How effective were German SS units compared to non-SS Heer units?
score:12
I am aware that these units often had priority for reinforcements and supplies, but how effective were they in combat compared to non-SS formations?
It depends on which formations are being compared. The best Waffen-SS units (e.g. Das Reich, LSSAH, Wiking) were every bit as good as the best Heer units (Grossdeutschland, Lehr, Deutsches Afrika Korps). The worst ran away as well as the worst Heer units (e.g. SS Gebirgsdivision Nord at Salla in 1941). On the average the Waffen-SS were probably more effective, but I only say that because taken in aggregate the Waffen-SS was on average more heavily motorized than the largely horse-drawn Heer. Earlier in the war the fact that Waffen-SS members were volunteers rather than conscripts would have had a significant impact.
Did they have better/more training for example?
They had different training. I don't have my reference book at hand, but my recollection is that the training centre in Bad Tolz focused on combat skills rather than Prussian-style robotic discipline. For example, the Waffen-SS pioneered live-fire exercises as a standard training method.
Was it cost-effective for Germany to have so many SS units later in the war?
When you look at the overlaps in the bureaucracy and military forces of Nazi Germany it becomes clear that cost-effectiveness was not a real concern, political factors took pride of place. The expansion of the Waffen-SS to the size it achieved is better explained in terms of (a) Hitler wanting a Praetorian Guard to protect the regime from a military coup d'etat, and (b) Himmler wanting to be the power behind the throne.
Upvote:0
I think the Third Reich was the birthplace of the "political soldier". A devoted political soldier tends to fight much harder which increases their losses, but also, inflicts greater losses on their enemy. The fact that the Waffen SS was better equipped, had logistical priority over Heer Units, and were motivated to a much higher level of morale, caused them to be a greatly dreaded foe.
Upvote:2
Original SS (like Leibstandarte) units were better than common Heer divisions, because they had not only better weapons but also because they had more (volunteer) men. These units were quite effective in combat because they were more risk-takers, but the cost was that they had more losses as well.
I'd say that compared to elite units of German Army, like 1st FallschirmjΓ€ger or GroΓdeutschland, elite SS units were similar in prestige and capabilities.
As Doug B says, later increase of SS units at the end of war was due to political reasons, not to improve effectiveness. Besides, all volunteers of foreign countries were sent to SS units (except for Spanish volunteers).
Upvote:4
Heer had an excellent tradition of troop replenishment (training reinforcements before throwing them into battle). However, as the war progressed, Heer started to founder under the mounting pressure of numeric and material superiority of the Red Army (also, the losses among battle veterans mounted and the troops became weaker).
Hitler, faced with a cognitive dissonance (his Ubermenschen are being defeated by Untermenschen), chose to blame the Heer (from privates to Generals) and decided to dramatically expand Waffen SS (which were similar to Guard troops in other countries).
Heer resented this because it starved it of men and materiel and reduced its prestige. Thus the German Generals tend to claim in their memoirs that Waffen SS were poorly trained (probably true), better equipped (probably true), less battle-effective (hard to verify), and more prone to war crimes (not necessarily true - not because Waffen SS was innocent, but because Heer was just as guilty).
Incidentally, this was not the only case of German land forces fragmentation, the other being Luftwaffe Field Divisions.
No matter what Germany would have done after 1942 could have changed the final outcome. They could have been more efficient, but the end result would have been the same.
More post
- π Is eenie meenie miney mo about lynching?
- π What are some examples of US states warring with one another?
- π How much gunpowder could the average Napoleonic ship of the line carry?
- π Was the concept of religious freedom in the early United States applied to native American faiths?
- π What is the nature of the Hyksos territory in Transjordan and northern Arabia depicted on these maps?
- π Why does the US have many top-level web domains?
- π Why did the Nazis collaborate with the UstaΕ‘e?
- π Why did Allied invasion of France occur only in 1944 and not earlier?
- π Inflation rates in Spain and Portugal during the 16th century
- π Was there hostile contact between deployed US forces and Sandinista forces during Operation Golden Pheasant?
- π Why did Germany not join the United Nations until 1973?
- π When people use spears to fight cavalry do infantry stab the horse or the rider?
- π Sources of iron in the middle east
- π Was the house of representatives really as rowdy a place as it is portrayed in the 2012 film Lincoln?
- π Why Americans like to enroll in military services despite huge risks involved?
- π Why did Eisenhower iconize Robert E. Lee?
- π How did Martin Luther King Jr. Day become a day of service?
- π When was the Passover Seder ritual formalized?
- π Did besiegers ever come up through the latrine?
- π Has Catholic excommunication ever caused the dethronement of any king?
- π What is the structure in front of the entrance to Menkaure's pyramid?
- π How did Hedy Lamarr acquire scientific education?
- π What does "APT" mean in box 34 of the WD AGO 53-55?
- π How Bell turn backed electricity fluctuations to sound?
- π Why America was not discovered from the left land at Bering strait?
- π What was the primary method the Jews used to make a fire at the time of Jesus?
- π Were bookshops 'common' in the late 19th century, and how did they differ from modern ones?
- π What was the Gothic language name for Ravenna?
- π Possible history behind photograph related to 1962 Sino-Indian War
- π Why was whale oil used instead of petroleum?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- π How effective were German SS units compared to non-SS Heer units?
- π How effective were the forces of the French Provisional Government compared to the other allies?
- π How effective were siege guns and gun boats compared to field artillery in the 19th century?
- π Were there German bomb disposal units in WW2?
- π How effective were longbow archers against plate-armored infantry?
- π How effective were peace walls in Northern Ireland at reducing violence?
- π How close were the living standards of India compared to England during the medieval period?
- π How effective were the Mongol siege equipment?
- π How big were the two German pockets at the end of the battle of Stalingrad?
- π How were German soldiers chosen to be flown out of Stalingrad?
- π How much faster/better were European printing presses compared to Chinese block printing?
- π How many non-partisan (independent) legislature members were in the USA compared to the USSR?
- π How effective were anti-aircraft defences mounted on tanks such as Panther/Tiger etc?
- π Were non German soldiers treated differently than German soldiers in the German army during the Great War?
- π How effective were archers/ slingers / skirmishers in Greek, Roman and Medieval Period?
- π How much smaller were medieval farm animals in England than today?
- π How were tanks scrapped after World War Two?
- π How did German unification affect existing sentences for criminal convicts?
- π How were smallpox vaccines enforced in the US?
- π Were kamikaze pilots an effective strategy for Japan?
- π In the "Christmas truce" of 1914 were there any football (soccer) matches between British and German troops?
- π How were concentration and extermination camp guards recruited?
- π Why did the German army execute so few soldiers in World War I compared to most other armies?
- π How severe were the casualties in ancient/medieval battles?
- π How literate were common people in Medieval Europe?
- π How were drawbridges and portcullises used tactically?
- π How common were marital duels in medieval Europe?
- π How kind were the Muslim occupations of North Africa?
- π How were medieval castles built in swamps or marshes without draining them?
- π How were horses disembarked from sail ships?
