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Heinrich Himmler

Heinrich Himmler. October 7, 1900 – May 23, 1945. Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS). He was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany. As Reichsführer-SS he oversaw all police and security forces, including the Gestapo.

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Heinrich Himmler

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  1. Heinrich Himmler October 7, 1900 – May 23, 1945

  2. Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS). He was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany. As Reichsführer-SS he oversaw all police and security forces, including the Gestapo. • After the war, Himmler was active in the Freikorps. He also joined the National Socialist German Workers Party and in 1923 took part in the Munich Putsch. He joined the Sturm Abteilung (SA) in 1927 and was a devout follower of Adolf Hitler. Himmler believed Hitler was the Messiah that was destined to lead Germany to greatness. Hitler, who was always vulnerable to flattery, decided in January, 1929, that Himmler should become the new leader of his personal bodyguard, the Schutzstaffel (SS).

  3. By the time of his appointment the SS had only 280 members. With the agreement of Adolf Hitler, Himmler expanded the size of the SS. Himmler personally vetted all applicants to make sure that all were good ‘Aryan’ men. By the time the Nazi Party gained power in 1933 Himmler’s SS had grown to a strength of 52,000. • After January 1933 its primary function was to assist in the rounding up of threats to the Nazi Party. In April 1934, Himmler was appointed head of the Gestapo. • This was to become the most feared unit in Nazi Germany and occupied Europe in World War Two. Himmler proved a master at organising such a force.

  4. In 1936 Himmler gained further authority as he was appointed commander of the unified police forces in Germany. This gave him all but unlimited power to know who was a threat to Hitler and the party. • Despite his title, Himmler gained only partial control of the uniformed police. The actual powers granted to him were some that were previously exercised by the ministry of the interior. It was only in 1943, when Himmler was appointed minister of the interior, that the transfer of ministerial power was complete.

  5. In the winter of 1944–45, Himmler’s Waffen-SS numbered 910,000 members, with the Allgemeine-SS hosting a membership of nearly two million. • Himmler also oversaw the entire concentration camp system. • In 1945 Hitler declared Himmler to be a traitor. The day before Hitler committed suicide, he stripped Himmler of his titles and ranks - Reichsführer-SS (Supreme Commander of the SS), Successor of Adolf Hitler (as Reich chancellor), Chief of the German police, Reich commissioner of German nationhood, Reich minister of the interior, Supreme Commander of the Volkssturm, and Supreme Commander of the Home Army.

  6. The first SS division was named Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (SS-LAH). Officially founded in September 1933 they were Hitler’s own personal body guards or “lifeguards”. They became a separate unit along side the SS. Members of Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler were all had to be perfect specimens of Hitler’s pure Germanic Aryan race. Soldiers had to 6ft 2inches minimum and have no fillings and perfect teeth. • In total there was 38 different Waffen SS divisions, all with their own unique name and insignia.

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