The Nazi Police State

The Nazi Police State

The Gestapo (Geheime Staatspolizei) was Hitler's secret state police.

Under the command of Reinhardt Heydrich, they were employed to

identify and bringing justice upon known and potential opponents of

the Nazi regime. Heydrich was the right-hand-man to Heinrich Himmler,

the chief of German Police and leader of the SS and there were strong

rivalries between the two. This was endorsed by Hitler as he felt that

these rivalries made sure that no one was ever able to challenge

Hitler and/or his position of Supremacy The opponents of which the

Gestapo were to bring justice upon consisted of Communists and

Socialists (basically any opposing political party followers. On top

of that, Jews, homosexuals and gypsies were punished. Although they

were almost entirely innocent to the 'crime' of opposition to the Nazi

party, Hitler's anti-Semitic views of their societies lead to the

prosecution of 162,734 people by April 1939. The justice brought upon

the opposition was what was called 'Protective Custody'.

This was the imprisonment of anyone arrested under suspicion of

opposition without trial of any form; the Gestapo could imprison

whomever they thought as opposition without any evidence. They were an

organization outside Jurisdiction, including that of the courts.

Alongside this huge number of people in Protective custody, a further

21,000 people were put into labour camps, these run by the SS. Many

Jews, gypsies and homosexuals were beaten, often to death, and

although the numbers of deaths of these types are unknown, 534 death

sentences were carried out officially between 1934 and 1939. The

Gestapo were arresting, be...

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...fit were Jews, opposing party members,

gypsies and priests. It has to be considered that at this point, no

Jews were placed in concentration camps, and the holocaust was not for

at least another few years. So, up to 1939, I think that life was a

great improvement for a huge number of people, they were being paid 10

times that of which there were receiving when on dole. The KDF

improved leisure, and the National Reich Church gave many an

alternative sense of belief.

At this point in history, life was at a high for German citizens, but

the immediate future was to be the darkest in the history of Europe.

SOURCES:

The World This Century: Working With Evidence

-Neil DeMarco

Various web pages through www.google.com

The 3rd Reich - Hitler's Germany 1933-39

-Birkdale School project reference sheets.