- published: 18 Jan 2015
- views: 156155
The Waffen-SS (German pronunciation: [ˈvafən.ɛs.ɛs], Armed SS) was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Nazi Party's Schutzstaffel ("Protective Squadron").
The Waffen-SS grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions during World War II, and served alongside the Heer (regular army) but was never formally part of it.Adolf Hitler resisted integrating the Waffen-SS into the army, as it was to remain the armed wing of the Party and to become an elite police force once the war was won. Prior to the war it was under the control of the SS Führungshauptamt (SS operational command office) beneath Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler. Upon mobilization its tactical control was given to the High Command of the Armed Forces (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht).
Initially membership was open to "Aryans" only in accordance with the racial policies of the Nazi state, but the rules were partially relaxed in 1940, although Jews and Poles remained banned; and Hitler authorized the formation of units composed largely or solely of foreign volunteers and conscripts. By the end of the war, ethnic non-Germans made up approximately 60 percent of the Waffen-SS.
You're gonna hate me when I tell you everything
You're gonna question whether you really know me at all
You will revisit every smile, and where it fit into the day
I know this is how it will play
And I try, oh I try to think of all the things
That I could do to let you know that I love
Even so
I was not looking to do you wrong
Was not looking for a change of scenery
Don't remember where, or when, or how I did
But I'm hoping you'll forgive me
And I try, oh I try to think of all the things
That I could do to let you know that I love you
Do you remember how we'd run in the summertime
Do you remember how we'd run in the summertime
Oh I try, I try so very hard
And I cry, I cry so very much
For I love you like you'll never let yourself feel again
I love you like a brother and a friend
I love you with my whole heart until it bends
I love you like a lover until the very end
But I'll always think of all the things you did
To let me know that you love me
But you're leaving