Hitler’s definition of genetic superiority did not stop with blonde hair and blue eyes. The value that Hitler placed on physical power led him to favor Aryan men with the strongest physiques and the tallest statures. Near the end of the Lebensborn program, Hitler set requirements that new male applicants be at least 6 ft. tall. Hitler regarded individuals who were 6 ft. 6 in. and taller as being the highest creed of Übermensch, the so-called “Hünenmensch”. He considered men of this stature to be the closest relatives of the original Germanic warrior tribes, from which the Aryan peoples are said to have descended. Being 6 ft. 6 in. entitled a Nazi soldier a special medal of honor, called the Hünenkreuz, and an instant promotion to the status of S.S. officer. Individuals who were unusually tall due to gigantism were not recognized as being Hünenmenschen by the government of the Third Reich. Because the abnormal height of a giant is the result of a defective pituitary gland, these individuals were deemed Untermenschen. Sterilization was, more often than not, their reward.