Glossary : Nazi society confronting Nazism

S

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : SS-WVHA

    Abbreviation of “SS-Wirtschaftsverwaltungshauptamt” – This was the SS central administrative and economic office. It was headed by Oswald Pohl from 1942 onwards.

W

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Wehrmacht

    German term meaning “Defence force” – The name given to the armed forces of the Third Reich from 1935 onwards, replacing the Reichswehr. It comprises three branches: the Army (Heer), the Navy (Kriegsmarine) and the Air Force (Luftwaffe).

V

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Volksgemeinschaft

    German term meaning “People’s or National Community” – A National Socialist concept encompassing, within this community, all populations with a connection to Germanic culture, whether through language, culture or their “race”.

S

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Sipo

    Abbreviation of “Sicherheitspolizei”, a German term meaning “Security police” – A police force established in 1936 by Heinrich Himmler, comprising the Gestapo and the Kripo (Kriminalpolizei, criminal investigation police). The unit was merged with the SD within the RSHA in 1939.

R

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : RSHA

    Acronym of “Reichssicherheitshauptamt” , a German term meaning “Reich security main office” – The administration responsible for the police and intelligence services (SD, Gestapo, Kripo), headed by Reinhard Heydrich and, from 1943, by Ernst Kaltenbrunner. It fought against the “enemies of the Party and the National Socialist State”. It was this administration that issued the transfer orders to the concentration camps (KL).

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Resistance network

    An underground organisation engaged in sabotage, intelligence-gathering or escape operations. They fought against the Nazi regime. In France, the resistance networks defended the country’s freedom and paved the way for the Liberation.

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Resistance member

    A volunteer working underground in the fight against the Nazi regime. In France, they fought to reject defeat and continue the struggle against the Nazi occupiers and their collaborators. The operations were wide-ranging: intelligence-gathering, distributing leaflets and newspapers, acts of sabotage, attacks and assassinations, helping those on the run, etc.

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Reich

    Corresponds to a German term designating a territory over which a prince, king or emperor, and subsequently a state, exercised authority. The Third Reich refers to Nazi Germany.

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : Racial theory

    A racist ideology developed by the Nazis that categorises human beings unequally by classifying them into different racial groups, some considered inferior and others superior.

N

  • Nazi society confronting Nazism : NSDAP

    Acronym of “Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei” – National Socialist German Workers’ Party, known as the Nazi Party. This was the political party founded by Adolf Hitler in 1920, which became the sole ruling party after he came to power on the 30th of January 1933.