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The Early Runic Shield of
The SS-LAH
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SS-Leibstandarte
Adolf Hitler |
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The origins of the infamous
“Protection Squads” (Schutzstaffeln
or “SS”) can be traced back to the early days of the Storm Troopers (Sturmabteilung-SA).
In January 1931 Ernst Röhm
established a number of Staff Guards (Stabswachen) to protect key
leaders of the SA and the National Socialist Party. In order to
protect himself, Röhm
established his own Staff Guard (Stabswache der Obersten SA-Führung).
In addition he provided a Staff Guard for Hermann Göring
(Stabswache Göring)
as well as for Adolf Hitler (Standarte Adolf Hitler). Hitler's
primary goal was to establish a regiment of dedicated men that would
protect him in the event his leadership was challenged by other
National Socialist Party members including Röhm.
After Röhm
was murdered and the SA purged, Hitler disbanded all of the Staff
Guards except for his own which was renamed "SA-Standarte Adolf
Hitler." This elite guard unit later became the "SS-Leibstandarte
Adolf Hitler" (LAH) in September 1933.
The
LAH independently fielded combat troops during the campaign against
Poland. Elements later joined the
SS-Special Purpose
Troops (SS-Verfügung-struppe-SS-VT)
prior to the invasion of Russia in 1941.
Although not commonly
known by today's collectors, units comprising the
SS-VT were not collectively known as the “Waffen-SS” until a speech by Adolf Hitler in July 1940. In 1941 the Division SS-Leibstandarte
Adolf Hitler joined the combined field units of SS-VT thereafter known
as the Waffen-SS.
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Overview
Each section of German-Helmets.com
is divided into separate Information Tracks that outline important
details, facts, and historical notes pertaining to steel helmets used by
the German Armed Forces during World War II.
Information Tracks are organized
by subject matter and their content is directly related to the service arm
or organization to which each topic is related. Topic areas that
bridge one subject matter to another are cross linked within each Information Track.
This Information Track provides historical
facts pertaining to steel helmets worn by the
SS-Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler
from 1933-1945. Individual links related to this subject are
outlined below.
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