Heinrich Himmler, leader of the SS, in Norway, January 1941.
Heinrich Himmler principal interest in visiting Norway was probably not the round up of Jews, although he travelled extensively around the Nazi empire to encourage these activities. He was fascinated by the ‘racial purity’ of the Nordic people. Norwegians were therefore prime candidates for the expansion of the Waffen SS, the fighting arm of the SS, at this stage very small in numbers proportionately to the German army. The first group of 200 Norwegian volunteers to be accepted into the SS were recruited during this visit.
