ϟϟ-Junkerschulen: Waffen-SS Officer Candidate Schools

The Runes of the Schutzstaffel represented all branches of the SS

Main Gate at SS-Junkerschule Bad Tölz

The SS-VT addressed the creation of an organic officer corps by creating two officer candidate schools. SS-Brigadeführer Paul Hausser's school system was designed to provide necessary education to men who demonstrated potential. The first facilities were established at Bad Tölz in 1934 and at Braunschweig in 1935. By 1936, the SS-VT was highly selective. For recruits, it only accepted young men who were healthy, in good physical shape, and who had clean police records. Additionally, recruits had to show proof of pure Germanic ancestry back to 1800, while those who became officers had to further demonstrate this to 1750. Officers and men exercised and trained together, breaking down social barriers and creating comrades, with each man prepared to take the place of his superior, should the latter become a casualty. Party membership was not required for joining the SS-VT. Additional SS leadership schools were founded at Klagenfurt and Posen-Treskau in 1943, and in Prague 1944. Credit: Marc Rikmenspoel. Top clip: according to German librarian and historian Ulrich Hunger the Siegrune was designed in 1929 by graphic designer Walter Heck. Heck's simple but striking device consisted of two sig runes drawn side by side like lightning bolts, and was soon adopted by all branches of the SS, both by the Allgemeine-SS and the Waffen-SS. Heck himself was promoted to SS-Obersturmführer on November 9 1933. This iconic symbol is both ubiquitous and widely banned today. Footage from Die Deutsche Wochenschau. Bottom image: the main gate at SS first leadership school in Bavarian Bad Tölz in 1942. The Waffen-SS officer candidate school Tölz also had a building dedicated to boxing, gymnastics, indoor ball games, a heated swimming pool and a sauna. c. Bundesarchiv.