The Nazi Police State
The SA (Sturmabteilung) and SS (Schutzstaffel)
The SA and the SS were the main forces that pushes the Nazi Party into success, they were known amongst the Germans for their brutality and violent nature. The SA was formed before the SS, in 1919. The SA were particularly known for their violent behaviour, threatening people in public who went against the propaganda of the NSDAP, and voters that didn't vote for them, and remained the same until Hitler had reorganized the party. They were still threatening, but they no long commit such crimes in public, they had turned into a last resort, sort of like evidence to the voters of how if they had voted for the NSDAP in seats for the Reichstag, they would have gotten the public's back, and also shows that the NSDAP is powerful, and efficient, determined to get the job done quick and good quality.
However, Hitler set up his own military group in 1925, called the Schutzstaffel, or SS, which serves as a personal bodyguard for Hitler. From 1929 onwards, it was run by Heinrich Himmler. It's main function was to be the NSDAP's own new private police force and was loyal to Hitler only. They had warned Hitler about Roehm's possible revolt in 1934, and Hitler has used them for killings of the SA officers in the Night of the Long Knives.
During the 1930s, the SS has been expanded to about 50,000 men and was put in charge of all the other state's security services. Another very important part of the SS's duty was the job of "racial purification", where none Germans, especially Jews, were to be terminated. The part of SS that runs the concentration camps was called the "Totenkopf", or in English, Death's Head Units. And because they had such a job, Himmler had to very carefully pick the members that joins the SS, not only do they have to be ruthless and tactical, they also had to be Aryan in appearance, and all members were expected to marry "racially pure" wives, or genetically high-leveled women (basically white German women).
The Gestapo
The Gestapo, or Geheime Staatspolizei, was Hitler's non-uniformed secret force. Although sources record that they weren't as violent as the SA and the SS, but they were the most feared, not because of their brutality, but psychological fear they'd cause the public. Because they aren't wearing uniforms, they easily blend in with the crowd, therefore easier to get a person or a group hot handed of talking down on the Nazi policies, Hitler, or anything that might harm their propaganda. Whoever they had caught on the street would be imprisoned straight away, without the need of going through any sort of trial. This group was set up in 1933 by Hermann Goering and were placed under control of the SS in 1936. The Gestapo was led by Reinhard Heydrich. Since it doesn't need to follow any laws or responsible for anything, by 1939 150,000 people were already under "protective arrest" which means that none of them had done any bad things like robbery, they just did things the Nazi disapproved of.
The SA and the SS were the main forces that pushes the Nazi Party into success, they were known amongst the Germans for their brutality and violent nature. The SA was formed before the SS, in 1919. The SA were particularly known for their violent behaviour, threatening people in public who went against the propaganda of the NSDAP, and voters that didn't vote for them, and remained the same until Hitler had reorganized the party. They were still threatening, but they no long commit such crimes in public, they had turned into a last resort, sort of like evidence to the voters of how if they had voted for the NSDAP in seats for the Reichstag, they would have gotten the public's back, and also shows that the NSDAP is powerful, and efficient, determined to get the job done quick and good quality.
However, Hitler set up his own military group in 1925, called the Schutzstaffel, or SS, which serves as a personal bodyguard for Hitler. From 1929 onwards, it was run by Heinrich Himmler. It's main function was to be the NSDAP's own new private police force and was loyal to Hitler only. They had warned Hitler about Roehm's possible revolt in 1934, and Hitler has used them for killings of the SA officers in the Night of the Long Knives.
During the 1930s, the SS has been expanded to about 50,000 men and was put in charge of all the other state's security services. Another very important part of the SS's duty was the job of "racial purification", where none Germans, especially Jews, were to be terminated. The part of SS that runs the concentration camps was called the "Totenkopf", or in English, Death's Head Units. And because they had such a job, Himmler had to very carefully pick the members that joins the SS, not only do they have to be ruthless and tactical, they also had to be Aryan in appearance, and all members were expected to marry "racially pure" wives, or genetically high-leveled women (basically white German women).
The Gestapo
The Gestapo, or Geheime Staatspolizei, was Hitler's non-uniformed secret force. Although sources record that they weren't as violent as the SA and the SS, but they were the most feared, not because of their brutality, but psychological fear they'd cause the public. Because they aren't wearing uniforms, they easily blend in with the crowd, therefore easier to get a person or a group hot handed of talking down on the Nazi policies, Hitler, or anything that might harm their propaganda. Whoever they had caught on the street would be imprisoned straight away, without the need of going through any sort of trial. This group was set up in 1933 by Hermann Goering and were placed under control of the SS in 1936. The Gestapo was led by Reinhard Heydrich. Since it doesn't need to follow any laws or responsible for anything, by 1939 150,000 people were already under "protective arrest" which means that none of them had done any bad things like robbery, they just did things the Nazi disapproved of.
Hitler visiting his SS troopers
Hitler and his SA troopers