firearms law amendments, 83–84, 89–92, 107–9, 124–26, 127, 128–31
and Himmler, 174
Jews forbidden to have weapons, 174–75
on KPD, 53
law for testing firearms, 137–38
and Nazi rise to power, 51
and racial and political restrictions in the civil service, 65–66
on registration of Jews, 139
regulations to accompany Hitler–Frick Weapons Law, 135–37
on shady arms deals, 62
Friedrich, Adalbert, 192
Fromm, Bella, 55, 64, 127, 140
Führer Principle (Führerprinzip), 79–81. See also Gleichschaltung
G
Gdansk/Danzig, Poland, 180
General German Federation of German Trade Unions (Allgemeiner Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund), 55–56
German army. See Reichswehr; Wehrmacht
German Center Party (Deutsche Zentrumspartei), 11, 50–51
German Communist Party (Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, KPD)
arms of, 19, 102–3
“Bloody Sunday,” Altona, Hamburg, 43
election of 1928, 20
and Freikorps, 4, 5, 6
Hamburg Uprising, 8–9, 9n
Nazis vs., 22, 49, 51–52, 53–57, 67
occupation by police, 28
Red Front Combat League, 11, 21
and SA, 40
Spartacist Uprising, 4
violent tactics leading to growth of Nazi Party, 7
violent tactics of, 21
German Reich Association for Physical Exercise (Deutschen Reichsbund für Leibesübungen), 119–20
German Reich Committee for Physical Exercise
(Deutscher Reichsausschuss für Leibesübungen), 80
German Social Democrat Party (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, SPD)
Ebert as chancellor, 4
election of 1928, 20
Nazi repression of, 57–58, 59–60
Nazi seizure of firearms from, 70–76
Reichsbanner, 11, 12, 22, 40, 55–57, 60–61
German State Party (Deutsche Staatspartei), 50, 72
Germany
1848 Revolution, 218
middle class fear of reprisal, 172–73
registration of German people, 67–68, 107, 126–28, 138, 139
See also firearms registration system
Gestapo (Secret State Police)
above the law status, 112–13, 123–24, 203–4
banning independent shooting associations, 120, 121
gun control laws of, xxii
Jews in custody of, 174
Law of February 10, 1936, on detention of political prisoners, 113
memorandum on authority of, 103–5
orders for treatment of Jews, 167–68
overview, 122
regulations for disarming Jews, 181–82
requiring registration of all firearms and ammunition, 207–8
utilization of Nazi shot by a Jew, 116
and Volksgemeinschaftsgedanken, 121
Gisevius, Hans Bernd, 30, 100, 127–28, 172–73, 183
Glaserfeld, Bruno, 138–39
Gleichschaltung (forcing into line), 79–81, 93, 119–22, 204
Goebbels, Joseph
affair with Czech actress, 140n
on attacks on Nazi officials, 117
and Berlin Police, 22
on death of all Jews, 180
on death of vom Rath, 165–66
on Grynszpan (Grünspan), 175–76
and Helldorf, 140, 164
on Jews’ paying for damages caused by pogrom, 179
orders for treatment of Jews, 166, 175
on pogrom’s progress, 168–69
and Reichskristallnacht, 169–70
on Warsaw ghetto uprising, 213–14
Gold, Julius Ignatz, 150–51, 154
Göring, Hermann
arming and use of SA, SS, and Stahlhelm as police, 51
atonement fine on Jews for damage on Reichskristallnacht, 179–80
on Germans’ dependence on Hitler, 101
on police use of firearms, 50
and politically-based firearms seizures, 69–76
revocation of Jews’ hunting permits, 180
sending confiscated firearms to concentration camps, 77, 101
Gottschalk, Erich, 191
Great Britain, gun control laws, xviii
Great Depression, 22
Grevenbroich, Germany, 120
Groener, Wilhelm, 31, 34, 35, 42, insert–1
“Grünspan Case, The” (Goebbels), 175–76
Grynszpan (Grünspan), Herschel, 118, 155–57, 161, 163, 175–76, insert–6
Guben, Germany, 76
Gun Control Act (1968), xvii, xviin
gun control laws, United Nations position, xix
Gun Making Association of Zeller-Mehliser (Verband Zeller-Mehliser Waffenfabriken), 42
Gürtner, Franz, 90
Gustloff, Wilhelm, 115–19, 165, 175–76
Gutterer, Leopold, 163
Gypsies (Zigeuner), 16, 17, 125, 183
H
Hagemann, Dr., 26
Halder, Franz, 205, 215
Haller, Otto Max, 113
Halle Stapo, 113
Hamburger Tagblatt (newspaper), 172
Hamburg, Germany, 54, 188, 193–94
Hamburg Uprising, 8–9, 9n
Hanover, Germany, 187–88
Helldorf, Wolf Henrich Graf von
anti-Semitic campaign, 139–41
on Blomberg’s wife, 128
opposition to Nazi techniques, 183
overview, insert–6
and plot to kill Hitler, 184, 215–16
and Reichskristallnacht, 164
and results of disarming Jews, 156, 157, 158–59, 165
Herz, Yitzhak, 187
Hesse, Franz Josef, 191
Heydrich, Reinhard, 103–5, 168, 179
Hilberg, Raul, 212
Himmler, Heinrich
and draft of 1928 Firearms Law, 124
and Frick, 174
on Gypsies, 183
Jews forbidden to possess weapons, 173, 174–75, insert–7
overview, insert–6, insert–7
power of, 170
punishment for Jews with firearms, xxii
as Reich leader of the SS and chief of Gestapo, 83, 99
Reichskristallnacht decrees, 168, 169–75
Hindenburg, Paul von, 32–35, 49, 51–52, 101
Hirsch, Martha, 189–90
Hitler, Adolf
Beer Hall Putsch in Munich, 10, 164
and Boxheim plans, 30
conspiracy to kill Hitler, 184
on death of vom Rath, 165
election of, 49
fear-based support for, 68
and Fromm, 64
Mein Kampf, 10–11
orders for treatment of Jews, 168
overview, insert–7
on shooting for sport, 204–5
speeches to Reichswehr, 101
on suppression of opponents, 208
on Swiss assassin, 206
utilization of Nazi shot by a Jew, 115–16
Hitler–Frick Weapons Law (March 13, 1938)
and Decree Against Jews’ Possession of Weapons, 177
drafts and amendments to 1928 Firearms Law, 83–92, 107–9, 124–26, 127, 128–31
implementing regulations, 135–37, 217
legal commentaries, 137
publication of, 131
Hitler Youth, 118
Hoche, Werner, 21, 35, 90, 129, 130, 137
Holocaust, xx–xxi, 203, 214
Honaker, Samuel W., 200–201
hunting and sporting arms, 41–43, 124, 125–26, 180
I
IBM equipment for organizing information, 67–68, 107, 138
“Inventory of Assets of Jews,” 138, 180
Iron Front (Eisernen Front), 22
Isenberg, Therese Gertru
de, 196
“Issuance of Weapons Permits to Jews” (Best), 111–13, 158, insert–3
Italy, 8
J
Jew Has Shot, A (Diewerge), 117
Jewish Central Association (Jüdischer Central Verein), 159–61, insert–5
Jewish Fighting Organization (Zydowska Organizacja Bojowa, or ZOB), 213–14
Jews
arrests for lawful possession of a firearm, 145–46
citizenship revoked from, 106–7
crime spree against, 114
deportation, 210, 211
disarming of, 145–55, 155n, 156–59, 156n, 160–61, 172, 184–85, insert 6
disarming of, Gestapo regulations, 181–82
disarming of, results, 156, 157, 158–59, 165
as enemies of the state, 125–26
exclusion from firearms businesses, 109–10, 131
and firearm for kosher slaughter of cattle, 196
firearms permits denied by Nazis, 111–13, 124–25
fleeing Germany, 140–41
“Inventory of Assets of Jews,” 138, 180
Jew-baiting and pogrom atmosphere, 105–6
orders to police, SS, and SA following Grynszpan incident, 167–68
reaction to boycott measures, 138–39
registration of, 126–28
seizure of assets, 160–61, 173, 179–80, 187–99, 200
seizure of firearms, 64–65, 72, 73, 74, 141
violence against, 100
World War I service, 132–33, 133n, 154, 184, 193–95
yellow Star of David requirement, 209–10
“Jews Forbidden to Possess Weapons” (Himmler), 174–75, insert–7
Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, xvii
Judaism, Christianity equated to, 26
Jüterbog-Luckenwalde, Germany, 74
K
Kahn, Paul, 181
Keitel, Wilhelm, 129, 184
Keru, Armin, 189
Kippenberger, Hans, 8–9
Klemperer, Victor
on Anschluss of Austria, 131
on Davos shooting, 117–18
on fear of Hitler, 68
on fencer’s foils found to be sports equipment, 206–7
on hatred for Hitler regime, 100, 106
on Hitler’s response to assassination attempt, 205
on Hitler Youth, 118
on “Inventory of Assets of Jews,” 138, 180
on Jew-baiting and pogrom atmosphere, 105
on Jews wearing yellow Star of David requirement, 209–10
on National Socialism and Communism, 93
on Reichskristallnacht search of his home, 195
on resistance, 209, 210
Köln Stapo, 105
Königsberg memorandum, 71–73
Kuenzer, Hermann, 18–20
Kunze, Fritz, 12, 21, 137
L
labor unions, 55–56, 64
Landsberg (Warthe), 75–76
Langhoff, Wolfgang, 97–99
Law Against Unauthorized Use of Weapons (Gesetz gegen Waffenmißbrauch), 25–29, 33, 34
Law for Protection of the Republic (1930), 21
banning RFB, 21
Law for the Protection of German Blood and Honor (1935), 106
Law for the Reconstruction of the Reich (1934), 99–100
Law on Firearms and Ammunition of 1928 (Gesetz über Schußwaffen und Munition)
amendments to, 32–35
effect of, 23
enactment, 18
Free State Baden on, 38–39
Kuenzer’s explanation of adoption procedure, 18–20
Nazis’ amendment plans, 85–89, 90–92, 124–26, 127, 128–31
Nazis’ use of, 82–83, 103–5, 157, 217–18
passage of, 15–16
prosecution of paperwork violations, 41
provisions, 16–18, 20–21
Law on the Disarmament of the People (1920), 7, 15
Law to Remove the Distress of the People and the State (March 24, 1933) “Enabling Law,” 60, 130, insert–1
legislature (Reichstag), 19–20, 51, 60, 130–31
license for manufacturing, repairing, or selling firearms
defining firearm, 107
Hitler–Frick Weapons Law on, 131, 135
Nazi motivation for, 109
and weapons laws, 16–17, 20, 39–40, 84
license to carry a weapon (Waffenschein)
Frick on, 84
Hitler–Frick Weapons Law on, 132, 135
and Nazi amendments to Firearms Law, 107–9
obtaining a license, 26
overview, 11, 17–18
proof of need and reliability, 33–35
license to obtain a weapon or ammunition (Waffen-oder Munitions-erwerbsschein)
Aryan’s required to obtain, 207–8
Hitler–Frick Weapons Law on, 132, 135
Jews’ exclusion by Nazis, 111–13, 124–25
liberalization of Firearms Law, 84–85
Nazi plans to alter firearm laws, 85–89
and Nazis’ Firearms Law amendment, 124
overview, 16–17
proof of need and reliability, 33–35
Lichtenburg Castle Concentration Camp, 98–99
Liebknecht, Karl, 4
Luckau, Germany, 76
Ludwig, Emil, 117
Luxemburg, Rosa, 4
M
Maltzan, Countess Maria von “Marushka,” 211
Mannheim, Germany, 188
Mann, Rudolf, 5
“Maximum Sentence for Punishment of Jews” (Block), 153, 182–83
“Measures Against Weapons Misuse” (Brüning), insert–1
Mecklenburg-Strelitzsches, 89
Mein Kampf (Hitler), 10–11
“Memorandum on the Subversive Activity of the Communists in the Winter of 1932/1933” (Political Police Commander of the Bavarian Interior Ministry), 102
“Mordjude” (Der Strümer), 181
Müller, Heinrich, 167
Munich, Germany, 192
“Murdering Jew” (Der Strümer), 181
Mussolini, Benito, 8
N
National Association of German Jews (Verband nationaldeutscher Juden), 105–6
National Associations. See SS; Stahlhelm; Storm Troopers
National Representative Organization of Jews in Germany (Reichsvertretung der Juden in Deutschland), 210–11
National Socialism
disarming opponents of, 62–63, 127
formal laws for common man but not Gestapo, 123, 218
and revision of Firearms Law, 91–93
Schleicher’s tactics against, 44
Volksgemeinschaftsgedanken as aspect of, 121
See also Nazism
National Socialist German Workers Party. See Nazi Party (NSDAP)
National Socialist Reich Association for Physical Exercise (Nationalsozialistischer Reichsbund für Leibesübungen, or NSRL), 204–5
National Socialist Youth Hostel, Grossmoellen, 118
Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei. See Nazi Party (NSDAP)
Nauen, Germany, 166–67
Naumann, Max, 105
Nazi Party (NSDAP)
ban on firearm ownership by Reichswehr, 10
and Boxheim plans, 29–30
census data, 67–68
consolidation of power, xix–xx, 53
emergence of, 7–8, 49
foreign offices, 115
plan to seize arms of Reichswehr, 40–41
Switzerland’s ban of, 116
and violence by Communists, 7–8
Nazi Party’s National Day, 106
“Nazis Hunt Arms in Einstein Home” (New York Times), 58–59
Nazism
development of, xx
establishing, 92
Gleichschaltung, 79–81, 93, 119–22, 204
gun control policies, xv–xvii, xviin, xix–xxii (See also Hitler–Frick Weapons Law)
informat
ion organizing via IBM punch cards, 67–68, 107, 138
protective custody/preventive detention procedure, 52, 104, 113, 149, 192
repression of Communists, 22, 49, 51–52, 53–57, 67
repression of political opponents, Jews, and other “enemies of the state,” xv, xx, 49, 53–57, 58–67
and shooting clubs, 204–5
Special Deployment Forces for killing Jews, 212–13
takeover of Simson & Co., Thuringia, 109–10
use of Weimar Firearms Laws, 82–83, 103–5, 157, 217–18
See also National Socialism
Neue Zürcher Zeitung (newspaper), 171, 180
Neuigkeitsweltblatt (periodical), 173
New York Times
on antiSemitism in Austria, 173
on Christmas political truce, 32
on German civilians as home guard, 214–15
on Nazi occupation of France, 207
on Nazi raid on Jewish quarter in Berlin, 64
on Nazi reprisal for Grynszpan’s attack in Paris, 164–65
“Nazis Hunt Arms in Einstein Home,” 58–59
on Reichskristallnacht, 172
Niemöller, Martin, 126–28
Night of the Broken Glass. See Reichskristallnacht
Night of the Long Knives (Nacht der langen Messer), xxi, 100
Northeim, Germany, 59–60
Noske, Gustav, 4
November Revolution (1918), 3
NSDAP. See Nazi Party
Nürnberg Laws (1935), 106, 183
Nussbaum, Christian Daniel, 57–58
O
Ober-Ramstadt, Hesse, Germany, 196
Obst, Dieter, 192
Oenning, Mechthild, 191
Oppeln, Germany, 39, 92–93
Oppenheimer, Alice, 189
Oppermanns, The (Feuchtwanger), 59
orphanages, Gestapo search for weapons in, 187
P
Papen, Franz von, 215
paramilitary groups
ban on uniforms, 32
Iron Front, 22
overview, 6–8, 11
Red Front Combat League, 11, 21
Reichsbanner, 11, 12, 22, 40, 55–57, 60–61
Verbände, 10
See also Storm Troopers
Paucker, Arnold, 211–12
“Permission to Possess Arms Withdrawn from Breslau Jews” report, 66
permit for firearms. See entries beginning with “license”
personal reliability, defining for Nazi Weapons Law, 130
Plett, Walter, 119
pogroms
in Austria, 173
disarming Jews prior to, 145–46, 159–60
German resistance to, 197–98
Klemperer on, 105
See also Reichskristallnacht
Poland, 206, 212, 213–14
police
arming and use of SA, SS, and Stahlhelm as police, 51, 54–56
arming with confiscated weapons, 73, 101–2
arrest of Nazis, 50–51
Gestapo orders for treatment of Jews, 167
Gun Control in the Third Reich Page 31
