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Hitlers SS
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00:28As the Nazi Reich
00:29staggers towards final extinction
00:32desperate resistance continues
00:34amidst the rubble of Berlin
00:38Accusing all around of treachery
00:41abandoning the German people
00:43and his yet faithful lieutenants
00:45to the pleasure of the victors
00:46Adolf Hitler kills himself
00:49in the deep bunker
00:50of the Imperial Chancellery
00:52Obedient to his last orders
00:54two SS men burn the body
00:56in the Chancellery Garden
00:59For the nations of Europe
01:01a long agony is ended
01:06Hitler had sent his armies
01:08marching and ravaging
01:10over a continent and beyond
01:13Throughout all that vast
01:14sphere of conflict
01:15there was one band of fighting men
01:18who were everywhere known
01:20In their brief but extraordinary existence
01:23they won a unique reputation
01:25for daring elan
01:26and unfailing professionalism
01:28in combat
01:30Yet
01:31if their courage was beyond dispute
01:33so too
01:34was the fear and loathing
01:36which they elicited
01:37even eventually
01:39among their own people
01:41and in the regular soldiers
01:43alongside whom they fought
01:46In many of the most signal triumphs
01:49of German arms
01:49they played a conspicuous role
01:52One far disproportionate to their numbers
01:55In the long period of decline and retreat
01:59despite repeatedly sustaining appalling casualties
02:02their discipline remained unbroken
02:04their fighting ardour unimpaired
02:07almost to the very end
02:12Subsequently
02:12they were burdened
02:14with the near exclusive blame
02:15for the blackest crimes
02:17of the Nazi regime
02:18and for all their high undoubted bravery
02:22they bear a reputation
02:24forever shrouded with infamy
02:26They were the Waffen SS
02:39Although the Waffen or Armed SS
02:42was not so formally named until late 1939
02:46Its origins reach back
02:48to the troubled, violent years
02:50that followed on the Treaty of Versailles
02:53The peace that finally succeeded
02:55to the Great War
02:56brought no lands fit for heroes to live in
02:59Instead, and inevitably
03:01Europe for many years
03:03laboured in the troughs
03:04of bitter economic recession
03:08No country escaped the prevailing misery
03:11In such fertile conditions
03:13political extremism
03:15of every variety flourished
03:17Movements combining
03:19intense nationalism
03:21authoritarianism
03:22and intolerance
03:24achieved widespread prominence
03:26As meetings often culminated
03:29in open violence
03:30the physical safety of speakers
03:32became a serious consideration
03:34Unofficial private armies sprang up
03:40In Germany
03:41the rising Nationalist Socialist Workers' Party
03:44was led by the ranting
03:46but mesmeric demagogue
03:48Adolf Hitler
03:49His personal protection
03:52was assigned to the men
03:53of a specially selected
03:55Schutstaffel
03:56or Guard Echelon
03:58otherwise known as the SS
04:01They supplied their own boots and trousers
04:04The SS organisation grew steadily
04:08acquiring a number of disparate functions
04:10From 1929
04:13From 1929
04:13It was led by Heinrich Himmler
04:16A former chicken farmer
04:18who had shown himself reasonably efficient at administration
04:22Short-sighted
04:23of mediocre intellect
04:25and physically
04:26unprepossessing
04:28Himmler saw in his shabby entourage
04:30the revival of a medieval order
04:33of keen-eyed warrior knights
04:36This mystical side of Himmler's character
04:39was a source of much amusement to Hitler
04:41But the future dictator
04:43valued his SS leader
04:45for what he rightly judged
04:46to be an unconditional loyalty
04:49For Himmler knew that
04:51without Hitler
04:52he would be nothing
04:54With the early 30s
04:56fascism was rife across Europe
04:58Mussolini was already established in Italy
05:01And from the Balkans to Great Britain
05:04would-be imitators were not lacking
05:06All preached one shrill message
05:09Hate
05:12Easy scapegoats were sought
05:15Nowhere was this dangerous new breed of politics
05:18more completely successful
05:20than in the German Republic
05:22Where, in 1933
05:24Adolf Hitler became Chancellor
05:27Henceforward
05:28there would be only one party in Germany
05:31The Nazi Party
05:39Neither then
05:40or thereafter
05:41did Hitler ever trust the German army
05:44And soon
05:45Berliners remarked
05:47a different set of guards
05:48outside the Imperial Chancellery
05:50They were drawn
05:52from an independent
05:53and freshly created
05:55new military formation
05:56The SS-Livestandart Adolf Hitler
06:01The 120 picked men
06:03of this Adolf Hitler Lifeguard Regiment
06:06were the first SS members
06:08to bear arms
06:09and formed the true nucleus
06:11of what was to become
06:12the Waffen-SS
06:15Himmler's organisation
06:16was by this time
06:18some 30,000 strong
06:19From it would also develop
06:22the Algemeine
06:23or General SS
06:25eventually to become
06:26a huge and unwieldy part
06:28of the chaotic Nazi administration
06:30Though Hitler's most devoted
06:33acolyte
06:34Himmler
06:35in common with all the other
06:37Nazi courtiers
06:38nourished fervent ambitions
06:40of expanding his own sphere
06:42of authority
06:43within the new Germany
06:44To construct
06:46To construct
06:46indeed
06:46a state within a state
06:48remarkably similar
06:49to that which the Jews
06:51were supposedly concerned
06:52to promote
06:53He saw the SS
06:55and particularly
06:56the Waffen-SS
06:57as a prime means
06:59of realising that dream
07:01In his turbulent
07:03ascent to power
07:04Hitler had made
07:05many enemies
07:06At no time in his reign
07:08would he ever feel
07:09entirely secure
07:10and unassailable
07:12Himmler offered him
07:14a body of men
07:15to be drawn
07:16from the finest
07:17Germanic stock
07:18and imbued
07:19with the purest
07:19Nazi ideals
07:21whose unshakable loyalty
07:23and implicit obedience
07:24would be owed
07:25to Hitler alone
07:27It was not to the German state
07:29that the soldiers
07:30of the SS
07:31Leibstandard
07:32pledged their allegiance
07:34I swear to you
07:36Adolf Hitler
07:37as supreme leader
07:39and imperial champion
07:40Chancellor
07:40loyalty
07:41and bravery
07:42I vow to you
07:44and to those
07:45you have named
07:46to command me
07:47obedience unto death
07:49so help me God
07:55The concept
07:57of an elite force
07:58separate from army
08:00and police
08:00above both party
08:02and state
08:02was easily accommodated
08:04within the framework
08:05of the Nazi propaganda machine
08:07which intentionally
08:09sought to mimic
08:10the grandeurs
08:11of imperial Rome
08:13The Leibstandard
08:14would be Hitler's
08:16Praetorian guard
08:17Sepp Dietrich
08:19a Bavarian
08:20was the regiment's
08:21first commander
08:22The German word
08:24Dietrich
08:25means picklock
08:26so a key
08:28was adopted
08:29as the regimental emblem
08:30though
08:32Though scarcely literate
08:33Dietrich
08:34possessed genuine leadership qualities
08:37and was much admired
08:38by Hitler
08:39who described him as
08:40unique
08:41a man
08:42who is simultaneously
08:43cunning
08:44energetic
08:45and brutal
08:47These qualities
08:48These qualities were soon
08:49in requisition
08:50By 1934
08:52Hitler had become
08:53increasingly concerned
08:54about the SA
08:55a ragged street army
08:57of brawlers
08:58and murderers
08:58which had done much
09:00to help the Nazis
09:01to office
09:01The SA was commanded
09:03by Ernst Röhm
09:05still a committed
09:06Hitler supporter
09:07but one now seeking
09:08a reward
09:09and too powerful
09:10to be ignored
09:12In a swift
09:14secret
09:14and bloody operation
09:16Röhm and the SA
09:17leadership
09:18were seized
09:18and executed
09:19In the night
09:21of the long knives
09:22Dietrich
09:23and a select band
09:24of live standard
09:25gave impeccable service
09:27This display
09:30of SS willingness
09:31to turn their hands
09:32unhesitatingly
09:34against yesterday's comrades
09:35won Hitler's admiration
09:37and enduring gratitude
09:39Yet
09:40he did not wish
09:41Himmler's promising creation
09:43to grow too rapidly
09:44for the army
09:46was both disdainful
09:47and suspicious
09:48of SS pretensions
09:49to be a fighting force
09:52Hitler needed
09:53the political support
09:54of the generals
09:55to whom he had promised
09:57rearmament
09:58and he would need them again
09:59sooner than they thought
10:01when he embarked
10:02on his military adventures
10:08Consequently
10:09the armed SS
10:10was for the moment
10:11restricted to four regiments
10:13of special purpose troops
10:14or more briefly
10:16the SSVT
10:18and the elite
10:19life standard
10:21The SSVT
10:23set exacting entry requirements
10:25in respect of
10:26height and fitness
10:27The standards of racial purity
10:30were higher
10:31than in the regular
10:32armed forces
10:32Good Nordic features
10:35were indispensable
10:36possible
10:36but little inquiry was made
10:38into a candidate's
10:39education nor morals
10:43But not every graduate
10:44of the SS cadet schools
10:46could find a place
10:47in the SSVT
10:49and many had to enter
10:50another
10:51less glamorous
10:52branch of the SS
10:53The Totenkopf
10:56The Totenkopf
10:56Fairband
10:57Death's Head regiments
10:58ran the concentration camps
11:00in which the regime's
11:02political opponents
11:02were interned
11:03and if necessary
11:05executed
11:05The inspector
11:08of concentration camps
11:09Theodor Ecker
11:10insisted on the routine
11:12beating of inmates
11:13as part of his men's training
11:16Although Ecker and many
11:18in the Totenkopf units
11:20nourished dreams
11:21of military glory
11:22they were not
11:23highly regarded
11:24But Himmler was at pains
11:26to emphasize
11:27the value of
11:28concentration camp duties
11:29If the officers
11:31handled it correctly
11:32it can provide
11:34the best indoctrination
11:35there is
11:36about inferior beings
11:40However
11:41not too much
11:42was known
11:43about this burgeoning
11:44part of Himmler's domains
11:45and in the mid-30s
11:47membership of the
11:48General SS
11:49was temporally
11:50almost fashionable
11:57The Leib standard
11:58frequently on call
12:00for ceremonial occasions
12:01acquired the subriquet
12:03Asphalt Soldiers
12:05It was an unfair job
12:07When Hitler
12:08re-militarized
12:09the Rhineland
12:10in 1936
12:11they spearheaded
12:12the way
12:13for the reluctant
12:14German army
12:15fully prepared
12:16to fight
12:16if need be
12:17as they were again
12:19when Czechoslovakia
12:20was annexed
12:21in 1938
12:24Europe
12:25was preparing
12:26for war
12:27and when it came
12:28the SS troops
12:30were perhaps
12:30better trained
12:31for it than most
12:32Many of the men
12:34who had joined
12:34the armed SS
12:35had done so
12:36to escape
12:37dull
12:37unrewarding jobs
12:39or merely
12:40for the splendid
12:40uniform
12:41They underwent
12:43a strict regimen
12:44but one
12:45not without
12:46compensations
12:48If the discipline
12:49was strict
12:50camaraderie
12:51was strong
12:52A training program
12:54drawn up
12:55by Paul Hausseer
12:56an outstanding
12:57former army officer
12:58laid much stress
13:00on physical prowess
13:01Field and team sports
13:03were emphasized
13:04in preference
13:05to barrack square drilling
13:08Unlike as in
13:09most other armies
13:10there was no
13:11wide gulf
13:12between officers
13:13and men
13:13Instead
13:14warm informal contacts
13:17fostered mutual
13:18respect and trust
13:19A preponderance
13:21of all ranks
13:21derived from
13:22the peasantry
13:23which Himmler
13:24though himself
13:25sycophantic
13:26before aristocracy
13:27regarded as
13:28representing
13:29the purest strain
13:30of German manhood
13:38Hauser's system
13:39encouraged initiative
13:40and an openness
13:41to new ideas
13:42The SS camouflage
13:44jacket
13:45at first laughed at
13:46was subsequently
13:47widely imitated
13:48Their battle training
13:50though dangerous
13:51was highly realistic
13:53As their bodies
13:55hardened
13:55and their martial
13:56prowess advanced
13:57the young recruits
13:59developed
13:59an intense pride
14:00in themselves
14:01and their units
14:02A pride
14:03that they were different
14:05and a burning
14:06determination
14:06to prove
14:07that they were better
14:12Nazi ideology
14:14was an integral part
14:15of every SS
14:16training course
14:17The turgid ramblings
14:19of the official
14:20Nazi theorist
14:21Rosenberg
14:22and even
14:23the windy rhetoric
14:24of Mein Kampf
14:25itself
14:26made limited
14:27impact
14:27on men
14:28many of whom
14:29had not progressed
14:30beyond the stage
14:31of elementary education
14:35It scarcely mattered
14:37Their true indoctrination
14:39into the fundamental
14:40Nazi tenets
14:41had begun
14:42long since
14:42and the bacillus
14:44implanted early
14:45received constant nourishment
14:50Dr. Goebbels
14:51was one of Hitler's
14:52few efficient ministers
14:53His propaganda
14:55was subtle
14:56ceaseless
14:57and all-pervasive
14:58The young SS men
15:00knew
15:01that the Aryans
15:02were nobler
15:03and purer
15:03than all other
15:04That the inferior races
15:06were not only despicable
15:07but actively malign
15:09and that compassion
15:11was to be striven against
15:13as a dangerous treachery
15:14to one's own kind
15:27It was the autumn
15:29of 1939
15:31Uneasy forebodings
15:33hung heavy over Europe
15:34The gambler
15:36in the imperial chancellery
15:37contemplated his past
15:39amazing run of luck
15:40Were he to stop now
15:43all he had gained
15:44would be safe
15:45But Hitler
15:46was resolved
15:47on another hazard
15:49at fortune's wheel
15:50Germany
15:51was irrevocably
15:52committed
15:53to the path
15:54of destruction
15:56The inevitable war
15:57began in September
15:59with Hitler's
16:00invasion of Poland
16:02It was a rapid war
16:04The SS forces
16:05involved in the campaign
16:07numbered only 18,000
16:09and did not fight
16:10as a unit
16:10but were dispersed
16:12throughout the two army groups
16:13The Totenkopf
16:15being held in reserve
16:17it fell to the
16:18SSVT regiments
16:19and the Leibstandard
16:21to uphold the honour
16:22of the SS
16:23in this first test
16:24of battle
16:28It was demonstrated
16:30that their courage
16:31was beyond question
16:32As Himmler
16:33exultantly declared
16:35These are men
16:37who glory in battle
16:39But controversy arose
16:41as to whether
16:42the high SS casualty rate
16:43had come about
16:44as a result
16:45of over-reckless bravery
16:47poor officer performance
16:49or of deliberate
16:50and callous policy
16:51on the part
16:52of the German army
16:54Previously
16:55the army
16:56had successfully
16:57interfered with both
16:58the recruiting
16:59and arming
16:59of the SS
17:00It was now claimed
17:02that the army
17:03was both assigning
17:04the SS
17:05the most hazardous tasks
17:06and then
17:07intentionally failing
17:08to render
17:09proper support
17:15moreover
17:15when some 50 Jews
17:17were murdered
17:18in a synagogue
17:19it was largely
17:20army pressure
17:21which brought about
17:22the trial
17:22of the SS malefactor
17:24He pleaded
17:25that he'd been
17:26much upset
17:27at the harm
17:28the Jews
17:28had done to Germany
17:29and was eventually
17:30released
17:38Poland
17:38succumbed
17:39in a matter
17:40of weeks
17:40Hitler's Soviet
17:42allies
17:42moving in
17:43from the east
17:44came with lists
17:45of those
17:46to be arrested
17:46in every town
17:47and village
17:48They introduced
17:49a variety
17:50of anti-Jewish
17:51measures
17:53The two
17:54occupying powers
17:55had previously
17:56agreed
17:56on concerted
17:57secret action
17:58to annihilate
17:59all possible centers
18:00of Polish resistance
18:03As Stalin's agents
18:04began rounding up
18:05the Polish intelligentsia
18:07and killing
18:08captured officers
18:08the German order police
18:11began implementing
18:12the first stages
18:13of the awesome program
18:15of deportation
18:16ghettoization
18:17and murder
18:20One of the great races
18:21of Europe
18:22stood now
18:23at the threshold
18:24of a terrible destiny
18:28Germany
18:28celebrated her victory
18:30and for the battle
18:31proven SS
18:32higher recognition
18:34was not lacking
18:35Despite the continued
18:37misgivings
18:37of the generals
18:38on the 1st of December
18:39the various SS detachments
18:42were together
18:42formally constituted
18:44as the Waffen SS
18:46an independent
18:47fighting force
18:48though still subordinate
18:50in battle
18:50to the army
18:51high command
18:56further expansion
18:57was permitted
18:58though the army
18:59which controlled
19:00recruitment
19:00was still able
19:02to siphon off
19:02a high proportion
19:03of the candidates
19:04eager to wear
19:05the SS runes
19:07to some extent
19:09this was offset
19:10by Gottlob Berger's
19:11formation
19:12of reserve police
19:13regiments
19:14from which the front line
19:15units could draw
19:16replacements
19:18all were under
19:20the virtual
19:20sole control
19:21of Himmler
19:22who was also
19:23steadily groping
19:24for supremacy
19:25over all Germany's
19:27various police forces
19:30though a competent
19:31intriguer
19:32and bureaucrat
19:33Himmler was also
19:34partly a crank
19:35whose high position
19:37allowed him freely
19:38to indulge
19:39his fantasies
19:40thus
19:41in another part
19:42of the SS empire
19:43investigators probed
19:45the mystical connotations
19:47of the eaten top hat
19:49and the homeopathic
19:50virtues
19:51of the milk
19:52of the wild mare
19:53of the steppes
19:55comparative studies
19:56were made
19:57into old runes
19:58and oriental ideograms
20:00with a view
20:01to proving
20:01that the Japanese
20:02too were Aryan
20:05SS men
20:06who had to produce
20:07a sun
20:08before they were
20:09allowed into action
20:10were exhorted
20:11to copulate
20:12in graveyards
20:13that they might
20:13be assured
20:14of heroic
20:15offspring
20:16in laboratories
20:18vain efforts
20:19were made
20:19to discover
20:20what distinguished
20:21Aryan
20:21from non-aryan blood
20:25for their other
20:26experiments
20:27the SS scientists
20:28enjoyed a resource
20:29unavailable
20:30to all other
20:31medical researchers
20:33a ready supply
20:35of living
20:36expendable
20:37human beings
20:59for the now
21:01rapidly expanding
21:02Waffen SS
21:03the next great challenge
21:05came with the western
21:06offensive of spring
21:071940
21:08the Leibstandert
21:10and SSVT
21:11being among the Germans
21:13comparatively few
21:14motorized formations
21:15were assigned to the
21:17faster moving spearheads
21:18of the attack
21:21the first thrust
21:22the first thrust
21:22was against the low countries
21:24breaking through
21:25the weak frontier defenses
21:26the Leibstandert
21:28drove forwards
21:29to the support
21:30of the parachute troops
21:31and to secure
21:32communications links
21:34where they found
21:35the bridges destroyed
21:36they constructed
21:37their own
21:38SS Deutschland
21:40struck sharply
21:41through to the east
21:46Holland was overrun
21:47within a week
21:48and the major battle
21:49that for France
21:50commenced
21:52to the deep satisfaction
21:54of Ecker
21:55and his 7,000
21:56erstwhile
21:57concentration camp guards
21:59Totenkopf
22:00was taken out of reserve
22:01and sent into action
22:03in northeast France
22:05everywhere
22:06the Waffen SS troops
22:07proved themselves
22:09the most eager
22:09for combat
22:10the most ardent
22:11in pursuit
22:12individual men
22:14refused to give ground
22:15even to approaching tanks
22:17and died
22:18making futile resistance
22:27in the SS ethos
22:29nothing was more despised
22:31than weakness
22:31or cowardice
22:32and near suicidal bravery
22:35was commonplace
22:36another consequence
22:38was that leaders
22:39always tended to favor
22:40the most drastic
22:41course of action
22:42one disgusted
22:44regular army officer
22:45told Ecker
22:47that he was conducting
22:48mere butcher's warfare
22:50what does it matter
22:51was the reply
22:52so long as we win
22:56high casualty rates
22:57were an inevitable
22:59concomitant
23:00but it was also argued
23:02that as in lightning war
23:04itself
23:04a sudden
23:05overwhelming onslaught
23:07saved lives
23:07lives in the long run
23:09even so
23:10very soon
23:11replacement officers
23:12were being sent
23:13to the front
23:13direct from the schools
23:15their training
23:16incomplete
23:18the Leibstandard
23:19followed keenly
23:20in the harrowing pursuit
23:21of the broken
23:22allied forces
23:23to the Dunkirk pocket
23:25and when Hitler
23:26issued his famous
23:27halt order
23:28of the 24th of May
23:29one reason may have been
23:31to ensure a share
23:33for his favorites
23:34in the envisaged
23:35final triumph
23:40alone among the commanders
23:42Dietrich discreetly
23:44ignored Hitler's directive
23:46slipping across the river
23:47with his men
23:48to capture
23:49the Wattenberg heights
23:50opposite
23:54the Totenkopf
23:56were badly hit
23:57in the small
23:58but fierce
23:58British counterattack
23:59at Arras
24:00on the 20th of July
24:02claiming that the British
24:04had massacred
24:05some German prisoners
24:06they subsequently shot
24:07100 of their own captives
24:09at Le Paradis
24:12the next day
24:14the Leibstandard
24:15carried out
24:16a similar exercise
24:17it was a harbinger
24:19of darker things
24:20to come
24:25for the remainder
24:26of the French campaign
24:27all Waffen SS formations
24:29were strongly
24:30to the forefront
24:31as Kleist's armoured group
24:33forged relentlessly
24:35through central France
24:36to the final
24:37overwhelming victory
24:40unlike many
24:41of the trumpery
24:42decorations
24:43dispensed
24:43by the Nazi state
24:45the medals issued
24:46to the Waffen SS soldiers
24:48were true
24:49emblems of bravery
25:00after France
25:01there was further expansion
25:02of the Waffen SS
25:03and the first site dilution
25:06of early standards
25:07was permitted
25:07in order to allow
25:09the recruiting
25:09of suitably Germanic types
25:11from the conquered countries
25:13a new division
25:15Viking
25:15was formed
25:16under Felix Steiner
25:18it included Scandinavians
25:20and Dutch
25:20as well as Germans
25:22the SSVT
25:24was brought up
25:25to divisional strength
25:26and renamed
25:26Das Reich
25:30Hitler
25:31had always seen
25:32his greatest struggle
25:33as lying in the east
25:34where he had
25:35immense designs
25:36but first
25:37it was necessary
25:38to secure
25:39the Balkans
25:40in April of 1941
25:42he moved
25:43against Yugoslavia
25:45a German army
25:46in Bulgaria
25:47was poised
25:48for the offensive
25:49for the Waffen SS
25:51it was but
25:52new lands
25:53to conquer
25:58swiftly
25:59and brutally
25:59Yugoslavia
26:01was subdued
26:03Das Reich
26:04marched in triumph
26:05through shattered Belgrade
26:07the German offensive
26:09swung onwards
26:10into Greece
26:11and the Leibstandert
26:13was assigned
26:14the arduous
26:15and highly dangerous
26:16task
26:16of fighting
26:17its way
26:17across the mountains
26:18to outflank
26:19the Metoxus line
26:23the forcing
26:25of the Kledi
26:25and Klesura
26:26passes
26:27was an extraordinary
26:28achievement
26:29by any standards
26:31the natural hazards
26:33alone were daunting
26:34the recoil
26:35from an 88mm gun
26:37was labelled
26:38to sweep away
26:38gunner
26:39and battery
26:40at one point
26:42Meyer
26:42only persuaded
26:43even these
26:44battle-hardened
26:45veterans
26:46to move
26:46by exploding
26:47a hand grenade
26:48at their heels
26:51they persevered
26:53and went on
26:54to capture
26:54the key town
26:55of Castoria
26:56in a supreme
26:58display
26:58of bravery
26:59and professionalism
27:00on this occasion
27:02no stain
27:03marred the glory
27:04had the Leibstandert's
27:07history ended
27:07with their victory
27:08parade
27:09through Athens
27:09its reputation
27:11might still
27:12stand fair today
27:19by the summer
27:20of 1941
27:21Hitler felt ready
27:22to launch
27:23the longest
27:24cherished
27:24and most
27:25extravagant
27:26of all his
27:26schemes of conquest
27:28the German people
27:29needed space
27:30to live
27:31the greater
27:32German Empire
27:33required lands
27:34colonies
27:35and serfs
27:36all three
27:37lay to the east
27:39he would hurl
27:40his matchless
27:41German soldiers
27:42against the rotten
27:44edifice of Bolshevism
27:45and send it
27:46crashing to the ground
27:47he would fling
27:49the Slavic hordes
27:50back into Asia
27:54them
27:55or us
27:55said Hitler
27:56will be the motto
27:58of this pitiless clash
28:03to this momentous undertaking
28:05three million men
28:07had been committed
28:08the invasion front
28:09extended from Finland
28:10to the Black Sea
28:13news of Hitler's attack
28:15on the Soviet Union
28:16flashed round
28:17an astonished world
28:18in Germany
28:19there was no rejoicing
28:24the Waffen SS units
28:26taking part
28:26comprising in all
28:28some 160,000 men
28:30were spread between
28:31the three army groups
28:33in an invading force
28:35heavily dependent
28:35on horse-drawn transport
28:37motorized units
28:39were of key importance
28:40in sustaining
28:41a rapid advance
28:44in its initial stages
28:45Operation Barbarossa
28:47was dramatically successful
28:49the German army
28:51surged onwards
28:52easily brushing aside
28:53the disorganized attempts
28:55at opposition
28:57Stalin had ignored
28:58all warnings
28:59of the attack
29:00like Hitler
29:01Stalin was distrustful
29:03of the military
29:03and had severely weakened
29:05the Red Army
29:05by repeated bloodlettings
29:07paralysis
29:08afflicted his high command
29:13the Germans
29:14the Germans found
29:14a frequent welcome
29:15in the border republics
29:17where Stalin's rule
29:18had been especially harsh
29:19in the abundantly fertile Ukraine
29:22within the previous decade
29:24over 10 millions
29:25had died
29:26in an artificially created famine
29:33as the spearheads
29:35penetrated deeper and deeper
29:36into Soviet territories
29:38it seemed to many Germans
29:39that they were going
29:40into not merely another land
29:42but another rage
29:44amongst a people
29:45unbelievably backward
29:47drab and primitive
29:50to the delight of Dr. Goebbels
29:53the propaganda minister
29:54it was found
29:55that many jails
29:56were choked
29:57with the bodies
29:57of hastily slaughtered
29:59political prisoners
30:03the general backwardness
30:05of the country
30:05made for some military
30:07disadvantages
30:09even light summer showers
30:11turned the dust roads
30:12into morasses
30:13temporarily immobilizing
30:15entire columns
30:18all the Waffen SS formations
30:20performed outstandingly well
30:22during the advance
30:23and the real combat value
30:25of these resilient fighting men
30:27began at last
30:28to be appreciated
30:29in the regular army
30:30in the center
30:32Das Reich
30:33was heavily involved
30:34in the drive on Smolensk
30:36subsequently winning
30:38a rare accolade of praise
30:39from General Guderian
30:41another general reported
30:43admiringly
30:44on the incomparable dash
30:46displayed
30:46by the Leipständer
30:47in the spirit
30:49of the most devoted
30:50brotherhood of arms
30:51they intervened
30:53on their own initiative
30:54in the arduous struggle
30:56and routed the enemy
30:57destroying numerous tanks
31:03Leipständer
31:04and Viking
31:05accompanied army group south
31:07which had been given
31:08a large remit
31:08of isolating
31:09and destroying
31:10the Red Army forces
31:11west of the Dnieper
31:13the distances
31:14traversed were enormous
31:16compared to any
31:17previous campaigns
31:18after a full 300 miles
31:20to the river
31:21they faced another
31:22700 miles
31:23to Rostov-on-Don
31:25in huge encirclements
31:27hundreds of thousands
31:28of prisoners
31:29were taken
31:34dealing with these
31:35large number of captives
31:37was one of the many problems
31:38for which the Nazi war machine
31:40had made absolutely
31:41no firm preparations
31:43behind the front
31:45administrative anarchy
31:46reigned
31:47numerous competing authorities
31:50military and civilian
31:51jostled for power
31:52profit and pillage
31:54it was a reflection
31:56of the muddle
31:57purposely encouraged
31:58at the Nazi court
31:59by the ever insecure dictator
32:05as one result
32:06uncountable prisoners
32:08starved
32:09cannibalism
32:10was not unknown
32:12Soviet troops
32:13no longer
32:14surrendered readily
32:15many of those
32:17cut off
32:17behind the German lines
32:18took to
32:19guerrilla warfare
32:24even the minimal
32:25well-being
32:25of the newly
32:26subject populace
32:27was a matter
32:28of little moment
32:29to senior Nazis
32:32regarding Slavic women
32:34Himmler told his men
32:35we Germans
32:36who are the only people
32:38in the world
32:39who have a decent attitude
32:40towards animals
32:41will also assume
32:43a decent attitude
32:44towards these human animals
32:46but it is a crime
32:47against our own blood
32:49to worry about them
32:50and give them ideals
32:54inevitably
32:54popular support
32:55for the invaders
32:56ebbed away
33:03summer
33:04passed into autumn
33:07the German columns
33:08continued ever onwards
33:10across the unending
33:11unfriendly expanses
33:15progress was maintained
33:17but even so
33:18there were
33:18disquieting auguries
33:22the French
33:23had made Paris
33:24an open city
33:25not wishing
33:25that their beautiful
33:26capital be damaged
33:27the Soviets
33:29had no such inhibitions
33:32in Kiev
33:33they unhesitatingly
33:35sacrificed
33:35entire streets
33:37in order to delay
33:38the German advance
33:47the SS Viking
33:49were amongst the first
33:50German units
33:51to encounter
33:51the new Soviet
33:52T-34 tanks
33:54somehow
33:55the backward Slavs
33:57had produced
33:57a machine
33:58superior
33:58to any
33:59the German industry
34:00could offer
34:04more alarming still
34:05it became clear
34:06that German intelligence
34:07had badly
34:08underestimated
34:09Red Army strength
34:10it was thought
34:12that Stalin
34:12might muster
34:13around 200 divisions
34:15by mid-August
34:16360 had been identified
34:19and they offered
34:20increasingly stern resistance
34:24many Germans found
34:26the mere vastness
34:27of the country
34:28oppressive
34:29the spaces
34:31seemed endless
34:32the horizons
34:34nebulous
34:34we were depressed
34:36by the monotony
34:37of the landscape
34:38and the immensity
34:39of the stretches
34:40of forest
34:41marsh and plain
34:45the villages
34:46looked wretched
34:47and melancholy
34:48with their
34:48straw-thatched
34:49wooden houses
34:51nature was hard
34:52and in her midst
34:54were human beings
34:55just as hard
34:56and insensitive
34:57indifferent to weather
34:59hunger
34:59and thirst
35:01and almost
35:01as indifferent
35:02to life and losses
35:04pestilence
35:05and famine
35:06the Russian
35:07civilian
35:08was tough
35:09and the Russian
35:09soldier
35:10still tougher
35:11he seemed to have
35:13an illimitable capacity
35:14for obedience
35:15and endurance
35:21meanwhile
35:21a great
35:22and cruel work
35:23was in hand
35:25fanning out
35:26behind the fast
35:27advancing German lines
35:28came the terrible
35:30SS
35:30Einsatzgruppen
35:32special purpose units
35:33charged with
35:35the grisly task
35:36of organising
35:36the secret
35:37extermination
35:38of Jews
35:38and other undesirables
35:41Waffen-SS men
35:42could be assigned
35:43to such units
35:44as a disciplinary measure
35:49they are late
35:50or fall asleep
35:51on duty
35:51they are court-martialed
35:53but are told
35:54they can escape punishment
35:56by volunteering
35:57for the special units
35:59when the young men
36:00realise
36:00what they are being
36:01asked to do
36:01and refuse to take part
36:03in mass murder
36:04they are told
36:05the orders are given
36:06them as a form of punishment
36:08either
36:09they can
36:09take that punishment
36:11or they can disobey
36:12and be shot
36:13in any case
36:14their career is over
36:15and done with
36:18by such methods
36:19decent young men
36:20are frequently
36:21turned into criminals
36:28during the only execution
36:30he is definitely
36:31known to have witnessed
36:33Himmler felt
36:34physically ill
36:36but this embarrassment
36:37in no way
36:38blunted his capacity
36:39to organise
36:40large-scale killings
36:42from the safe
36:43remoteness
36:43of committee rooms
36:44or by telephone
36:50by October
36:51it appeared just possible
36:52that the breathtaking
36:53gamble might succeed
36:56army group north
36:57and with them
36:58the SS der Führer
36:59were approaching
37:00Leningrad
37:01in the south
37:02Targenroge
37:03had fallen
37:04after five days
37:05hard fighting
37:06and the life standard
37:07were striking down
37:09for Rostov
37:10and soon
37:11Moscow itself
37:12would be under threat
37:17Hitler triumphantly
37:18declared
37:19the Russian bear
37:20is dead
37:21it merely refuses
37:22to lie down
37:24he ordered
37:25demobilisations
37:26and cutbacks
37:27in munitions production
37:31the German supply lines
37:33were now very long
37:34the more prolonged rains
37:36created intolerable
37:37problems of movement
37:38and despite the appalling
37:40losses they had suffered
37:41the Soviet defenders
37:42grew yet more
37:43more numerous
37:49then
37:50exactly
37:51when it always did
37:52the Russian winter
37:53set in
37:56with the first frost
37:58the tanks were able
37:59to move again
38:00but not for long
38:03remorselessly
38:03the temperature
38:04continued to drop
38:06guns jammed
38:07machinery froze
38:08frostbite took
38:10an agonising toll
38:13in sight of the glittering
38:15Kremlin domes
38:16the advance came
38:17to a dead halt
38:18Moscow did not fall
38:21Leningrad held out
38:26the campaign
38:28should have been over
38:28by Christmas
38:29and Hitler had forbidden
38:31for reasons of morale
38:32the issue of any
38:34winter clothing
38:34to the army
38:35some of the
38:37Waffen SS
38:37were luckier
38:38through Himmler's
38:39prudent foresight
38:40they were supplied
38:41with furs
38:42stripped from the
38:42inhabitants
38:43of the new
38:44ghettos
38:49if the Germans
38:50were desperately
38:51unprepared for the
38:52cold
38:52their opponents
38:54were accustomed
38:54to it
38:55Zhukov
38:56the most brilliant
38:57of all Soviet
38:58generals
38:58launched a well
38:59prepared
39:00counter-offensive
39:01the T-34s
39:03were present
39:03in strength
39:04the German lines
39:06wavered
39:07Hitler
39:08who had angrily
39:09divested himself
39:10of a group
39:10of his most
39:11senior commanders
39:12ordered
39:13that there be
39:14no retreat
39:17throughout the winter
39:18that inflexible
39:20will prevailed
39:22amazingly
39:23and by dint
39:24of stupendous
39:25efforts
39:25the German front
39:26held
39:30outside Moscow
39:31Das Reich
39:32bore the brunt
39:33of the defensive
39:34battles of the
39:35new year period
39:36suffering over
39:374,000 casualties
39:39the SS
39:40der Führer
39:41moved to repel
39:41a Soviet thrust
39:42west west of Moscow
39:43continuing to fight
39:45in temperatures
39:45of 50 degrees
39:47below zero
39:50they were successful
39:51but of the original
39:532,000 men
39:54only 35 survived
39:59Operation Barbarossa
40:00had begun
40:01on the anniversary
40:02of another invasion
40:03and in the minds
40:05of many German soldiers
40:06as the chill
40:07of winter deepened
40:08there rose up
40:09the thin
40:10and mocking specter
40:11of another great army
40:12of half a million men
40:14perished utterly
40:15in a long
40:16long retreat
40:17from Moscow
40:23one novel
40:24was widely read
40:26war and peace
40:27had been written
40:27by a Russian aristocrat
40:29who astonishingly
40:30had given away
40:31all his estates
40:32and died as poor
40:33as any labourer
40:36the novel
40:37told the fearful story
40:38of how Napoleon's
40:40fabled grand army
40:41toiling through
40:42the frozen steps
40:43met everywhere
40:44and only
40:45a desolation
40:46of how
40:47at the end
40:48Napoleon had been
40:50beaten
40:50not by the shining
40:51sabres
40:52of the imperial cavalry
40:53but by the blunt
40:55crude cudgel
40:56of the Russian peasant
41:15the iron fighting qualities
41:17of the Waffen SS
41:18were now beyond any doubt
41:20and in the course
41:22of 1942
41:23the Leibstandert
41:24Das Reich
41:25and Totenkopf
41:27were all sent to France
41:28for rest
41:29and refitting
41:30as armoured divisions
41:31in a newly created
41:33SS Panzer Corps
41:38they left
41:39and returned to
41:40a war
41:41of unexampled ferocity
41:42a war crueler
41:44and more barbarous
41:45than any Europe
41:46had known
41:47since the Middle Ages
41:50in so huge
41:51a clash of ideologies
41:52it could not be otherwise
41:55there were many
41:56besides the SS
41:57who genuinely believed
41:58what Himmler had said
42:00when you
42:01my men
42:02fight over there
42:03in the east
42:04you are carrying on
42:05the same struggle
42:06against the same
42:07subhumanity
42:09the same
42:09inferior races
42:11that at one time
42:12appeared under the name
42:13of the Huns
42:14another time
42:15under the name
42:16of the Tatars
42:17and still another time
42:19as the Mongols
42:20of Genghis Khan
42:22today they appear
42:24as Russians
42:24under the political
42:26banner of Bolshevism
42:30within a fortnight
42:31of the invasion
42:32Viking had carried out
42:33the reprisal killing
42:34of 600 Galician Jews
42:37at Targenrog
42:38when the lifestander
42:40discovered some
42:40mutilated bodies
42:41of captured comrades
42:42Sepp Dietrich
42:44ordered that no prisoners
42:45be taken for four days
42:47and several thousand
42:49Red Army soldiers
42:49died
42:53in any case
42:54for the hordes
42:55of prisoners
42:56that were taken
42:57the chances
42:57of survival
42:58were low
43:00disease
43:01malnutrition
43:02and exposure
43:03took an horrific toll
43:05and behind
43:06the German lines
43:07spreading throughout
43:08a continent
43:09the vast
43:10and hideous
43:10machinery
43:11of Himmler's
43:12final solution
43:12was swinging
43:13into perfect
43:14smooth running
43:15operation
43:21both sides
43:22endeavoured
43:22to live off
43:23the land
43:23both sides
43:24took frequent
43:25and severe reprisals
43:26against any civilians
43:27suspected of abetting
43:29the foe
43:30both sides
43:31were determined
43:32to leave nothing
43:33to the enemy
43:34and as the lines
43:35advanced and receded
43:37the land
43:37was twice
43:38devastated
43:43Zhukov
43:44cleared minefields
43:45by marching
43:46a penal battalion
43:47over them
43:48when the Red
43:49infantryman
43:49attacked
43:50he did so
43:51knowing
43:51that to be
43:52captured
43:52was a crime
43:53and that behind
43:54him lay
43:55the well-equipped
43:55security police
43:56formations
43:57machine guns
43:58ready to deal
43:59with any stragglers
44:05but it was not
44:06fear alone
44:07not propaganda
44:08nor even
44:09the widespread
44:09hope of better
44:10times to come
44:11that drove on
44:12so many
44:13headlong
44:13to oblivion
44:16simple fear
44:17could not
44:17explain
44:18the scornful
44:19defiance
44:19with which
44:20so many
44:20hurled
44:21themselves
44:21against the
44:22German guns
44:24it was not
44:25the words
44:25of Stalin
44:26that inspired
44:27a single
44:27infantryman
44:28to knock out
44:29a tank
44:29at the cost
44:30of certain
44:31self-immolation
44:35the fact
44:36was
44:36that the
44:37Germans
44:37were incapable
44:38of understanding
44:39their foe
44:41Himmler
44:41talked much
44:42claptrap
44:42about blood
44:43and soil
44:45here
44:46his killers
44:46met a people
44:47despised alike
44:48by Tsar
44:49and Commissar
44:50but bound
44:51to their land
44:52by the ties
44:52of generations
44:55in the face
44:56of so huge
44:56so brutal
44:57a violation
44:58they could not
44:59but respond
45:01thus it
45:02was
45:02that a man
45:03would rather
45:04his whole
45:04family starve
45:05than one
45:06German soldier
45:06should eat
45:08the Russian
45:09peasant
45:10had taken
45:11up his
45:11cudgel
45:201943
45:20opened for
45:21Germany
45:22with the
45:22somber
45:22disaster
45:23of Stalingrad
45:24and the
45:25loss
45:25of the
45:256th Army
45:27even more
45:28stridently
45:29Hitler
45:29would issue
45:30only one
45:30order
45:31do not
45:32yield up
45:33one inch
45:33of ground
45:38the ban
45:39on foreign
45:40recruitment
45:40to the
45:41SS legions
45:42was now
45:42considerably
45:43relaxed
45:43the Nordic
45:45element
45:45was less
45:45insisted upon
45:47however
45:48when a new
45:49SS armoured
45:50corps was
45:50formed
45:50its non-Germanic
45:52volunteers
45:52were mainly
45:53from Europe
45:53some had
45:55belonged to
45:55neo-Nazi
45:56parties
45:56many more
45:57were confirmed
45:58anti-communists
45:59the SS
46:01Hitler
46:01Jugend
46:02was in
46:02large part
46:03recruited from
46:04former members
46:05of the
46:05Hitler
46:05youth movement
46:06it soon
46:07acquired a
46:08reputation
46:08for fanaticism
46:12despite their
46:13continuing high
46:14casualties
46:14and the lower
46:15standard of the
46:16new soldiers
46:16coming into the
46:17ranks
46:17the original
46:19Waffen
46:19SS formations
46:20retained their
46:21fighting effectiveness
46:22to a remarkable
46:23degree
46:24the later
46:26SS divisions
46:26were of
46:27generally
46:27poorer quality
46:28far removed
46:29from Himmler's
46:30earlier ideal
46:31of an elite
46:32force
46:34in the
46:35July of
46:361943
46:36the German
46:37forces were
46:38compelled to
46:39an awesome
46:39trial of
46:40strength
46:40in the
46:41Korsk
46:41salient
46:43Hitler
46:44hoped for
46:44a victory
46:45that would
46:45shine like
46:46a beacon
46:46to the
46:47world
46:47by now
46:48powerful
46:49new German
46:50tanks
46:50were available
46:51but there
46:52had been
46:52insufficient
46:53testing of
46:54the Panthers
46:54and Ferdinands
46:55many of which
46:56broke down
46:57before even
46:57reaching the
46:58field
46:59the Soviets
47:00too had
47:01new tanks
47:02after intense
47:03fighting
47:04the Germans
47:05failed to
47:05close the
47:06salient
47:06Zhukov
47:08brought
47:08overwhelming
47:09force to
47:09bear
47:10leaving the
47:10Germans
47:11no option
47:11but retreat
47:14emphatically
47:15the Germans
47:15were no longer
47:16invaders
47:17though still
47:18far outside
47:19their frontiers
47:20they were
47:20defending
47:21their homeland
47:26in the
47:26long collapse
47:27the German
47:28lines never
47:29broke
47:29and for that
47:30much of the
47:31merit is
47:31borne by the
47:32principal
47:33Waffen-SS
47:33divisions
47:34whose courage
47:35skill and
47:36resolution
47:37survived
47:38unaffected
47:38through
47:39unremitting
47:39months of
47:40battle
47:40and repeated
47:41decimations
47:42of their
47:42ranks
47:49amongst the
47:50Waffen-SS
47:51there were
47:52many who
47:52still clung
47:53blindly to
47:54their
47:54unquestioning
47:55confidence in
47:56Adolf Hitler
47:56and ultimate
47:57victory
47:58they were
47:59driven on
48:00to by a
48:01sincere but
48:01hideously
48:02deluded
48:03belief that
48:04they were
48:04defending
48:05western
48:05civilization
48:06against an
48:07evil and
48:08unregenerate
48:11foe
48:12Himmler's
48:13personal empire
48:14burgeoned
48:14he acquired
48:15supreme control
48:16of all of
48:17Germany's
48:18various police
48:18forces
48:19with Goering
48:20out of favor
48:21he was
48:22recognized as
48:22first in
48:23line of
48:23succession
48:24to Hitler
48:29several
48:29Waffen-SS
48:30divisions
48:31were sent
48:31to France
48:32after the
48:32western
48:33allies
48:33landed in
48:34Normandy
48:34in June
48:351944
48:37thus
48:37Reich's
48:38progress
48:38across
48:38France
48:39was marked
48:40by a
48:40series of
48:41reprisals
48:41against
48:42civilians
48:42and executions
48:43of prisoners
48:45the SS
48:46divisions
48:47helped to
48:48thwart a
48:48British
48:48attempt to
48:49break out
48:49of Caen
48:50but were
48:51soon on
48:51their way
48:52back east
48:59the former
49:00sergeant
49:01major
49:01finally rose
49:02to be
49:02an army
49:03group
49:03commander
49:04but his
49:05troops
49:05were in
49:06large
49:06measure
49:06drawn
49:07from
49:07the
49:07under
49:08aged
49:08the
49:08elderly
49:09the
49:09sick
49:10and
49:10the
49:10disabled
49:13Himmler
49:14took
49:14sharp
49:14steps
49:15to
49:15counter
49:15the
49:16mood
49:16of
49:16defeatism
49:17now
49:17sweeping
49:17Germany
49:19the
49:19German
49:19people
49:20has shown
49:20some
49:21signs
49:21of
49:21weakness
49:22and
49:22we've
49:23had
49:23to
49:23shoot
49:23a
49:23certain
49:24number
49:24today
49:25we punish
49:26a little
49:26more
49:27we've had
49:28to shoot
49:28a lot
49:29of people
49:33Hitler
49:34made one
49:34last dabble
49:35in grand
49:35strategy
49:37the
49:38the
49:38Arden
49:38offensive
49:39in
49:39December
49:39was a
49:40foredoomed
49:40attempt
49:41to
49:41regain
49:41some
49:42military
49:42initiative
49:43an
49:44armoured
49:44battle
49:44group
49:45under
49:45the
49:45SS
49:45commander
49:46Joachim
49:46Piper
49:47made
49:48a
49:48remarkable
49:48foray
49:49before
49:49running
49:50out
49:50of
49:50fuel
49:53the
49:54SS
49:54men
49:55had
49:55been
49:55enjoined
49:56to
49:56remember
49:56the
49:57innumerable
49:57German
49:58victims
49:58of the
49:59bombing
49:59terror
49:59and
50:00enjoined
50:01to
50:01fight
50:01in
50:02the
50:02old
50:02SS
50:03fashion
50:05there
50:06were
50:06more
50:06killings
50:07of the
50:07captured
50:07following
50:09a
50:09massacre
50:09at
50:10Malmody
50:10US
50:11army
50:11units
50:12were
50:12ordered
50:12to
50:12take
50:13no
50:13SS
50:13prisoners
50:36in
50:37the
50:37nightmarish
50:37last
50:38months
50:38of
50:38the
50:39fast
50:39crumbling
50:39empire
50:40the
50:40increasing
50:41deranged
50:42Nazi
50:42leader
50:42continued
50:43to
50:44demand
50:44impossible
50:45and
50:45wasteful
50:46sacrifices
50:46from
50:47his
50:47remaining
50:47forces
50:48a
50:49near
50:49suicidal
50:50life
50:50standard
50:51attack
50:51in
50:51Hungary
50:52carried
50:53out
50:53at
50:53Hitler's
50:53insistence
50:54despite
50:55pouring
50:55rain
50:55inevitably
50:56failed
50:59angrily
50:59accusing
51:00his
51:00most
51:01unswervingly
51:02devoted
51:02fighting
51:03band
51:03of
51:04cowardice
51:04and
51:04treachery
51:05Hitler
51:06ordered
51:06them
51:06to
51:07remove
51:07their
51:07regimental
51:08armbands
51:10the
51:11men
51:11collected
51:11their
51:12decorations
51:12in a
51:12chamber
51:13pot
51:13together
51:14with
51:14the
51:14limb
51:14of
51:15a
51:15dead
51:15comrade
51:16and
51:16sent
51:16it
51:16to
51:17Hitler
51:23if
51:23the
51:23territories
51:24of
51:24the
51:25empire
51:25were
51:25shrinking
51:25Himmler's
51:27power
51:27remained
51:27absolute
51:29fanatical
51:30SS
51:30supporters
51:31rode the
51:31streets
51:32carrying out
51:32on Himmler's
51:33orders
51:34summary
51:34executions
51:35of
51:36defeatists
51:36and
51:37deserters
51:41himmler's
51:42had
51:42of course
51:42realized
51:43that the
51:43Nazi
51:44state
51:44was
51:44finished
51:45and
51:45that
51:45Hitler
51:46would
51:46not
51:46last
51:46the
51:47high
51:48priest
51:48had
51:48lost
51:48his
51:49idol
51:50for
51:51the
51:51first
51:51time
51:51in
51:51his
51:52life
51:52he
51:52was
51:53forced
51:53to
51:53think
51:53seriously
51:54and
51:55made
51:55tentative
51:55approaches
51:56to
51:56the
51:56allies
51:57his
51:58treachery
51:58was
51:58discovered
51:59but
52:00the
52:00furious
52:00Hitler
52:01cut
52:01off
52:01in
52:01Berlin
52:02lacked
52:02power
52:03to
52:03exact
52:03any
52:04vengeance
52:21almost
52:22the
52:23last
52:23organized
52:23resistance
52:24outside
52:25the
52:25imperial
52:25capital
52:26was
52:26mounted
52:27by
52:27Waffen
52:27SS
52:28under
52:28Steiner
52:30it
52:31was
52:31impossible
52:32that
52:32they
52:32could
52:32hold
52:32and
52:33Hitler's
52:34great
52:34adventure
52:34into
52:35the
52:35Soviet
52:35Union
52:36ended
52:36at
52:37last
52:37in
52:37a
52:37bunker
52:38in
52:38the
52:38Tiergarten
52:49after
52:50Hitler's
52:50death
52:50Himmler
52:51appears
52:52to have
52:52believed
52:52he could
52:53continue
52:53to hold
52:54some
52:54sort
52:54of
52:55position
52:55in
52:55a
52:55new
52:56German
52:56state
52:56it
52:58was
52:58the
52:58last
52:58of
52:58his
52:59many
52:59fantasies
53:00disabused
53:01he attempted
53:02to escape
53:02in disguise
53:03but was
53:04captured
53:04a bitter
53:05SS officer
53:06described
53:07Himmler's
53:07end in
53:08his own
53:08suicide
53:09note
53:10and when
53:11he was
53:11caught
53:11he swallowed
53:12cyanide
53:13instead of
53:14accepting
53:14responsibility
53:15before the
53:16victor's
53:16court
53:17and saving
53:18from the
53:18gallows
53:18a hundred
53:19poor devils
53:20who had done
53:20nothing but
53:21carry out
53:28their duty
53:30whatever
53:31their fault
53:32Steiner
53:32and Dietrich
53:33did not
53:34betray
53:34their men
53:35they led
53:36the remnants
53:37of their
53:37units
53:37safely
53:38behind
53:39allied
53:39lines
53:39and
53:40surrendered
53:50to the
53:51in their
53:52brief
53:52but
53:53extraordinary
53:53existence
53:54the
53:55Waffen
53:55SS
53:55won a
53:56unique
53:57reputation
53:57for daring
53:58elan
53:59and unfailing
54:00professionalism
54:01in combat
54:01had that
54:03marvellous
54:04courage
54:04that
54:04unflinching
54:05endurance
54:06the blood
54:07so freely
54:07shed
54:08been devoted
54:09to a cause
54:09in any way
54:10honourable
54:11the Waffen
54:12SS
54:12would have
54:13assured
54:13themselves
54:14of fame
54:14eternal
54:16but it
54:18was not
54:18they served
54:20and were
54:20inextricably
54:21interlinked
54:22with a
54:22system
54:23unutterably
54:24evil in
54:25conception
54:27nurtured
54:28by lies
54:29upheld
54:29by corruption
54:30impelled
54:31by avarice
54:32ambition
54:33and naked
54:34lust for
54:35power
54:35and thus
54:37although the
54:37ranks of the
54:38Waffen SS
54:39included many
54:40who were
54:40blameless
54:41its arms
54:42will be
54:43forever
54:43stained
54:44with the
54:45darkest
54:45hues
54:46of infamy
54:49war
54:51to
54:51the
54:52garden
54:52or
54:53the
54:54water
54:57was
54:58or
54:59or
55:09the
55:11water
55:26To be continued...
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