46. SS-Hauptscharf�hrer, 1939, Chancellery Staff Attendants Uniform.
47. SS-Unterscharf�hrer, 1938, Winter Ceremonial Uniform.
48. SS-Obersturmbannf�hrer, 1939, White Summer Full Dress Uniform.
The Allgemeine-SS was often referred to by non-Germans, and still is even today, as Hitler's - or Himmler's -'Black Shirts'. This is technically incorrect as it was their uniforms that were black and their shirts, by tradition, were brown. The Tradition Uniform (Pig. 42) was the uniform worn at the time when the SS was part of the SA. They differed from the SA in that they wore black kepis with a white metal death's head badge, black ties and black breeches. Their collar insignia was also black. The former SA/SS brown shirt was retained for normal service wear when the SS were uniformed with black tunics and breeches (No. 4()). Heinrich Himmler was born in Munich on 7th October 1900. He was created Reichsf�hrer-SS in 1929 (No. 41), appointed Police President of Bavaria in 1933, Chief of the Reich Political Police in 1935 and Chief of the German Police in 1936. He became Minister of the Interior in 1943, Commander-in-Chief of the Replacement Army in July 1944 and Commander-in-Chief of the Rhine and Visual Armies in December 1944 until March 1945. Himmler was dismissed from his position of ReichsF�hrer-SS by Hitler in April 1945 and stripped of his Party membership. In a vain attempt to escape capture and disguised as a German sergeant he was apprehended by the British on 23rd May 1945. He committed suicide later that same day after first revealing his true identity at a British Army Interrogation Centre at Liineburg. SS officers from the rank of SS-Sturmf�hrer were appointed as Adjutants by the Reichsf�hrer. Their appointment was indicated by the wearing of an Adjutant's aiguillette, worn across the right chest of the uniform and which, from 1934, was in black and silver. This was later changed to an all silver-aluminium aiguillette. The SS Service Dagger model 1936 with its ornate 'chains' (No. 43) was introduced on 25th August 1936 to be worn by commissioned officers and those non-commissioned ranks who were members of the SS before 30th January 1933. It was worn with Service Dress and Undress Uniform. Reinhard Heydrich born in 1904 was head of what developed into the SS Intelligence Service, the Sicherheitsdienst or SD. He was appointed to this job by Himmler in 1931 and he held the appointment until 1934. He was Chief of the Security Police and the SD from 1934 until 1939, Chief of the RSHA (Reichssicherheitshauptamt or Reich Security Main Office) which included the Kripo or Criminal Police and the Gestapo from 1939 until his death in 1942. Heydrich was appointed Reichsprotektor of Bohemia and Moravia in September 1941. On 27 May 1942 two British trained Czech parachutists ambushed Heydrich's car when he was driving through Prague and managed to inflict severe wounds on him which resulted eight days later in his death on 4th June. The field-grey SS Service Uniform, tunics and greatcoats, identical in cut to the earlier black versions, began to be introduced for use by members of the SD and Security Police during 1938-39 (No. 44). In place of the SS swastika arm band the SS version of the National Emblem was worn on the upper left arm and two shoulder cords were worn instead of just one. The basis of the regional organisation of the Allgemeine-SS was the District or Oberabschnitt. These were sub-divided into sub-districts known as Abschnitten. The staffs of these SS-sub-districts wore the number of their sub-district in Roman numerals on their right collar patch and on their cuff-title. No. 45 shows an SS-Untersturmf�hrer from the Frankfurt am Oder Abschnitt X II. The use of Army pattern sabres in place of the regulation SS Officers sword (Nos. 44 and 48) was not a common practice but it was tolerated during the pre-war period. SS personnel entrusted with the task of acting as attendants upon Hitler, his guests and members of his immediate staff when the f�hrer was at the Reich Chancellery in Berlin or at the Berghof at Berchtesgaden wore a short, white 'monkey jacket'. This was always worn with white piped, long black trousers and black leather shoes. Slight variations on the style of jacket shown (No. 46) existed and during the war members of Hitler's attending staff wore the SS arm eagle on the left upper arm. SS Honour guards wore white leather equipment for ceremonial duties, parades and certain guard duties. Troops of the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler wore full white leather harness which had 'Y' straps in place of the single cross strap (No. 47) when acting as body guard at the Reich Chancellery. The white summer tunic (No. 48) was introduced on 27th June 1939 intended to be worn by officers as a Walking-out Uniform when worn with matching regulation white trousers, white buckskin shoes and peaked cap, sometimes with a white top. This white linen tunic was only permitted to be worn during the period from 1st April to 30th September each year. It was known to be worn by the Honour Guard Commander at Berchtesgaden when, in place of the white trousers, he wore black breeches (No. 48).

49. SS-Special Purpose Troops: SS-VT Recruit, 1933, Drill clothing.
50. SS-Special Purpose Troops: SS-Obersturmf�hrer, Instructor, 1934, Service Uniform.
51. SS-Special Purpose Troops: SS-Untersturmf�hrer, 1934, Service Uniform.
The SS-Verf�gungscruppe or SS-Special purpose Troops (SS-VT) was officially brought into existence on 24th September 1934, just three months after armed units of the SS had ruthlessly put down the so-called 'R�hm Plot' (see section on Ernst R�hm, No. 17). Full-time Political Readiness Detachments (Politische Bereitschaften) formed for the purpose of police and internal security duties already existed prior to the SS-VT being raised, the most notable detachment of which was the SS-Bodyguard Regiment 'Adolf Hitler' under the command of Joseph 'Sepp' Dietrich. These detachments which were of company strength had in turn been formed from trained units known as 'SS Special Detachments' (SS-Sondcrkommandos) , later called Kasernierte Hundertschaften (literally 100 men per barracks) and these SS Special Detachments had grown out of the 'Headquarters Guards' (Stabswachen) usually consisting of a hundred armed men that had been raised in certain areas of Germany and in SS Districts (see also No. 21). In December 1943 these Political Readiness Detachments were organised into battalions and merged with the 'Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler'. On 16th March 1935 (the date that military conscription was re-introduced in Germany), it was announced publicly that the SS-Verfiigungstruppe, the armed body of military trained men, NCO's and Officers, the forerunner of the Armed-SS, yet to be, actually existed. The light grey drill clothing was produced for wear by NCO's and Men of the SS-VT as a form of protective clothing to be used in place of the black uniform when undergoing military instruction, drill and fatigue duties. The recruit in No. 49 is wearing the first pattern drill clothing worn together with the distinctive field cap. No. 50 shows an SS-VT Officer Instructor wearing the drill jacket with black breeches and boots and the officer black peaked cap. The SS-Untersturmf�hrer in No. 51 is wearing the earth-grey uniform with the model 1918 black painted steel helmet displaying the first pattern outlined swastika emblem originally worn by all SS-VT units other than the L-AH.

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