SS and police leader

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The title of SS and police leader (SS- und Polizeiführer) was used to designate a senior Nazi Party official who commanded large units of the SS, Gestapo and the German uniformed police (Ordnungspolizei), prior to and during World War II.

Three levels of subordination were established for bearers of this title:

  • SS and Police Leader (SS- und Polizeiführer), SSPF
  • Higher SS and Police Leader (Höherer SS- und Polizeiführer, HSSPF, HSS-PF, HSSuPF)
  • Supreme SS and Police Leader (Höchster SS- und Polizeiführer, HöSSPF)

History[]

The first Higher SS and Police Leaders were appointed in 1937[1] from the existing SS-Oberabschnitt Führer (leaders of the main districts). The purpose of the Higher SS and Police Leader was to be a direct command authority for every SS and police unit in a given geographical region with such authority answering only to Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler and Adolf Hitler. They were to act as the highest liaison under Himmler and "unifier" for command of the SS and police in a region.[1]

Inside the Reich, the man referred to as HSSPF was usually also SS-Oberabschnitt Führer for that region. In the occupied territories, there was no Oberabschnitt, so the HSSPF existed on their own. However, they had something the Reich HSSPFs did not – several SS- und Polizeiführer (SSPF) reporting to them.[2] There were two Höchster SS- und Polizeiführer (Supreme SS and Police Leader) posts; these were Italien (1943–1945) and Ukraine (1943–1944), both of which had various HSSPF and SSPF reporting to them.[3]

The SS and police leaders directly commanded a headquarters staff with representatives from almost every branch of the SS and the uniformed police. This typically included the Ordnungspolizei (Orpo; regular police), Gestapo (secret police), Totenkopfverbände (SS-TV; Nazi concentration camps), SD (intelligence service), and certain units of the Waffen-SS (combat units). Most of these SS and Police Leaders normally held the rank of SS-Gruppenführer or above and answered directly to Himmler in all matters pertaining to the SS within their area of responsibility. Their role was to be part of the SS control mechanism within the state policing the German population and overseeing the activities of the SS men within each respective district.[4] The men in these positions could bypass the main chain of command of the administrative offices in their district for the SS, SD, SiPo, SS-TV and Orpo under the "guise of an emergency situation" thereby gaining direct operational control of these groups.[5]

Himmler authorized SS and Police Bases (SS- und Polizeistützpunkte) to be established in occupied Poland and occupied areas of the Soviet Union. They were to be "armed industrialized agricultural complexes". They would also maintain order in the areas they were established. They did not go beyond the planning stage.[6]

In 1944 and 1945, many HSSPF were promoted to general's rank in the Waffen-SS by Himmler. This was apparently an attempt to provide potential protection under the Hague Convention rules of warfare.[7]

Crimes against humanity[]

decrypted wireless telegram from "HSSPF Russland Mitte" (middle Russia) in 1942, reporting to Himmler the 'liquidation' of a village in Belarus (from NSA report[8])
Another decrypt, 1941, HSSPF Russland Sud (south Russia), reporting to Himmler the 'liquidation' of Jewish people (from NSA report[9])

The SS and Police Leaders served as commanding SS generals for any Einsatzgruppen (death squads) operating in their area. This entailed ordering the deaths of tens of thousands of persons and, following the end of World War II, most SS and Police Leaders who had served in Poland and the Soviet Union were charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.[citation needed]

The SS and Police Leaders were the overseeing authority of the Jewish ghettos in Poland and, as such, directly coordinated deportations to Nazi extermination camps with the administrative help of the RSHA. They had direct command over Order Police battalions and SD regiments that were assigned to guard the ghettos.[citation needed]

List of SS and police leaders[]

Main article: List of SS and police commands

Note – Men were often transferred and promoted as the war went on. The HSSPF areas themselves might change, be absorbed, cease to exist, etc. This list is by no means exhaustive.[Note 1]

HöSSPF

HSSPF

SSPF

See also[]

Notes[]

  1. ^ Yerger lists about 37 separate HSSPF posts, most of which had several different commanders over the lifetime of the post. He also lists over 50 SSPF posts, many of which had several commanders.

References[]

Citations[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Yerger, p. 22.
  2. ^ Yerger, pp. 22, 52.
  3. ^ Yerger, pp. 22–25.
  4. ^ Koehl 2004, pp. 144, 148, 169, 176–177.
  5. ^ McNab 2009, p. 165.
  6. ^ Ingrao, Charles W.; Szabo, Franz A. J. (2008). The Germans and the East. Purdue University Press, p. 288. [1]
  7. ^ "Nuremberg Trial Proceedings Volume 20 day 195". Avalon Project, Yale Law School. Retrieved 2009-01-03.
  8. ^ Robert J. Hanyok, CENTER FOR CRYPTOLOGIC HISTORY NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY (2005). "Eavesdropping on Hell: Historical Guide to Western Communications Intelligence and the Holocaust, 1939-1945" (PDF) (Second ed.). National Security Agency, United States Government. Retrieved 2011-03-20. UNITED STATES CRYPTOLOGIC HISTORY, Series IV, Volume 9 The message is on page 52 "Decrypt of Police message [National Archives and Records Administration] (NARA), RG 457, HCC, Box 1386)"
  9. ^ Hanyok, NSA, eavesdropping.pdf, Page 61, "German Police Decrypts, ZIP/G.P.D.353/14.9.41. Decrypt No.1 is from the Senior Commander of the SS and Police in Southern Russia to Heinrich Himmler, the Chiefs of the Order and Secret Police and the Himmler’s staff. (Source: [National Archives and Records Administration] (NARA), RG 457, Box 1386)"

Bibliography[]

  • Koehl, Robert (2004). The SS: A History 1919–45. Stroud: Tempus. ISBN 978-0-75242-559-7.
  • McNab, Chris (2009). The SS: 1923–1945. London: Amber Books. ISBN 978-1-906626-49-5.
  • Yerger, Mark C. (1997). Allgemeine-SS: The Commands, Units and Leaders of the General SS. Schiffer Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-0145-4.

Further reading[]

  • Höhne, Heinz (2001) [1969]. The Order of the Death's Head: The Story of Hitler’s SS. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14139-012-3.
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