Hiag

...

soldiers convicted as war criminals be released;

that the "defamation" of the German soldier, including those of the Waffen-SS, cease; and

that "measures to transform both domestic and foreign public opinion" be taken with regard to the German military.[3]

Adenauer accepted these propositions and in turn advised the representatives of the three Western powers that German armed forces would not be possible as long as German soldiers remained in custody. To accommodate the West German government, the Allies commuted a number of war crimes sentences. Public declaration from Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower followed in January 1951, which read in part:[4][5][6]

I have come to know that there is a real difference between the regular German soldier and officer and Hitler and his criminal group. For my part, I do not believe that the German soldier as such has lost his honor. The fact that certain individuals committed in war dishonorable and despicable acts reflects on the individuals concerned and not on the great majority of German soldiers and officers.

In the same year (1951), some former career officers of the Wehrmacht were granted war pensions under the Basic Law. Unlike the Wehrmacht, the SS had been deemed a criminal organisation at the Nuremberg trials and could thus act as an "alibi of a nation" (as Gerald Reitlinger’s 1956 book of that title suggested). The SS was the entity onto which all crimes of the Nazi regime were conveniently shifted. Consequently, Waffen-SS career personnel were not covered under the 1951 law.[7]

In 1949, the political climate was changing and the ban on forming veterans’ associations had been lifted. Encouraged by the shifting tone of the World War II discourse and the courting of the Wehrmacht veterans by the West German government and political parties, former Waffen-SS members came forward to campaign for their rights.[8]

Formation[edit]

HIAG began in late 1950 as a loose association of local so-called support groups. The majority of participants were officers, most often of junior grades. In the summer of 1951, HIAG was formally established by Otto Kumm, a former SS-Brigadeführer. By October 1951, HIAG consisted of 376 local branches.[9][10]

Leadership[edit]

Photo of the 1941 SS tour of the Mauthausen concentration camp led by Heinrich Himmler; Otto Kumm (shown in front row, left), Wilhelm Bittrich and Paul Hausser took part in the tour

The 1941 SS tour of the Mauthausen concentration camp headed by Heinrich Himmler (centre). Taking part were Otto Kumm (front row, left), Wilhelm Bittrich, and Paul Hausser, who became key figures in HIAG after the war.

In December 1951, former high-ranking Waffen-SS general Paul Hausser became HIAG’s first spokesperson.[11] Two well-known former Waffen-SS commanders, Felix Steiner and Herbert Gille, became early leading figures.[12] Sepp Dietrich[13] and Kurt Meyer[14] became active members upon their release from prison, in 1955 and 1954 respectively; Meyer became HIAG’s most effective spokesman.[12] After Meyer’s death in 1961, Erich Eberhardt, formerly of SS Division Totenkopf, assumed that role.[15] As of 1977, Wilhelm Bittrich served as the chairman;[16] as of 1976 Hubert Meyer acted as the federal spokesperson.[17]

Ostensibly, HIAG existed to provide aid to veterans, but it included many members who were convicted war criminals.[18] These included Bittrich, Dietrich, Meyer and Gustav Lombard. Kumm managed to avoid extradition to Yugoslavia to stand trial for war crimes by fleeing over the wall of the Dachau internment camp.[19]

Organisational principles[edit]