by Wilfried Abenaschon 13 Aug 2002, 02:31, Post They nearly drowned suspects in ice-cold water, gave them electric shocks, hung them by their wrists, or beat them savagely. [129] Most of the political investigations took place between 1933 and 1935 with the all-time high of 57 cases in 1935. Simultaneously, Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, the Nazi paramilitary corps, together with his aide Reinhard Heydrich, similarly reorganized the police of Bavaria and the remaining German states. [109], Whether trained as police originally or not, Gestapo agents themselves were shaped by their socio-political environment. In 1936 the Gestapoled by Himmlers subordinate, Gruppenfhrer Heinrich Mllerwas joined with the Kriminalpolizei (Criminal Police) under the umbrella of a new organization, the Sicherheitspolizei (Sipo; Security Police). However, certain Polish information about the movement of German police and SS units to the East during 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union was similar to information British intelligence secretly obtained through intercepting and decoding German police and SS messages sent by radio telegraphy. The Gestapo was responsible for keeping a close watch on Hitlers personal safety, as well as ensuring the safety of the most important Nazi officials. The Gestapo was officially declared to be answerable only and only to Hitler, and could not be reviewed by the judiciary in any way. [102], In 1933, there was no purge of the German police forces. The SS also identified and arrested Jews in the German-occupied territories. Additionally, many of its members were handed over to the armed forces. Three othersHans Fritzsche, Hjalmar Schacht, and Franz von Papenwere acquitted. The term Abwehr (German for defense) was used as a concession to Allied demands that Germany's post-World War I intelligence activities be for "defensive" purposes only.After February 4, 1938, its name in title was Foreign Affairs/Defense Office of the Armed Forces High Command (Amt Ausland/Abwehr im Oberkommando der . History has indeed told us terrifying tales of the Holocaust and World War II, which claimed countless innocent lives. What was the difference between the SS and the Gestapo in terms of who [67] However, resistance groups and those who were in moral or political opposition to the Nazis were stalled by the fear of reprisals from the Gestapo. Both the Gestapo and Kripo became distinct departments within the RSHA. [104] In 1939, only 3,000 out of the total of 20,000 Gestapo men held SS ranks, and in most cases, these were honorary.