anti-Soviet Russian, Belarusian, and Ukrainian collaborators,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.warsawuprising.com/paper/rona.htm|title=Warsaw Uprising: RONA, Bronislaw Kaminski|website=warsawuprising.com|access-date=22 February 2015|archive-date=22 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722115516/http://www.warsawuprising.com/paper/rona.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> were both sent to [[Warsaw]] to put down the uprising. During the battle, the SS-Sonderregiment Dirlewanger behaved atrociously, raping, looting, and killing citizens regardless of whether they belonged to the [[Home Army|Polish resistance]] or not; the unit's commander SS-''[[Oberführer]]'' [[Oskar Dirlewanger]] encouraged their excesses. The unit's behaviour was reportedly so bestial and indiscriminate that Himmler was forced to send a battalion of SS military police to ensure the ''Dirlewanger'' convicts did not turn their aggressions against the leadership of the brigade or other nearby German units.{{sfn|Bell|1966|pp=89–91}} At the same time, they were encouraged by Himmler to terrorise freely, take no prisoners, and generally indulge their perverse tendencies. Favoured tactics during the siege, particularly of the SS-Sonderregiment Dirlewanger, included the ubiquitous gang rape of female Poles, both women and children; playing "bayonet catch" with live babies; and torturing captives to death by hacking off their arms, dousing them with gasoline, and setting them alight to run armless and flaming down the street.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Clark |first=Alan |url=https://archive.org/details/barbarossarussia0000clar/page/391 |title=Barbarossa: The Russian-German Conflict, 1941–1945 |date=1965 |publisher=William Morrow and Company |pages=391 |language=en}}</ref>{{sfn|Conot|1984|pp=278–281}}<ref name=":14">{{Cite book |last=Cawthorne |first=Nigel |author-link=Nigel Cawthorne |url=https://archive.org/details/storyofsshitlers0000cawt |title=The Story of the SS: Hitler's Infamous Legions of Death |publisher=Chartwell Books |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-7858-2714-6 |location=New York |pages=180 |language=en}}</ref> The Police unit under Reinefarth  that followed SS-Sonderregiment Dirlewanger committed almost non-stop atrocities during this period, in particular the [[Wola massacre]].

[[File:Polish civilians murdered by German-SS-troops in Warsaw Uprising Warsaw August 1944.jpg|thumb|left|Photo taken by the [[Polish resistance movement in World War II|Polish Underground]] showing the bodies of women and children murdered by SS troops during the Warsaw Uprising, August 1944]]

The other unit, the Kaminski Brigade, was tasked with clearing the [[Ochota]] district in Warsaw that was defended by members of the Polish Home Army. Their attack was planned for the morning of 5 August, but when the time came, the Kaminski Brigade could not be found; after some searching by the SS military police, members of the unit were found looting abandoned houses in the rear of the German column. Later, thousands of Polish civilians were killed during the events known as the [[Ochota massacre]]; many victims were also raped.{{efn|"Adolf Hitler is not interested in further existence of Warsaw&nbsp;... the whole population shall be executed and all buildings blown up.".{{sfn|Madajczyk|1972|p=390}}}}{{efn|According to the evidence of [[Erich von dem Bach]] at the [[International Military Tribunal]] Nuremberg, Himmler's order (issued on the strength of an order of Hitler), read as follows: "1. Caught razed insurgents shall be killed despite whether they fight in accordance with the [[Hague Conventions (1899 and 1907)|Hague Convention]] or they infringe it. 2. Non-fighting part of population, women, children, shall also be killed. 3. All the city shall be razed to the ground, i.e. buildings, streets, facilities in that city, and everything which is within its borders.".{{sfn|Wroniszewski|1970|pp=128–129}}}} In the following weeks, the unit was moved south to the [[Wola]] district, but it fared no better in combat there than it did in Ochota; in one incident, a sub-unit of the Kaminski Brigade advanced to loot a captured building on the front line, but was subsequently cut off from the rest of the SS formation and wiped out by the Poles. Following the fiasco, Waffen-''[[Brigadeführer]]'' [[Bronislav Kaminski|Bronislav Vladislavovich Kaminski]], the unit's commander, was called to [[Łódź]] to attend an SS leadership conference. He never arrived; official Nazi sources blamed Polish partisans for an alleged ambush that killed the RONA commander. But, according to various other sources, he was arrested and tried by the SS, or simply shot on spot by the [[Gestapo]]. The behaviour of the Kaminski Brigade during the battle was an embarrassment even to the SS, and the alleged rape and murder of two German [[Strength Through Joy]] girls may have played a part in the eventual execution of the brigade's commander.{{sfn|Kirchmayer|1978|p=367}}

====Vistula River line====
In late August 1944, the 5th SS Panzer Division ''Wiking'' was ordered back to [[Modlin, Nowy Dwór County|Modlin]] on the [[Vistula|Vistula River]] line near Warsaw, where it was to join the newly formed [[Army Group Vistula]]. Fighting alongside the ''Luftwaffe''<nowiki/>'s [[1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring|1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division ''Hermann Göring'']], they were faced against the Soviet [[16th Guards Tank Division|3rd Tank Corps]]. The advent of the Warsaw Uprising brought the Soviet offensive to a halt, and relative peace fell on the front line. The division remained in the Modlin area, grouped with the 3th SS Panzer Division ''Totenkopf'' in the [[IV SS Panzer Corps]]. Heavy defensive battles around Modlin followed for the rest of the year.

[[File:Kampfgruppe Knittel's troops on the road to Stavelot.jpg|thumb|Kampfgruppe [[Gustav Knittel|Knittel]]'s troops on the road to [[Stavelot]] to support Peiper ]]

The Ardennes Offensive (popularly known as the "[[Battle of the Bulge]]"), between 16 December 1944 and 25 January 1945, was a major German offensive through the forested [[Ardennes]] mountains region of Belgium. The ''Waffen-SS'' units included the [[6th Panzer Army]] under Sepp Dietrich. Created on 26 October 1944, it incorporated the I SS Panzer Corps (the 1st and 12th SS Panzer Divisions along with the 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion). It also had the II SS Panzer Corps (the 2nd and 9th SS Panzer Divisions). Another unit involved was [[Otto Skorzeny]]'s [[Panzer Brigade 150|SS Panzer Brigade 150]].

The purpose of the attack was to split the British and American line in half, capture [[Antwerp]], and encircle and destroy four Allied armies, forcing the Western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty on terms favourable to the [[Axis powers|Axis Powers]].{{sfn|United States History}} However, advancing through the forests and wooded hills of the Ardennes proved difficult in the winter weather. Initially, the Germans made good progress in the northern end of its advance. However, they ran into unexpectedly strong resistance by the US [[2nd Infantry Division (United States)|2nd]] and [[99th Infantry Division (United States)|99th Infantry Divisions]]. By 23 December, weather conditions started improving, allowing the Allied air forces, which had been grounded, to attack. In increasingly difficult conditions, the German advance slowed.{{sfn|Weinberg|1994|p=767}} The attack was ultimately a failure. Despite the efforts of the ''Waffen-SS'' and the German Army, fuel shortages, stiff American resistance, including in and around the town of [[Siege of Bastogne|Bastogne]], and Allied air-assaults on German supply columns proved too much, costing the Germans 700 tanks and most of their remaining mobile forces in the west.{{sfn|Weinberg|1994|pp=767–769}} Hitler's failed counteroffensive had used most of Germany's remaining reserves of manpower and materiel, which could not be replaced.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=232}}

[[File:Malmedy Massacre.jpg|thumb|Aftermath of the Malmedy Massacre]]

During the battle, ''Kampfgruppe Peiper'', part of the {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}} Division, left a path of destruction, which included ''Waffen-SS'' soldiers massacring American POWs, raping Belgian women,{{sfn|Beevor|2015|p=221}} and looting and murdering unarmed Belgian civilians.{{sfn|Murray|Millett|2001|p=468}} It is infamous for the [[Malmedy massacre]], in which approximately 90 unarmed American prisoners of war were murdered on 17 December 1944.{{sfn|Reynolds|2003}} Also during this battle, 3./SS-PzAA1 LSSAH captured and shot eleven African-American soldiers from the US [[333rd Field Artillery Battalion (United States)|333rd Field Artillery Battalion]] in the hamlet of Wereth. Their remains were found by Allied troops two months later. The soldiers had their fingers cut off and legs broken, and one was shot while trying to bandage a comrade's wounds.{{sfn|US Memorial Wereth}}

====Siege of Budapest====
In late December 1944, Axis forces, including the [[IX SS Mountain Corps]], defending [[Budapest]], were encircled in the [[Siege of Budapest]]. The IV SS Panzer Corps (the 3rd and 5th SS Panzer Divisions) was ordered south to join General [[Hermann Balck]]'s 6th Army (Army Group Balck), which was mustering for a relief effort code named [[Operation Konrad]].

As a part of Operation Konrad I, the IV SS Panzer Corps was committed to action on 1 January 1945, near [[Tata, Hungary|Tata]], with the advance columns of the ''Wiking'' Division slamming into the Soviet [[4th Guards Army]]. A heavy battle ensued, with the ''Wiking'' and ''Totenkopf'' Division destroying many of the Soviet tanks. In three days their panzer spearheads had driven 45 kilometres, over half the distance from the start point to Budapest. The Red Army manoeuvred forces to block the advance, halting them at [[Bicske]], {{convert|28|km|mi}} from Budapest. Two further attacks, Operations Konrad II and [[Operation Konrad III|III]], also failed.{{sfn|Zwack|1999}}

The [[Third Army (Hungary)|Hungarian Third Army]] was besieged in Budapest along with the IX SS Mountain Corps (the 8th and 22nd SS Cavalry Divisions). The siege lasted from 29 December 1944 until the city surrendered unconditionally on 13 February 1945. Only 170 men of the 22nd SS Cavalry Division ''Maria Theresa'' made it back to the German lines.

===1945===
====1945 expansion====
The ''Waffen-SS'' continued to expand in 1945. January saw the [[32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier Division|32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier Division ''30 Januar'']] formed from the remnants of other units and staff from the SS Junker Schools. In February, the Waffen Grenadier Brigade of the SS ''Charlemagne'' was upgraded to a division and became known as the [[33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne|33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS ''Charlemagne'' (1st French)]]. At this time, it had a strength of 7,340 men.{{sfn|Littlejohn|1987|pp=170, 172}} The SS Volunteer Grenadier Brigade ''Landstorm Nederland'' was upgraded to the [[34th SS Volunteer Grenadier Division Landstorm Nederland|34th SS Volunteer Grenadier Division ''Landstorm Nederland'']]. The second SS police division followed when the [[35th SS-Police Grenadier Division]] was formed from SS police units that had been transferred to the ''Waffen-SS''. The Dirlewanger Brigade was reformed as the [[Dirlewanger Brigade|36th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS]]. As there was now a real shortage of ''Waffen-SS'' volunteers and conscripts, units from the army were attached to bring it up to strength. The third SS cavalry division, the [[37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division Lützow|37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division ''Lützow'']], was formed from the remnants of the 8th and 22nd SS Cavalry Divisions, which had both been virtually destroyed. The last ''Waffen-SS'' division was the [[38th SS-Grenadier-Division "Nibelungen"|38th SS Grenadier Division ''Nibelungen'']], which was formed from students and staff from the SS Junker Schools, but consisted of only around 6,000 men, the strength of a normal brigade.

====Operation Nordwind====
[[Operation Northwind (1944)|Operation Nordwind]] was the last major German offensive on the Western Front. It began on 1 January 1945 in [[Alsace]] and [[Lorraine]] in northeastern France, and it ended on 25 January. The initial attack was conducted by three corps of the 1st Army. By 15 January, at least 17 German divisions (including units in the [[Colmar Pocket]]) were engaged, including the [[XIII SS Army Corps]] (the 17th and 38th SS Divisions) and the 6th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions.{{sfn|100th Division}} At the same time, the ''Luftwaffe'' mounted a large offensive over the skies of France. Some 240 fighters were lost and just as many pilots. It was the 'last gasp' attempt for the ''Luftwaffe'' to take back air supremacy from the Western Allies.

====Operation Solstice====
[[Operation Solstice]], or the "Stargard Tank Battle" (February 1945) was one of the last armoured offensive operations on the Eastern Front. It was a limited counterattack by the three Corps of the [[11th SS Panzer Army]], which was being assembled in [[Pomerania]], against the spearheads of the Soviet [[1st Belorussian Front]]. Originally planned as a major offensive, it was executed as a more limited attack. It was repulsed by the Red Army, but helped to convince the [[Stavka|Soviet High Command]] to postpone the planned attack on [[Berlin]].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=91}}

Initially, the attack achieved a total surprise, reaching the banks of the [[Ina (river)|Ina River]] and, on 17 January, [[Choszczno|Arnswalde]]. Strong Soviet counterattacks halted the advance, and the operation was called off. The III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps, was pulled back to the [[Stargard]] and [[Szczecin|Stettin]] on the northern [[Oder|Oder River]].

====East Pomeranian Offensive====
The [[East Pomeranian offensive|East Pomeranian Offensive]] lasted from 24 February to 4 April, in Pomerania and [[West Prussia]]. The ''Waffen-SS'' units involved were the 11th SS ''Nordland'', 20th SS ''Estonian'', 23rd SS ''Nederland'', 27th SS ''Langemark'', and 28th SS ''Wallonien'' Divisions all in the III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps and the [[X SS Corps]], which did not command any SS units.{{sfn|Raus|2005|pp=324–332}}

In March 1945, the X SS Corps was encircled by the 1st Guards Tank Army, [[3rd Shock Army]], and [[First Polish Army (1944–1945)|First Polish Army]] in the area of [[Drawsko Pomorskie|Dramburg]]. This pocket was destroyed by the Red Army on 7 March 1945.{{sfn|Tessin|1973|p=164}}{{sfn|Ustinow|1981|p=179}} On 8 March 1945, the Soviets announced the capture of General Krappe and 8,000 men of the corps.{{sfn|Schramm|1982|p=1156}}

====Operation Spring Awakening====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1989-105-13A, Ungarn, deutscher Rückzug.jpg|thumb|German units during the Lake Balaton Offensive, March 1945]]
After the Ardennes offensive failed, in Hitler's estimation, the Nagykanizsa oilfields southwest of [[Lake Balaton]] were the most strategically valuable reserves on the Eastern Front.{{sfn|Duffy|2002|p=293}} The SS divisions were pulled out and refitted in Germany in preparation for [[Operation Spring Awakening]] (''Frühlingserwachsen''). Hitler ordered Dietrich's 6th Panzer Army to take the lead and move to Hungary in order to protect the oilfields and refineries there.{{sfn|Seaton|1971|p=537}} The 6th Panzer Army was made up of the I SS Panzer Corps (the 1st and 12th SS Panzer Divisions) and the II SS Panzer Corps (the 2nd and 10th SS Panzer Divisions). Also present but not part of the 6th Panzer Army was the IV SS Panzer Corps (the 3rd and 5th SS Panzer Divisions).

This final German offensive in the east began on 6 March. The German forces attacked near Lake Balaton with the 6th Panzer Army advancing northwards towards Budapest and the 2nd Panzer Army moving eastwards and south.{{sfn|Duffy|2002|p=294}} Dietrich's army made "good progress" at first, but as they drew near the Danube, the combination of the muddy terrain and strong resistance by the Soviets ground them to a halt.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=238}} The overwhelming numerical superiority of the Red Army made any defence impossible, yet Hitler somehow had believed victory was attainable.{{sfn|Ziemke|1968|p=450}}

After Operation Spring Awakening, the 6th Panzer Army withdrew towards [[Vienna]] and was involved what became known as the [[Vienna offensive|Vienna Offensive]]. The only major force to face the attacking Red Army was the II SS Panzer Corps (the 2nd and 3rd SS Panzer Divisions), under the command of Wilhelm Bittrich, along with ''ad hoc'' forces made up of garrison and anti-aircraft units. Vienna fell to the Soviets on 13 April.{{sfn|Ustinow|1981|pp=238–239}} Bittrich's II SS Panzer Corps had pulled out to the west that evening to avoid encirclement.{{sfn|Gosztony|1978|p=262}} The LSSAH retreated westward with less than 1,600 men and 16 tanks remaining.{{sfn|McNab|2013|p=280}}

This failure is famous for the "armband order" that followed. The order was issued to Dietrich by Hitler, who claimed that the troops, and more importantly, the 1st SS Division {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}, "did not fight as the situation demanded".{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=198}} As a mark of disgrace, the ''Waffen-SS'' units involved in the battle were ordered to remove their distinctive [[cuff title]]s. Dietrich did not relay the order to his troops.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=238}}

====Berlin====
[[Army Group Vistula]] was formed in 1945 to protect Berlin from the advancing Red Army. It fought in the [[Battle of the Seelow Heights]] (16–19 April) and the [[Battle of Halbe]] (21 April – 1 May), both part of the [[Battle of Berlin]]. The ''Waffen-SS'' was represented by the III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps.

On 23 April, SS-''Brigadeführer'' [[Wilhelm Mohnke]] was appointed by Hitler as Battle Commander for the centre government district (Zitadelle sector), which included the [[Reich Chancellery]] and the ''[[Führerbunker]]''. Mohnke's command post was in the bunkers under the Reich Chancellery.{{sfn|Fischer|2008|pp=42–43}} He formed ''Kampfgruppe Mohnke'', divided into two weak regiments. It was made up of the LSSAH Flak Company, replacements from the LSSAH Training and Reserve Battalion from Spreenhagan (under ''Standartenfuhrer'' Anhalt),{{sfn|Fischer|2008|pp=42–43}} 600 men from the ''[[Begleit-Bataillon Reichsführer-SS]]'',{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=162}} the Führer-Begleit-Company, and the core group—800 men of the LSSAH Guard Battalion assigned to guard the ''Führer''.{{sfn|Fischer|2008|pp=42–43}}

On 23 April, the Reich Chancellery ordered SS-''Brigadeführer'' [[Gustav Krukenberg]] to proceed to Berlin with his men, who were reorganised as Assault Battalion ''Charlemagne''. Between 320 and 330 French troops arrived in Berlin on 24 April after a long detour to avoid Soviet advance columns.{{sfn|Forbes|2010|pp=396–398}} Krukenberg was also appointed the commander of (Berlin) Defence Sector C. This included the ''Nordland'' Division, whose previous commander, [[Joachim Ziegler]], was relieved of command the same day.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=301}} On 27 April, after a futile defence, the remnants of ''Nordland'' were pushed back into the centre government district (Zitadelle sector) in Defence Sector Z. There Krukenberg's headquarters was a carriage in the Stadtmitte U-Bahn station.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=323}} The men of the ''Nordland'' Division were now under Mohnke's overall command. Among the men were French, Latvian, and Scandinavian ''Waffen-SS'' troops.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=246}}{{sfn|McNab|2013|pp=328, 330, 338}}

A heavy artillery bombardment of the centre government district had begun on 20 April 1945 and lasted until the end of hostilities. Under intense shelling, the SS troops put up stiff resistance which led to bitter and bloody street fighting with the Red Army.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=365–367, 372}} By 26 April, the defenders were pushed back into the Reichstag and Reich Chancellery. There, over the next few days, the survivors (mainly French SS troops from the former 33rd SS Division ''Charlemagne'') fought in vain against the Soviets.{{sfn|Weale|2012|p=407}}

[[File:Himmler Dead.jpg|thumb|Heinrich Himmler's corpse after his suicide, May 1945|175x175px]]

On 30 April, after receiving news of Hitler's suicide, orders were issued that those who could do so were to break out. Prior to the break-out, Mohnke briefed all commanders that could be reached within the Zitadelle sector about Hitler's death and the planned break-out.{{sfn|Fischer|2008|p=49}} The break out started at 2300 hours on 1 May. There were ten main groups that attempted to head northwest towards Mecklenburg. Fierce fighting continued all around, especially in the [[Weidendammer Bridge]] area. What was left of the ''Nordland'' Division under Krukenberg fought hard in that area, but Soviet artillery, anti-tank guns, and tanks destroyed the groups. Several very small groups managed to reach the Americans at the [[Elbe]]'s west bank, but most, including Mohnke's group, could not make it through the Soviet rings.{{sfn|Fischer|2008|p=49}}

Himmler fled and attempted to go into hiding. Using a forged paybook under the name of Sergeant Heinrich Hitzinger, he fled south on 11 May to [[Friedrichskoog]]. On 21 May, Himmler and two aides were detained at a checkpoint set up by former Soviet POWs and then handed over to the British Army. On 23 May, after Himmler had admitted his real identity, a doctor attempted to examine him. However, Himmler bit into a hidden [[Suicide pill|cyanide pill]] and collapsed onto the floor. He was dead within 15 minutes.{{sfn|''Bend Bulletin''|1945}}{{sfn|Longerich|2012|pp=1–3}}

==Divisions==
{{further|List of Waffen-SS units}}
All divisions in the ''Waffen-SS'' were ordered in a single series of numbers as formed, regardless of type.{{sfn|Stein|1984|loc="Operation Barbarossa"|pp=[https://archive.org/details/waffensshitlers00stei/page/119 119]–120}} A total of 39 were formed, beginning with the initial three in 1933 and ramping up to nine alone in 1945. Those tagged with nationalities were at least nominally recruited from those nationalities. Many of the late-formed higher-numbered units were in fact small battlegroups (''[[Kampfgruppe]]n''), and divisions in name only.

==Highest ranked commanders==
* [[Sepp Dietrich|Josef "Sepp" Dietrich]], a former army sergeant with a [[peasant]] background, commanded the forerunner of the ''Waffen-SS'', the ''Sonderkommando Berlin''. He would command the ''Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler'' from its inception to regiment, [[brigade]], and division. He was then given command of the I SS Panzer Corps and by the end of the war was the commander of the 6th Panzer Army.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=144}}
* [[Paul Hausser]], a former general in the regular army, was chosen by Himmler to transform the SS-VT into a credible military organisation. He was the first divisional commander of the ''Waffen-SS'' when the SS-VT was formed into a division for the Battle of France. He went on to command the II SS Panzer Corps and the [[7th Army (Wehrmacht)|7th Army]].{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=146}}

==Casualties==
[[File:Dead_german_member_of_Waffen-SS.jpg|thumb|''Waffen-SS'' casualty in northern France, June 1944]]
Military historian [[Rüdiger Overmans]] estimates that the ''Waffen-SS'' suffered 314,000 dead.{{sfn|Overmans|2000|p=266}} Casualty rates were not significantly higher than in the ''Wehrmacht'' overall and were comparable to those among the armoured divisions of the army and the [[Fallschirmjäger|''Luftwaffe'' paratroop]] formations.{{sfn|Neitzel|Welzer|2012|p=300}}

==Criminality==
[[File:Stroop Report - Warsaw Ghetto Uprising BW.jpg|link=A Jewish boy surrenders in Warsaw |thumb|left|SS troops rounding up Jews for deportation to a [[Extermination camp|death camp]] during the [[Warsaw Ghetto Uprising|Warsaw Ghetto uprising]]]]
The ''[[Allgemeine SS]]'' was responsible for the administration of both the [[Nazi concentration camps|concentration]] and [[extermination camp]]s. Many members of it and the ''SS-Totenkopfverbände'' subsequently became members of the ''Waffen-SS'', forming the initial core of the 3rd SS ''Totenkopf'' Division.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=149–150}} A number of SS medical personnel who were members of the ''Waffen-SS'' were convicted of crimes during the "[[Doctors' Trial|Doctors' trials]]" in Nuremberg, held between 1946 and 1947 for the [[Nazi human experimentation]] they performed at the camps.
[[File:Stefan Baretzki at the Judenrampe (Auschwitz Album).jpg|thumb|[[Stefan Baretzki]] (right), a Waffen-SS soldier, participating in a selection at [[Auschwitz concentration camp]]]]

According to the ''Modern Genocide: The Definitive Resource and Document Collection'', the ''Waffen-SS'' had played a "paramount role" in the ideological war of extermination (''Vernichtungskrieg''), and not just as frontline or rear area security formations: a third of the ''Einsatzgruppen'' (mobile death squads) members, which were responsible for mass murder, especially of Jews, Slavs and communists, had been recruited from ''Waffen-SS'' personnel prior to the invasion of the Soviet Union.{{sfn|Bartrop|Jacobs|2014|p=1424}} The ''Waffen-SS'' construction office built the gas chambers at Auschwitz,{{sfn|Langbein|2005|pp=22, 254}} and, according to [[Rudolf Höss]], about 7,000 served as guards at that camp.{{sfn|Langbein|2005|p=280}}

Many ''Waffen-SS'' members and units were responsible for war crimes against civilians and allied servicemen.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=75–76, 276–280}} After the war the SS organisation as a whole was held to be a criminal organisation by the post-war German government. Formations such as the ''Dirlewanger'' and [[Kaminski Brigade]]s were singled out, and many others participated in large-scale massacres or smaller-scale killings such as murder of 34 captured allied servicemen ordered by [[Josef Kieffer]] during [[Operation Bulbasket]] in 1944, the Houtman affair,{{sfn|Zimmermann|2004}} or murders perpetrated by [[Heinrich Boere]]. The listed ''Waffen-SS'' units were responsible for the following massacres:

* [[Wormhoudt massacre]] by the [[1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler|SS Leibstandarte ''Adolf Hitler'']], 1940, France{{sfn|Weale|2012|pp=251–253}}
* [[Le Paradis massacre]] by the [[3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf|SS Division ''Totenkopf'']], 1940, France{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=75–76}}
* [[Pripyat Marshes massacres|Pripyat swamps (punitive operation)]] by the [[SS Cavalry Brigade]], 1941, USSR{{sfn|Miller|2006|pp=309, 310}}
* [[Ascq massacre]] by the [[12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend|12th SS Panzer Division ''Hitlerjugend'']], 1944, France
* [[Tulle massacre]] by [[2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich|2nd SS Panzer Division ''Das Reich'']], 1944, France{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=276}}
* [[Oradour-sur-Glane massacre]] by the 2nd SS Panzer Division ''Das Reich'', 1944, France{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=277}}
* [[Ochota massacre]] by the SS [[Kaminski Brigade]], 1944, Poland
* [[Wola massacre]] by [[Dirlewanger Brigade|SS-Sonderregiment ''Dirlewanger'']], 1944, Poland
* [[Huta Pieniacka massacre]] by the [[14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)|14th Galician SS Volunteer Division]], 1944, Poland
[[File:Car in Oradour-sur-Glane4.jpg|thumb|Burned out cars and buildings still litter the remains of the original village in [[Oradour-sur-Glane]], as left by the ''Das Reich'' division.]]
[[File:Wereth_11_Memorial.JPG|thumb|upright|Memorial to the [[333rd Field Artillery Battalion (United States)#Wereth 11 Massacre|'Wereth 11']], a group of American POWs massacred in Belgium on 17 December 1944, during the [[Battle of the Bulge]]]] 
* [[Battle of Graignes|Graignes Massacre]] by the [[17th SS Panzergrenadier Division Götz von Berlichingen]], 1944, France
* [[Maillé massacre]], also by the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division Götz von Berlichingen, 1944, France
* [[Marzabotto massacre]] by the [[16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS|16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ''Reichsführer-SS'']], 1944, Italy
* [[Malmedy massacre]] by Kampfgruppe Peiper, part of the 1st SS Panzer Division, 1944, Belgium{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=278–280}}
* [[333rd Field Artillery Battalion (United States)#Wereth 11 Massacre|Wereth 11 massacre]] by the 1st SS Panzer Division ''Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler'', 1944, Belgium
* [[Ardeatine massacre]] by two SS officers, 1944, Italy
* [[Distomo massacre]] by the [[4th SS Polizei Panzergrenadier Division]], 1944, Greece{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=277}}
* [[Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre]] by the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS, 1944, Italy
* [[Doli Pivski massacre]] by the [[7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen]] and [[13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)]], 1943, Montenegro <ref>{{cite news |last1=Mandić |first1=Svetlana |title=U Dolima u Pivi održan pomen žrtvama koje su ubijene prije 68 godina |url=http://www.vijesti.me/vijesti/u-dolima-u-pivi-odrzan-pomen-zrtvama-koje-su-ubijene-prije-68-godina-23184 |work=Vijesti |date=7 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181115090822/http://www.vijesti.me/vijesti/u-dolima-u-pivi-odrzan-pomen-zrtvama-koje-su-ubijene-prije-68-godina-23184 |archive-date=15 November 2018}}</ref>
* [[Ardenne Abbey massacre]] by the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, 1944, France
* [[Velika massacre]] by the [[7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen]] and [[21st Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Skanderbeg]], 1944, Montenegro{{Sfn|Kajosevic|2021}}{{sfn|Antonijević|2009|p=45}}

The linking of the SS-VT with the ''SS-Totenkopfverbände'' (SS-TV) in 1938 raised important questions about ''Waffen-SS'' criminality,{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=148}} since the SS-TV were already responsible for the imprisonment, torture, and murder of Jews and other political opponents through providing the personnel for manning the concentration camps. Their leader, [[Theodor Eicke]], who was the commandant of Dachau, inspector of the camps, and murderer of Ernst Röhm, later became the commander of the 3rd SS ''Totenkopf'' Division.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|p=146}} With the invasion of Poland, the ''Totenkopfverbände'' troops were called on to carry out so-called "police and security measures" in rear areas. What these measures entailed is demonstrated by the record of ''SS Totenkopf Standarte Brandenburg''. It arrived in [[Włocławek]] on 22 September 1939 and embarked on a four-day "Jewish action" that included the burning of [[synagogue]]s and the execution en masse of the leaders of the Jewish community. On 29 September the Standarte travelled to [[Bydgoszcz]] to conduct an "intelligentsia action". Approximately 800 Polish civilians and what the ''Sicherheitsdienst'' (SD) termed "potential resistance leaders" were killed. Later the formation became the 3rd SS Panzer Division ''Totenkopf'', but from the start they were among the first executors of a policy of systematic extermination.

[[File:DeadBelgiumcivilians1944.jpg|left|thumb|Belgian civilians killed by German units during the [[Battle of the Bulge]]]]

''Waffen-SS'' formations were found guilty of war crimes, especially in the opening and closing phases of the war.{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=251}} In addition to documented atrocities, ''Waffen-SS'' units assisted in rounding up Eastern European Jews for deportation and utilised [[scorched earth]] tactics during rear security operations. Some ''Waffen-SS'' personnel convalesced at concentration camps, from which they were drawn, by serving guard duties. Other members of the ''Waffen-SS'' were more directly involved in genocide.{{sfn|Stein|2002|pp=260–262, 271–280}}

The end of the war saw a number of war crime trials, including the [[Malmedy massacre trial]]. The counts of indictment related to the massacre of more than 300 American prisoners in the vicinity of [[Malmedy]], between 16 December 1944 and 13 January 1945, and the massacre of 100 Belgian civilians mainly in the vicinity of [[Stavelot]].{{sfn|US War Department|1948}}{{Full citation needed|date=April 2022}}

During the Nuremberg Trials, the ''Waffen-SS'' was declared a criminal organisation for its major involvement in war crimes and for being an "integral part" of the SS.{{sfn|Flaherty|2004|pp=155, 156}}{{sfn|Stein|2002|p=251}} An exception was made for conscripts who were not given a choice in joining the ranks, and had not committed "such crimes". They were determined to be exempt.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Judgement: The Accused Organizations |work=Avalon Project |publisher=Lillian Goldman Law Library |url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/imt/judorg.asp |access-date=7 June 2019}}</ref>

In 2016, the [[Polish parliament]] classified the crimes of the [[14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)|14th Grenadier Division]]'s soldiers against the Polish population as [[genocide]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 July 2016 |title=Uchwała Sejmu w sprawie oddania hołdu ofiarom ludobójstwa dokonanego przez nacjonalistów ukraińskich na obywatelach II RP w latach 1943–1945 |trans-title=Resolution of the Sejm on paying tribute to the victims of genocide committed by Ukrainian nationalists against citizens of the Second Republic of Poland in the years 1943-1945 |url=https://www.sejm.gov.pl/sejm8.nsf/komunikat.xsp?documentId=2D76E3019FA691C3C1257FF800303676 |access-date=2024-02-17 |website=[[Sejm of the Republic of Poland]] |language=pl}}</ref><ref>Uchwała [[Sejm|Sejmu Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej]] z dnia 22 lipca 2016 r. [http://orka.sejm.gov.pl/opinie8.nsf/nazwa/625_u/$file/625_u.pdf w sprawie oddania hołdu ofiarom ludobójstwa dokonanego przez nacjonalistów ukraińskich na obywatelach II Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej w latach 1943—1945] [Resolution of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland of July 22, 2016 on paying tribute to the victims of genocide committed by Ukrainian nationalists against citizens of the Second Polish Republic in the years 1943-1945]. (In Polish)</ref><ref>Uchwała [[Senate of Poland|Senatu Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej]] z dnia 7 lipca 2016 r. [http://www.senat.gov.pl/download/gfx/senat/pl/senatuchwaly/2793/plik/236uch.pdf w sprawie oddania hołdu ofiarom ludobójstwa dokonanego przez nacjonalistów ukraińskich na obywatelach II Rzeczypospolitej w latach 1939–1945] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806180855/http://www.senat.gov.pl/download/gfx/senat/pl/senatuchwaly/2793/plik/236uch.pdf |date=6 August 2016 }} [Resolution of the Senate of the Republic of Poland of July 7, 2016 on paying tribute to the victims of genocide committed by Ukrainian nationalists against citizens of the Second Republic in 1939-1945]. (In Polish)</ref>

==Post-war==
In the [[Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]], the dissemination of [[propaganda]] material and the use of SS symbols are a crime and punishable by Sections 86 and 86a<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Stegbauer |first=Andreas |date=2007 |title=The Ban of Right-Wing Extremist Symbols According to Section 86a of the German Criminal Code |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/german-law-journal/article/ban-of-rightwing-extremist-symbols-according-to-section-86a-of-the-german-criminal-code/9C27FD4AFAC94347A3F04EE17C9E5DCD |journal=German Law Journal |language=en |volume=8 |issue=2 |pages=173–184 |doi=10.1017/S2071832200005496 |s2cid=140437188 |issn=2071-8322}}</ref> of the [[Strafgesetzbuch|German Criminal Code]].

===Waffen-SS veterans in post-war Germany===
{{main|Waffen-SS veterans in post-war Germany}}
[[File:HIAG-Ulrichsberg.jpg|thumb|upright|Members of the traditional group "[[HIAG]] Ostsachsen" at an [[Ulrichsberg gathering]] in 2003]]
''Waffen-SS'' veterans in post-war Germany played a large role, through publications and political pressure, in the efforts to rehabilitate the reputation of the ''Waffen-SS'', which had committed many war crimes during World War II.{{sfn|Schulte|Wildt|2018|p=21}} High ranking German politicians such as [[Konrad Adenauer]], [[Franz Josef Strauss]], and [[Kurt Schumacher]] courted former ''Waffen-SS'' members and their veteran organisation, [[HIAG]], in an effort to tap into the voter potential, and helped deflect blame for war crimes onto other branches of the SS. A small number of veterans served in the new German armed forces, the ''[[Bundeswehr]]'', something that raised national and international unease in regard to how it would affect the democratic nature of the new army.{{sfn|Molt|2007|p=369}}{{sfn|Wiederschein|2015}}{{sfn|Wienand|2015|p=39}}

SS-''[[Gruppenführer]]'' [[Heinz Lammerding]], who commanded the ''Das Reich'' Division that perpetrated the Tulle and the Oradour-sur-Glane massacres in occupied France, died in 1971, following a successful business career in [[West Germany]]. The West German government refused to extradite him to France.{{sfn|Farmer|1994|pp=30–34}}
 
A historical review in Germany of the impact of ''Waffen-SS'' veterans in post-war German society continues, and a number of books on the subject have been published in recent years.{{sfn|Wiederschein|2015}}{{sfn|Schulte|Wildt|2018|pp=57–74}}

''Waffen-SS'' veterans have received pensions ([[West Germany]]'s War Victims' Assistance Act, or the ''Bundesversorgungsgesetz'') from the German government.{{sfn|Binkowski|Wiegrefe|2011}}{{sfn|The Local|2019}} According to ''The Times of Israel'', "The benefits come through the Federal Pension Act, which was passed in 1950 to support war victims, whether civilians or veterans of the Wehrmacht or Waffen-SS."<ref>{{cite news |last=Axelrod |first=Toby |date=27 March 2019 |title=German Jewish leader urges cancellation of pension payments to former SS members |work=[[The Times of Israel]] |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/german-jewish-leader-urges-cancellation-of-pension-payments-to-former-ss-members/ |access-date=5 August 2019 }}</ref>

On 22 June 2005, the Italian military court in [[La Spezia]] found ten former ''Waffen-SS'' officers and [[non-commissioned officer|NCOs]] living in Germany guilty of participation in the Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre and sentenced them [[trial in absentia|''in absentia'']] to life imprisonment.{{sfn|McMahon|2005}} However, extradition requests from Italy were rejected by Germany.{{sfn|BBC News|2012}}

===Baltic states===
{{See also|Remembrance day of the Latvian legionnaires}}
[[File:Sinimäed Memorial 2009 - 150.jpg|thumb|Commemoration of the [[Battle of Tannenberg Line]] in 2009]]
In 1990, [[Latvian Legion]] veterans started commemorating 'Legionnaire Day' (''Leģionāru diena'') in [[Latvia]]. On 21 February 2012, The [[Council of Europe]]'s Commission against Racism and Intolerance published its report on Latvia (fourth monitoring cycle), in which it condemned commemorations of persons who fought in the ''Waffen-SS''.<ref>{{harvnb|ECRI|2012|p=9}}. "All attempts to commemorate persons who fought in the Waffen-SS and collaborated with the Nazis, should be condemned. Any gathering or march legitimising in any way Nazism should be banned."</ref>

Estonian Waffen SS Grenadier Division veterans have participated in yearly commemoration of the Battle of Tannenberg Line at [[Sinimäed Hills]] in [[Estonia]].{{sfn|Vahtla|2018}}

===Finland===
[[File:Pohjoismaisen vastarintaliikkeen mielenosoitus 2018.jpg|thumb|left|[[Nordic Resistance Movement|NRM]] Finnish independence day demonstration, 2018]]
Three former members of the Waffen SS served as ministers of defense; the [[Finnish SS Battalion]] officers [[Sulo Suorttanen]] and [[Pekka Malinen]] as well as [[Mikko Laaksonen]], a soldier in the [[Finnish_volunteers_in_the_Waffen-SS#Finnish_SS-Company|Finnish SS-Company]], formed of pro-Nazi defectors.<ref>''[[Lars Westerlund]] - Sotavangit ja internoidut Kansallisarkiston artikkelikirja''. Kansallisarkisto, Helsinki 2008 ([https://www.arkisto.fi/fi/kansallisarkisto/julkaisut/b-monografiat Verkkojulkaisuna Kansallisarkiston sivuilla] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181027143130/https://www.arkisto.fi/fi/kansallisarkisto/julkaisut/b-monografiat|date=2018-10-27}})</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.kirjastot.fi/kysy/arkistohaku/kysymys/?ID=e5a28990-6bcf-4d52-a597-bdae00af97bd|title=Kysymys SS-vapaaehtoisista|date=31 May 2007 |publisher=Kirjastot.fi|accessdate=23 September 2016}}</ref>

The [[Nordic Resistance Movement]] and [[Finns Party]], along with other nationalist organizations, organizes an [[612 march|annual torch march demonstration]] in [[Helsinki]] in memory of the Finnish SS Battalion on [[Independence Day (Finland)|Finnish independence day]], which ends at the [[Hietaniemi Cemetery|Hietaniemi cemetery]] where participiants visit the tomb of [[Field marshal (Finland)|Marshal]] [[Baron]] [[Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim|Mannerheim]] and the monument to the [[Finnish volunteers in the Waffen-SS|Finnish SS Battalion]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.brusselstimes.com/427922/neo-nazis-marching-on-the-streets-in-european-cities-despite-eu-bans|title=Neo-Nazis marching on the streets in European cities despite EU bans|quote=Helsinki, Finland, ‘Towards Freedom’ and ‘612 for freedom’ march’ in memory of the Finnish SS-battalion which fought with Nazi Germany|date=28 March 2023|work=[[Brussels Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bnaibrith.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/AnnualMarchesGlorifyingNazism_Z105c.pdf|title=On Europe's Streets:Annual Marches Glorifying Nazism|quote=the main organizers and guests of the event have been drawn from either non-party-affiliated far-right-activists or members of the right-wing populist Finns Party (Perussuomalaiset), its youth organization Finns Party Youth (Perussuomalaiset Nuoret)...The 612-march is a torchlight procession from central Helsinki to the Hietaniemi war cemetery, where participants visit the tomb of World War II-era President Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim and the monument to the Finnish SS-Battalion. There are speeches at both the assembly point and at the cemetery, eulogizing the Battle for Helsinki, depicted by speakers as the occasion "when Germans and Finns marched side by side and liberated the city from the communists."|date=25 March 2023|work=[[B'nai B'rith]], [[Amadeu Antonio Foundation]], [[Federal Foreign Office]]}}</ref> The event has been protested by antifascists, which has led to counterdemonstrators being violently assaulted by the NRM members who act as security. The demonstration attracts close to 3000 participants according to the estimates of the police and hundreds of officers patrol Helsinki to prevent violent clashes.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yle.fi/a/3-10535875|work=[[Yleisradio]]|title=Finnish neo-Nazi group diversifies, seeks alliances as ban closes in|date=21 September 2024|quote=Last year's right-wing 612 torchlight procession on Independence Day attracted about 3,000 people.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hs.fi/kaupunki/art-2000006334051.html?share=f6b9cc465a58c4b97bd69ce71733f9eb|title=Äärioikeistolaisten hihamerkit ja anarkistiliput vilahtelivat Helsingissä, kun tuhannet marssivat itsenäisyyspäivän mielenosoituksissa – Poliisi otti kiinni 13 ihmistä|publisher=[[Helsingin Sanomat]]|date=7 October 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iltalehti.fi/kotimaa/a/201712082200589810|title=Pohjoismainen vastarintaliike joukkonujakassa itsenäisyyspäivänä – uusnatsit naureskelivat väkivallalle: "Hauskaa!"|publisher=[[Iltasanomat]]|date=7 October 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kansanuutiset.fi/artikkeli/3337196-kirjailija-timo-hannikainen-jarjesti-marssin-uusnatsien-kanssa|title=Kirjailija Timo Hännikäinen järjesti marssin uusnatsien kanssa|publisher=[[Kansan Uutiset]]|date=7 October 2020}}</ref> The march has been attended and promoted by the [[Finns Party]], and condemned by left-wing parties, for example [[Green League]] MP [[Iiris Suomela]] characterized it as "obviously neo-nazi" and expressed her disappointment in it being attended by such a large number of people.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iirissuomela.fi/2017/12/612-on-natsien-marssi/|title=612-kulkue perustettiin äärioikeiston marssiksi. Jos se ei riitä syyksi vastustaa kulkuetta, niin mikä sitten?|first=Iiris|last=Suomela|date=7 October 2020|access-date=31 August 2023|archive-date=27 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127011253/http://iirissuomela.fi/2017/12/612-on-natsien-marssi/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In between 2019 and 2022, Finns party MP and later Minister of Economic Affairs [[Vilhelm Junnila]] made four budgetary motions in order to support Veljesapu-Perinneyhdistys, a Finnish organization that cherishes the heritage of the Finnish volunteers in the Waffen-SS. Junnila wrote in his motion, that the support would be "for the promotion of balanced historical research".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Vilhelm Junnila on useita kertoja esittänyt määrärahaa SS-perinnettä vaalivalle yhdistykselle|url=https://www.hs.fi/politiikka/art-2000009689539.html|date=2023-06-30|access-date=2023-06-30|work=Helsingin Sanomat|language=fi}}</ref> According to [[Der Spiegel]], three Finns party ministers supported a motion to provide funding for SS veterans association for a "counter-study" in response to accusations of Finnish SS men having participated in the Holocaust.<ref>{{cite web|title="If You Only Knew How Many Jews I Have Shot"|url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/finland-confronts-its-wwii-history-if-you-only-knew-how-many-jews-i-have-shot-a-8dea1e8a-6171-4a74-9673-2edb26ea2deb|date=31 March 2025|work=[[Der Spiegel]]}}</ref>

===HIAG lobby group===
{{Main|HIAG}}
[[HIAG]] ({{langx|de|Hilfsgemeinschaft auf Gegenseitigkeit der Angehörigen der ehemaligen Waffen-SS}}, literally "Mutual aid association of former ''Waffen-SS'' members") was a [[Advocacy group|lobby group]] and a revisionist veterans' organisation founded by former high-ranking ''Waffen-SS'' personnel in West Germany in 1951. It campaigned for the legal, economic and historical rehabilitation of the ''Waffen-SS'', using contacts with political parties to manipulate them for its purposes.{{sfn|Large|1987}}{{sfn|Binkowski|Wiegrefe|2011}} Kurt Meyer, ''Brigadeführer'' of the 12th SS Division, a convicted war criminal, was HIAG's most effective spokesperson.{{sfn|Stein|1984}}{{sfn|Sydnor|1973|p=255?}}

HIAG's [[historical revisionism]] encompassed multi-prong propaganda efforts, including periodicals, books and public speeches, alongside a publishing house that served as a platform for its publicity aims.{{sfn|MacKenzie|1997|pp=135–141}}{{sfn|Wilke|2011|pp=398–399}} This extensive body of work – 57 book titles and more than 50 years of monthly periodicals – have been described by historians as revisionist [[apologia]]: [a] "chorus of self-justification";{{sfn|MacKenzie|1997|p=137}} "crucible of historical revisionism";{{sfn|Picaper|2014}} "false" and "outrageous" claims;{{sfn|Diehl|1993|p=225}} "most important works of [''Waffen-SS''] apologist literature" (in reference to books by Hausser and Steiner);{{sfn|Sydnor|1990|p=319}} and "exculpating multi-volume chronicle" (in reference to the history of the SS Division {{lang|de|Leibstandarte}}).{{sfn|Parker|2014|p=217}}

Always in touch with its Nazi past, HIAG was a subject of significant controversy, both in West Germany and abroad, since its founding.{{sfn|Large|1987}}{{sfn|Binkowski|Wiegrefe|2011}} The organisation drifted into [[Far-right politics|right-wing extremism]] in its later history. It was disbanded in 1992 at the federal level, but local groups, along with the organisation's monthly periodical, continued to exist at least into the 2000s.{{sfn|Werther|Hurd|2014}}{{sfn|Levenda|2014|p=167}}

While the HIAG leadership only partially achieved the goals of legal and economic rehabilitation of ''Waffen-SS'',{{sfn|Diehl|1993|p=236}} falling short of their "extravagant fantasies about [''Waffen-SS''{{'}}s] past and future",{{sfn|Large|1987|p=111–112}} HIAG's propaganda efforts have led to a reshaping of the image of the [[Waffen-SS in popular culture|''Waffen-SS'' in popular culture]].{{sfn|MacKenzie|1997|pp=135–141}} The results are still felt, with scholarly works being drowned out by a "veritable avalanche of titles",{{sfn|Wegner|1990|p=1}} including amateur historical studies, memoirs, picture books, websites, and wargames.{{sfn|Smelser|Davies|2008|p=135}}

=== Ukraine ===
In 2020, the [[Supreme Court of Ukraine|Ukrainian Supreme Court]] ruled that symbols of [[SS Division Galicia]] (14th Grenadier Division) do not belong to the Nazis and were not banned in the country.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Символіка дивізії СС "Галичина" не є нацистською – верховний суд |url=https://www.istpravda.com.ua/short/2022/12/5/162131/ |access-date=2024-02-17 |website=Історична правда}}</ref> However, the division's insignia is classified as a [[Nazi symbolism|Nazi]] and [[Hate speech|hate symbol]] by the non-governmental [[Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union]] and [[Freedom House]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Emblem of SS Galizien - Reporting Radicalism in Ukraine |url=https://reportingradicalism.org/en/hate-symbols/movements/nazi-symbols/ss-galizien |access-date=2024-02-17 |website=reportingradicalism.org |publisher=[[Freedom House]] |archive-date=2 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202171007/https://reportingradicalism.org/en/hate-symbols/movements/nazi-symbols/ss-galizien |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Грінберг |first=Мирослав |url=https://helsinki.org.ua/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Prev-Hate_Symbols_A4.pdf |title=Символи ненависті / Довідник |publisher=[[Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union|Українська Гельсінська спілка з прав людини]] |year=2021 |editor-last=Петров |editor-first=Максим |location=Київ |pages=13 |language=uk |chapter=СС «Галичина» |access-date=2024-02-17}}</ref>

On 28 April, an annual march is organised in [[Lviv]] to celebrate the anniversary of the 14th Grenadier Division's foundation.<ref name="annualMarch">{{Cite web |title=WAFFEN-SS DIVISION "GALICIA" — A UKRAINIAN MILITARY UNIT WITHIN THE WEHRMACHT |url=https://lia.lvivcenter.org/en/themes/reherit/ss-galychyna/ |website=lia.lvivcenter.org}}</ref> On 30 April 2021, after the march was held in Kyiv, Ukrainian President [[Volodymyr Zelenskyy]] stated: "We categorically condemn any manifestation of propaganda of totalitarian regimes, in particular the National Socialist, and attempts to revise truth about World War II."<ref name="zelenskyy">{{Citation |last=Zelenskyy |first=Volodymyr |title=Относительно акции в Киеве к годовщине создания дивизии СС "Галичина" |date=2021-04-30 |work=Official website of the President of Ukraine |trans-title=Regarding the action in Kyiv on the anniversary of the creation of the SS division "Galicia" |url=https://www.president.gov.ua/ru/news/shodo-akciyi-u-kiyevi-do-richnici-stvorennya-diviziyi-ss-gal-68225 |access-date=2024-02-17 |language=uk}}</ref><ref name="march2021">{{Citation |last=Liphshiz |first=Cnaan |title=Hundreds in Ukraine attend marches celebrating Nazi SS soldiers |website=www.timesofisrael.com |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/hundreds-in-ukraine-attend-marches-celebrating-nazi-ss-soldiers/ |access-date=2024-02-17 |language=en-US}}</ref> The march was condemned by the German and Israeli governments.<ref name="forward">{{Cite web |date=28 August 2023 |title=Monuments to Ukrainian unit that fought with the Nazis discovered near Philadelphia and Detroit |url=https://forward.com/news/558622/ss-galichina-ukraine-nazi-monument-memorial-detroit-elkins-park/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230829181040/https://forward.com/news/558622/ss-galichina-ukraine-nazi-monument-memorial-detroit-elkins-park/ |archive-date=29 August 2023 |access-date=2024-02-17 |website=[[The Forward]]}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[German war crimes]]
* [[Glossary of Nazi Germany]]
* [[List of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients of the Waffen-SS|List of Knight's Cross recipients of the ''Waffen-SS'']]
* [[List of SS personnel]]
* [[List of Waffen-SS divisions|List of ''Waffen-SS'' divisions]]
* [[List of Waffen-SS division commanders|List of ''Waffen-SS'' division commanders]]
* [[List of Waffen-SS units|List of ''Waffen-SS'' units]]
* [[Ranks and insignia of the Waffen-SS|Ranks and insignia of the ''Waffen-SS'']]
* [[Signal Corps of the Wehrmacht and Waffen SS|Signal Corps of the ''Wehrmacht'' and ''Waffen-SS'']]
* ''[[SS-Standarte Kurt Eggers]]''
* [[SS and police leader|SS and Police Leader]]
* [[Uniforms and insignia of the Schutzstaffel|Uniforms and insignia of the ''Schutzstaffel'']]
* [[Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts|''Waffen-SS'' foreign volunteers and conscripts]]
* [[Waffen-SS in popular culture|''Waffen-SS'' in popular culture]]
* {{section link|Wewelsburg|Nazi era}}

==Explanatory notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==

===Citations===
{{reflist}}

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* {{cite book |last1=Langbein |first1=Hermann |author-link=Hermann Langbein |translator-last=Zohn |translator-first=Harry |orig-year=First published in German in 1972 |title=People in Auschwitz |date=2005 |publisher=[[University of North Carolina Press]] in connection with the [[United States Holocaust Memorial Museum]] |location=Chapel Hill |isbn=978-0-8078-6363-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DzWPL6hjk9MC |language=en |via=Google Books }}
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* {{cite journal |author=Staff |title=Heinrich Himmler Kills Himself in British Prison |journal=Bend Bulletin |date=24 May 1945 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1243&dat=19450523&id=Tx9PAAAAIBAJ&pg=6266,6071339 |access-date=4 March 2016 |ref={{sfnRef|''Bend Bulletin''|1945}} }}
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* {{cite news|title=Probe into Nazi massacre at Sant'Anna di Stazzema, Italy, dropped|work=BBC News|date=1 October 2012|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-19788487|access-date=5 August 2019|ref={{sfnRef|BBC News|2012}}}}
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* {{cite book |last=Wienand |first=Christiane |date=2015 |title=Returning Memories: Former Prisoners of War in Divided and Reunited Germany |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BFWECgAAQBAJ&q=Soldaten+wie+alle+anderen+auch+waffen-ss&pg=PA39 |access-date=22 September 2018 |location=[[Rochester, New York|Rochester]], N.Y |publisher=[[Camden House]] |isbn=978-1571139047 }}
* {{cite book |last=Wilke |first=Karsten | year=2011 |title=Die "Hilfsgemeinschaft auf Gegenseitigkeit" (HIAG) 1950–1990: Veteranen der Waffen-SS in der Bundesrepublik |trans-title=HIAG 1950–1990: Waffen-SS veterans in the Federal Republic |location=Paderborn |language=de| publisher=Schoeningh Ferdinand GmbH |isbn=978-3-506-77235-0}}
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* {{cite web|last=Zimmermann|first=Elizabeth|title=Former SS member faces trial for war crimes in the Netherlands|work=World Socialist Web Site|publisher=International Committee of the Fourth International|date=21 January 2004|url=http://www.wsws.org/articles/2004/jan2004/nazi-j21.shtml|access-date=3 June 2013}}
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{{refend}}
* {{cite web |last1=Antonijević |first1=Nenad |title=Albanski Zlocini nad Srbima na Kosovu i Metohiji u Drugom Svetskom Ratu |url=http://www.muzejgenocida.rs/images/izdanja/Antonijevic,%20Nenad,%20Albanski%20zlocini.pdf |publisher=Muzej žrtava genocida |language=Serbian |date=2009}}
* {{cite book |last1=Zdravkovski |first1=Aleksander |title=The Sandžak of Novi Pazar: Millets, Nations, Empires |date=2022 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=9781793641816 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KC1qEAAAQBAJ}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book |last=Ailsby |first=Christopher |title=Hitler's Renegades: Foreign Nationals in the Service of the Third Reich |publisher=Brasseys |year=2004 |isbn=1-57488-838-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Clark |first=Lloyd |title=Operation Epsom |series=Battle Zone Normandy |publisher=History Press |year=2004 |isbn=0-7509-3008-X}}
* {{cite book |last=Hastings |first=Max |author-link=Max Hastings |title=Das Reich: The March of the 2nd SS Panzer Division through France, June 1944 |year=2013 |publisher=Zenith Press |location=Minneapolis, MN |isbn=978-0-7603-4491-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Lasik |first=Aleksander |title=Sztafety Ochronne w systemie niemieckich obozów koncentracyjnych. Rozwój organizacyjny, ewolucja zadań i struktur oraz socjologiczny obraz obozowych załóg SS |trans-title=Schutzstaffel of the NSDAP in the System of German Concentration Camps; Organizational Development, Evolution of Goals, Structure, and Social Picture of SS Staff |language=pl |publisher=Państwowe Muzeum |location=Auschwitz-Birkenau |year=2007 |isbn=978-83-60210-32-1}}
* {{cite web |last1=Leland |first1=Anne |last2=Oboroceanu |first2=Mari–Jana |title=American War and Military Operations Casualties: Lists and Statistics |year=2010 |publisher=Congressional Research Service |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL32492.pdf}}
* {{cite book |last1=Wiesenthal |first1=Simon |author-link1=Simon Wiesenthal |last2=Wechsberg |first2=Joseph |title=The Murderers Among Us: The Simon Wiesenthal Memoirs |url=https://archive.org/details/murderersamongus00wies |url-access=registration |publisher=McGraw-Hill |year=1967 |lccn= 67-13204}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Waffen-SS}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [https://www.feldgrau.com/ww2-german-waffen-ss-schutzstaffel/ The Nazi German Armed SS 1933–1945 (Schutzstaffel)]

{{SS organizations}}
{{SS Brigades}}
{{SS Divisions}}
{{Fascism}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Waffen-SS| ]]
[[Category:Nazi SS| ]]
[[Category:German words and phrases]]
[[Category:Military history of Germany during World War II]]
[[Category:Military wings of fascist parties]]