Night of the Long Knives: Hitler's Excision of Rohm's SA Brownshirts, 30 June – 2 July 1934

History of Terror

by Phil Carradice

In the summer of 1934 Adolf Hitler planned and conducted the most ruthless purge of his thirteen-year period as leader of Germany. The victims were not political opponents but friends, colleagues and fellow fascists who had helped the Nazi Party in its rise to power.

The Night of the Long Knives broke the back and the will of the Sturmabteilung, the SA, the brawling street thugs who had bludgeoned political opposition into submission. The SA’s ruthless bullyboy tactics played no small part in Hitler’s establishment of a dictatorship that was to influence affairs in Germany – and the world – throughout the 1930s and beyond.

In some respects the purge was inevitable. Hitler had to eliminate all potential rivals if he was to consolidate his position of power. And that meant that friends like Ernst Röhm, former German Chancellor Kurt von Schleicher, and even former party comrades like Gregor Strasser were summarily shot without trial. Above all it was the SA that the army, the industrialists and, more than anyone else, Adolf Hitler feared. Röhm enjoyed a popularity that almost rivaled Hitler’s and so he had to go.

It was also an opportunity to settle personal scores. The Night of the Long Knives was a cull that eliminated somewhere between 300 and a thousand victims, the exact number has never been clear, many of them innocent of any intention to rival Hitler. It remains one of the most significant killings of modern times.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

128 pages, Paperback

Published December 21, 2018

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A history of a brutal regime

Know history lest we repeat it. The world was changed because of this brutal act, the man that perpetuated this act. Good description of the people during this time. Many people focuse on the war years, but what were the roots of this war and its causes

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brief but well researched

A very brief but well researched book on the Night of the Long Knives. I agree that it was a pivotal moment in the rise of Hitler.

[John Schilling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative

Enjoyed reading ,author did a fine job keeping it interesting . I think everyone who reads it will like the book.

[Edwina Book Anaconda · Rating 4 out of 5]

At a little over 100 pages, this sums up what happened in a nutshell.

[wally walter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative

[Steve Matthews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written

This book gave a concise view of what led to the carnage. It also included various after events I was unaware of before. Great job by the author😊

[Daniel Callahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly Basic Account

Sufficient high level overview. Don’t expect great details but covers the history and the actors involved. I was looking for a more detailed account, but this was a satisfactory account if not the more involved account I was seeking.

[Evan Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finely researched and written, this short book scratches more than just the surface and describing the infamous destruction of the SA in Germany in 1934.