ABSTRACT
Shortly after Hitler’s Machtergreifung on 30 January 1933, Reichsfuhrer SS Heinrich Himmler asked a number of retired senior military officers, well established landowners, leading professionals and industrialists to attend a special meeting in Munich. This chapter shows that while the retired officers did not distinguish themselves from the rest of the obere Mittelstand in their eagerness to join the SS, it was their joining pattern that set them apart from the other professional groups. The Reichsfuhrer’s invitation was eagerly taken up by the traditional elite groups. The offer to wear the smartly tailored black uniform with the silver runes was difficult for many to resist. The attitude of the active Reichswehr officer corps towards National Socialism has been investigated in a number of studies. The involvement of the Reichswehr leadership in the plot to eliminate Rohm has been well documented.
