With the introduction of conscription in 1935, Hitler demanded that his loyal SS receive a military designation and training.  SS-Leibstandarte retained its autonomy with the two additional Standarten (Deutschland and Germania) coming together for training under the overall command of Paul Hausser, with the title SS-Verfügungstruppe.  The first true military test of the SS-VT occurred in 1938 with the invasion of Austria, an experience that lead to military testing of the fledgling SS and its eventual reorganization as the Waffen-SS.

The original 5040 men in the division were bolstered by the addition of Der Führer regiment in later 1938, itself a direct result of the excellent performance of the existing SS units in combat.  Though Der Führer was held in reserve in Germany during the 1939 Polish campaign, the other two regiments in the SS-VT assisted greatly with the swift and fierce overthrow of the country.

Following the successful Polish campaign the SS-VT was reformed into the SS-Verfügungsdivision of the Waffen-SS, with subsequent inclusion of the three SS-Standarte with artillery, signals, and pioneer troops.  Der Führer was ordered out with the Liebstandarte, attached to the 28th Army, to set up offenses along the Dutch border, while the other 2nd SS Regimentswere united with the second wave of the 28th Army as part of the attack against Holland.  French forces countered this German offensive, but were pushed back in disarray by the forces of the SS.  The SS-Verfügungsdivision later joined up with Totenkopf and Leibstandarte after the defeat of the Belgians, prepared to invade the French border when word was given.

MAKING THE WESTWARD OFFENSE

Der Führer was ordered, on 10 May 1940, to cross the Belgian border near Arnhem.  Along with the 9th SS Hohenstaufen, the 2nd SS fought against mild French opposition sent Northward.  and pushed them back in disarray.  Gruppenführer Hausser lead his men swiftly through Zeeland to the coast, leaving a mass of French and Belgian defeat in their wake.

As patrols discovered French forces had been pulling back from their borders, the 1st and 2nd SS troops pushed into the country, at one point ignoring an order from Hitler to halt.  When that order was rescinded in late May, Der Führer attacked through deep woodlands and suffered heavy casualties as a result.  Having little in the way of heavy armament, the 2nd SS forces were saved only with the advance of the Totenkopf’s anti-tank company.

For the June 1940 invasion of France, the SS-Verfügungsdivision joined up with the Leibstandarte in Panzergruppe Kleist to prepare an advance on Paris.  Encountering resistance around the River Aire, the German forces were redirected Eastward where national forces were already making headway, but the SS-Verfügungsdivision was eventually pulled back over the Sohne. The Division was later directed to Dijon, where they were attacked by French troops intending to encircle their number, but quickly surmounted the opposing forces taking numerous prisoners. By the time a cease-fire was called in June 22, the Division was already occupying Bordeaux.  For this success in battle, Hitler bestowed the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross to Der Führer commander SS-Oberführer Georg Keppler, and later gave the same award to a Der Führer platoon commander,  SS-Hauptscharführer Ludwig Kepplinger.

THE RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE

After the impressive display put on by his Waffen-SS troops, Hitler reorganized yet again, with the SS-Verfügungsdivision being renamed SS-Division Deutschland, then SS-Reich.  Following Germany’s response to the blundered Italian invasion to Greece, SS-Reich was deployed to Yugoslavia, in an attempt to push Eastward through the Balkans towards Russia.  Reich encountered difficulty crossing Yugoslavia, faced with marshy terrain that slowed down the majority of its forces, which resulted in a halt order being given at the Danube River.

For the revised plans for Operation Barbarossa in 1941, SS-Reich was a part of Army Group Center, under command of Field Marshall von Bock, whose job was securing a passage over the Bug River.  Completing this objective, Reich was then tasked with providing flank guard before advancing to Yelnya.  Their advance resulted in a successful capture of the city, where the Division managed to hold on for days, despite encountering heavy offenses of 11 Russian divisions from their left flank.  Finally in August, Division Reich was drawn back for rest and refit, but ordered returned to the front on September 2, 1941.

Reich was sent to the Eastern tip of the German offensive, assisting greatly in the capture of Kiev and its subsequent surrender of 665,000 Russian troops.  At the end of September, SS-Reich was ordered to push on towards Moscow, being assigned with three Panzer Divisions and the Grossdeutschland Regiment.  While Deutschland took the town of Gzhatsk, Der Führer pushed on to capture two more towns, plus a Soviet transport line.  Strong Soviet resistance at this point dealt heavy casualties to the troops, especially the Der Führer Regiment.  The Regiment redeemed itself days later when it single-handedly captured the historical Borodino battleground.

By the end of October, Reich was facing a shortage of supplies to combat the harsh winter weather, and was lacking troops to push forward; only 40 miles from the Russian capital, the troops were halted.  Suffering heavily that winter, the majority of Reich troops were sent back to France in March 1942 for re-fit as a Panzergrenadier Division, while a couple mixed battalions from Deutschland and Der Führer remained behind in Russia.