The significance of the night of long knives

          The night of the long knives was significant because it was to eliminate the remaining threats and opponents that could cause a problem if allowed to continue. In the source it shows the corpses of the opponents, like von Schleicher and Ernst Röhm. These significant opponents of Hitler needed to be eliminated so Hitler could get the support of the army who feared an attack from the three million strong SA.

Hitler needed these men and their cohorts dead because they had too much power, and their ideal Germany differed from Hitler’s. In the source there are many SA thugs who would follow Röhm over Hitler and this shows that they were too powerful. If Röhm did turn on Hitler he would have easily defeated the fuehrer by the amount of SA men.

Hitler had chosen the German army over the SA which he promised Röhm would control, in doing this he had to stop the victims before they could revolt which was again a threat to his rule. In the source it shows scattered papers on the floor with the words “Hitler’s unkept promises”, this clearly shows they have been forgotten by Hitler and he would no longer try to please because he was now a legal dictator.

Hitler had no need of the SA once he had dictatorship powers over Germany and so his intimidation army was of no use to him. He needed to get the support of the army who wanted the SA stopped. By eliminating the key leaders in the SA Hitler gained the German army. In the source it shows armed soldiers, these were the army and the SS, helping Hitler gather the SA men. Hitler is also holding a smoking gun which shows that he was the man who ordered the murder and that they are already dead. The SA men were forced into Hitler’s loyal armies, from fear of following their leaders to the grave.

          Goering was Hitler’s associate and one of the men who compiled the list of eliminations, but he was also a ruthless man who wanted the SA leaders dead. In the source it shows him as the god of war ready to kill the SA, which symbolises him and his actions in the night of the long knives.

          Joseph Goebbels was the main culprit who persuaded Hitler to stop the SA and the source shows him as a lapdog following Hitler, encouraging him on almost.

          From all these it was clear the reasons Hitler had them killed and why it was significant in how he kept his power in Germany.