The Night of the Long Knives was a key event in Hitler’s consolidation of power after he became chancellor. The term refers to a purge of the SA (Sturmabteilung) leadership launched by Hitler and carried out by newly formed SS (Shutzstaffel) and Gestapo units. Prior to this the SA had been Hitler’s main paramilitary force but its leader Ernst Röhm had become too ambitious and too radical. He wanted the SA to replace the German army. Between 29 June and 2 July 1934 a wave of murders and arrests saw many SA leaders and other leading opponents of Hitler killed or imprisoned. Hitler had once again shown a fondness for decisive and brutal action. The SA was neutralised as a force in German politics.
Extract from Hitler by Norman Stone (published in 1980):
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