The SS (Schutzstaffel)

The Schutzstaffel (SS) was a major paramilitary organization under Nazi Germany, initially established as Adolf Hitler’s personal bodyguard in the 1920s. Over time, it evolved into a powerful entity responsible for many of the regime’s most heinous crimes, including overseeing the Gestapo (secret police), conducting racial persecution, and operating concentration camps. The SS was ideologically committed to Nazi principles like racial purity and total loyalty. After World War II, the organization was declared a criminal entity at the Nuremberg Trials, with many of its leaders held accountable for war crimes and crimes against humanity.