The Terror State

How was the Gestapo involved?

• Secret network of spies.

• Created by Herman Goering but continued by Himmler.

• Would be used to eliminate opposition.

• Used torture and it was highly likely that they had a torture manual that wasn’t written down.

• Became the most important security agency.

• Was given power in 1936 to interpret the law as it saw fit.

• Feared but had support from the general population, relying on them for general arrests.

• Their large numbers were likely a myth, The Prussian Gestapo had less than 4,000 members in 1935.

• Often short-staffed.

• Most prosecutions came from jealous neighbours.

How was Goering involved?

• He was put in charge of Prussia, then putting himself in the Prussian police.

• He drafted in Hitler supporters.

• This evolved into the Gestapo.

How was the SA involved?

• From 1934 it was reconstructed to be a servant of Hitler and intimidate his opponents.

How was the SS involved?

• The main terror agency.

• Acted as an auxiliary police force to deal with political enemies and the creation of the ‘racial community’.

• Led by Himmler.

• Fully symbolised Nazi repression.

• Death’s Head units guarded the concentration camps.

• Waffen SS fought alongside the army and saw themselves as military elite.

• Training demanded complete obedience.

How was the SD involved?

• Collected intelligence on ideological opponents.

• Led by Himmler.

• Security system of the SS.

How was the RHSA involved?

• Oversaw the entire complex system.

• Controlled Nazi extermination policy, organising the deportation of Jews across Europe to extermination camps in the East.

How was Himmler involved?

• Head of the Gestapo.

• Head of the SS.

• Head of the SD.

• Made Chief of Police in 1936 and established a strong control over the whole security apparatus of the state.

How were concentration camps involved?

Used by the Gestapo as protective custody to detain enemies of the state.

How was the Einsatzgruppen involved?

• Carried out killing expeditions on Jews in eastern territories as well as Slavs and communists.

• Tens of thousands were killed.