Weimar and Nazi Germany Topic Summaries
SA vs. SS and the Night of the Long Knives
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GCSE History: Weimar and Nazi Germany (1890-1945)
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Nazi dictatorship (1933–1939)
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SA vs. SS and the Night of the Long Knives
Imperial German Empire (1871–1918)
Origins of the Weimar Republic (1918–1919)
Early challenges to the Weimar Republic (1919–1923)
- - The Weimar Constitution
- - Strengths and weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
- - Political challenges from Left and Right
- - The Treaty of Versailles, June 1919
- - Hyperinflation and the invasion of the Ruhr
- - Economic recovery, 1923–1929
- - Profile: Gustav Stresemann
- - Reasons for economic recovery under Stresemann
- - Changes in society, 1924–1929
Rise of the Nazi Party (1923–1933)
Nazi dictatorship (1933–1939)
- - The establishment of Hitler as Führer
- - SA vs. SS and the Night of the Long Knives
- - The experiences of Germans under the Nazis
- - Economic impacts and the lives of workers
- - Military impacts and rearmament
- - Impacts on the lives of women
- - Impacts on the lives of young people
- - Impacts on religion
- - Profile: Joseph Goebbels
- - Propaganda and censorship
- - Fear and repression in the police state
- - Resistance groups
- - Nazi racial policy
- - Nazi treatment of Jews
Germany during WWII (1939–1945)
Imperial German Empire (1871–1918)
Origins of the Weimar Republic (1918–1919)
Early challenges to the Weimar Republic (1919–1923)
- - The Weimar Constitution
- - Strengths and weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
- - Political challenges from Left and Right
- - The Treaty of Versailles, June 1919
- - Hyperinflation and the invasion of the Ruhr
- - Economic recovery, 1923–1929
- - Profile: Gustav Stresemann
- - Reasons for economic recovery under Stresemann
- - Changes in society, 1924–1929
Rise of the Nazi Party (1923–1933)
Nazi dictatorship (1933–1939)
- - The establishment of Hitler as Führer
- - SA vs. SS and the Night of the Long Knives
- - The experiences of Germans under the Nazis
- - Economic impacts and the lives of workers
- - Military impacts and rearmament
- - Impacts on the lives of women
- - Impacts on the lives of young people
- - Impacts on religion
- - Profile: Joseph Goebbels
- - Propaganda and censorship
- - Fear and repression in the police state
- - Resistance groups
- - Nazi racial policy
- - Nazi treatment of Jews
Germany during WWII (1939–1945)
- By 1934, the SA led by Ernst Röhm had grown to over 3 million members and played a major role in helping Hitler gain power.
- However, Röhm wanted the SA to replace the German army, but Hitler needed the support of the army to strengthen his rule, especially because President Hindenburg was old and likely to die soon.
- Although still a supporter of the Nazis, Röhm supported more radical, socialist-style reforms, which worried conservative elites and military leaders. Worst of all, Hitler came to view Röhm as a rival.
- On 30 June 1934, Hitler ordered a violent purge of the SA leadership by SS forces. Röhm and at least 85 other SA officers and political figures were arrested and executed without trial.
- The Night of the Long Knives showed that Hitler was willing to use violence against his own supporters to maintain power. It removed the last serious internal opposition within the Nazi movement.
| SA (Sturmabteilung ‘storm troopers’) | SS (Schutzstaffel ‘protection squad’) |
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| Large, violent organisation (also known as Brownshirts) led by Ernst Röhm | Small, elite organisation led by Heinrich Himmler |
| Helped Hitler gain power through intimidation | Controlled police and internal security, including serving as loyal bodyguards to Hitler |
| Wanted radical social change but lost influence after 1934 when purged by the SS | Became more powerful after 1934 and Hitler’s ascention to Führer |
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