Initially, in keeping with the racial policy of Nazi Germany, membership was open only to people of Germanic origin (so-called " Aryan ancestry"). With the start of World War II, tactical control was exercised by the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW, "High Command of the Armed Forces"), with some units being subordinated to the Kommandostab Reichsführer-SS (Command Staff Reichsführer-SS) directly under Himmler's control. Originally, it was under the control of the SS Führungshauptamt (SS operational command office) beneath Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS. The Waffen-SS grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions during World War II, and served alongside the German Army ( Heer), Ordnungspolizei (Order Police), and other security units. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with volunteers and conscripts from both occupied and unoccupied lands. The Waffen-SS ( German: ) (Armed SS) was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary Schutzstaffel (SS) organisation.
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