The Waffen-SS - Hitler's "guard", the "ideological soldiers" of National Socialism - were rightfully considered the elite of the armed forces of the Third Reich, the most combat-ready troops of Hitler's Germany. SS men were thrown into the most dangerous sectors of the front, used in decisive directions, in the most difficult situations. The crushing blow of the SS troops more than once decided the outcome of battles and entire campaigns. The names of the SS divisions - “Totenkopf”, “Reich”, “Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler”, “Viking”, etc. - were known to every soldier on both sides of the front. Nazi propaganda cultivated the myth of their invincibility. In his new book, the famous historian analyzes the main battles and operations of the Great Patriotic War, in which SS divisions and corps played a decisive role - the battles for Kharkov in February-March 1943, the Battle of Kursk, the liquidation of the Soviet bridgehead on the Mius River in July-August 43rd, the Korsun-Shevchenko operation, the release of the blockade of the German 1st Tank Army in April 44th, counterattacks in the area of Lake Balaton in January and March 1945. Considering in detail the course of battles and the style of warfare actions, as well as strategic opportunities that were not realized by both sides, the author shows how, despite the high combat effectiveness of the elite SS units and the decisive importance that Hitler attached to operations with their participation, they were unable to reverse the unfavorable course of the war for Germany and were eventually defeated by the Red Army.