Author Description

"The Schutz Staffel - SS - (Protection Squad) was the black-uniformed elite corps of the Nazi Party. Founded by Adolf Hitler in April 1925 as a small personal bodyguard, the SS grew with the success of the Nazi movement and, gathering immense police and military powers, became virtually a state within a state. During World War II the Waffen-SS (Armed SS) served as elite combat troops alongside the regular army, and gained a reputation for being both professional and brutal. Hitler's Praetorians is the complete history of the Third Reich's fighting elite from its humble beginnings to the end of the Nazi regime in May 1945." "As well as colour maps and black-and-white photographs, Hitler's Praetorians contains biographical boxes on the commanders who turned the Waffen-SS into a fearsome military machine, men such as Dietrich, Hausser, Peiper, Witt and Meyer. There are also boxes on the equipment used by the Waffen-SS throughout the war, with each item of hardware illustrated by a line diagram."--BOOK JACKET.