The SA (Sturmabteilung) and the SS (Schutzstaffel)
These were the elites, the very tendons of power that held Nazi Germany in its superior reign. First, it was the SA that dominated Hitler's main bodyguard force, and later, the SS. The SA, led by Ernst Röhm, had become too powerful and disobedient; therefore, Hitler decided to completely destroy the thriving force. The Night of the Long Knives (which will be mentioned later) in 1938 marked the date of devastation, when Röehm and many other loyal Nazi supporters are murdered in cold blood. This was when the SS as well as the Gestapo, came to power.
Both the SS and the SA were ruthless to their very guts. After the SA's faltering loyalty to Hitler, they were replaced by the even more brutal SS, led by Heinrich Himmler. One famous quote showing the SS's atrocity is this: "The SS men said, 'Do you really want to go with your children?' They said, 'Yes' and went to their death." They would stop at nothing that barricaded their loyalty to Hitler and the Nazis and went did dreadful things to those who opposed the Nazi regime. The SS ran their own concentration camps and death camps, bringing rebels and 'sub-humans' to their knees (not to mention deaths). This was one reason why Hitler's Third Reich was so effective and would definitely have lasted longer if Germany hadn't lost World War II.
The SA was a fundamental organization to Hitler's success in coming to power. Led by the murderous 'raving homosexual' Ernst Röhm, the SA was recruited from the citizen ranks, but only the racially pure 'Aryans' were allowed to join. Their eventual downfall, despite all odds, was caused by their hunger for power.
The SS, the descendants, were never taken from their perch after they replaced the SA. They were later made a criminal organization after the downfall of Nazi Germany and the defeat of Germany.
Both the SS and the SA were ruthless to their very guts. After the SA's faltering loyalty to Hitler, they were replaced by the even more brutal SS, led by Heinrich Himmler. One famous quote showing the SS's atrocity is this: "The SS men said, 'Do you really want to go with your children?' They said, 'Yes' and went to their death." They would stop at nothing that barricaded their loyalty to Hitler and the Nazis and went did dreadful things to those who opposed the Nazi regime. The SS ran their own concentration camps and death camps, bringing rebels and 'sub-humans' to their knees (not to mention deaths). This was one reason why Hitler's Third Reich was so effective and would definitely have lasted longer if Germany hadn't lost World War II.
The SA was a fundamental organization to Hitler's success in coming to power. Led by the murderous 'raving homosexual' Ernst Röhm, the SA was recruited from the citizen ranks, but only the racially pure 'Aryans' were allowed to join. Their eventual downfall, despite all odds, was caused by their hunger for power.
The SS, the descendants, were never taken from their perch after they replaced the SA. They were later made a criminal organization after the downfall of Nazi Germany and the defeat of Germany.