Control in Nazi Germany (WJEC Eduqas GCSE History): Revision Note

Summary 

To maintain their grip on power, the Nazis used various methods to both intimidate and crush any opponents. 

The SS grew to be a large, important organisation in Nazi Germany, and it fulfilled several roles. These roles included spying on potential opponents, running the concentration camps where their opponents were sent and forming a separate Nazi army, known as the Waffen SS. 

The Nazi secret police, known as the Gestapo, struck fear into German society, as it was impossible to tell who the Gestapo officers or their informants were. Many Germans suddenly found themselves guilty of ‘political crimes’ due to their beliefs or lifestyles. Brutal concentration camps were opened to house people such as communists, homosexuals and trade union leaders. The Nazis imprisoned whoever they wanted for as long as they wanted, but still kept the legal system going, so it appeared as if there was justice in Germany. Trial by jury was abolished, and judges, who all had to be Nazis, decided on people’s guilt. The number of executions in Nazi Germany rapidly increased.

Use of the SS in Nazi Germany

• The SS was created in 1925 to act as personal bodyguards to Hitler

  • SS stands for Schutzstaffel and literally means protection squad

• Members had to be both ‘racially pure’ and radically loyal to the NSDAP

• Heinrich Himmler became the leader of the SS in 1929

• The SS wore black uniforms

• The SS had several roles:

  • Protect Hitler and other Nazi leaders

  • Provide security during political meetings

  • Urge people to subscribe to the Nazi newspaper, Der Völkischer Beobachter

  • Marry ‘racially pure’ wives to create ‘racially pure’ children

• The SS grew enormously under Himmler’s leadership,  especially after the Night of the Long Knives 

  • By 1939, membership of the SS had grown to 250,000

• The SS broke down into three key units

  • The SD

  • The Waffen SS

  • The Death's Head Units

The SD

• The SD was created in 1931 by Heinrich Himmler

  • Reinhard Heydrich was placed in charge

• They gathered intelligence on anyone they suspected or knew opposed the Nazi Party, including:

  • Existing and new Nazi Party members

  • Leaders and activities within other political parties

  • Minority groups such as Jewish people, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Freemasons

  • Government officials 

The Waffen SS

• The Waffen SS was created in late 1939 by Heinrich Himmler

• It was a military branch of the SS

  • They fought in most of the significant military campaigns in the war

• During the Second World War, the Waffen SS grew to have 500,000 members

  • As dedicated and committed Nazis, members of the Waffen SS were willing to fight and die for Hitler

The Death's Head Units

• The Death's Head Units were created in 1934 by Theodor Eicke, the first commandant of Dachau

• Initially, the unit ran concentration camps

  • They were trained to treat prisoners harshly and cruelly 

• Members of the Death’s Head Units went on to play a crucial role in the extermination of millions of Jewish people during the Second World War

Use of the Gestapo in Nazi Germany

• Hermann Goering initially created the Gestapo to 'investigate and combat all attempts to threaten the state'

  • Gestapo is short for Geheime Staatspolizei - Secret State Police

• By 1934, Reinhard Heydrich, Himmler’s deputy, led the Gestapo

• They were infamous for wearing plain clothes so they could not be easily identifiable

• The Gestapo had several roles:

  • Tapping phones and spying on opponents

  • Arresting, questioning and torturing suspects

    • Around 160,000 people were arrested in 1939 for political crimes

  • Sending people directly to concentration camps using protective custody

  • Releasing information about concentration camp conditions to spread fear

• They relied on denunciations from the public to target suspects:

  • Only around 10% of political crimes committed were discovered by the Gestapo, compared to 80% reported by ordinary citizens

• Large cities such as Hamburg and Frankfurt only had 40-50 Gestapo agents, which demonstrates the reliance on informants and fear to reduce opposition

Concentration camps in Nazi Germany

• Most arrests made by the police services were related to ‘political crimes’, which involved speaking out against the Nazi Party

• Dachau was opened in 1933 and became the first concentration camp in Nazi Germany

• Concentration camps were created to imprison many groups:

  • Minority groups such as Jewish people and Jehovah’s Witnesses

  • ‘Undesirables’ such as homosexuals, prostitutes and Romani

  • Political opponents, including journalists, writers, intellectuals and communists

• Conditions in concentration camps were awful, and inmates were forced to do hard labour

Control of the Legal System

• The Nazi Party had control of the legal system

• This allowed them to remove opposition under the illusion that it was fair and just

  • However, cases were often pre-determined and biased in favour of a conviction

Judges and lawyers  

• Judges and lawyers were required to prioritise the interests of the Nazi Party above all else

  • Judges joined the National Socialist League for the Maintenance of the Law

    • Judges were dismissed if they did not join

  • Lawyers joined the German Lawyers Front

• Judges had to wear the swastika from 1936

• Judges decided the outcome of cases, not the jury

Law courts 

• Trial by jury was removed 

  • This meant that judges decided the outcome of the case

• The People’s Court was introduced to hear cases of treason

  • Judges radically loyal to the Nazi Party were selected

  • Trials were held in secret

  • The right to appeal was removed

• Nazi control of the legal system led to a rapid rise in the number of political opponents being executed:

  • Between 1930 and 1932, only eight people were executed

  • Between 1934 and 1939, this increased to 534 people