Waffen-SS
Hitler's armed elite
The Waffen-SS was the combat arm of the Nazi Party's SS organization during World War II, operating as an elite military force alongside but separate from the regular German army.
Its units participated in numerous war crimes and atrocities, including mass executions and concentration camp operations.
The name combines the German word for "weapons" with the SS abbreviation for *Schutzstaffel* (protection squad).
References to the Waffen-SS typically invoke Nazi ideology, military fanaticism, or war crimes.
German fascist party member
- fascismUltranationalist dictatorial political system
- AryanIndo-European linguistic ancestor
- racial purityIdeology of ethnic exclusivity
- indoctrinationSystematic uncritical belief instillation
oath · fanaticism · supremacist · propaganda · Hitler · loyalty · nationalism · totalitarianism
Illegal acts during conflict
- exterminationComplete destruction of a group
- civilianNon-military person
- reprisalPunitive action in return
- brutalitySavage, merciless behavior
execution · genocide · Holocaust · persecution · deportation · concentration camp · tribunal · accountability
German armored fighting vehicle
- WehrmachtNazi Germany's armed forces
- Eastern FrontSoviet-German combat theater
- combatArmed hostile engagement
- battalionMid-sized military unit
regiment · campaign · offensive · armor · infantry · Barbarossa · Ardennes · Kursk
Eliminating fascist ideology institutionally
- prosecutionPursuing legal charges
- documentationWritten proof or instructions
- archiveStored historical records
- testimonySworn statement as evidence
veterans · memory · commemoration · controversy · revisionism · historiography · scholarship · museum
Nazi
German fascist party member
- fascismUltranationalist dictatorial political system
- AryanIndo-European linguistic ancestor
- racial purityIdeology of ethnic exclusivity
indoctrination · oath · fanaticism · supremacist · propaganda · Hitler · loyalty · nationalism · totalitarianism · antisemitism
war crimes
Illegal acts during conflict
- exterminationComplete destruction of a group
- civilianNon-military person
- reprisalPunitive action in return
brutality · execution · genocide · Holocaust · persecution · deportation · concentration camp · tribunal · accountability · testimony
Panzer
German armored fighting vehicle
- WehrmachtNazi Germany's armed forces
- Eastern FrontSoviet-German combat theater
- combatArmed hostile engagement
battalion · regiment · campaign · offensive · armor · infantry · Barbarossa · Ardennes · Kursk · mechanized
denazification
Eliminating fascist ideology institutionally
- prosecutionPursuing legal charges
- documentationWritten proof or instructions
- archiveStored historical records
testimony · veterans · memory · commemoration · controversy · revisionism · historiography · scholarship · museum · memorial
- Nazi GermanyAdolf Hitler, Hitler, Nazi, Nazis, Nazi Party
- Axis MilitaryWehrmacht, Luftwaffe, Afrika Korps, panzer, panzer division
- WWII ForcesWehrmacht, Red Army, British Army, US Navy, Royal Navy
- German SoldiersWehrmacht, Bundeswehr, grenadier, Hessian, Afrika Korps
- WehrmachtWehrmacht, Luftwaffe, Panzer, Rommel, field marshal
- warriorsfighter, knight, footsoldier, barbarian, samurai
Waffen-SSWehrmacht
Nazi Germany's armed forces
regular army · conscript army · conventional forces · Home Guard · national guard
Waffen-SSresistance fighters
Armed opponents of occupation
White Rose · anti-Nazi resistance · Red Cross · French Resistance · rescuers