Army of evil : a history of the SS

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Title:

Army of evil : a history of the SS

Author:

Weale, Adrian

ISBN:

9780451237910

Publication Information:

New York, N.Y. : NAL Caliber, 2012.

Physical Description:

xiii, 459 p., [16] p. of plates : ill., ports. ; 24 cm.

General Note:

Originally published under title: The SS : a new history. London : Little, Brown, 2010.

Contents:

The defeat of Wilhelmine Germany and the origins of the National Socialist Party -- The rebirth of national socialism and the creation of the SS -- Heinrich Himmler -- A new broom -- Taking control -- Consolidation -- Dachau and the establishment of the concentration camps -- The central organisation of the SS -- The Race and Settlement Office -- The SD -- the intelligence and security wing of the SS -- The path to genocide -- Euthanasia and the beginning of mass murder -- Origins of the Waffen-SS -- Militarising the "political soldiers" -- Expansion of the militarised SS -- The invasion of Poland and the special task groups -- The SS and the Polish Jews -- Gottlob Berger and the creation of the Waffen-SS -- Making up the numbers: foreign volunteers and criminals in the Waffen-SS -- The Waffen-SS heads east -- Operation Barbarossa and the first and second sweeps -- The Wannsee conference -- The extermination camps -- Auschwitz -- The final act -- Epilogue -- Appendix: Table of comparative military ranks.

Corporate Subject:

Waffen-SS -- History.

Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiter-Partei. Schutzstaffel.

Subject Term:

World War, 1939-1945 -- Regimental histories -- Germany.

National socialism.

World War, 1939-1945 -- Germany.

Geographic Term:

Germany -- Politics and government -- 1933-1945.

Summary:

The most loyal and ruthless enforcers of the Third Reich began as a small squad of political thugs. Yet by the end of 1935, the SS had taken control of all police and internal security duties in Germany--ranging from local village "gendarmes" all the way up to the secret political police and the Gestapo. And by 1944, the militarized Waffen-SS had more than eight hundred thousand men serving in the field, rivaling even Germany's regular armed forces, the Wehrmacht. Here, author Adrian Weale delves into materials not previously available, including recently released intelligence files and never-before published photographs. Going beyond the myths and characterizations, this comprehensive account reveals the reality of the SS as a cadre of unwavering political fanatics and power-seeking opportunists who slavishly followed an ideology that disdained traditional morality--an ideology that they were prepared to implement to the utmost murderous extreme, which ultimately resulted in the Holocaust.--From publisher description.

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Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Hardwood Creek Library (Forest Lake)	940.541343 WEA	Searching... Unknown
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Searching... Stillwater Public Library	940.541343 WEA	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Wildwood Library (Mahtomedi)	940.541343 WEA	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

In Nazi Germany, they were called the Schutzstaffel. The world would know them as the dreaded SS--the most loyal and ruthless enforcers of the Third Reich...

It began as a small squad of political thugs. Yet by the end of 1935, the SS had taken control of all police and internal security duties in Germany--ranging from local village "gendarmes" all they way up to the secret political police and the Gestapo. And by 1944 the militarized Waffen SS had more than eight hundred thousand men serving in the field, even rivaling Germany's regular armed forces, the Wehrmacht.

In Army of Evil: A History of the SS , author Adrian Weale delves into materials not previously available, including recently released intelligence files, the most up-to-date research and rare and never-before-published photographs.

Going beyond the myths and characterizations, this comprehensive account reveals the reality of the SS as a cadre of unwavering political fanatics and power-seeking opportunists who slavishly followed an ideology that disdained traditional morality, and were prepared to implement it to the utmost, murderous extreme that ultimately resulted in the Holocaust.

This is a definitive historical narrative of the birth, legacy, and ultimate demise of one of the most feared political and military organizations ever known, and those twisted, cruel men who were responsible for one of the most appalling crimes against humanity in all history.

Author Notes

Adrian Weale was educated at York University and the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. He spent seven years in the regular army as a military intelligence officer, serving Northern Ireland, Germany, Cyprus and Central America. He left in 1992 to pursue a career as a writer. He has published eight works of non-fiction and he writes and reviews regularly for a range of national newspapers. In 2003, he was mobilized for military service in Iraq, where he was appointed Deputy Governor of Dhi Qar Province. In this role, he organized and supervised the first free local elections in Iraqi history in August and September 2003. He remains on active duty.

Reviews (2)

Kirkus Review

Riveting look at the formation of the Schutzstaffeln (aka the SS), from Hitler's early private bodyguards to Heinrich Himmler's elite extermination squads. Weale (Patriot Traitors, 2001, etc.) plots the evolution of the SS as the embodiment and implementation of the Nazi racist ideology. Organized in 1925 as a personal security detail for the National Socialist leader on the rise, the SS was conceived as a self-conscious elite force set apart from the party's thuggish, ill-disciplined paramilitary force, the Sturmabteilung, or SA. Once the young Bavarian Nazi-organizer Himmler took over the restructuring process, the SS was soon imbued with new discipline, uniforms, recruitment and ideological framework that embraced the pseudo-science of eugenics current at the time. Weale breaks down the criteria for SS selectivity, which required not only absolute political loyalty, but a kind of physical perfection, including height restrictions and proof of "strictly Nordic German" blood; marriage by SS officers had to be approved by the Race Office. By 1933, Hitler was chancellor, and tension among the German army, the SA and the SS was eliminated by the Night of the Long Knives of July 1934, when Himmler's SS became the fully independent organization within the Nazi party in charge of security and policing--soon to be armed and sent into invasion action in Poland and elsewhere. Step by step, Weale delineates the consolidation of Himmler's power, including the implementation of the concentration camp system, first at Dachau, then in the "special task groups" sent in to mop up after Nazi invasion in Eastern Europe as the SS soldiers evolved into instruments of genocide. A chilling examination of the SS makeup, structure and ideology.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Library Journal Review

This is neither a combat history of the Waffen SS nor a history of the Holocaust. Instead, using newly released intelligence files and photographs, and describing the organization's history, ideology, and decision-making processes, Weale chronicles the evolution of a ragtag group of political intimidators into a criminal organization responsible for the Holocaust. He effectively argues that the Holocaust neither was perpetrated by psychopathic sadists (more often than not the perpetrators were career opportunists), nor was the Waffen SS an elite military formation whose guilt for crimes against humanity was by association only. Particularly interesting is that Weale rejects the idea that the Waffen SS were an elite force. Standards for recruitment were often low (criminal elements were admitted), often based on favoritism, and efforts to recruit foreign volunteers were by and large useless. The organization was but an arm of the SS that was never strong enough nor intended to counterbalance the German army and, ultimately, was a drain on valuable resources. -VERDICT Intended for general readers, and best for them.-PM (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Acknowledgements	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Author's Note	p. xv
Introduction	p. 1
1 The Defeat of Wilhelmine Germany and the Origins of the National Socialist Party	p. 5
2 The Rebirth of National Socialism and the Creation of the SS	p. 19
3 Heinrich Himmler	p. 33
4 A New Broom	p. 46
5 Taking Control	p. 68
6 Consolidation	p. 87
7 Dachau and the Establishment of the Concentration Camps	p. 95
8 The Central Organisation of the Ss	p. 110
9 The Race and Settlement Office	p. 119
10 The SD-The Intelligence and Security Wing Office	p. 130
11 The Path to Genocide	p. 151
12 Euthanasia and the Beginning of Mass Murder	p. 169
13 Origins of the Waffen-SS	p. 193
14 Militarising the "Political Soldiers"	p. 205
15 Expansion of the Militarised SS	p. 215
16 The Invasion of Poland and the Special Task Groups	p. 224
17 The Ss and the Polish Jews	p. 235
18 Gottlob Berger and the Creation of the Waffen-SS	p. 246
19 Making Up the Numbers: Foreign Volunteers and Criminals in the Waffen-SS	p. 256
20 The Waffen-SS Heads East	p. 296
21 Operation Barbarossa and the First and Second Sweeps	p. 306
22 The Wannsee Conference	p. 325
23 The Extermination Camps	p. 338
24 Auschwitz	p. 366
25 The Final Act	p. 398
Epilogue	p. 410
Appendix: Table of Comparative Military Ranks	p. 413
Notes	p. 415
Bibliography	p. 433
Index	p. 441

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Reviews (2)

Kirkus Review

Library Journal Review

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