Original Item: Only One Available. The SS (Schutzstaffel - 'Protection Squadron') was originally formed in 1925, ostensibly to act as a small, loyal bodyguard unit to protect the Führer, Adolf AH. Under the direction of the Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, the SS grew to be the most ruthless and feared organization of the 20th century. They were the vanguard of the NSDAP and eventually controlled nearly every function of German life and much of Occupied Europe.

When WWII began in earnest, the SS-Verfügungstruppe (SS-VT) (SS Dispositional Troops) became the Waffen-SS ("Armed SS"), an official military branch of the SS organization. Its formations included men from NSDAP ruled Germany, along with volunteers and conscripts from both occupied and unoccupied lands.

This is a fantastic collection of books and pamphlets that were distributed to members of the Waffen SS during the WWII Period, all with black covers displaying the Schutzstaffel ᛋᛋ doppelte Siegrune (Double Sig/Victory Rune) symbols, often called "Lightning Bolts". While ostensibly a part of the Armed Forces, the Waffen SS units were managed quite a bit differently, and were technically under the command of Himmler. His officer published numerous different books and pamphlets for the various different parts of the SS, who were the most fanatical adherents to the NSDAP Ideology. Some of these are marked with Entwurf (Draft), so they could be pre-publication examples.

The most interesting book in the set is probably a book in Norwegian, intended for the members of 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking. This unit contained foreign volunteers from Northern Europe, most notably those of "Nordic" descent such as Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Iceland. The cover of the book reads Germansk Budstikke, 2. Årgang, Hefte 3/4, 1943, or "Germanic Bulletin, Volume 2, Issue 3/4, 1943". The inside cover shows a "Sunwheel" style swas, the emblem of the 5th SS Panzer, and under this SOLHJULET / ᛋᛋ DIVISJON VIKINGS TEGN, which translates to "Sunwheel, SS Division Viking's Sign". The book measures about 6 1/4" by 9", and is 195 pages long.

The second book is titled Absperr=Anleitung (Barricade Instructions), which is apparently an SS manual on the construction of barricades and other obstacles. It contains complete instructions and procedures for SS personnel on maintaining order during civil disturbances, protection of personages, crow control, and so forth. There are even multiple fold out diagrams to show the various formations! It looks like it may have had a unit designation on the upper right corner, but that was covered over long ago. It measures 5 3/4" by 8 1/8", and is 69 pages long.

The third book is more of a pamphlet, and is unit marked SS=Dv. Nr. 1b (Zeil 2: GO.) in the upper right corner, and is titled as follows:

Vorläuſige Vorſchrift
über die Führung der Dienſtgeschäfte
in den Schutzſtaffeln der NSDAP
(G. O.)

This translates basically to "Provisional Regulation on the Conduct of Official Business in the Protection Squadrons of the NSDAP", so we assume it is a manual on how members should conduct themselves. It measures 5 3/4" by 8 1/8", and is 14 pages long.

The last book is a small 1944 edition of Der Soldatenfreund (The Soldier's Friend), and is specifically the Waffen SS version. These small books were basically diaries with reference information at the end regarding the ranks and insignia of various parts of the German military. There are some pages filled out in the beginning, and there was even a 3 1/4" by 5 1/4" post photo of three German girls folded up and put into the book, which we assume would have been the owners sisters. The small book measures 3" by 4 7/8".

A great set of Waffen SS reference material, ready to research and display!