GESTAPO: The Empire of Terror that Dominated Germany During 12 Years

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Added 4 months ago by McDan

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On April 26, 1933, Hermann Göring created a political investigation office in Berlin that, twelve years later, had become a central structure of state control. This organization, known as the Gestapo, formed part of the Third Reich's security system alongside the SS and the Security Service (SD).

Under the successive direction of Göring, Heinrich Himmler, and Reinhard Heydrich, the Gestapo was integrated in 1939 into the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA). Its operation was based on the systematic collection of information, internal surveillance, and the application of administrative measures such as protective custody, which allowed for detentions without judicial process.

Following the Reichstag fire in February 1933 and the passage of the Enabling Act, fundamental rights were suspended, and a framework of political repression was consolidated. The 1934 purge eliminated internal opponents, including SA leaders. During the war, the structure extended to occupied territories, where it coordinated deportations, concentrations in ghettos, and security operations.

Figures like Adolf Eichmann managed logistical transfer processes from offices in Vienna and Berlin. Events such as the assassination of Heydrich in Prague in 1942 triggered reprisals in locations like Lidice. In the final years, the organization faced internal conspiracies, such as the White Rose group and the circle around Wilhelm Canaris, until the dissolution of the regime in 1945.