Alvarez's Random WWII History Lesson

[Alvarez]

Betcha didn't know... There was a BOSNIAN Muslim SS division!

So one of the drawbacks [benefits?] of my mental disorder [or whatever you call it] is that I obsessively study WWII history. I am constantly finding nooks and crannies of the war that I never knew existed. For instance, the SS Handschar Division... A group of mostly Bosnian Muslim volunteers, and the first non-Germanic Schutzstaffel division! I wanted to share with you guys some random intel on this very peculiar unit.

Bosnian SS volunteers pray during their training.

So, most of us equate the SS with Hitler's vision of a "true Aryan" [blonde hair, blue eyes, tall as fuck]. However, little known fact: The Croatians [including Muslims] were declared "Aryans of either Gothic or Iranian descent" by the Third Reich. In fact, they were not alone: Many foreign SS divisions were created in Muslim countries, especially during the height of conflict in Africa.

Apparently, Heinrich Himmler had an obsession with Islam [good for him ]. He was impressed with the exploits of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian infantry during the Great War, and sought to revive the old Bosnian regiments into one SS Division. Himmler believed that Muslims would make perfect SS soldiers because Islam "[promised] them heaven if they [were] killed in action". Because of this, the vast majority of Handschar volunteers were Bosnian Muslims. Because of concerns that an all-Muslim unit would provoke a Bosniak independence movement, Croatian Catholics were recruited as officers, and German SS commanders were assigned to maintain order.

The insignia of the SS Handschar. The cutlass represents the mostly Muslim numbers of the division. This would have been worn in the place of the SS "lightning bolts", however Handschar members were also known to wear the "Death's Head" insignia.

The initial purpose of the SS Handschar was to root out Partisans in the German-settled area of Syrmia [remember Hitler's thing about "living space"]. They went toe-to-toe with their own neighbors from 1943-45, when the Red Army advanced on the Balkans. It is one of few Waffen SS divisions to fight on two fronts during the war.

As was common with SS units, the Handschar were also accused of their share of war crimes. Nearly 40 members were sent to Yugoslavia for trial. Of those who did not commit suicide, all were found guilty. Ten were executed, and the majority received jail time.

Well, that's all I have for you, but I really wanted to share this tasty little morsel of intel while it was fresh on my mind! <3

[Cast 1st MRB]

Pretty interesting, nice find

[Teachey]

Seems like something I might have found on a newsletter, nice find sir!

[Penkauskas 1st MRB]

This is such an interesting find man! There is a bunch of material out there that isn't really put into the spotlight. I can speak for myself, but I think that most would agree, history like this is truly fascinating. Keep it up man!

[Alvarez]

In the spirit of my new discovery... I tried for hours today to combine two of my favorite skins, and came up with THIS beast! I used Wile E. Coyote's Waffen SS skin, and an assault model from a Croatian conversion pack. Presto-change-o, we have a respectable-looking Bosnian SS soldier! I didn't make the skin or the model. All I did was combine them, recolor the hat to be more "fez"-like, and removed this weird shiny effect that was on it:

Here are reference photos, for the curious [and those who think this looks ridiculous]:

Edited March 2, 2013 by Alvarez 1st MRB

[M. Johnson 1st MRB]

This is good stuff Alverez! Nice read, and awesome looking skins.

[Xiong]

Impressive work Alvarez. Very impressive indeed.

[Legend]

I like this

[Magoo]

It is important that you know that the Raider Approved subforum contains the only custom content acceptable to use during an official realism.

If you use anything other than stock (what comes with the game) and it is not listed in the Raider Approved section, then you cannot use

it during an official realism. Please submit the content to the Ordnance Office, so that we can rate it and get it approved for use.

[Alvarez]

Yes, Magoo. I am aware. However, I will NOT be submitting this skin to the Ordinance Office. It is for my own personal use and enjoyment, sorry.

[Cast 1st MRB]

Question for you Alvarez, why a red hat surely that like christmas for snipers?

[Branem 1st MRB]

Interesting! Good work!

[Griswold]

Yes, Magoo. I am aware. However, I will NOT be submitting this skin to the Ordinance Office. It is for my own personal use and enjoyment, sorry.

That really isnt the response the Chief Warrant Officer is looking for, nor i was looking for. The reason the Ordinance office exist is to make sure that the skins we use don't give a advantage in realisms against another unit. It keeps us from using skins that would otherwise be considered cheating, because there are skins out there that makes people's heads bright pink and therefore easier to spots in darker shade areas of a map.

The last things we want is other units out there thinking we cheat because we use a skin that makes everyone noticable.

Either comply with posting it in the Ordinance Office or note that if you enter a realism that you will have to remove any non-acceptable material before doing so.

Failure to do either will not end well.

[Alvarez]

Question for you Alvarez, why a red hat surely that like christmas for snipers?

The fez that Bosnian SS wore was red. Sometimes they wore feldgrau "field caps", helmets, and the like -- but for the most part the red fez was the hot item. And I haven't noticed it being advantageous. Up close, going room-to-room, I can tell "Oh, that's an assault" [the other skins have helmets]... But far away it's not like it makes him easier to hit or see. Perhaps this is because I have only 200 hours played and I am HORRIBLE at DoD:S...

[Visca 1st MRB]

Being Bosnian, this was really interesting!!

[Gardiner 1st MRB]

I'm majoring in History and my focus is World War II and I gotta say man this is one of the most interesting things I have read in a long time.