[24], On 17 June 1936, Hitler decreed the unification of all police forces in Germany and named Himmler as Chief of German Police. 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. KRIPO this was the criminal investigation part of the Ordnungspolizei the same as all countries investigation branch.It was state funded. Three othersHans Fritzsche, Hjalmar Schacht, and Franz von Papenwere acquitted. [107], The Canadian historian Robert Gellately wrote that most Gestapo men were not Nazis, but at the same time were not opposed to the Nazi regime, which they were willing to serve, in whatever task they were called upon to perform. 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. Student opposition leaders were executed in late February, and a major opposition organisation, the Oster Circle, was destroyed in April 1943. We've created informative articles that you can come back to again and again when you have questions or want to learn more! Department C (Administration and Party Affairs), central administrative office of the Gestapo, responsible for card files of all personnel including all officials. In 1929 General Kurt von Schleicher combined all service units under his Ministry of Defence. 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. The Gestapo was somewhat of a division of the SS, making SS the parent organization. The ordinary uniformed ones doing office jobs were called Algemeine SS or ordinary SS The size of the SS increased dramatically and eventually had 38 Divisions of which half were not German. [44][45][a], Early in the regime's existence, harsh measures were meted out to political opponents and those who resisted Nazi doctrine, such as members of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD); a role originally performed by the SA until the SD and Gestapo undermined their influence and took control of Reich security. Read on for the difference between the three ruthless organizations. [80] Known as the 20 July plot, this assassination attempt failed and Hitler was only slightly injured. [119] Gellately has also suggested that the Gestapo was "a reactive organisationconstructed within German society and whose functioning was structurally dependent on the continuing co-operation of German citizens". The term Abwehr (German for defense) was used as a concession to Allied demands that Germany's post-World War I intelligence activities be for "defensive" purposes only.After February 4, 1938, its name in title was Foreign Affairs/Defense Office of the Armed Forces High Command (Amt Ausland/Abwehr im Oberkommando der . by Schmauser 13 Aug 2002, 13:44, Post During World War II, the Gestapo played a key role in the Holocaust. 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. These cookies do not store any personal information. 1938 Gestapo border inspection stamp applied when leaving Germany On 17 June 1936, Hitler decreed the unification of all police forces in Germany and named Himmler as Chief of German Police. It was also largely responsible for planning and carrying out the Holocaust. Gestapo. Their victims also included the unemployed, the disabled, homosexuals, religious leaders, and political opponents. 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. [36] An oddity of the system was that the prisoner had to sign his own Schutzhaftbefehl, an order declaring that the person had requested imprisonmentpresumably out of fear of personal harm. Hitler, accompanied by the SS and the Gestapo, arrested and murdered important SA leaders who may or may not have been in connection with Rhm in any way. [14] Himmler and Heydrich both immediately began installing their own personnel in select positions, several of whom were directly from the Bavarian Political Police, such as Heinrich Mller, Franz Josef Huber and Josef Meisinger. 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. [150], Between 14 November 1945 and 3 October 1946, the Allies established an International Military Tribunal (IMT) to try 22 major Nazi war criminals and six groups for crimes against peace, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The original foundation date of the Gestapo can be traced back in April 1933 whereas the foundation date of the SS is originally on 1923. 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 . [129] The "administrative control" category concerned those who were breaking the law concerning residency in the city. The simple answer is that Josef Jakobs, Karel Richter and all of the Operation LENA spies who landed on the green shores of England were agents of the Abwehr, the military intelligence arm of the German Army. [143] Correspondingly, Gestapo offices were established in a territory once occupied. Though all largely contributed to Hitlers rise to power and his abuse of that power, the three organizations differed slightly in their functions. [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. 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. [103] The vast majority of Gestapo officers came from the police forces of the Weimar Republic; members of the SS, the SA, and the Nazi Party also joined the Gestapo but were less numerous. [75], Early efforts to resist the Nazis with aid from abroad were hindered when the opposition's peace feelers to the Western Allies did not meet with success. Leading members of the most famous of these groups, the White Rose, were arrested by the police and turned over to the Gestapo. Most SiPo members joined the SS and held a rank in both organisations. For several leaders the punishment was death. Before establishing the SA as a paramilitary wing, it was known as a sports division in the party to avoid suspicion. [22] Once persuaded, Hitler acted by setting Himmler's SS into action, who then proceeded to murder over 100 of Hitler's identified antagonists. [137] Lastly, the Gestapo's effectiveness, while aided by denunciations and the watchful eye of ordinary Germans, was more the result of the co-ordination and co-operation amid the various police organs within Germany, the assistance of the SS, and the support provided by the various Nazi Party organisations; all of them together forming an organised persecution network. Party agencies lik. 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. [128], Of the political cases, 61 people were investigated for suspicion of belonging to the KPD, 44 for the SPD and 69 for other political parties. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 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". [27] Heinrich Mller was at that time the Gestapo operations chief. Deans were to be targeted as the "eyes and ears of the bishops" and a "vast network" established to monitor the activities of ordinary clergy: "The importance of this enemy is such that inspectors of security police and of the security service will make this group of people and the questions discussed by them their special concern". [83], Some Germans were convinced that it was their duty to apply all possible expedients to end the war as quickly as possible. (Hitler felt he deserved the chance to kill himself rather than have someone else kill him.) [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. Owing to its relatively small sizeapproximately 32,000 personnel at the end of 1944the Gestapo relied extensively on the use of denunciations from among the local German populace in order to conduct its investigations. Just like its parent organization, the Schutzstaffel, the Gestapo was officially declared a criminal organization and banned in 1945. [d], The German opposition was in an unenviable position by the late spring and early summer of 1943. Sources: [63], Between June 1942 and March 1943, student protests were calling for an end to the Nazi regime. The Best History Museums to Virtually Tour During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Virtual Reality Experiences That Let You See History Up Close, The Most Accurate Movies Based on History Worth Seeing, Drive Thru History: A Brief Guide to the Online Courses, History of Mobile Phones: From Bulky to Ubiquitous, History of Forensic Science: From the Ancients to the Present, Tom Holland Historian: Major Works of the BBC Presenter, Arresting anyone who is a threat to the Nazi regime, Jews, other colored people, Complete authority of concentration camps, Defend Nazi rallies, disrupt political opponents, Policemen, ex-criminals, not necessarily Nazis, Strictly anti-Jewish, with a pure Aryan ancestry. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). It became known as Amt (Dept) 4 of the RSHA and was considered a sister organisation to the Sicherheitsdienst (SD; Security Service). [73] From the mid-1930s into the early 1940svarious groups made up of communists, idealists, working-class people, and far-right conservative opposition organisations covertly fought against Hitler's government, and several of them fomented plots that included Hitler's assassination. [7][8] He originally wanted to name it the Secret Police Office (Geheimes Polizeiamt), but the German initials, "GPA", were too similar to those of the Soviet State Political Directorate (Gosudarstvennoye Politicheskoye Upravlenie, or GPU). On June 17, 1936, Himmler, in addition to his position as head of the SS, took control of all German police forces, including the Ordnungspolizei (German: Order Police), with his appointment as Reichsfhrer SS and chief of the German police. [32] Although the Sicherheitspolizei was officially disbanded, the term SiPo was figuratively used to describe any RSHA personnel throughout the remainder of the war. It successfully thwarted Operation Valkyrie, wherein an attempt to assassinate Hitler was made by some senior Nazi officials themselves. Yet a significant number of them still worked against the National Socialist government. [10] Diels was best known as the primary interrogator of Marinus van der Lubbe after the Reichstag fire. [85], In January 1933, Hermann Gring, Hitler's minister without portfolio, was appointed the head of the Prussian Police and began filling the political and intelligence units of the Prussian Secret Police with Nazi Party members. [118] The information supplied by denunciations often led the Gestapo in determining who was arrested. The power of the Gestapo included the use of what was called, Schutzhaft"protective custody", a euphemism for the power to imprison people without judicial proceedings. [154], The IMT subsequently convicted three of the groups: the Nazi leadership corps, the SS (including the SD) and the Gestapo. Whereas the Gestapo agents, were mostly of police background. These men were then given training in racial hatred and were taught to become cold-hearted, violent, sadistic, and to not feel anything at human loss. While they may seem very similar, they actually differed in the roles they played. In that bureaucratic maze, the functions of the Gestapo often overlapped with those of other security departments, with which the Gestapo had both to cooperate and compete. [156], In 1997, Cologne transformed the former regional Gestapo headquarters in Colognethe EL-DE Hausinto a museum to document the Gestapo's actions. by Walter Schellenberg 14 Aug 2002, 03:29, Post Abfraction is a common dental problem caused by the flexing of teeth during biting and . The word Gestapo is an abbreviation of the German term Geheime Staatspolizei, which translates to Secret State Police. Both the Gestapo and Kripo became distinct departments within the RSHA. [51] For their part, this was the first time the Gestapo operated under its new name since its 26 April 1933 founding in Prussia. The SS initially had an all-black uniform specially designed for its men, which was replaced by uniforms in camouflaging colors during the war. The organization predates the emergence of Germany itself, and was founded to gather intelligence information for the Prussian government during a war with neighboring Austria. This was partly because of the Venlo incident of 9 November 1939,[76] in which SD and Gestapo agents, posing as anti-Nazis in the Netherlands, kidnapped two British Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) officers after having lured them to a meeting to discuss peace terms. Opposition became more difficult. 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. Hitler initially refused to believe the claims against Rhm, even though his officials provided him with created evidence. The force was created by Hermann Gring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organisation. [64][c] Between 1933 and 1935, some 4,000 men were arrested; between 1936 and 1939, another 30,000 men were convicted. Himmler also gained authority over all of Germany's uniformed law enforcement agencies, which were amalgamated into the new Ordnungspolizei (Orpo; Order Police), which became a national agency under SS general Kurt Daluege. [134] As historian Eric Johnson remarked, "The Nazi terror was selective terror", with its focus upon political opponents, ideological dissenters (clergy and religious organisations), career criminals, the Sinti and Roma population, handicapped persons, homosexuals and above all, upon the Jews. At that time, the SS consisted of approximately 300 members. Frick did not have the political power to take on Gring by himself so he allied with Himmler. The infamous Night of Long Knives, in June 1934, saw the murder of Rhm and several important SA members. [142], Occupation meant administration and policing, a duty assigned to the SS, the SD, and the Gestapo even before hostilities began, as was the case for Czechoslovakia. [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. 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. [117] The Gestapoat timeswas overwhelmed with denunciations and most of its time was spent sorting out the credible from the less credible denunciations. 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. We hope the above sections have made the identification of all three organizations clearer. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. [28] He answered to Heydrich, Heydrich answered only to Himmler, and Himmler answered only to Hitler. [116], According to Canadian historian Robert Gellately's analysis of the local offices established, the Gestapo wasfor the most partmade up of bureaucrats and clerical workers who depended upon denunciations by citizens for their information. During World War II the Gestapo suppressed partisan activities in the occupied territories and carried out reprisals against civilians. [133], While the total number of Gestapo officials was limited when contrasted against the represented populations, the average Volksgenosse (Nazi term for the "member of the German people") was typically not under observation, so the statistical ratio between Gestapo officials and inhabitants is "largely worthless and of little significance" according to some recent scholars. The gestapo were Nazi Germany's brutal secret-police. 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. Omissions? Within Germany and areas which were incorporated within the Reich for the purpose of civil administration, local offices of the Gestapo, criminal police, and SD were formally separate. 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. [12], Concerned that Diels was not ruthless enough to effectively counteract the power of the Sturmabteilung (SA), Gring handed over control of the Gestapo to Himmler on 20 April 1934. Abwehr. In an attempt to assassinate Hitler, Stauffenberg planted a bomb underneath a conference table inside the Wolf's Lair field headquarters. "Secret State Police"), abbreviated Gestapo (/stpo/ g-STAH-poh, German: [tapo] (listen)),[3] was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. [157], After the war, U.S. Counterintelligence Corps employed the former Lyon Gestapo chief Klaus Barbie for his anti-communist efforts and also helped him escape to Bolivia. [21] Both the SD and Gestapo released information concerning an imminent putsch by the SA. The Poles identified and tracked German military trains to the Eastern front and identified four Order Police battalions sent to occupied areas of the Soviet Union in October 1941 that engaged in war crimes and mass murder. [42] Habsburg loyalist Karl Burian's (who was later executed) plan to blow up the Gestapo headquarters in Vienna represented a unique attempt to act aggressively against the Gestapo. Already in early June, Hitlers 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. 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. [132] Brutality on the part of interrogatorsoften prompted by denunciations and followed with roundupsenabled the Gestapo to uncover numerous resistance networks; it also made them seem like they knew everything and could do anything they wanted. Members of the three convicted groups, however, were subject to apprehension by Britain, the United States, the Soviet Union, and France. [155] These groupsthe Nazi Party and government leadership, the German General staff and High Command (OKW); the Sturmabteilung (SA); the Schutzstaffel (SS), including the Sicherheitsdienst (SD); and the Gestapohad an aggregate membership exceeding two million, making a large number of their members liable to trial when the organisations were convicted. However, it was an important part of the brutal attacks against Jews in Germany. Nevertheless, in practice there was jurisdictional overlap and operational conflict between the SD and Gestapo.

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