The Gestapo : A History of Hitler's Secret Police, 1933-45

From its creation in 1933 until Hitler's death in May 1945, anyone inside Nazi-controlled territory lived in fear of a visit from the Gestapo - Geheime Staatspolizei - or Secret State Police. Young or old, rich or poor, nobody was beyond the attentions of a brutally efficient organization that spread its malign influence into every corner of Europe in the wake of the all-conquering German armed forces. The Gestapo is a detailed history of Heinrich Himmler's evil organization, whose 20,000 members were responsible for the internal security of the Reich. Under its auspices, hundreds of thousands of civilians, resistance fighters and spies in occupied Europe were brutalized, tortured and murdered, and many, many more were deported to almost certain death in concentration camps. This book describes the Gestapo's transformation into a vital element in the Nazi regime, operating from the most feared address in the Reich: Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse 8, Berlin. Based upon the Gestapo's own archives and eye-witness accounts, the author charts the development of the organization, its key figures, such as Reinhard Heydrich and Heinrich Muller, its brutal methods, and how the Gestapo dealt with internal security, including the various unsuccessful attempts to assassinate Hitler. The Gestapo is a lively and expert account of the notorious but little-understood secret police that terrorized millions of people across Europe.