Adolf Hitler's bodyguard

Inspection of the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler in Berlin, 1938

Adolf Hitler as effective dictator of Nazi Germany was at the centre of World War II in Europe and the Holocaust. He was hated by his persecuted enemies and even by some of his own military commanders, yet in 25 years no one managed to assassinate him. In contrast to Britain's Winston Churchill, who relied on one main bodyguard, Hitler's bodyguard grew to thousands.

When Hitler returned to Munich from front-line service in 1918, he turned towards the political extreme. He became a member of the Nazi Party, an extremist party representing the far-right politics of Bavaria. In 1921, Hitler had been elected leader of the party. As his speeches promoted violence and racism, Hitler needed permanent security.

Founded in 1920, the Sturmabteilung (SA) was the first of many paramilitary protection squads for Nazi officials. In 1921, a small bodyguard unit, which became known as the Stosstrupp-Hitler (SSH), was set up specifically for the Führer. It was under the control of the SA. Then in 1925, as the Nazi Party began to grow, the SA sub-section the Schutzstaffel (SS) was officially created. Initially only about a hundred men strong, this was also a personal protection unit for Hitler. Out of the SS, several other bodyguard organizations, such as the Führerbegleitkommando (FBK), Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH) and Reichssicherheitsdienst (RSD) were created. Police forces available for security included the Geheime Staatspolizei (Gestapo), Ordnungspolizei (Orpo), Kriminalpolizei (Kripo) and Sicherheitspolizei (SiPo). In addition the Nazi intelligence organization, the Sicherheitsdienst (SD), was formed to investigate and perform security checks on people, including party members. If the SD personnel determined an arrest was to be made, then they would pass the information on to Gestapo agents, who would then made the arrest.

As Hitler began to put his aggressive plans outlined in his political manifesto Mein Kampf ("My Struggle") into action, the number of his enemies expanded. To combat this threat, his bodyguard commanders established a structure that followed throughout the rest of World War II.

Background

When Gefreiter Adolf Hitler returned to Munich in 1918 after Germany's humiliating defeat in World War I, he was 29 years old.^[1] Like so many other veterans at the time, he felt bitter and frustrated, convinced that the soldiers had been "stabbed in the back" by communists and Jews on the home front.^[1]

It was during these times of great depression and unrest that the Nazi Party was born, a number of extremist political parties at the time.^[2] Seeing an oppurtinty, Hitler decided to join them and his charismatic oratory made him the leader of the party in 1921.^[3] Like any other mobster would do, he surrounded himself with muscle for protection as he provoked crowds with racists speeches.^[4]

Organisations

• Sturmabteilung ("Storm Detachment"; SA) was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party created in 1920 for the purpose of policing party rallies and disrupting those of their opponents.^[5] When the Nazis seized power, it had grown to almost four million men.^[5] It was commanded by Ernst Röhm, who was shot on Hitler's orders in 1934 after refusing to commit suicide.^[5]
• Stosstrupp-Hitler ("Shock Troop-Hitler"; SSH) was a bodyguard unit set up for Hitler shortly after his takeover of the Nazi Party in 1921.^[6] Members included Rudolf Hess, who would become the dictator's deputy, Julius Schreck who later became Hitler's personal chauffeur and Emil Maurice, who was to be imprisoned with Hitler after the failed Beer Hall Putsch.^[4] Other included, Ulrich Graf, a butcher by trade who came close to being killed during the coup attempt.^[4] And Bruno Gesche, a tough street fighter who longed for a life of action as he was too young to have served in the war.^[4] It was commanded by Josef Dietrich, an early member of the Nazi Party.^[4] On 9 November 1923 the Stosstrupp, along with the SA and several other Nazi paramilitary units, took part in the abortive putsch in Munich. In the aftermath, Hitler was imprisoned and his party and all associated formations, including the Stosstrupp, were officially disbanded.^[4]
• Schutzstaffel ("Protection Squadron"; SS) was a personal protection squad for Hitler which had been set up in 1925.^[7] Whereas the SA was numbered in its millions, the SS started with less than a hundred men.^[8] Initially SS men distinguished themselves from the SA by wearing a black tie and a black cap with a Totenkopf ("death's head") skull and bones symbol on it. The SS also had stricter entry requirements than the general SA and maintained tighter discipline.^[4] Although subordinate to the SA, its members acted like the Nazi Party elite.^[8] From January 1927 forward, it was commanded by Heinrich Himmler in his capacity as Reichsführer-SS;^[9] further in 1936 Himmler was also appointed chief of all German police.^[10]
• Sicherheitsdienst ("Security Service"; SD) was a security and intelligence service of the SS and later the Nazi Party which was founded by Himmler in 1931 as the Ic-Dienst.^[11] It was headed by his loyal henchman Reinhard Heydrich.^[12] In 1932, the organisation was renamed the Sicherheitsdienst and by April 1934 it was considered a sister organization of the Gestapo.^[13] The SD was mainly the information-gathering agency, and the Gestapo, and to a degree the Kriminalpolizei (Kripo), was the executive agency of the political police system. Both the SD and the Gestapo were departments under Heydrich's control which answered to Himmler as both Chief of the German Police and Reichsfuhrer-SS.^[14] By 1944, the SD had more than 6,000 members. After Heydrich's death, the agency was led by Ernst Kaltenbrunner.^[12][15]
• Begleitkommando des Führers ("Escort Command of the Führer") was an elite SS protection unit formed in 1932 as Hitler's official escort protection when travelling across Germany.^[16] The unit consisted of eight men, chosen for their "outstanding loyalty", who would work around the clock protecting the Führer in three eight-hour shifts.^[4][16] Thereafter, the Begleitkommando was expanded and became known as the Führerbegleitkommando ("Escort Command of the Führer"; FBK).^[16] It continued under separate command and remained responsible for Hitler's personal protection.^[16]
• Führer Schutzkommando ("Führer Protection Command"; FSK) was a protection unit founded in March 1933, before the formation of the Leibstandarte, by Himmler.^[17] Its members consisted of police detectives of the Bavarian police and ministry originally charged with protecting the Führer only while he was inside the borders of Bavaria.^[18] In the spring of 1934, they replaced the Begleitkommando for Hitler's overall protection throughout Germany.^[18] The FSK was officially renamed the Reichssicherheitsdienst ("Reich Security Service"; RSD) in August 1935.^[19] Thereafter, for trips and public events the RSD and FBK worked together for security and protection. They still operated as two groups and used separate vehicles for these activities.^[20] Johann Rattenhuber, chief of the RSD, would be in overall command and the FBK chief, at the time, would act as his deputy.^[20]
• Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler ("Life Guards SS Adolf Hitler"; LSSAH) was an elite SS protection unit founded in 1933 as a palace guard, protecting Hitler's residences and offices day and night.^[21] The LSSAH had some of the strictest entry requirements; Dietrich insisted that the units men would have to be mature, in superb physical condition, between the ages of 23 to 35, and have a perfect ancestry record, with no hint of Jewish blood.^[4] The LSSAH eventually grew into an elite division-sized Waffen-SS unit. Although nominally under the commanded of Himmler, administrative purposes were handled by Dietrich.^[4] By 1945, while the LSSAH fought on the Eastern front during World War II, a core group of 800 men stayed in Berlin and made up the Leibstandarte Guard Battalion, assigned to guard the Führer.^[22]
• Geheime Staatspolizei ("Secret State Police"; Gestapo) was the official secret police force of Nazi Germany and German-occupied Europe.^[12] Formed in April 1933 by the aviation minster Hermann Göring, it was by the following year administrated by the SS and regarded as a sister organization of the SD.^[12] The power of the Gestapo most open to misuse was called Schutzhaft ("protective custody"), a euphemism for the power to imprison people without judicial proceedings.^[23] By 1944, it had more than 30,000 members.^[12] It was led by Heydrich and Heinrich Müller.^[12]
• Ordnungspolizei ("Order Police"; Orpo) were the uniformed police in Nazi Germany.^[10] Created in 1936 by the interior ministry, it was responsible for Nazi law enforcement throughout Germany.^[24][10] It was originally under the commanded of police general Kurt Daluege, but he was replaced by Alfred Wünnenberg in 1943 after suffering a massive heart attack. By 1944, the organisation had more than 400,000 members and were the largest police force in Germany.^[25]
• Kriminalpolizei ("Criminal Police"; Kripo) were the official criminal police power of Nazi Germany. The agencies 12,700 employees were mostly plain-clothes detectives and agents, worked in conjunction with the Orpo.^[24] It was under the directive of Arthur Nebe of the Reichskriminalpolizeiamt (which later became Amt V of the RSHA) until 1944. In the last year of its existence, Amt V was commanded by Friedrich Panzinger who answered to Kaltenbrunner.^[14]
• Sicherheitspolizei ("Security Police"; SiPo) was the criminal investigation security agency of Nazi Germany.^[10] Created in 1936, it was made up by the combined forces of the Gestapo and the Kripo.^[10] In September 1939, the agency was folded into Reichssicherheitshauptamt ("Reich Main Security Office").^[10] It consisted of approximately 4,500 men and was under the command of Heydrich.^[26]
• Führer Begleitbattalion ("Führer Escort Battalion"; FBB) was a military protection unit set up just before war began, who had the task of protection Hitler's military headquarters and accompanying him when visiting battlefronts.^[21] It originally consisted of a little more than a hundred men and was commanded by the infantry colonel Erwin Rommel, known later as the "Desert Fox".^[4] Otto Ernst Remer went on to command an expanded FBB which played a key role in putting down the attempted military coup of 20 July 1944 in Berlin.^[27]

Reichssicherheitsdienst incident

One night in 1933, while traveling through Munich, Hitler became aware of large car following his own. He told the driver of his supercharged Mercedes-Benz to increase the speed, so the other car could not keep up. It turned out that the strange car pursuing Hitler was full of RSD bodyguards, who had not thought of informing the Führer or his immediate entourage. Hitler was enraged; he had always been suspicious about the Bavarian police who had come to so close to killing him during his failed putsch attempt.^[4]

Hitler wanted the RSD abolished, but Himmler managed to talk him out of it, promising structure changes and overall improvements to prevent such an incident from happening again. The RSD remained in overall charge of Hitler's personal security.^[4]

Structure

As Hitler went from being a stateless street politician to supreme leader of Nazi Germany, the responsibility of his bodyguard expanded enormously. The ring of bodyguard leaders in the Führer's inner circle eventually established a routine.^[4]

RSD and SA bodyguards mingling during the arrival of Joseph Goebbels and Hermann Göring, 1936

Everywhere Hitler went he was accompanied by men of the FBK. And before a trip or important public event, the RSD would check the route, the buildings along it, and the places which Hitler was to visit. Local Gestapo and police would be called in as necessary. As far as possible the streets or approaches to a building would be lined with uniformed SS men, with every third man facing the crowd. There would be marksmen on the roofs while plainclothes RSD men or undercover police mingled with the crowd. Hitler's motorcade was preceded by a single pilot car, to alert the guards to stand at attention. Then, 50 meters behind, came Hitler's car, usually an open Mercedez-Benz. Hitler always stood or sat in the front, behind the driver, with a member of the FBK and an adjutant right behind him. Immediately following, were three military jeeps with the rest of the FBK and a detachment of RSD men. Then, after a further 100 meter gap, came the cars of other Nazi chieftains or foreign guests.^[4]

Security breaches

Bürgerbräukeller beer hall

On 8 November 1939, Hitler went to the Bürgerbräukeller beer hall in Munich for one of the Nazi Party's most sacred rituals, the anniversary celebration of the attempted putsch in 1923. He began speaking just after 8:00 pm, earlier than usual because he had urgent business to attend to in Berlin. At around 9:07 pm, he left the hall. Just twelve minutes later, a time bomb exploded which had been concealed inside a pillar behind the speaker's rostrum, killing eight and injuring sixty.^[28] The man behind the attack was Johann Georg Elser, a cabinet maker and ardent communist from Baden-Württemberg. He was arrested by the SS and and sent to Dachau concentration camp, but not executed until 9 April 1945.^[28]

Smolensk frontline visit

On 13 March 1943, in preparation of the biggest tank battle in military history, Hitler visited the Eastern Front at Smolensk. Upon leaving, staff officer Heinz Brandt, who was traveling in Hitler's entourage, agreed to take a box of two expensive wine bottles back to Berlin. The package was given to him by General Henning von Tresckow, a member of the Nazi resistance group who had carefully hidden a bomb inside one of the bottles. The plane took off with both Hitler and Brandt on board, but got back safely to the Wolf's Lair headquarters in East Prussia.^[4] The detonators of the bomb most likely failed to ignite because of the freezing temperatures in the storage compartment of the plane.^[4]

Wolf's Lair military conference

With Germany suffering major defeat on all fronts, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg and his ring of conspirators decided to eliminate Hitler and the Nazi leadership, establish a new pro-Western government and save their country from total destruction.^[29] On 20 July 1944, during a military conference at the Wolf's Lair headquarters, Stauffenberg planted a bomb underneath Hitler's conference table and then quickly left, claiming he had to make an important telephone call.^[30] Shortly after this, the bomb exploded, fatally wounding three officers and the stenographer who died soon after. Hitler survived with only minor injuries, as did everyone else who was shielded from the blast by the conference table leg.^[30]

See also

• Franz Schädle
• Maurice Bavaud

References

Sources

Printed

• Allen, Martin (2005). Himmler's Secret War: The Covert Peace Negotiations of Heinrich Himmler. Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0786717088. 
• Collier, Martin; Pedley, Philip (2005). Hitler and the Nazi State. Heinemann. ISBN 978-0435327095. 
• Cook, Stan; Bender, Roger (1994). Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler: Uniforms, Organization, & History. James Bender Publishing. ISBN 978-0-912138-55-8. 
• Felton, Mark (2014). Guarding Hitler: The Secret World of the Führer. Pen & Sword. ISBN 978-1-78159-305-9. 
• Fischer, Thomas (2008). Soldiers of the Leibstandarte. Winnipeg: J.J. ISBN 978-0-921991-91-5. 
• Gellately, Robert (1990). The Gestapo and German Society: Enforcing Racial Policy, 1933-1945. Oxford University. ISBN 978-0198202974. 
• Gerwarth, Robert (2011). Hitler's Hangman: The Life of Heydrich. Yale University. ISBN 978-0-300-11575-8. 
• Hillebrand, Burkhart (1969). Das Heer 1933-1945: Entwicklung des Organisatorischen Aufbaues (in German). E.S. Mittler & Sohn. OCLC 3923177. 
• Hoffmann, Peter (2000). Hitler's Personal Security: Protecting the Führer 1921-1945. Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0-30680-947-7. 
• Housden, Martyn (1997). Resistance and Conformity in the Third Reich. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-0415121347. 
• Joachimsthaler, Anton (1999). The Last Days of Hitler: The Legends, the Evidence, the Truth. Brockhampton Press. ISBN 978-1-86019-902-8. 
• Kershaw, Ian (2008). Hitler: A Biography. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 978-0-393-06757-6. 
• Lumsden, Robin (2002). A Collector's Guide To: The Allgemeine SS. Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 0-7110-2905-9. 
• Mitchell, Otis (2008). Hitler's Stormtroopers and the Attack on the German Republic, 1919-1933. McFarland Publishing. ISBN 978-0786477296. 
• Williams, Max (2001). Reinhard Heydrich: The Biography. Ulric Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9537577-5-6. 

Online

• Assassination of Reinhard Heydrich. World Media Rights. Retrieved 6 April 2015. 
• Early Attempts on Hitler's Life. World Media Rights. Retrieved 6 April 2015. 
• How Hitler's Bodyguard Worked. World Media Rights. Retrieved 3 April 2015. 
• "Law and Justice In The Third Reich". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Retrieved 9 April 2015. 

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