Terror and repression: police, Gestapo and the SS

Using the powers of the February Decrees and

Enabling Act, the Nazis set about preventing any possible opposition.

This included the use of fear and violence, either through

the police, or Nazi organisations such as the SA

and SS.

After taking power, the Nazis reorganised Germany’s police

force.

Prior to Nazi rule, each German state had their own police

force. However by 1936 these were reorganised into one national force, under the control of Chief of Police,

Heinrich Himmler.

Himmler oversaw four police organisations:

• The SS – Nazi police force and security group

• Orpo – Ordinary police, dealing with issues such as traffic management

• Sipo – Security police forces

• SD – Security Service

The SS was a hugely influential part of not only the Nazi Party

but Germany as a whole.

The Schutzstaffel wore black shirts and were originally

Hitler’s bodyguards.

Once the Nazis took power, the SS were given a range of

powers and acted as a key intimidator of opponents.

The SS became an auxiliary police force. It had the power

of arrest of any possible opponents.

By 1939 the SS had almost 250,000 members. SS

members were part of most German organisations and

controlled the death camps during World War Two.

The other major police body in Nazi Germany was the

Gestapo.

The Gestapo and SS were both overseen by Himmler and had

some similar aims (such as stopping Germany’s enemies)

but were separate bodies.

The Gestapo was originally the Prussian Secret Police.

The Gestapo were Germany’s secret police force.

Their key role was to identify any potential threat to Hitler

and Germany, and remove them.

Based on the Gestapo’s actions, thousands of people

were sent to prison or concentration camps.

The Gestapo gave the impression of being all-seeing and all-knowing. This meant that potential Nazi opponents were too scared to even raise

their objections.

The Gestapo never had more than 30,000 members in a

country of around 65 million people.

The Gestapo used a variety of methods to achieve their goals.

They were often given help from the public, who would offer comments and cooperation.

The Gestapo also used extreme methods to achieve control,

including arbitrary arrest and torture to achieve confessions

from their victims.

Most people who were arrested by the Gestapo had been

denunciated (given up by people that they knew).

Often the people who did this were not making a political

statement, but a personal one (perhaps based on jealousy or racial hatred). Eventually the

Gestapo threatened those making such claims with prison.

The Nazis’ control of the police helped them control

the German population.

By July 1933, 26,000 people were political prisoners, and between 1933-45, 800,000

people were jailed for resistance. In this same

period, 32,000 were legally killed by the state.

Historians’ views

• David Evans and Jane Jenkins: Although there were limits to the power of the SS, its influence was varied and extensive.

• Richard J Evans: The Nazis did use coercion to achieve control but also tried to win support through the use of propaganda.

• Roderick Stackelberg: Hitler was genuinely popular with the German people due to economic improvements.

• Robert Gellately: Most Gestapo denunciations came from personal factors, not political ones.