[39], In 1942, the Gestapo discovered a cache of Polish intelligence documents in Prague and were surprised to see that Polish agents and informants had been gathering detailed military information and smuggling it out to London, via Budapest and Istanbul. Terror against "state enemies" had become a way of life to such a degree that the Gestapo's presence and methods were eventually normalised in the minds of people living in Nazi Germany. Some historians feel he was killed in the final days of the war, while others believe he escaped to South America and lived the rest of his life unidentified. However, certain Polish information about the movement of German police and SS units to the East during 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union was similar to information British intelligence secretly obtained through intercepting and decoding German police and SS messages sent by radio telegraphy. Thousands of leftists, intellectuals, Jews, trade unionists, political clergy, and homosexuals simply disappeared into concentration camps after being arrested by the Gestapo. [159], Leitstellung (district office) staff did wear the grey SS service uniform, but with police-pattern shoulderboards, and SS rank insignia on the left collar patch. [158], The Gestapo was a secretive plainclothes agency and agents typically wore civilian suits. [112], Contrary to popular belief, the Gestapo was not the all-pervasive, omnipotent agency in German society. The Geheime Staatspolizei (transl. They were subject to co-ordination by inspectors of the security police and SD on the staffs of the local higher SS and police leaders, however, and one of the principal functions of the local SD units was to serve as the intelligence agency for the local Gestapo units. These groups became a special focus of the Gestapo because of their insurrectionist goalsthe overthrow of the Nazi regime, the re-establishment of an independent Austria under Habsburg leadershipand Hitler's hatred of the Habsburg family. The Gestapo is a short-lived police organization that existed around 1934-1939 only while the SS is longer since they existed for sixteen years around 1929-1945 before being abolished. Hitler vehemently rejected the centuries' old Habsburg pluralist principles of "live and let live" with regard to ethnic groups, peoples, minorities, religions, cultures and languages. [115] The majority of Gestapo informers were not full-term employees working undercover, but were rather ordinary citizens who chose to denounce other people to the Gestapo. These included the non-violent resistance of Hans and Sophie Scholl, two leaders of the White Rose student group. The local offices of the Gestapo, known as Gestapo Leitstellen and Stellen, answered to a local commander known as the Inspekteur der Sicherheitspolizei und des SD ("Inspector of the Security Police and Security Service") who, in turn, was under the dual command of Referat N of the Gestapo and also his local SS and Police Leader. [77] Later, the British and Americans did not want to deal with anti-Nazis because they were fearful that the Soviet Union would believe they were attempting to make deals behind their back. [23] For the Gestapo, the next two years following the Night of the Long Knives, a term describing the putsch against Rhm and the SA, were characterised by "behind-the-scenes political wrangling over policing". [20] Several Nazi chieftains, among them Gring, Joseph Goebbels, Rudolf Hess, and Himmler, began a concerted campaign to convince Hitler to take action against Rhm. Those who were arrested were tried, and sent to prison or were executed, depending on their role in the Gestapo. Additionally, many of its members were handed over to the armed forces. Fearful of an internal overthrow, the forces of the Gestapo were unleashed on the opposition. The Gestapo had its own system of arrests, judiciary, and execution. The SS initially had an all-black uniform specially designed for its men, which was replaced by uniforms in camouflaging colors during the war. [107] Over time, membership in the Gestapo included ideological training, particularly once Werner Best assumed a leading role for training in April 1936. [71] Most people quickly learned that open opposition was dangerous since Gestapo informants and agents were widespread. [105] One man who served in the Prussian Gestapo in 1933 recalled that most of his co-workers "were by no means Nazis. After Germany conquered Poland (in the autumn of 1939), Gestapo officials believed that they had neutralised Polish intelligence activities. [21] Both the SD and Gestapo released information concerning an imminent putsch by the SA. Nevertheless, in practice there was jurisdictional overlap and operational conflict between the SD and Gestapo. Female youth leaders, lawyers, business administrators with experience in social work, female leaders in the Reichsarbeitsdienst and personnel administrators in the Bund Deutscher Mdel were hired as detectives after a one-year course, if they had several years professional experience. [51] For their part, this was the first time the Gestapo operated under its new name since its 26 April 1933 founding in Prussia. Reports indicate that the Gestapo was caught unaware of this plot as they did not have sufficient protections in place at the appropriate locations nor did they take any preventative steps. [98] The Gestapo also maintained offices at all Nazi concentration camps, held an office on the staff of the SS and Police Leaders, and supplied personnel as needed to formations such as the Einsatzgruppen. At that time, the Gestapo was condemned as a criminal organisation, along with the SS. [79] Despite the fear of the Gestapo after mass arrests and executions in the spring, the opposition still plotted and planned. Joins the Abwehr Schrader escaped from the Concentration Camp in 1934. SIPO was the security police involved in protecting the security of the country it was state funded. Individuals in Austrian resistance groups led by Heinrich Maier also managed to pass along the plans and the location of production facilities for V-1, V-2 rockets, Tiger tanks, and aircraft (Messerschmitt Bf 109, Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet, etc.) Founded in 1999. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. They were taught that the SS was not only an elite group in the Nazi regime, but also in all of humanity. by Starinov 12 Aug 2002, 21:51, Post [32] The Gestapo became Amt IV (Department IV) of RSHA and Mller became the Gestapo Chief, with Heydrich as his immediate superior. [104][e] Some locals aided the Gestapo, whether as professional police auxiliaries or in other duties. The SD was mainly an information-gathering agency, while the Gestapoand to a degree the Criminal Police (Kriminalpolizei or Kripo)was the executive agency of the political police system. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). [25] Shortly thereafter, Himmler created the Kriminalpolizei (Kripo; Criminal Police), merging it with the Gestapo into the Sicherheitspolizei (SiPo; Security Police), under Heydrich's command. [104] Additional staff were added in March 1938 consequent the annexation of Austria and again in October 1938 with the acquisition of the Sudetenland. He had to count on his senior officials support for his rule, and he gave the go-ahead for the plan to put Rhm out of the picture once and for all. To summarize the information above, we have provided the following short table. [121][122] Work done by social historians such as Detlev Peukert, Robert Gellately, Reinhard Mann, Inge Marssolek, Ren Otto, Klaus-Michael Mallmann and Paul Gerhard, which by focusing on what the local offices were doing has shown the Gestapo's almost total dependence on denunciations from ordinary Germans, and very much discredited the older "Big Brother" picture with the Gestapo having its eyes and ears everywhere. Together with the SS, the Gestapo managed the treatment of inferior races, such as Jews and Roma (Gypsies). Simultaneously, Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, the Nazi paramilitary corps, together with his aide Reinhard Heydrich, similarly reorganized the police of Bavaria and the remaining German states. [124], An examination of 213 denunciations in Dsseldorf showed that 37% were motivated by personal conflicts, no motive could be established in 39%, and 24% were motivated by support for the Nazi regime. Just like its parent organization, the Schutzstaffel, the Gestapo was officially declared a criminal organization and banned in 1945. the United States . Schleicher and Bredow tried to control the activities of the National Socialist . [26] The Gestapo became a national state agency. A similar co-ordination existed in the local offices. Party agencies lik. The political section could order prisoners to be murdered, tortured, or released. There was one other significant difference between the Heer and Waffen- SS: Each member of the latter was required to have his blood type tattooed on the underside of his left upper arm to make it easier for medics to treat him on the battlefield. These officials were helped and supported by a mysterious organization called the ODESSA, which helped provide them identification, passports, and visas to South American countries. [28] He answered to Heydrich, Heydrich answered only to Himmler, and Himmler answered only to Hitler. The Gestapo was responsible for keeping a close watch on Hitlers personal safety, as well as ensuring the safety of the most important Nazi officials. Hitler wanted an organization not similar but somewhat linked to the SA that would personally guard Hitler and other important Nazi officials. "[135] The involvement of ordinary Germans in denunciations also needs to be put into perspective so as not to exonerate the Gestapo. The SA was formally declared not to be a criminal organization by the International Tribunal, and had officially ceased to exist in 1945. [74] One of the methods employed by the Gestapo to contend with these resistance factions was 'protective detention' which facilitated the process in expediting dissenters to concentration camps and against which there was no legal defence. [33] In January 1943, Himmler appointed Ernst Kaltenbrunner RSHA chief; almost seven months after Heydrich had been assassinated. Also known as the Storm Troopers or the Brownshirts (they were called the Brownshirts because of their brown uniforms), it was the original paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party, whose violent tactics played a huge role in Hitlers rise to power in Germany. The Gestapo had terrible methods of interrogating people who they deemed to be anti-Nazi or suspicious in any way. After initial successes, the organization was expanded during the Franco-Prussian . Post the successful execution of both the leader as well as several of his followers, the SS was granted independent entity by Hitler as a reward for their services and loyalty to the Nazi Party, and more importantly, to Hitler. Further promotions to Kriminalkommissarin and Kriminalrtin were also possible. Soon afterward, Gring detached the political and intelligence sections from the police and filled their ranks with Nazis. There were reports that Mller ended up in the foreign secret service at Washington D.C., some allege he was in Moscow working for the Soviets, still others claimed he escaped to South Americabut none of the myths have ever been proven; all of which adds to the "mysterious power of the Gestapo". Gestapo. To join the SS, prospective members had to prove that none of them had any sort of Jewish roots in the ancestry traced back to over one hundred years. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. [49] On the following day, the newly formed Gestapo officers, who had been shadowing some 58 trade union leaders, arrested them wherever they could find themmany in their homes. As the years progressed, the SA began to be overshadowed by the SS and the Gestapo. The official positions of defendants as heads of state or holders of high government offices were not to free them from responsibility or mitigate their punishment; nor was the fact that a defendant acted pursuant to an order of a superior to excuse him from responsibility, although it might be considered by the IMT in mitigation of punishment. Hitler's rise to power and his rule in Nazi Germany has been attributed to the aid and support of several people, with three organizations playing a vital role - the SS, the SA, and the Gestapo. [146] While in many countries the Nazis occupied in the East, the local domestic police forces supplemented German operations, noted Holocaust historian, Raul Hilberg, asserts that "those of Poland were least involved in anti-Jewish actions. Gestapo (Mller), SD (Heydrich) and Abwehr (Canaris). [104] In 1939, only 3,000 out of the total of 20,000 Gestapo men held SS ranks, and in most cases, these were honorary. We've created informative articles that you can come back to again and again when you have questions or want to learn more! The Gestapo ruthlessly eliminated opposition to the Nazis within Germany and its occupied territories and, in partnership with the Sicherheitsdienst (SD; "Security Service"), was responsible for the roundup of Jews throughout Europe for deportation to extermination camps. As I understand it the SD was focused on intellectual crimes, Jewish Question and foreign espionage, while the Gestapo concentrated on domestic political crimes and arresting Jews. [88] On 26 April 1933, he reorganised the force's Amt III as the Gestapa (better-known by the "sobriquet" Gestapo),[89] a secret state police intended to serve the Nazi cause. Heydrich, named chief of the Gestapo by Himmler on 22 April 1934, also continued as head of the SS Security Service (Sicherheitsdienst; SD). [91], As a result of its 1936 merger with the Kripo (National criminal police) to form sub-units of the Sicherheitspolizei (SiPo; Security Police), the Gestapo was officially classified as a government agency. The Gestapo aided and supported the mobile killing units, and even provided its men for the same. More than that, the Anglo-American common language and capital interests kept Stalin at a distance since he felt the other Allied powers were hoping the fascists and Communists would destroy one another. However, very few arrests were made. [61] In 1934, a special Gestapo office was set up in Berlin to deal with homosexuality. Already in early June, The Gestapo ruthlessly eliminated opposition to the Nazis within Germany and its occupied territories and, in partnership with the Sicherheitsdienst (SD; Security Service), was responsible for the roundup of Jews throughout Europe for deportation to extermination camps. The force was created by Hermann Gring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organisation. From 27 September 1939, it was administered by the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA). [65] If homosexuals showed any signs of sympathy to the Nazis' identified racial enemies, they were considered an even greater danger. It had the authority of preventive arrest, and its actions were not subject to judicial appeal. The Gestapo committed widespread atrocities during its existence. [83], Some Germans were convinced that it was their duty to apply all possible expedients to end the war as quickly as possible. The name Gestapo is an abbreviation for its official German name "Geheime Staatspolizei." The direct English translation is "Secret State Police." The Gestapo was not the first political police force in German history. [10] Diels was best known as the primary interrogator of Marinus van der Lubbe after the Reichstag fire. [108] Heydrich thought along similar lines and advocated both defensive and offensive measures on the part of the Gestapo, so as to prevent any subversion or destruction of the National Socialist body. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. [25] This action effectively merged the police into the SS and removed it from Frick's control. Indeed quite talented in investigations, interrogation, and torture, but they were mostly violent under educated people, and lacked the culture of the SD agents, whom Heydrich chose very carefully. [145] Many of the auxiliary police personnel operating on behalf of German Order Police, the SD, and Gestapo were members of the Schutzmannschaft, which included staffing by Ukrainians, Belorussians, Russians, Estonians, Lithuanians, and Latvians. [138], As an instrument of Nazi power, terror, and repression, the Gestapo operated throughout occupied Europe. During World War II the Gestapo suppressed partisan activities in the occupied territories and carried out reprisals against civilians. The only thing distinguishing them was the black hat with a skull and bones on it. [156], In 1997, Cologne transformed the former regional Gestapo headquarters in Colognethe EL-DE Hausinto a museum to document the Gestapo's actions. [109], Whether trained as police originally or not, Gestapo agents themselves were shaped by their socio-political environment. The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944. He hoped to merge the SA with the Army under his own leadership and continued to urge for a second Nazi revolution, one that was socialist in nature. by Wilfried Abenaschon 13 Aug 2002, 02:31, Post In the occupied territories, the formal relationship between local units of the Gestapo, criminal police, and SD was slightly closer. [147], In places like Denmark, there were some 550 uniformed Danes in Copenhagen working with the Gestapo, patrolling and terrorising the local population at the behest of their German overseers, many of whom were arrested after the war. [100] It was the Gestapo chief, SS-Brigadierfhrer Heinrich Mller, who kept Hitler abreast of the killing operations in the Soviet Union and who issued orders to the four Einsatzgruppen that their continual work in the east was to be "presented to the Fhrer. [58], In Dachau: The Official History 19331945, Paul Berben wrote that clergy were watched closely, and frequently denounced, arrested and sent to Nazi concentration camps: "One priest was imprisoned in Dachau for having stated that there were good folk in England too; another suffered the same fate for warning a girl who wanted to marry an S.S. man after abjuring the Catholic faith; yet another because he conducted a service for a deceased communist". Although Maier and the other group members were severely tortured, the Gestapo did not uncover the essential involvement of the resistance group in Operation Crossbow and Operation Hydra. As Evans makes clear, "it was not the ordinary German people who engaged in surveillance, it was the Gestapo; nothing happened until the Gestapo received a denunciation, and it was the Gestapo's active pursuit of deviance and dissent that was the only thing that gave denunciations meaning. Confidential office hostile foreigners, Occupied territories France, Belgium, Holland, Norway, Denmark (D4), Department E (Security and counterintelligence), Viktor Harnischfeger (Dsseldorf Gestapo Criminal Commissar). However, these internal departments remained and the Gestapo continued to be a department under the RSHA umbrella. [70], Between 1934 and 1938, opponents of the Nazi regime and their fellow travellers began to emerge. [86] A year after the organisation's inception, Gring wrote in a British publication about having created the organisation on his own initiative and how he was "chiefly responsible" for the elimination of the Marxist and Communist threat to Germany and Prussia. Bauz, Ingrid; Sigrid Brggemann; Roland Maier, eds. Nonetheless, operations performed either by German members of the Gestapo or auxiliaries from willing collaborators of other nationalities were inconsistent in both disposition and effectiveness. Post the Night of Long Knives, the SA had downsized in its power and value. The Gestapo also cooperated extensively with the Ordnungspolizei for operations inside Germany and in the occupied territories. [60], Violence and arrest were not confined to that opposing political parties, membership in trade unions, or those with dissenting religious opinions, but also homosexuality. Many of the men employed by the Gestapo were former criminals and extremists who were ideal for committing the atrocities the Nazi regime had planned. The stricter laws did not apply to lesbians as their behaviour was never officially criminalised, even though their behaviours were labelled "deviant". [87] Describing the activities of the organisation, Gring boasted about the utter ruthlessness required for Germany's recovery, the establishment of concentration camps for that purpose, and even went on to claim that excesses were committed in the beginning, recounting how beatings took place here and there. Uniforms worn by Gestapo men assigned to the Einsatzgruppen in occupied territories, were at first indistinguishable from the Waffen-SS field uniform. [94], The Gestapo became known as RSHA Amt IV ("Department or Office IV") with Heinrich Mller as its chief. These units traveled to villages in the German-occupied regions and shot down civilians, men, women, and children included, and buried them in mass graves. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. 6789 Quail Hill Pkwy, Suite 211 Irvine CA 92603. [149] Whereas in France, the number of members in the Carlingue (French Gestapo) who worked on behalf of the Nazis was upwards of 30,000 to 32,000; they conducted operations nearly indistinguishable from their German equivalents. According to the trials that were held after Germanys defeat in the war, the SS was responsible for a majority of the crimes committed in Nazi Germany. The Nazi Party was well aware of homosexual preferences of Rhm and some other SA members. [144], Throughout the Eastern territories, the Gestapo and other Nazi organisations co-opted the assistance of indigenous police units, nearly all of whom were uniformed and able to carry out drastic actions. The SS, or the Schutzstaffel, was created in 1925 originally to serve as Hitlers personal bodyguards. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. However, Hitler too began to realize the risks associated with Rhm and his leadership, and was more concerned about his senior officials being wary of Rhm. In 1931, the SA was handed over to Ernst Rhm, who headed it till his murder in 1934. Rhm harbored the same intentions. The Geheime Staatspolizei (German pronunciation: [ham tatspolitsa] (listen); transl. [22] Once persuaded, Hitler acted by setting Himmler's SS into action, who then proceeded to murder over 100 of Hitler's identified antagonists. [33] After Heydrich's 1942 assassination, Himmler assumed the leadership of the RSHA until January 1943, when Ernst Kaltenbrunner was appointed chief. When the Nazis came to power in 1933, Hermann Gring, then Prussian minister of the interior, detached the political and espionage units from the regular Prussian police, filled their ranks with thousands of Nazis, and, on April 26, 1933, reorganized them under his personal command as the Gestapo. [99] Personnel assigned to these auxiliary duties were often removed from the Gestapo chain of command and fell under the authority of branches of the SS. [118] Many of the local offices were understaffed and overworked, struggling with the paper load caused by so many denunciations. [37] However, the total number of people who disappeared as a result of this decree is not known. It is quite likely that you have come across the terms SS, SA, and Gestapo frequently when studying or reading world history, especially the history of Germany and other parts of Europe from the 1920s to the 1940s. Given that all appointments to the Abwehr required vetting and approval by the Gestapo, his efforts in successfully recruiting foes of the regime throughout the years of . After the war ended, the Gestapo was declared a criminal organisation by the International Military Tribunal (IMT) at the Nuremberg trials, and several top Gestapo members were sentenced to death. When Rhm refused to commit suicide, he was shot by two SS officers. Answer (1 of 4): It was of a piece with the Nazi governing policy: the Fhrerprinzip that created a a plethora of government agencies engaged in non-stop internecine bureaucratic turf wars. [d], The German opposition was in an unenviable position by the late spring and early summer of 1943. In April 1934, Himmler was named head of Germany's secret state police, the "Geheime Staatspolizei," more commonly known as the "Gestapo." The Gestapo, which had been established the previous. [47], Shortly after the Nazis came to power, they decided to dissolve the 28 federations of the General German Trade Union Confederation, because Hitlerafter noting their success in the works council electionsintended to consolidate all German workers under the Nazi government's administration, a decision he made on 7 April 1933. Even a Gestapo Agent would understand it now! 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