Nacht der langen Messer

E51220

Nacht der langen Messer refers to the 1934 purge in Nazi Germany during which Adolf Hitler ordered the extrajudicial killings of SA leaders and other political opponents to consolidate his power.

Jump to: Statements Referenced by

Statements (50)

Predicate Object
instanceOf event in Nazi Germany
mass killing
political purge
alsoKnownAs Röhm purge
carriedOutBy Gestapo
Reichswehr
Schutzstaffel (SS)
surface form: Schutzstaffel
country Nazi Germany
endDate 1934-07-02
followedBy Hitler assuming title Führer und Reichskanzler
followedByDate 1934-08-02
hasCause Hitler’s desire to consolidate power
Hitler’s fear of SA power
pressure from German Army leadership
pressure from conservative elites
hasEnglishName Night of the Long Knives
justifiedBy Hitler’s Reichstag speech of 1 September 1939
surface form: Adolf Hitler in Reichstag speech
languageOfName German
legalJustification Law Regarding Measures of State Self-Defense
legalJustificationDate 1934-07-03
location Berlin
Germany
Munich
method extrajudicial killing
summary execution
numberOfVictimsApproximate at least 85
possibly several hundred
orderedBy Adolf Hitler
partOf Nazi consolidation of power
plannedBy Adolf Hitler
precededBy Nazi seizure of power
result consolidation of Hitler’s personal dictatorship
elimination of SA as independent power
increased terror in Nazi Germany
reassurance of German Army leadership
strengthening of SS
startDate 1934-06-30
target Ernst Röhm
Gregor Strasser
Gustav von Kahr
surface form: Gustav Ritter von Kahr

Kurt von Schleicher
Sturmabteilung
surface form: Sturmabteilung leadership

conservative opponents of Hitler
perceived rivals within Nazi Party
victim Edgar Jung
Ernst Röhm
Gregor Strasser
Gustav von Kahr
surface form: Gustav Ritter von Kahr

Kurt von Schleicher
year 1934

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Night of the Long Knives alsoKnownAs Nacht der langen Messer