Uniquely 9th SS, Conscripts?

**Sepp Lainer** · 08-27-2018, 08:02 AM

Uniquely 9th SS, Dismayed conscripts who chose to stay and fight valiantly for Hohenstaufen
By: Sepp

Unlike many prior elite SS divisions, the 9th SS was composed initially of a very high percentage of conscripts. Conscripts who were notably dismayed or not as highly motivated as a typical SS volunteer recruit. This led to an interesting concept in training.
SS Obergruppenfuhrer Hans Jüttner, head of the SS-Führungshauptamt, was quoted as saying conscripts were “to be kept in training for a month or so and then offered the choice of volunteering or being released from the SS service”. The choice was made by an "overwhelming majority" to stay.

There were concrete reasons for this, and something somewhat unique to the 9th SS. Hohenstaufen was formed by gathering some of the most experienced, decorated, and competent leaders from across the Waffen SS, from squad level NCOs to SS Brigadeführer Stadler at divisional command, there is room for little doubt as to how so many recruits chose to essentially "volunteer" despite their own conscription. While the German military as a whole was notably different and more cohesive at the small unit level than western rivals, many Waffen SS units took this as far as possible in the earliest training stages.

The conscripts were quickly enamored by the idea that they were to be part of an elite fighting force. The leadership and training cadres were decorated veterans capable of training men to survive the fight and win battles. The trainers and leaders of the new division deliberately facilitated close relationships from Officers and NCOs down to the greenest recruits. It was not just talk or bravado when officers and NCOs spoke of leading from the front, and not asking their men to do anything they wouldn't do themselves, something proven ad nauseam later.

The aura of being in an elite unit would suffice for many, and the personal relationships and trust in the NCOs and Officers were more than enough to convince much of the rest. The 9th SS bred a very high esprit de corps from it's inception all the way to it's defeat under overwelming odds, including fighting in intense unimaginable front line combat for two straight months before Market Garden. *It's combat performance, though in defeat, was a considerable feat considering it could have been a "paper tiger" full of unmotivated conscripts without the leadership from small unit level on up.

**Josef Weiss** · 09-01-2018, 06:54 PM

Good read, thanks for sharing Sepp. As a side note, I am glad you mentioned the German military, as a whole, was notably different and more cohesive at the small unit level compared to its western rivals. This was mainly due to how the Germans valued Soldierly sociology along with how they handled the refitting, reorganization and replacement of front line units/soldiers compared to how the Americans, at the time, handled it. I plan on making my own very brief post on this topic as I think most will find it particularly interesting. And obviously as you stated, cohesion within the small unit level of the W-SS was especially tight, as part of the ethos of the Waffen-SS was to consciously promote a class-less structure and remove some of the old world practices and honorifics of the Heer.