Facts about the Nazis' use of fear to control Germany

1. Terror and
repression: police,
Gestapo and the SS

2. Using the powers of the
February Decrees and
Enabling Act, the Nazis set
about preventing any
possible opposition.
This included the use of fear
and violence, either through
the police, or Nazi
organisations such as the SA
and SS.

3. After taking power, the Nazis
reorganised Germany’s police
force.
Prior to Nazi rule, each German
state had their own police
force. However by 1936 these
were reorganised into one
national force, under the
control of Chief of Police,
Heinrich Himmler.

4. Himmler oversaw four police
organisations:
• The SS – Nazi police force
and security group
• Orpo – Ordinary police,
dealing with issues such as
traffic management
• Sipo – Security police forces
• SD – Security Service

5. The SS was a hugely influential
part of not only the Nazi Party
but Germany as a whole.
The Schutzstaffel wore black
shirts and were originally
Hitler’s bodyguards.
Once the Nazis took power, the
SS were given a range of
powers and acted as a key
intimidator of opponents.

6. The SS became an auxiliary
police force. It had the power
of arrest of any possible
opponents.
By 1939 the SS had almost
250,000 members. SS
members were part of most
German organisations and
controlled the death camps
during World War Two.

7. The other major police body in
Nazi Germany was the
Gestapo.
The Gestapo and SS were both
overseen by Himmler and had
some similar aims (such as
stopping Germany’s enemies)
but were separate bodies.
The Gestapo was originally the
Prussian Secret Police.

8. The Gestapo were Germany’s
secret police force.
Their key role was to identify
any potential threat to Hitler
and Germany, and remove
them.
Based on the Gestapo’s
actions, thousands of people
were sent to prison or
concentration camps.

9. The Gestapo gave the
impression of being all-seeing
and all-knowing. This meant
that potential Nazi opponents
were too scared to even raise
their objections.
The Gestapo never had more
than 30,000 members in a
country of around 65 million
people.

10. The Gestapo used a variety of
methods to achieve their goals.
They were often given help from
the public, who would offer
comments and cooperation.
The Gestapo also used extreme
methods to achieve control,
including arbitrary arrest and
torture to achieve confessions
from their victims.

11. Most people who were arrested
by the Gestapo had been
denunciated (given up by
people that they knew).
Often the people who did this
were not making a political
statement, but a personal one
(perhaps based on jealousy or
racial hatred). Eventually the
Gestapo threatened those
making such claims with prison.

12. The Nazis’ control of the
police helped them control
the German population.
By July 1933, 26,000 people
were political prisoners, and
between 1933-45, 800,000
people were jailed for
resistance. In this same
period, 32,000 were legally
killed by the state.

13. Historians’ views
• David Evans and Jane Jenkins: Although there were limits to
the power of the SS, its influence was varied and extensive.
• Richard J Evans: The Nazis did use coercion to achieve control
but also tried to win support through the use of propaganda.
• Roderick Stackelberg: Hitler was genuinely popular with the
German people due to economic improvements.
• Robert Gellately: Most Gestapo denunciations came from
personal factors, not political ones.