[94] However, Gestapo leader Heinrich Mller was never tried, as he disappeared at the end of the war. [121], The popular picture of the Gestapo with its spies everywhere terrorising German society has been rejected by many historians as a myth invented after the war as a cover for German society's widespread complicity in allowing the Gestapo to work. The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944. [131] Failing that, torture and planting evidence were common methods of resolving a case, especially if the case concerned someone Jewish. The Gestapo had its own system of arrests, judiciary, and execution. Marjorie Taylor Greene Confuses 'Gazpacho' and 'Gestapo' What is the difference between the SD and the Gestapo? Rhm himself was arrested, put into prison and given a chance to commit suicide. [7][8] He originally wanted to name it the Secret Police Office (Geheimes Polizeiamt), but the German initials, "GPA", were too similar to those of the Soviet State Political Directorate (Gosudarstvennoye Politicheskoye Upravlenie, or GPU). [39], In 1942, the Gestapo discovered a cache of Polish intelligence documents in Prague and were surprised to see that Polish agents and informants had been gathering detailed military information and smuggling it out to London, via Budapest and Istanbul. In this Historyplex write-up, we have distinguished the three organizations based on their formation, objectives, and responsibilities, to name a few factors. Excellent Work! Gestapo members Hermann Gring, Ernst Kaltenbrunner and Arthur Seyss-Inquart were individually convicted. The Gestapo ruthlessly eliminated opposition to the Nazis within Germany and its occupied territories and, in partnership with the Sicherheitsdienst (SD; "Security Service"), was responsible for the roundup of Jews throughout Europe for deportation to extermination camps. The SA, or the Sturmabteilung, were formed in Munich, Germany, in 1921 by Adolf Hitler himself. The Gestapo supplied the information which implicated the SA and ultimately enabled Himmler and Heydrich to emancipate themselves entirely from the organisation. The organisation of the security structures in the Nazi Germany was very complicated, often quite illogical, and the limit between different organisations like Gestapo or the SD or the Abwehr, is often difficult to draw. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. [65] If homosexuals showed any signs of sympathy to the Nazis' identified racial enemies, they were considered an even greater danger. [147], In places like Denmark, there were some 550 uniformed Danes in Copenhagen working with the Gestapo, patrolling and terrorising the local population at the behest of their German overseers, many of whom were arrested after the war. Deans were to be targeted as the "eyes and ears of the bishops" and a "vast network" established to monitor the activities of ordinary clergy: "The importance of this enemy is such that inspectors of security police and of the security service will make this group of people and the questions discussed by them their special concern". [54] The extreme anti-semitism and neo-pagan heresies of the Nazis caused some Christians to outright resist,[55] and Pope Pius XI to issue the encyclical Mit brennender Sorge denouncing Nazism and warning Catholics against joining or supporting the Party. Founded in 1999. [75], Early efforts to resist the Nazis with aid from abroad were hindered when the opposition's peace feelers to the Western Allies did not meet with success. The killed SA members were further demeaned by making their homosexuality public. Employing biological metaphors, Best emphasised a doctrine which encouraged members of the Gestapo to view themselves as 'doctors' to the 'national body' in the struggle against "pathogens" and "diseases"; among the implied sicknesses were "communists, Freemasons, and the churchesand above and behind all these stood the Jews". [46] Because the Gestapo seemed omniscient and omnipotent, the atmosphere of fear they created led to an overestimation of their reach and strength; a faulty assessment which hampered the operational effectiveness of underground resistance organisations. 1938 Gestapo border inspection stamp applied when leaving Germany On 17 June 1936, Hitler decreed the unification of all police forces in Germany and named Himmler as Chief of German Police. [50] Meanwhile, the SA and police occupied trade union headquarters, arrested functionaries, confiscated their property and assets; all by design so as to be replaced on 12 May by the German Labour Front (DAF), a Nazi organisation placed under the leadership of Robert Ley. For the most part, members of the church did not offer political resistance but simply wanted to ensure that organizational doctrine remained intact. [32] Although the Sicherheitspolizei was officially disbanded, the term SiPo was figuratively used to describe any RSHA personnel throughout the remainder of the war. (2013). [102], In 1933, there was no purge of the German police forces. The people who came under the suspicious category were political opponents, Jews, the Gypsies, people from other ethnic minorities, the disabled, the unemployed, and the homosexuals. This represented a radical departure from German tradition, which held that law enforcement was (mostly) a Land (state) and local matter. by Starinov 12 Aug 2002, 21:51, Post [49] On the following day, the newly formed Gestapo officers, who had been shadowing some 58 trade union leaders, arrested them wherever they could find themmany in their homes. The resistance group, later discovered by the Gestapo because of a double agent of the Abwehr, was in contact with Allen Dulles, the head of the US Office of Strategic Services in Switzerland. PDF Right: GESTAPO HEADQUARTERS IN BRUSSELS - DocDroid Himmler was nominally subordinate to Frick as police chief, but as Reichsfhrer-SS, he answered only to Hitler. The Geheime Staatspolizei (transl. Leading members of the most famous of these groups, the White Rose, were arrested by the police and turned over to the Gestapo. As early as 1935, a Prussian administrative court had ruled that the Gestapo's actions were not subject to judicial review. The Gestapo is a short-lived police organization that existed around 1934-1939 only while the SS is longer since they existed for sixteen years around 1929-1945 before being abolished. [9], The first commander of the Gestapo was Rudolf Diels, a protg of Gring. Some pastors, like the Protestant clergyman Dietrich Bonhoeffer, paid for their opposition with their lives. Heinrich Himmler Copyright Historyplex & Buzzle.com, Inc. The SS was also known as the parent organization of the Secret State Police, the Gestapo, and was responsible for organizing mobile killing units that went on a murder rampage in the occupied territories. Simultaneously, Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, the Nazi paramilitary corps, together with his aide Reinhard Heydrich, similarly reorganized the police of Bavaria and the remaining German states. With its dramatic rise to power, the SA began to slowly assume themselves to be somewhat of a replacement to the German Army. [18] Rhm's position was menacing as more than 4.5 million men fell under his command once the militias and veterans organisations were absorbed by the SA,[19] a fact which fuelled Rhm's aspirations; his dream of fusing the SA and Reichswehr together was undermining Hitler's relationships with the leadership of Germany's armed forces. The official positions of defendants as heads of state or holders of high government offices were not to free them from responsibility or mitigate their punishment; nor was the fact that a defendant acted pursuant to an order of a superior to excuse him from responsibility, although it might be considered by the IMT in mitigation of punishment. Confidential office hostile foreigners, Occupied territories France, Belgium, Holland, Norway, Denmark (D4), Department E (Security and counterintelligence), Viktor Harnischfeger (Dsseldorf Gestapo Criminal Commissar). The Gestapo was somewhat of a division of the SS, making SS the parent organization. Hitler initially refused to believe the claims against Rhm, even though his officials provided him with created evidence. Abwehr was the German military intelligence organization. Oberstleutnant Werner Schrader (July 20 & Abwehr) - Axis History [118] The information supplied by denunciations often led the Gestapo in determining who was arrested. What was the difference between the SS and the Gestapo in terms of who "[135] The involvement of ordinary Germans in denunciations also needs to be put into perspective so as not to exonerate the Gestapo. No reason was ever given for their arrest or executionjust the fact that they seemed suspicious was enough. Corrections? Gradually, with time, the SS became one of the most-feared organizations in Germany. [96][97], In total, there were some fifty-four regional Gestapo offices across the German federal states. [32] The Gestapo became Amt IV (Department IV) of RSHA and Mller became the Gestapo Chief, with Heydrich as his immediate superior. The power of the Gestapo was used to focus upon political opponents, ideological dissenters (clergy and religious organisations), career criminals, the Sinti and Roma population, handicapped persons, homosexuals, and above all, the Jews. The Gestapo also cooperated extensively with the Ordnungspolizei for operations inside Germany and in the occupied territories. After Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany, Hermann Gringfuture commander of the Luftwaffe and the number two man in the Nazi Partywas named Interior Minister of Prussia. Before establishing the SA as a paramilitary wing, it was known as a sports division in the party to avoid suspicion. the United States . It was officially declared to be a criminal organization and banned in Germany by the International Tribunal in 1945, and some of its surviving officials were arrested, tried, and executed for inhuman war crimes. [139] Much like their affiliated organisations, the SS and the SD, the Gestapo "played a leading part" in enslaving and deporting workers from occupied territory, torturing and executing civilians, singling out and murdering Jews, and subjecting Allied prisoners of war to terrible treatment. [145] Many of the auxiliary police personnel operating on behalf of German Order Police, the SD, and Gestapo were members of the Schutzmannschaft, which included staffing by Ukrainians, Belorussians, Russians, Estonians, Lithuanians, and Latvians. Canaris was appointed to head the Abwehr Military Intelligence in 1935. [129] The "administrative control" category concerned those who were breaking the law concerning residency in the city. Abfraction is a common dental problem caused by the flexing of teeth during biting and . The leader of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, along with a few other senior Nazi officials carefully plotted and planned the murder of the leader of the SA. This move also gave Himmler operational control over Germany's entire detective force. They nearly drowned suspects in ice-cold water, gave them electric shocks, hung them by their wrists, or beat them savagely. "Secret State Police"), abbreviated Gestapo (/stpo/ g-STAH-poh, German: [tapo] (listen)),[3] was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. [10] Diels was best known as the primary interrogator of Marinus van der Lubbe after the Reichstag fire. When the Nazis came to power in 1933, Hermann Gring, then Prussian minister of the interior, detached the political and espionage units from the regular Prussian police, filled their ranks with thousands of Nazis, and, on April 26, 1933, reorganized them under his personal command as the Gestapo. As late as 6 June 1944, Heinrich Mllerconcerned about the leakage of information to the Alliesset up a special unit called Sonderkommando Jerzy that was meant to root out the Polish intelligence network in western and southwestern Europe. After his escape, he rejoined the army as a Hauptmann, with seniority dating from May 1st of 1934. . Hitler's Two Armies - HistoryNet KRIPO this was the criminal investigation part of the Ordnungspolizei the same as all countries investigation branch.It was state funded. 6789 Quail Hill Pkwy, Suite 211 Irvine CA 92603. [74] One of the methods employed by the Gestapo to contend with these resistance factions was 'protective detention' which facilitated the process in expediting dissenters to concentration camps and against which there was no legal defence. The SS initially had an all-black uniform specially designed for its men, which was replaced by uniforms in camouflaging colors during the war. [159], Leitstellung (district office) staff did wear the grey SS service uniform, but with police-pattern shoulderboards, and SS rank insignia on the left collar patch. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. [6] This gave Gring command of the largest police force in Germany. However, with the Abwehr and GFP being flooded with work, the situation changed and the SS shrewdly used the opportunity to gain a foothold in Belgium. Rhm wanted the SA to be run like the German Army, and he went about creating a structural hierarchy in the organization, a general staff, a training college, and placed Hitler himself at the very top of the hierarchy he had created. It is quite likely that you have come across the terms SS, SA, and Gestapo frequently when studying or reading world history, especially the history of Germany and other parts of Europe from the 1920s to the 1940s. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. These three organizations always rivaled each other and their competences often overlapped. For example, in 1939 Stettin and Frankfurt am Main only had a total of 41 Gestapo men combined. [153][f], Leaders, organisers, investigators and accomplices participating in the formulation or execution of a common plan or conspiracy to commit the crimes specified were declared responsible for all acts performed by any persons in execution of such plan. The Abwehr ( German for resistance or defence, but the word usually means counterintelligence in a military context; pronounced [apve]) was the German military-intelligence service for the Reichswehr and the Wehrmacht from 1920 to 1945. The original foundation date of the Gestapo can be traced back in April 1933 whereas the foundation date of the SS is originally on 1923. [91], As a result of its 1936 merger with the Kripo (National criminal police) to form sub-units of the Sicherheitspolizei (SiPo; Security Police), the Gestapo was officially classified as a government agency. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. It successfully thwarted Operation Valkyrie, wherein an attempt to assassinate Hitler was made by some senior Nazi officials themselves. The Abwehr was the German military intelligence organization from 1866 to 1944. Sabotage efforts were undertaken by members of the Abwehr (military intelligence) leadership, as they recruited people known to oppose the Nazi regime. The force was created by Hermann Gring in 1933 by combining the various security police agencies of Prussia into one organisation. [113] In Germany proper, many towns and cities had fewer than 50 official Gestapo personnel. Gestapo vs. Ss - What's the difference? | Ask Difference [130], Normal methods of investigation included various forms of blackmail, threats and extortion to secure "confessions". The Nazi Party felt the need for a secret police organization, and hence, the Geheime Staatspolizei was born in 1933. These cookies do not store any personal information. Life in the Third Reich & Weimar Republic, Kriegsmarine surface ships and Kriegsmarine in general, Luftwaffe air units and Luftwaffe in general, German Strategy & General German Military Discussion, NSDAP, other party organizations & Government, The Dieter Zinke Axis Biographical Research Section, The Ron Klages Panzer & other vehicles Section, Panzer & other vehicles - Photo threads, Axis Documents, Feldpost numbers, Postcards & Other Paper Items, The United Kingdom & its Empire and Commonwealth 1919-45, The Allies and the Neutral States in general, German Colonies and Overseas Expeditions, The end of the Ottoman Empire 1908-1923, Translation help: Breaking the Sound Barrier, Differences between SD & GESTAPO: practical point of vue, Re: Differences between SD & GESTAPO: practical point of. within the Reich as the Gestapo, in the occu-pied countries it was known as the Sipo-SD. Rhm harbored the same intentions. Nonetheless, operations performed either by German members of the Gestapo or auxiliaries from willing collaborators of other nationalities were inconsistent in both disposition and effectiveness. [100] It was the Gestapo chief, SS-Brigadierfhrer Heinrich Mller, who kept Hitler abreast of the killing operations in the Soviet Union and who issued orders to the four Einsatzgruppen that their continual work in the east was to be "presented to the Fhrer. [144], Throughout the Eastern territories, the Gestapo and other Nazi organisations co-opted the assistance of indigenous police units, nearly all of whom were uniformed and able to carry out drastic actions. Although an agent in uniform wore the collar insignia of the equivalent SS rank, he was still addressed as, e.g., Operation Crossbow Preliminary missions for the Operation Overlord, https://english.radio.cz/petscheks-palace-once-headquarters-nazi-secret-police-8575365, USHMM, "Law and Justice in the Third Reich", US National Archives, "German Police Records Opened at the National Archives", Avalon Project, Nazi Conspiracy and Aggression, The National Socialist Document Center of Cologne, "From Nazi to Criminal to Post-War Spy: German Intelligence Hired Klaus Barbie as Agent (20 January 2011)", "Press Release nr00-52: German Police Records Opened at the National Archives", Festung Furulund magasinet Dagbladet.no, Collection of testimonies concerning Gestapo activity in occupied Poland during WWII in "Chronicles of Terror" database, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gestapo&oldid=1151862694, Reactionaries, liberals and opposition (A3). Also known as the Storm Troopers or the Brownshirts (they were called the Brownshirts because of their brown uniforms), it was the original paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party, whose violent tactics played a huge role in Hitlers rise to power in Germany. Abwehr. [121] 80% of all Gestapo investigations were started in response to information provided by denunciations by ordinary Germans; while 10% were started in response to information provided by other branches of the German government and another 10% started in response to information that the Gestapo itself unearthed. [80] Known as the 20 July plot, this assassination attempt failed and Hitler was only slightly injured. Although Maier and the other group members were severely tortured, the Gestapo did not uncover the essential involvement of the resistance group in Operation Crossbow and Operation Hydra. Even a Gestapo Agent would understand it now! by Peter J. Hertel 16 Aug 2002, 05:52, Return to The Phil Nix SS & Polizei section. [124], An examination of 213 denunciations in Dsseldorf showed that 37% were motivated by personal conflicts, no motive could be established in 39%, and 24% were motivated by support for the Nazi regime. by Wilfried Abenaschon 13 Aug 2002, 02:31, Post [132] Brutality on the part of interrogatorsoften prompted by denunciations and followed with roundupsenabled the Gestapo to uncover numerous resistance networks; it also made them seem like they knew everything and could do anything they wanted. to the Allies. The basic Gestapo law passed by the government in 1936 gave the Gestapo carte blanche to operate without judicial reviewin effect, putting it above the law. When asked for identification, an operative was required only to present his warrant disc and not a picture identification. The SS was given the complete authority of all the concentration camps in Germany as well as the occupied regions after 1934. by JLEES 16 Aug 2002, 02:40, Post [103] By March 1937, the Gestapo employed an estimated 6,500 people in fifty-four regional offices across the Reich. [50], Many parts of Germany (where religious dissent existed upon the Nazi seizure of power) saw a rapid transformation; a change as noted by the Gestapo in conservative towns such as Wrzburg, where people acquiesced to the regime either through accommodation, collaboration, or simple compliance. At the beginning of the war, the Gestapo employed about 40,000 men. [104] Additional staff were added in March 1938 consequent the annexation of Austria and again in October 1938 with the acquisition of the Sudetenland. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Differences between SD & GESTAPO: practical point of vue - Axis History Nearly all of them, including: the Rmer Group, Robby Group, Solf Circle, Schwarze Reichswehr, the Party of the Radical Middle Class, Jungdeutscher Orden, Schwarze Front and Stahlhelm were either discovered or infiltrated by the Gestapo. Answer (1 of 4): It was of a piece with the Nazi governing policy: the Fhrerprinzip that created a a plethora of government agencies engaged in non-stop internecine bureaucratic turf wars. [108] Heydrich thought along similar lines and advocated both defensive and offensive measures on the part of the Gestapo, so as to prevent any subversion or destruction of the National Socialist body.