The Nazi Police State

Please complete this assignment in complete sentences. Below are four aspects of the German
police state. Read each source individually and then put it all together for the final question.
Gestapo: Werner Best, Deputy of the Gestapo

To discover the enemies of the state, watch them and render them harmless at the right moment...In order to
fulfill this duty, the political police must be free to use every means suited to achieve the desired end.

What can you learn from this source about how the Nazis justified the methods of the Gestapo?

Schultzstaffel: Hienriech Himmler, Commander of the SS 1937

In the SS, today, we have about one case of homosexuality a month. In each case, these people will be
publicly degraded, expelled, and handed over to the courts. Following punishment imposed by the court,
they will be sent, by my order, to a concentration camp, and shot in the concentration camp, while attempting
to escape. Thereby, the increasingly healthy blood which we are cultivating for Germany, will be kept pure.

What can you tell from this source about Himmler’s expectation of SS members?

Courts & Police: Internal Letter from Hitler’s Chancellery Office

The Fuhrer has seen the press cutting about the sentencing of the Jew, Markus Luftgas, to two-and-a-half
years in prison. He desires that Luftgas should be executed. Please make the arrangements.

What can you learn from this source about how fair the Nazi justice system was?

Camps: Life in Dachau Concentration Camp

Physical punishment consisted of whipping, frequent kicking (in the abdomen or groin), slaps in the face,
shooting or wounding with the bayonet. Prisoners were forced to stare for hours into glaring lights, to kneel
for hours and so on.

What can you learn from this source about conditions in concentration camps?
Final Question: How did the aspects of the Nazi Police State help Hitler maintain his power? Please answer
in 4-8 sentences with evidence from at least TWO sources from above.