Gestapo
Sign in to saveThe ' (, , abbreviated Gestapo' ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
AI overview
The Gestapo was the secret police force of Nazi Germany and operated throughout German-occupied Europe during World War II. It matters historically because it was the official instrument of state repression and control under the Nazi regime, making it central to understanding how the Nazi government enforced its authority and carried out its policies.
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Key facts
- Law enforcement agency.agencyname
- Gestapo
- Law enforcement agency.flag
- 200px
- Law enforcement agency.flagcaption
- Gestapo headquarters at Prinz-Albrecht-Straße 8 in Berlin (1933)
- Law enforcement agency.preceding1
- Prussian Secret Police (founded 1851)
- Law enforcement agency.employees
- 32,000 (1944 )
- Law enforcement agency.legaljuris
- Germany and occupied Europe
- Law enforcement agency.secret
- yes
- Law enforcement agency.speciality1
- <!-- up to
- Law enforcement agency.speciality6
- -->
- Law enforcement agency.headquarters
- Prinz-Albrecht-Straße 8, Berlin
- Law enforcement agency.electeetype
- Minister
- Law enforcement agency.minister1name
Article
27 sectionsContents
- History
- Counterintelligence
- Suppression of resistance and persecution
- Trade unions
- Implications of the Nuremberg Laws
- Religious dissent
- Homosexuality
- Student opposition
- General opposition and military conspiracy
- Organisation
- Female criminal investigation career
- Membership
- Population ratios, methods, and effectiveness
- Torture
- Operations in Nazi-occupied territories
- Nuremberg trials
- Aftermath
- Leadership
- Timeline
- Principal agents and officers
- Ranks and uniforms
- See also
- Notes
- Citations
- Bibliography
- Further reading
- External links
The ' (, , abbreviated Gestapo' ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organisation. On 20 April 1934, oversight of the Gestapo passed to the head of the Schutzstaffel (SS), Heinrich Himmler, who was also appointed Chief of German Police by Hitler in 1936. Instead of being exclusively a Prussian state agency, the Gestapo became a national one as a sub-office of the (SiPo; Security Police). From 27 September 1939, it was administered by the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA). It became known as (Dept) 4 of the RSHA and was considered a sister organisation to the (SD; Security Service).