a country where the government uses the police and security forces to control every part of people’s lives through fear, surveillance and arrest

a place where large numbers of people are kept as prisoners in extremely bad conditions, especially for political reasons

information collected by a government or security organisation to identify threats and control opposition, often using spying or surveillance

a police force that works in secret to spy on, arrest, and punish people who are seen as enemies of the government, often using illegal methods

public accusations made by ordinary citizens to Nazi authorities, reporting others for disloyalty to the regime; these reports, often driven by personal motives, fuelled widespread fear and paranoia

Nazi control of the police and the legal system

History

The Reichstag Fire and the Enabling Act

Hitler's creation of a dictatorship

The Nazi Party and religion

Hitler's dictatorship: How did the Nazis establish a dictatorship in Germany?

Discriminatory behaviour or images, whether on the grounds of race, gender, disability, religion or belief or sexual orientation, or otherwise.

Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour

Historic or outdated representations of people that may portray inequality or injustice.

Subjects which particular individuals may be sensitive to, eg, adoption, migration, bereavement or death, divorce, poverty, deprivation.

Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Depiction or discussion of violence or fighting, including threats of violence or the aftermath of violence.

Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

a country where citizens vote for new laws by popular referendum

a country where only military leaders are allowed to govern

a country where police forces control society through fear and surveillance

They spied on citizens and gathered information.

What role did the SD (Sicherheitsdienst) play in the Nazi police state?

As Nazi Germany’s secret police, the {{}} used fear, surveillance, and denunciations to control the population, despite having only a small number of officers.

They brought all terror organisations under Himmler’s command.

They were appointed by the Weimar government to restore order.

They won national elections and gained new powers.

How did the SS gain full control of the Nazi terror system by 1939?

The Nazis reshaped the legal system so that {{}} had to join the National Socialist League for the Maintenance of the Law.

They believed Nazi justice was fairer than Weimar law.

They valued the sense of order after the chaos of the Weimar years.

They were paid by the Nazis to support the regime.

Why did some Germans support the Nazi police state despite its brutality?

their refusal to take part in Nazi propaganda

What worried Hitler and senior leaders about the SA by summer 1934?

The SA posed a serious threat in 1934 because they wanted to take over the army with a people’s force and promoted {{}} ideas that alarmed wealthy businessmen who had funded the Nazi Party.

head of the SS, seeking to expand its power

head of the Gestapo, with military ambitions

vice-chancellor who publicly criticised SA violence

Match each Nazi figure to their role in the power struggle against Röhm.

that the President might hand power to the military to stop the SA

What did General von Blomberg and the army leadership warn Hitler in June 1934?

Hitler gained the army’s personal loyalty.

Hitler showed he was willing to murder even close allies.

Hitler's image as a peaceful leader was strengthened.

What were the key consequences of the Night of the Long Knives?

After Hindenburg’s death, Hitler merged the roles of President and Chancellor, giving himself the title of {{}} .

Exit Quiz

What is a police state?