Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts

Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts
Finnish Waffen-SS men in 1941
Active	1940–45
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Branch	Schutzstaffel
Size	approx. 500,000
Garrison/HQ	SS Führungshauptamt

The Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts during World War II were members of the Waffen-SS who had been recruited or conscripted mainly from among the nationals of Nazi-occupied Europe. The units were under the control of the SS Führungshauptamt (SS Command Main Office) beneath Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler. Upon mobilization, the units' tactical control was given to the High Command of the Armed Forces (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht).

The Waffen-SS (Armed SS) was created as the militarized wing of the Schutzstaffel (SS; "Protective Squadron") of the Nazi Party after the Night of the Long Knives purge of the Sturmabteilung (SA; "Storm Detachment") leadership. In 1933, a group of 120 SS men were chosen to form the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH). In 1934 the SS developed its own military branch, the SS-Verfügungstruppe (SS-VT), which together with the LSSAH, later evolved into the Waffen-SS. Nominally under the authority of Heinrich Himmler, the Waffen-SS developed a fully militarised structure of command and operations. It grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions during World War II, serving alongside the Heer (army), while never formally being a part of it. It was Hitler's wish that the Waffen-SS should never be integrated into either the army or the state police, instead it would remain an independent force of military-trained men at the disposal of the Führer in times of both war and peace.

In 1934 Himmler initially set stringent requirements for recruits. They were to be German nationals who could prove their Aryan ancestry back to 1800, unmarried, and without a criminal record. Recruits had to be between the ages of 17 and 23, at least 1.74 metres (5 ft 9 in) tall (1.78 metres (5 ft 10 in) for the Leibstandarte). Recruits were required to have perfect teeth and eyesight and provide a medical certificate. By 1938 the height restrictions were relaxed, up to six dental fillings were permitted, and eyeglasses for astigmatism and mild vision correction were allowed. Once World War II commenced in Europe , the physical requirements were no longer strictly enforced, and essentially any recruit who could pass a basic medical exam was considered for Waffen-SS service. Following the campaign in the West in 1940, Hitler authorized the enlistment of "people perceived to be of related stock", as Himmler put it, to expand the ranks. A number of Danes, Dutch, Norwegians, Swedes and Finns volunteered to fight in the Waffen-SS under the command of German officers. Non-Germanic units were not considered to be part of the SS directly, which still maintained its strict racial criteria, instead they were considered to be foreign nationals serving under the command of the SS.