Night of the Long Knives — purge that took place in Nazi Germany from June 30 to July 2, 1934
Hitler's 1934 purge eliminated internal rivals and rival factions, consolidating absolute power and dismantling legal prohibitions on extrajudicial killing in Nazi Germany.
Key Facts
- Duration
- June 30 to July 2, 1934
- Confirmed deaths
- At least 85 people
- High-end death estimates
- 700 to 1,000 people
- Opponents arrested
- More than 1,000 people
- Also known as
- Röhm Purge or Operation Hummingbird (Aktion Kolibri)
- Hitler's Reichstag speech
- July 13, 1934
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Hitler feared the SA's independence and street violence as a threat to his power. He sought to appease the Reichswehr, which viewed the SA as a rival, and wished to suppress Röhm's calls for a 'second revolution.' He also aimed to silence conservative critics and settle personal scores with political opponents.
From June 30 to July 2, 1934, SS and Gestapo units carried out extrajudicial executions across Germany on Hitler's orders, killing SA leaders including Ernst Röhm, Strasserist figures such as Gregor Strasser, and conservatives like former Chancellor Kurt von Schleicher. Over 1,000 perceived opponents were arrested during the operation.
The purge secured the German military's loyalty to Hitler and eliminated internal party rivals. German courts and the cabinet swiftly legitimized the killings, erasing centuries of legal protection against extrajudicial execution. Hitler proclaimed himself the supreme administrator of German justice, marking a decisive turning point in the entrenchment of Nazi totalitarianism.