In September 1939 , Fegelein commanded the SS '' Totenkopf Reiterstandarte '' ( Death 's - Head Horse Regiment ) , which arrived in Poland shortly after the end of the Polish Campaign . The unit was placed under the command of the '' Ordnungspolizei '' ( Orpo ; order police ) and was split into small groups assigned to support police activities at posts throughout the Poznan district . On 15 November , Himmler ordered the expansion of the regiment from four to thirteen squadrons and renamed it as '' 1 . SS-Totenkopf-Reiterstandarte '' ( 1st Death 's Head Cavalry Regiment ) . Additional men were recruited from ethnic Germans living in the General Government and further afield . As many of the officers , including Fegelein , had never attended officer training school , much of the training provided to new recruits was rudimentary . However , it was rigorous , and the men developed a strong camaraderie . Fegelein 's unit was involved alongside the Orpo in the extermination , ordered by Hitler , of members of the Polish elite such as intellectuals , aristocrats , and clergy , in an action called '' Intelligenzaktion '' . On 7 December 1939 , Fegelein 's unit was involved in the mass shooting of 1,700 such people in the Kampinos Forest
Intelligenzaktion
Intelligenzaktion
Hermann Fegelein