Құпия жасақтардың формасы мен белгілері (1925-1945)

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The uniforms and insignia of the Schutzstaffel (SS) served to distinguish its Nazi paramilitary ranks between 1925 and 1945 from the ranks of the Wehrmacht (the German armed forces from 1935), the German state, and the Nazi Party.

While different uniforms existed for the SS over time, the all black SS uniform adopted in 1932 is the most well known. The black–white–red colour scheme was characteristic of the German Empire, and it was later adopted by the Nazi Party. Further, black was popular with fascist movements: a black uniform was introduced by the blackshirts in Italy before the creation of the SS. There was a traditional reason, too: just as the Prussian kings' and emperors' life guard cavalry (Leibhusaren) had worn black uniforms with skull and crossbones badges, so would the Führers bodyguard unit. These SS uniforms were tailored to project authority and foster fear. During the war, the German clothing factory that eventually became the international menswear powerhouse Hugo Boss produced thousands of SS and other uniforms. Once the war began, the black uniform was seldom worn. The combat units of the SS Verfügungstruppe (SS VT) and the later Waffen SS wore a variation of the field grey (grey green) (feldgrau) army uniform with SS insignia. The majority of SS personnel wore a variation of the Waffen SS uniform or the grey green SS service tunic. Branches with personnel that normally would wear civilian attire in the Reich (such as the Gestapo and Kripo) were issued grey green SS uniforms in occupied territory to avoid being mistaken for civilians. SS uniforms used a variety of insignia, the most standard of which were collar patches, to denote rank, and shoulder knots (which acted as shoulder boards), to denote both rank and position, along with sleeve cuff titles and "sleeve diamond" patches, to indicate membership in specific branches of the SS.

In addition, any SS member who also served in the Gestapo or Kripo held a unique criminal investigator rank, one of the more common of which was Kriminalrat, a police investigator's rank denoting professional detectives. Arthur Nebe, a career policeman, went by the title of Kriminalrat for most of the 1930s, only using an SS rank when engaged in non Kripo activities. The Gestapo also maintained an entire array of ranks, which might be used interchangeably with SS rank if the agent also belonged to the SS (many did not).

Adolf Hitler, as the Führer of Germany, was considered SS member #1; Emil Maurice (one of the founders of the SS) was member #2. Based on the seniority system of SS membership numbers, this made Hitler senior in the SS to all other members. The SS membership number system was also a means to denote the "old guard" of the SS, and to hold a number below 50,000 was considered a special place of honor since it denoted SS membership before the Nazi seizure of power in 1933. Numbers below 500 were considered the original cadre of the SS, while any number below fifty denoted an original founder and, in most cases, a personal associate of Hitler.