Originally one of the paramilitary groups that arose in Germany's turbulent 1920s , the SS grew from its original protection activities into the "Death's Head" troops and the Verfugungstruppe, and later during WWII, the Waffen-SS. During its evolution, the SS changed from its black uniform into a variety of uniforms that eventually resembled those of the German army, in various types of fabric, and predominately field-gray, so often seen in period photographs and movies. In volume 1, Lorenzo Silvestri presents many different SS-VT, SS-TV, and SD uniforms with numerous full-color photos to display how the clothing appeared. In addition, numerous detail images are used to clearly expose key features of the uniforms and equipment. The text explains important details about the creation, manufacturing, and wear of each item. Period photos illustrate the wear of each item presented in the books. The two volumes present the various helmets, caps, trousers, tunics and jackets in nearly 900 pages with over 1,400 color, pre-WWII and WWII images.