114-485: Sonderbehandlung ( German: [ˈzɔndɐbəˌhandlʊŋ] , "special treatment") is any sort of preferential treatment. However, the word Sonderbehandlung was used as a euphemism for mass murder by Nazi functionaries and the SS , who commonly used the abbreviation S.B. in documentation. It first came to prominence during Aktion T4 , where SS doctors killed mentally ill and disabled patients between 1939 and 1941, and
228-496: A 'Vergasungskeller' , literally "gassing cellar". In the letter, the word is underlined, and at the top of the document is written: "SS- Untersturmführer Kirschnek!" There was a very clear policy in the architecture office that words such as "gas chamber" should not be used; Second Lieutenant Kirschnek should be informed of this slip. Citing this unique letter, Robert Jan van Pelt states that in using "special action" or "special treatment" in place of extermination and killing,
342-492: A rhetorical strategy , in which case its goal is to change the valence of a description. Using a euphemism can in itself be controversial, as in the following examples: The use of euphemism online is known as " algospeak " when used to evade automated online moderation techniques used on Meta and TikTok's platforms. Algospeak has been used in debate about the Israeli–Palestinian conflict . Phonetic euphemism
456-505: A German radio station in Gleiwitz . The SD took concentration-camp inmates condemned to die, and fitted them with Polish Army uniforms which Heinz Jost had acquired from Admiral Wilhelm Canaris ' Abwehr (military intelligence). Leading this mission and personally selected by Heydrich was SS veteran Alfred Naujocks , who later reported during a War Criminal proceeding that he brought a Polish-speaking German along so he could broadcast
570-551: A decree on 1 July 1937, clearly defining the SD's areas of responsibility as those dealing with "learning ( Wissenschaft ), art, party and state, constitution and administration, foreign lands, Freemasonry and associations" whereas the "Gestapo's jurisdiction was Marxism, treason, and emigrants". Additionally, the SD was responsible for matters related to "churches and sects, pacifism, the Jews, right-wing movements", as well as "the economy, and
684-441: A euphemism for dead and an adjective meaning overdue, can cause confusion in listeners. Euphemisms are also used to mitigate, soften or downplay the gravity of large-scale injustices, war crimes, or other events that warrant a pattern of avoidance in official statements or documents. For instance, one reason for the comparative scarcity of written evidence documenting the exterminations at Auschwitz , relative to their sheer number,
798-660: A euphemism for defecation in Pre-Germanic, as the Proto-Indo-European root * sḱeyd- , from which it was derived, meant 'to cut off'. Another example in American English is the replacement of " colored people " with " Negro " (euphemism by foreign language), which itself came to be replaced by either "African American" or "Black". Also in the United States the term "ethnic minorities" in
912-718: A foreign language may be imported for use as euphemism. For example, the French word enceinte was sometimes used instead of the English word pregnant ; abattoir for slaughterhouse , although in French the word retains its explicit violent meaning 'a place for beating down', conveniently lost on non-French speakers. Entrepreneur for businessman , adds glamour; douche (French for 'shower') for vaginal irrigation device; bidet ('little pony') for vessel for anal washing. Ironically, although in English physical " handicaps " are almost always described with euphemism, in French
1026-653: A holy silence" (speaking well by not speaking at all). Reasons for using euphemisms vary by context and intent. Commonly, euphemisms are used to avoid directly addressing subjects that might be deemed negative or embarrassing, such as death , sex , and excretory bodily functions. They may be created for innocent, well-intentioned purposes or nefariously and cynically, intentionally to deceive, confuse or deny . Euphemisms which emerge as dominant social euphemisms are often created to serve progressive causes. The Oxford University Press 's Dictionary of Euphemisms identifies "late" as an occasionally ambiguous term, whose nature as
1140-506: A message in Polish from the German radio station "under siege" to the effect that it was time for an all out confrontation between Germans and Poles. To add documented proof of this attack, the SD operatives placed the fictitious Polish troops (killed by lethal injection, then shot for appearance) around the "attacked" radio station with the intention of taking members of the press to the site of
1254-407: A mixture of fear and foreboding," and people wanted as little to do with them as possible. Belonging to the security apparatus of Nazi Germany obviously had its advantages but it was also fraught with occupationally related social disadvantages as well, and if post-war descriptions of the SD by historians are any indication, membership therein implied being a part of a "ubiquitous secret society" which
SECTION 10
#17327767307851368-594: A myriad of cameras and photographic equipment, focusing efforts on important strategic locations like government buildings, police stations, postal services, public utilities, logistical routes, and above all, airfields. Hitler worked out a sophisticated plan to acquire the Sudetenland, including manipulating Slovak nationalists to vie for independence and the suppression of this movement by the Czech government. Under directions from Heydrich, SD operative Alfred Naujocks
1482-751: A plot from Ernst Röhm 's SA using subversive means. On 20 April 1934 Hermann Göring handed over control of the Geheime Staatspolizei ( Gestapo ) to Himmler. Heydrich, named chief of the Gestapo by Himmler on 22 April 1934, also continued as head of the SD. These events further extended Himmler's control of the security mechanism of the Reich, which by proxy also strengthened the surveillance power of Heydrich's SD, as both entities methodically infiltrated every police agency in Germany. Subsequently,
1596-588: A single Kreis , and, in turn, to be composed of wards ( Revier ), but such an ambitious network never emerged. Eventually, the SD-sub-districts acquired the simple designation of 'outposts' ( Aussenstellen ) as the lowest level-office in the field structure. The SD was mainly an information-gathering agency, while the Gestapo—and to a degree the Criminal Police ( Kriminalpolizei or Kripo)—was
1710-431: A special action. Dante's Inferno seems to me almost a comedy compared to this. They don't call Auschwitz the camp of annihilation for nothing! Three days later, Kremer described the mass gassing of emaciated prisoners, nicknamed " Musselmanner " : September 5, 1942: In the morning attended a special action from the women's concentration camp (Muslims); the most dreadful of horrors. Master-Sergeant Thilo (troop doctor)
1824-605: A unit of Verfügungstruppe or Totenkopf [Death Head] formations. Correspondingly, SD affiliated units, including the Einsatzgruppen followed German troops into Austria, the Sudetenland, Bohemia, Moravia, Poland, Lithuania, as well as Russia. Since their task included cooperating with military leadership and vice versa, suppression of opposition in the occupied territories was a joint venture. There were territorial disputes and disagreement about how some of these policies were to be implemented. Nonetheless, by June 1941,
1938-532: Is "directives for the extermination process obscured in bureaucratic euphemisms". Another example of this is during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , where Russian President Vladimir Putin , in his speech starting the invasion, called the invasion a " special military operation ". Euphemisms are sometimes used to lessen the opposition to a political move. For example, according to linguist Ghil'ad Zuckermann , Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used
2052-624: Is crystal clear. Krumey says that he is approaching you because it is a question of special treatment, and we already know, in fact, what special treatment is, do we not? A. I would like to say the following about this. The term "special treatment" ( Sonderbehandlung ) has various meanings. As Poliakov says, in Poliakov - Black or Red - I can give the page number right away...I have it in my files somewhere...he reproduces forms. On these forms it says, "Re: Special Treatment" - first of all for Poles suitable for Germanization ( eindeutschungsfaehig ), and
2166-423: Is deemed offensive or suggests something unpleasant. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the user wishes to downplay. Euphemisms may be used to mask profanity or refer to topics some consider taboo such as mental or physical disability, sexual intercourse, bodily excretions, pain, violence, illness, or death in a polite way. Euphemism comes from
2280-456: Is speaking very publicly. His resulting phrasing is "Ausrott... schaltung des Judentums" , which can be likened to "exterm... elimination" in English. The term first appeared on September 20, 1939 in a decree by the Gestapo and Sicherheitsdienst chief SS- Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich to all state police departments: To avoid any misunderstandings, please take note of
2394-478: Is used to replace profanities and blasphemies, diminishing their intensity. To alter the pronunciation or spelling of a taboo word (such as profanity ) to form a euphemism is known as taboo deformation , or a minced oath . Such modifications include: Euphemisms formed from understatements include asleep for dead and drinking for consuming alcohol. " Tired and emotional " is a notorious British euphemism for "drunk", one of many recurring jokes popularized by
SECTION 20
#17327767307852508-496: The "Sonderkeller" ("special cellar"). A letter from SS-Sturmbannführer Rudolf Jährling concerning Crematoria II and III to oven builders J.A. Topf and Sons dated March 6, 1943, refers to morgue 2 as an "Auskleideraum" ('undressing room'). The units of prisoners forced to empty gas chambers and load bodies into ovens were known as the Sonderkommando ("special squads"). A document dated August 26, 1942 granted
2622-687: The Einsatzgruppen . In fact, all members of the Einsatzgruppen wore the SD sleeve diamond on their uniforms. The SD-SiPo was the primary agency, in conjunction with the Ordnungspolizei , assigned to maintain order and security in the Nazi ghettos established by the Germans throughout occupied Eastern Europe. On 7 December 1941, the same day as the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor ,
2736-599: The Reichsführer-SS "), or SD , was the intelligence agency of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany . Established in 1931, the SD was the first Nazi intelligence organization and the Gestapo (formed in 1933) was considered its sister organization through the integration of SS members and operational procedures. The SD was administered as an independent SS office between 1933 and 1939. That year,
2850-468: The Greek word euphemia ( εὐφημία ) which refers to the use of 'words of good omen'; it is a compound of eû ( εὖ ), meaning 'good, well', and phḗmē ( φήμη ), meaning 'prophetic speech; rumour, talk'. Eupheme is a reference to the female Greek spirit of words of praise and positivity, etc. The term euphemism itself was used as a euphemism by the ancient Greeks ; with the meaning "to keep
2964-753: The Nuremberg Laws were passed in 1935, the SD reported that the measures against the Jews were well received by the German populace. In 1936, the police were divided into the Ordnungspolizei (Orpo or Order Police) and the Sicherheitspolizei (SiPo or Security Police). The Orpo consisted mainly of the Schutzpolizei (urban police), the Gendarmerie (rural police) and the Gemeindepolizei (municipal police). The SiPo
3078-452: The RSHA for special treatment, adding that "special treatment takes place by hanging." In a letter to the RSHA , SS- Hauptsturmführer Heinz Trühe requests additional gas vans for "...a transport of Jews, which has to be treated in a special way..." The gas vans were vehicles containing an airtight compartment in which the victims were locked and the exhaust gas was pumped into, killing
3192-691: The Social Security Administration replaced the term "mental retardation" with " intellectual disability ". Since 2012, that change in terminology has been adopted by the National Institutes of Health and the medical industry at large. There are numerous disability-related euphemisms that have negative connotations . Sicherheitsdienst Sicherheitsdienst ( German: [ˈzɪçɐhaɪtsˌdiːnst] , "Security Service"), full title Sicherheitsdienst des Reichsführers-SS ("Security Service of
3306-492: The " euphemism treadmill ", as coined by Steven Pinker . For instance, the place of human defecation is a needy candidate for a euphemism in all eras. Toilet is an 18th-century euphemism, replacing the older euphemism house-of-office , which in turn replaced the even older euphemisms privy-house and bog-house . In the 20th century, where the old euphemisms lavatory (a place where one washes) and toilet (a place where one dresses ) had grown from widespread usage (e.g., in
3420-545: The "life domain" or Lebensgebiet of the German population. Gathered information was then distributed by the SD through secret internal political reports entitled Meldungen aus dem Reich (reports from the Reich) to the upper echelons of the Nazi Party, enabling Hitler's régime to evaluate the general morale and attitude of the German people so they could be manipulated by the Nazi propaganda machine in timely fashion. When
3534-598: The 2010s has been replaced by " people of color ". Venereal disease , which associated shameful bacterial infection with a seemingly worthy ailment emanating from Venus , the goddess of love, soon lost its deflective force in the post-classical education era, as "VD", which was replaced by the three-letter initialism "STD" (sexually transmitted disease); later, "STD" was replaced by "STI" (sexually transmitted infection). Intellectually-disabled people were originally defined with words such as "morons" or "imbeciles", which then became commonly used insults. The medical diagnosis
Sonderbehandlung - Misplaced Pages Continue
3648-453: The English word handicap is used as a euphemism for their problematic words infirmité or invalidité . Periphrasis , or circumlocution , is one of the most common: to "speak around" a given word, implying it without saying it. Over time, circumlocutions become recognized as established euphemisms for particular words or ideas. Bureaucracies frequently spawn euphemisms intentionally, as doublespeak expressions. For example, in
3762-630: The German ethnic body" and once any symptoms of "disease and germs" appeared, it was their job to "remove them by every appropriate means". Regular reports—including opinion polls, press dispatches, and information bulletins were established. These were monitored and reviewed by the head of the Inland-SD, Otto Ohlendorf (responsible for intelligence and security within Germany) and by the former Heidelberg professor and SD member Reinhard Höhn [ de ] . This activity aimed to control and assess
3876-818: The Italian Duce had expressed great concern previously in the wake of an Austrian SS unit's attempt to stage a coup not more than three weeks after the Röhm affair , an episode that embarrassed the SS, enraged Hitler, and ended in the assassination of Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss on 25 July 1934. Nonetheless, to facilitate the incorporation of Austria into the greater Reich, the SD and Gestapo went to work arresting people immediately, using lists compiled by Heydrich. Heydrich's SD and Austrian SS members received financing from Berlin to harass Austrian Chancellor von Schuschnigg 's government all throughout 1937. One section of
3990-584: The Jewish Affairs department within the SD) was at first to remove any semblance of "Jewish influence from all spheres of public life", which included the encouragement of wholesale Jewish emigration. Official bureaucratization increased apace with numerous specialized offices formed, aiding towards the overall persecution of the Jews. Because the Gestapo and the SD had parallel duties, Heydrich tried to reduce any confusion or related territorial disputes through
4104-683: The Nazi hierarchy, making the SS and its intelligence organ, the SD, responsible only to the Führer. The purge became known as the Night of the Long Knives , with up to 200 people killed in the action. Moreover, the brutal crushing of the SA and its leadership sent a clear message to everyone that opposition to Hitler's regime could be fatal. It struck fear across the Nazi leadership as to the tangible concern of
4218-401: The Nazi revolution in general, membership in the SS and the SD appealed more to the impressionable youth. Most SD members were Protestant by faith, had served in the military, and generally had a significant amount of education, representing "an educated elite" in the general sense – with about 14 percent of them earning doctorate degrees. Heydrich viewed the SD as spiritual-elite leaders within
4332-570: The Press", but the SD was instructed to "avoid all matters which touched the 'state police executive powers' ( staatspolizeiliche Vollzugsmaßnahmen ) since these belonged to the Gestapo, as did all individual cases." In 1938, the SD was made the intelligence organization for the State as well as for the Nazi Party, supporting the Gestapo and working with the General and Interior Administration. As such,
4446-637: The Reich , the SD was infiltrated in 1944 by a former Russian national who was working for the Americans. The agent's parents had fled the Russian Revolution , and he had been raised in Berlin, and then moved to Paris. He was recruited by Albert Jolis of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Seventh Army detachment. The mission was codenamed RUPPERT. How extensive the SD's knowledge was about
4560-458: The SD and SS were ultimately created to identify and eradicate internal enemies of the State, as well as to pacify, subjugate, and exploit conquered territories and peoples. The SS Security Service, known as the SS SD-Amt , became the official security organization of the Nazi Party in 1934. Consisting at first of paid agents and a few hundred unpaid informants scattered across Germany, the SD
4674-455: The SD came into immediate, fierce competition with German military intelligence, the Abwehr, which was headed by Admiral Canaris. The competition stemmed from Heydrich and Himmler's intention to absorb the Abwehr and Admiral Canaris' view of the SD as an amateur upstart. Canaris refused to give up the autonomy that his military intelligence organ possessed. Additional problems also existed, like
Sonderbehandlung - Misplaced Pages Continue
4788-404: The SD carefully tracked foreign opinion and criticism of Nazi policies, censoring when necessary and likewise publishing hostile political cartoons in the SS weekly magazine, Das Schwarze Korps . An additional task assigned to the SD and the Gestapo involved keeping tabs on the morale of the German population at large, which meant they were charged to "carefully supervise the political health of
4902-624: The SD developed an organization of agents and informants throughout the Reich and later throughout the occupied territories , all part of the development of an extensive SS state and a totalitarian regime without parallel. The organization consisted of a few hundred full-time agents and several thousand informants. Historian George C. Browder writes that SD regiments were comparable to SS regiments, in that: SD districts ( Bezirke ) emerged covering several Party circuits ( Kreis ) or an entire district ( Gau ). Below this level, SD sub-districts ( Unterbezirke ) slowly developed. They were originally to cover
5016-687: The SD left their mission somewhat vaguely defined so as to "remain an instrument for all eventualities". One such eventuality would soon arise. For a while, the SS competed with the Sturmabteilung (SA) for influence within Germany. Himmler distrusted the SA and came to deplore the "rabble-rousing" brownshirts (despite once having been a member) and what he saw as indecent sexual deviants amid its leadership. At least one pretext to secure additional influence for Himmler's SS and Heydrich's SD in "protecting" Hitler and securing his absolute trust in their intelligence collection abilities, involved thwarting
5130-607: The SD provided fictitious information that there was an assassination plot on Hitler's life and that an SA putsch to assume power was imminent since the SA were allegedly amassing weapons. Additionally, reports were coming into the SD and Gestapo that the vulgarity of the SA's behavior was damaging the party and was even making antisemitism less palatable. On 30 June 1934 the SS and Gestapo acted in coordinated mass arrests that continued for two days. The SS took one of its most decisive steps in eliminating its competition for command of security within Germany and established itself firmly in
5244-593: The SD that was nothing more than a front for subversive activities against Austria ironically promoted "German-Austrian peace". Throughout the events leading to the Anschluß and even after the Nazis marched into Austria on 12 March 1938, Heydrich – convinced that only his SD could pull off a peaceful union between the two German-speaking nations – organized demonstrations, conducted clandestine operations, ordered terror attacks, distributed propaganda materials, encouraged
5358-528: The SD was a criminal organisation, along with the rest of Heydrich's RSHA (including the Gestapo) both individually and as branches of the SS in the collective. Heydrich was assassinated in 1942 ; his successor, Ernst Kaltenbrunner , was convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the Nuremberg trials, sentenced to death and hanged in 1946. The SD, one of the oldest security organizations of
5472-584: The SD was divided into two departments, the interior department ( Inland-SD ) and the foreign department ( Ausland-SD ), and placed under the authority of the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA). The Interior Security Service ( Inland-SD ), responsible for intelligence and security within Germany, was known earlier as Department II and later, when placed under the Reich Security Main Office, as its Department III. It
5586-497: The SD was made the sole "party information service" on 9 June 1934. Under pressure from the Reichswehr (German armed forces) leadership (whose members viewed the enormous armed forces of the SA as an existential threat) and with the collusion of Göring, Joseph Goebbels , the Gestapo and SD, Hitler was led to believe that Röhm's SA posed a serious conspiratorial threat requiring a drastic and immediate solution. For its part,
5700-580: The SD was transferred over to the Reich Security Main Office ( Reichssicherheitshauptamt ; RSHA), as one of its seven departments. Its first director, Reinhard Heydrich , intended for the SD to bring every single individual within the Third Reich's reach under "continuous supervision". Following Germany's defeat in World War II , the tribunal at the Nuremberg trials officially declared that
5814-556: The SD, Gestapo, Kripo, Orpo, and Waffen-SS. On 31 July 1941, Göring gave written authorisation to SD Chief Heydrich to ensure a government-wide cooperative effort in the implementation of the so-called Final Solution to the Jewish question in territories under German control. An SD headquarter's memorandum indicated that the SD was tasked to accompany military invasions and assist in pacification efforts. The memo explicitly stated: The SD will, where possible, follow up immediately behind
SECTION 50
#17327767307855928-474: The SS and Gestapo. Machinations by the SD, the Gestapo, and the SS helped to bring Austria fully into Hitler's grasp and on 13 March 1938, he signed into law the union with Austria as tears streamed down his face. Concomitant to its machinations against Austria, the SD also became involved in subversive activities throughout Czechoslovakia. Focusing on the Sudetenland with its 3 million ethnic Germans and
6042-481: The SS and the "cream of the cream of the NSDAP." According to historian George C. Browder, "SD men represented no pathological or psychically susceptible group. Few were wild or extreme Nazi fanatics. In those respects they were 'ordinary men'. Yet in most other respects, they were an extraordinary mix of men, drawn together by a unique mix of missions." Along with members of the Gestapo, SD personnel were "regarded with
6156-471: The SS and the SD task forces were systematically shooting Jewish men of military age, which soon turned to "gunning down" old people, women, and children in the occupied areas. On 20 January 1942, Heydrich chaired a meeting, now called the Wannsee Conference , to discuss the implementation of the plan. Facilities such as Chelmno, Majdanek, Sobibor, Treblinka, and Auschwitz have their origins in
6270-509: The SS started infiltrating all leading positions of the security apparatus of the Reich. Even before Hitler became Chancellor in January 1933, the SD was a veritable "watchdog" over the SS and over members of the Nazi Party and played a critical role in consolidating political-police powers into the hands of Himmler and Heydrich. Once Hitler was appointed Chancellor by German President Paul von Hindenburg , he quickly made efforts to manipulate
6384-473: The SS, was first formed in 1931 as the Ic-Dienst (Intelligence Service ) operating out of a single apartment and reporting directly to Heinrich Himmler . Himmler appointed a former junior naval officer, Reinhard Heydrich , to organise the small agency. The office was renamed Sicherheitsdienst (SD) in the summer of 1932. The SD became more powerful after the Nazi Party took control of Germany in 1933 and
6498-515: The United States) to being synonymous with the crude act they sought to deflect, they were sometimes replaced with bathroom (a place where one bathes), washroom (a place where one washes), or restroom (a place where one rests) or even by the extreme form powder room (a place where one applies facial cosmetics). The form water closet , often shortened to W.C. , is a less deflective form. The word shit appears to have originally been
6612-571: The Warthegau was Chełmno extermination camp . In the course of investigations and criminal proceedings for Nazi war crimes , it was shown that among those involved, there was no doubt what was meant by this term. At his trial, SS-Obersturmbannführer Adolf Eichmann stated that "everybody knew" special treatment meant killing. Later he expanded his explanation to point out that "special treatment" also included auxiliary measures besides killing: Attorney General: All right, correct. That really
6726-545: The agency remained active in foreign operations to such a degree that the head of the Reich Foreign Ministry office, Joachim von Ribbentrop , complained of their meddling, since Hitler would apparently make decisions based on SD reports without consulting him. According to historian Richard Breitman , there was animosity between the SS leadership and Ribbentrop's Foreign Office atop their "jurisdictional disputes". Aside from its participation in diminishing
6840-476: The aging president. On 28 February 1933, Hitler convinced Hindenburg to declare a state of emergency which suspended all civil liberties throughout Germany, due at least in part to the Reichstag fire on the previous night. Hitler assured Hindenburg throughout that he was attempting to stabilize the tumultuous political scene in Germany by taking a "defensive measure against Communist acts of violence endangering
6954-470: The camp authorities to send a truck "... to Dessau to pick up material for special treatment..." - Dessau was one of two places where Zyklon B was manufactured. Standard usage of the term for killing at Auschwitz applied. A letter dated October 13, 1942, signed by Bischoff, states that construction of new crematoria facilities "... was necessary to start immediately in July 1942 because of the situation caused by
SECTION 60
#17327767307857068-709: The camps in the General Government through the camps in the Warthegau " No other formulation is to be employed. Himmler was so sure that almost everyone knew what "special treatment" meant, and ordered for it to be replaced with the even more vague 'durchgeschleust' ("guided through"), even though the document in question was top secret. The camps in question in the General Government were Treblinka , Sobibor and Belzec extermination camps, and Majdanek concentration camp . The only camp in
7182-693: The camps, the transports from the camps to the work sites, the transfers from camp to camp following the interests of the Economic-Administrative Head Office, the work inside the concentration camp - all of these concepts are covered by "special treatment." In his memoir Götzen , written in prison, he further commented on the meanings of Sonderbehandlung , explaining that it had both a clearly lethal meaning as well as other possible ones and providing documentary examples for each meaning. According to SS- Gruppenführer and senior SS and Police Leader Emil Mazuw : During
7296-400: The disharmony there which the Czech government could not seem to remedy, Hitler set Heydrich's SD in motion in what came to be known as "Case Green" . Passed off as a mission to liberate Sudeten Germans from alleged Czech persecution, Case Green was in fact a contingency plan to outright invade and destroy the country, as Hitler intended to "wipe Czechoslovakia off the map." This operation
7410-437: The early plots to kill Hitler by key members of the military remains a contested subject and a veritable unknown. According to British historian John Wheeler-Bennett , "in view of the wholesale destruction of Gestapo archives it is improbable that this knowledge will ever be forthcoming. That the authorities were aware of serious 'defeatism' is certain, but it is doubtful whether they suspected anyone of outright treason." Given
7524-421: The executive agency of the political-police system. The SD and Gestapo did have integration through SS members holding dual positions in each branch. Nevertheless, there was some jurisdictional overlap and operational conflict between the SD and Gestapo. In addition, the Criminal Police kept a level of independence since its structure had been longer-established. As part and parcel of its intelligence operations,
7638-500: The first Holocaust deniers were the Nazis themselves, in that they attempted to deny to themselves what they were doing. Heinrich Himmler became increasingly concerned about the security of documenting the destruction of the Jews. On April 9, 1943, he wrote a secret letter to Heydrich's successor as chief of the Gestapo and SD, SS- Obergruppenführer Ernst Kaltenbrunner , concerning the Korherr Report . Himmler considered
7752-411: The first extermination camp was opened at Chelmno near Lodz by Ernst Damzog , the SD and SiPo commander in occupied Poznań (Posen). Damzog had personally selected the staff for the killing centre and later supervised the daily operation of the camp, which was under the command of Herbert Lange . Over a span of approximately 15 months, 150,000 people were killed there. According to the book Piercing
7866-422: The following: ...a distinction must be made between those who may be dealt with in the usual way and those who must be given special treatment. The latter case covers subjects who, due to their most objectionable nature, their dangerousness, or their ability to serve as tools of propaganda for the enemy, are suitable for elimination, without respect for persons, by merciless treatment (namely, by execution). However,
7980-550: The gassing of mentally ill and handicapped individuals. The actual plan to exterminate the Jews of Europe was called 'Die Endlösung der Judenfrage' (" Final Solution to the Jewish Question "). Other words to describe extermination operations included: The Posen speeches made by Heinrich Himmler in October 1943 are the first known documents in which a high-ranking member of the Nazi government spoke explicitly about
8094-556: The governments of Czechoslovakia, Great Britain, and France, whose tepid reaction to the Austrian Anschluss had precipitated this crisis to some degree, ensued. The Sudetenland Crisis came to an end when Neville Chamberlain and Hitler signed the Munich Agreement on 29 September 1938, effectively ceding the Sudetenland to Nazi Germany. Involvement in international affairs by the SD certainly did not end there and
8208-475: The grave danger of epidemic, the complete liquidation of Jews from the ghetto in Vitebsk was begun on October 8, 1941. The number of Jews to whom special treatment is to be applied is around 3,000." An excerpt of a decree dated February 20, 1942, from the RSHA and written by Himmler regarding the treatment of " foreign civilian workers " advises that in particularly difficult cases, application should be made to
8322-638: The incident. Immediately in the wake of the staged incidents on 1 September 1939, Hitler proclaimed from the Reichstag in a famous radio address that German soldiers had been "returning" fire since 5:45 in the morning, setting the Second World War in Europe into motion. The SD was tasked with the detection of actual or potential enemies of the Nazi leadership and the neutralization of such opposition, whether internal or external. To fulfill this task,
8436-731: The intimidation of opponents, and had his SS and SD personnel round up prominent anti-Nazis, most of whom ended up in Mauthausen concentration camp The coordinated efforts of the SiPo and Heydrich's SD during the first days of the Anschluß effectively eliminated all forms of possible political, military and economic resistance within Austria. Once the annexation became official, the Austrian police were immediately subordinated to Heydrich's SD,
8550-458: The letter, this is given in quotes, further suggesting the euphemistic nature of what is meant. On blueprints, the basement gas chambers of Crematoria II and III were simply marked as 'Leichenkeller 1' ("basement morgue 1"), and the basement undressing rooms were marked as 'Leichenkeller 2' . However, a letter dated November 27, 1942 to chief Auschwitz architect SS- Sturmbannführer Karl Bischoff referred to morgue 1 of Crematorium II as
8664-452: The linguistic substitutions stipulated by the language rules." By the summer of 1941, Action T4 became widespread public knowledge in Germany (and also in neutral countries and to Germany's enemies), and on August 24, 1941, Hitler ordered the joint chief of the operation Dr. Karl Brandt to halt it due to public protest; however, the operation continued, not only out of the public eye, but also in greater intensity. Hitler did not want to run
8778-595: The middle of saying "elimination" can be considered as a quick mental check to see whether or not it would have been acceptable to use such words in front of his given audience; however, as the speech was given to the seniority of the SS in private, such language would have been acceptable to use. This has been compared to another incident of self-verification in the opposite way, where Josef Goebbels, in his Total War speech on February 18, 1943, begins to say "Ausrottung des Judentums" ('extermination of Jewry') but switches to saying "Ausschaltung" , bearing in mind that he
8892-466: The nature of the intelligence operations assigned to the SD, there were clear delineations between what constituted a full member ( Mitglied ) of the SD and those who were considered "associates" ( Mitarbeiter ) with a further subset for clerical support personnel (typists, file clerks, etc.) who were connoted as V-persons ( Vertrauensleute ). All SD personnel, whether simply associates or full members were required to swear an oath of secrecy, had to meet all
9006-518: The neutral Hebrew lexical item פעימות peimót (literally 'beatings (of the heart)'), rather than נסיגה nesigá ('withdrawal'), to refer to the stages in the Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank (see Wye River Memorandum ) , in order to lessen the opposition of right-wing Israelis to such a move. Peimót was thus used as a euphemism for 'withdrawal'. Euphemism may be used as
9120-617: The overarching agency under which the Einsatzgruppen der Sicherheitspolizei und des SD , also known as the Einsatzgruppen , was subordinated; this was one of the principal reasons for the later war-crimes indictment against the organization by the Allies. The Einsatzgruppen's part in the Holocaust has been well documented. Its mobile killing units were active in the implementation of the Final Solution (the plan for genocide ) in
9234-655: The past, the US military used the term " sunshine units " for contamination by radioactive isotopes . The United States Central Intelligence Agency refers to systematic torture as " enhanced interrogation techniques ". An effective death sentence in the Soviet Union during the Great Purge often used the clause "imprisonment without right to correspondence ": the person sentenced would be shot soon after conviction. As early as 1939, Nazi official Reinhard Heydrich used
9348-423: The perpetration of the Holocaust during the war. Himmler mentions the "Judenevakuierung" or 'evacuation of the Jews', which he uses synonymously with their extermination. At one point in the speech, Himmler says: "elimination of the Jews, extermination, we're doing it", briefly pausing in the middle of "elimination" ( 'Ausschaltung' ) before going on to say "extermination" ( 'Ausrottung' ). His hesitation in
9462-555: The planning actions undertaken by Heydrich. Heydrich remained chief of the Security Police (SiPo) and the SD (through the RSHA) until his assassination in 1942, after which Ernst Kaltenbrunner was named chief by Himmler on 30 January 1943, and remained there until the end of the war. The SD was declared a criminal organization after the war and its members were tried as war criminals at Nuremberg . Whatever their original purpose,
9576-478: The power of the SA and its scheme to kill Röhm, the SD took part in international intrigue, first by activities in Austria, again in Czechoslovakia, and then by helping provoke the "reactive" war against Poland. Code-named " Operation Himmler " and part of Hitler's plan to justify an attack upon Poland, the SD's clandestine activity for this mission included faking a Polish attack against "innocent Germans" at
9690-522: The racial exemption for members of the Abwehr from the Nazi Aryan-screening process, and then there was competition for resources which occurred throughout Nazi Germany's existence. On 27 September 1939, the SiPo became a part of the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA) under Heydrich: From February 1944 forward, the sections of the Abwehr were incorporated into Amt VI. The SD was
9804-424: The reach and influence of Himmler's intelligence collection and policing powers. During the autumn of 1937, Hitler secured Mussolini 's support to annex Austria (Mussolini was originally apprehensive of the Nazi takeover of Austria) and informed his generals of his intentions to invade both Austria and Czechoslovakia . Getting Mussolini to approve political intrigue against Austria was a major accomplishment, as
9918-563: The report "well executed for purposes of camouflage and potentially useful for later times." The next day, SS- Obersturmbannführer Rudolf Brandt passed a message to the author of the report, Richard Korherr , stating: The Reichsführer-SS has received your report on "The Final Solution of the European Jewish Question". He wishes that "special treatment of the Jews" not be mentioned anywhere. On page 9, it must be formulated as follows: "They were guided: through
10032-418: The requirements for SS membership, were assigned SD code numbers ( Chiffre Nummer ) and if they were "above the level of V-person" they had to carry "an SD identification card." The vast majority of early SD members were relatively young, but the officers were typically older by comparison; nevertheless, the average age of an SD member was approximately 2 years older than the average Nazi Party member. Much like
10146-547: The risk of an order publicly embarrassing him again and, as a result, the explicit order to carry out the Holocaust was given by him orally. Even if there had been any written instances of this order, they would have almost certainly been destroyed by the Nazis when they realised their defeat was inevitable. Where the Nazis had to document murder, Sonderbehandlung was one of a number of euphemisms used. The Action T4 doctors used 'desinfiziert' ("disinfected") to document
10260-404: The same purpose: to call a person a berk sounds less offensive than to call a person a cunt , though berk is short for Berkeley Hunt , which rhymes with cunt . The use of a term with a softer connotation, though it shares the same meaning. For instance, screwed up is a euphemism for 'fucked up'; hook-up and laid are euphemisms for ' sexual intercourse '. Expressions or words from
10374-656: The same word, special treatment, is also for Poles not suitable for Germanization, that is those to be sent from the Eastern Occupied Territories to the Generalgouvernement. So that is one meaning of special treatment ( Sonderbehandlung ). Special Treatment also means - I want to say this here in this context as well, although I know that it is known - also means all transports of Jews, the deportation transports. Q. And killing? A. Yes, that as well, I must say that, too. The transports to
10488-421: The satirical magazine Private Eye ; it has been used by MPs to avoid unparliamentary language . Pleasant, positive, worthy, neutral, or nondescript terms are often substituted for explicit or unpleasant ones, with many substituted terms deliberately coined by sociopolitical movements, marketing , public relations , or advertising initiatives, including: Some examples of Cockney rhyming slang may serve
10602-400: The special actions." On September 8, 1943, 5,006 Jews were transferred from Theresienstadt to Auschwitz under the designation "SB six months." Six months later on March 9, 1944, those still alive were gassed. In his diary, SS- Obersturmführer and doctor Johann Kremer describes seeing a mass gassing for the first time: September 2, 1942: For the first time, at 3:00 A.M. outside, attended
10716-533: The stakes and claimed that the Czechs were slaughtering Sudeten Germans. He demanded the unconditional and prompt cession of the Sudetenland to Germany in order to secure the safety of endangered ethnic Germans. Around this time, early plots by select members of the German General Staff emerged, plans which included ridding themselves of Hitler. Eventually a diplomatic showdown pitting Hitler against
10830-515: The state". Wasting no time, Himmler set the SD in motion as they began creating an extensive card-index of the Nazi regime's political opponents, arresting labor organizers, socialists, Jewish leaders, journalists, and communists in the process, sending them to the newly established prison facility near Munich, Dachau . Himmler's SS and SD made their presence felt at once by helping rid the regime of its known political enemies and its perceived ones, as well. As far as Heydrich and Himmler were concerned,
10944-463: The term Sonderbehandlung ("special treatment") to mean summary execution of persons viewed as "disciplinary problems" by the Nazis even before commencing the systematic extermination of the Jews . Heinrich Himmler , aware that the word had come to be known to mean murder, replaced that euphemism with one in which Jews would be "guided" (to their deaths) through the slave-labor and extermination camps after having been "evacuated" to their doom. Such
11058-526: The territories overrun by the Nazi war machine. This SD subsidiary worked closely with the Wehrmacht in persecuting Jews, communists, partisans, and other groups, as well. Starting with the invasion of Poland throughout the campaign in the East, the Einsatzgruppen ruthlessly killed anyone suspected of being an opponent of the regime, either real or imagined. The men of the Einsatzgruppen were recruited from
11172-419: The troops as they move in and, as in the Reich, will assume responsibility for the security of political life. Within the Reich, security measures are the responsibility of the Gestapo with SD cooperation. In occupied territory, measures will be under the direction of a senior SD commander; Gestapo officials will be allotted to individual Einsatzstäbe . It will be necessary to make available for special deployment
11286-584: The usage is directed against Germans rather than Jews (it relates to "the principles of internal state security in the war"). Nevertheless, the law allowed for the killing of any person the regime wished. A memo dated six days later from a meeting at the SS-Reichssicherheitshauptamt defines Sonderbehandlung with "execution" following it in brackets. A report from the Eastern Front dated October 25, 1941, reads that "due to
11400-941: The victims with the combined effects of carbon monoxide poisoning and suffocation . In German , 'Sonder-' , meaning "special", can be used to form compound nouns . As well as in reference to actions, the Nazis used euphemisms to refer to the actual equipment used to carry out killing. In his letter, Trühe refers to the vans as 'S-wagen' ("S-vans"); 'Sonderwagen' ("special vans") in full. Other documented references include 'Sonderfahrzeug' ("special vehicle"), 'Spezialwagen' ("special van"), and 'Hilfsmittel' ("auxiliary equipment"). Several instances of this unspecific language in reference to equipment can be found in documents concerning Auschwitz concentration camp . A letter dated August 21, 1942 referred to 'Bunker 1' and 'Bunker 2' (farmhouses west of Birkenau converted into gas chambers) as 'Badeanstalten für Sonderaktionen' ("bathing installations for special actions"). In
11514-450: The war, the SS gave no meaning to Sonderbehandlung other than killing. I am certain that high-ranking officers knew it. I don't know whether the ordinary SS man did or not. According to the terminology used at the time, I understand 'special treatment' to mean only killing and nothing else. Euphemism A euphemism ( / ˈ juː f ə m ɪ z əm / YOO -fə-miz-əm ) is an innocuous word or expression used in place of one that
11628-418: Was "sinister" and a "messenger of terror" not just for the German population, but within the "ranks of the Nazi Party itself." The SD used SS-ranks . When in uniform they wore the grey Waffen-SS uniform with army and Ordnungspolizei rank insignia on the shoulder straps, and SS rank insignia on the left collar patch. The right collar patch was black without the [REDACTED] runes. The branch color of
11742-400: Was akin to earlier SD efforts in Austria; however, unlike Austria, the Czechs fielded their own Secret Service, against which Heydrich had to contend. Once "Case Green" began, Heydrich's SD spies began covertly gathering intelligence, even going so far as having SD agents use their spouses and children in the cover scheme. The operation covered every conceivable type of intelligence data, using
11856-416: Was changed to "mentally retarded", which morphed into the pejorative, " retard ", against those with intellectual disabilities. To avoid the negative connotations of their diagnoses, students who need accommodations because of such conditions are often labeled as "special needs" instead, although the words "special" or "sped" (short for "special education") have long been schoolyard insults. As of August 2013,
11970-585: Was composed of the Kripo and the Gestapo. Heydrich became Chief of the SiPo and continued as Chief of the SD. Continued escalation of antisemitic policies in the spring of 1937 from the SD's Department of Jewish Affairs ( German : Abteilung II/112: Juden ) – staffed by members like Adolf Eichmann , Herbert Hagen , and Theodor Dannecker – led to the eventual removal ( Entfernung ) of Jews from Germany ; regardless of concerns about where they were headed. Adolf Eichmann's original task (in his capacity as deputy for
12084-478: Was divided into the following sections: The SD and the SiPo were the main sources of officers for the security forces in occupied territories. SD-SiPo led battalions were typically placed under the command of the SS and Police Leaders , reporting directly to the RSHA in Berlin. The SD also maintained a presence at all concentration camps and supplied personnel, on an as-needed basis, to such special action troops as
12198-517: Was known earlier as Department III and later, after September 1939, as Department VI of the Reich Security Main Office. It was nominally commanded by Heydrich, but run by his chief of staff Heinz Jost . In March 1942 Jost was fired and replaced by Walter Schellenberg , a deputy of Heydrich. After the 20 July plot in 1944, Department VI took over the functions of the Military Intelligence Service ( Abwehr ). Department VI
12312-474: Was one of a number of nonspecific words the Nazis used to document mass murder and genocide . Another notable example was Sonderbehandlung 14f13 . This term was also used to imprecisely refer to the equipment used to perpetrate their crimes, such as gas chambers and Zyklon B . The true meaning of Sonderbehandlung was widely known in the SS, and in April 1943, Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler
12426-399: Was originally headed by Hermann Behrends and from September 1939 by Otto Ohlendorf. It was within this organization that Adolf Eichmann began working out the details for the Final Solution to the Jewish Question . Department III was divided into the following sections: The Foreign Security Service ( Ausland-SD ), responsible for intelligence activities beyond the boundaries of Germany,
12540-518: Was part of the formulation of Endlösung der Judenfrage (the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question"), which became known to the outside world during the Nuremberg Trials . Frequently, over time, euphemisms themselves become taboo words, through the linguistic process of semantic change known as pejoration , which University of Oregon linguist Sharon Henderson Taylor dubbed the " euphemism cycle " in 1974, also frequently referred to as
12654-488: Was quickly professionalized under Heydrich, who commissioned National Socialist academics and lawyers to ensure that the SS and its Security Service in particular, operated "within the framework of National Socialist ideology." Heydrich was given the power to select men for the SS Security Service from among any SS subdivisions since Himmler considered the organization of the SD as important. In September 1939,
12768-460: Was re-activated to engage in sabotage activities designed to incite a response from the Slovaks and the Czechs, a mission that ultimately failed. In June 1938 a directive from the SD head office indicated that Hitler issued an order at Jueterbog to his generals to prepare for the invasion of Czechoslovakia. To hasten a presumed heavy response from the French, British, and Czechs, Hitler then upped
12882-513: Was right when he said to me that this is the anus mundi. In the evening towards 8:00 attended another special action from Holland [sic]. Because of the special rations they get a fifth of a liter of schnapps, 5 cigarettes, 100 g salami and bread, the men all clamor to take part in such actions. Today and tomorrow (Sunday) work. In a letter dated January 29, 1943 by SS-Sturmbannführer Bischoff to SS- Oberführer Hans Kammler , Bischoff refers to basement morgue 1 of Crematorium II at Auschwitz as
12996-533: Was so concerned about the security of it that he had it redacted in a secret report . Berel Lang states that disguised language was used "...not only in communications issued to the Jewish public when the intention of those issuing the communications was to deceive the Jews in order to minimize the likelihood of resistance, but also in addresses to the outside world and, perhaps more significantly, in internal communications as well, among officials who unquestionably knew (who were themselves sometimes responsible for)
#784215