The SS-Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler (LSSAH or LAH) was Hitler’s bodyguard regiment; it was one of the many specialized groups and paramilitary organizations that developed within the SS during the course of the Nazi dictatorship. Hitler founded the LSSAH in March 1933 to protect members of the regime and government buildings; it was a private army under his personal control. Its first major action was “Operation Hummingbird,” which saw the elimination of the SA leadership on the evening of June 30–July 1, 1934. After the war began, the LSSAH was incorporated into the Waffen-SS and deployed under army command on both the Eastern and Western fronts.