The Reich Central Office for the Combating of Homosexuality and Abortion () was the central instrument of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

for the fight against

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

in Nazi Germany and the fight against

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

History

The ''Reichszentrale'' was created on 10 October 1936 by a special decree of the ''

Reichsführer-SS (, ) was a special title and rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945 for the commander of the (SS). ''Reichsführer-SS'' was a title from 1925 to 1933, and from 1934 to 1945 it was the highest rank of the SS. The longest-servi ...

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

. Its creation was the sign of the revival of persecution of homosexuals during the relative calm after the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

. The primary task of the ''Reichszentrale'' was the collection of data about homosexuals. The central archive of data allowed the ''Reichszentrale'' to coordinate and begin the persecution and punishment of homosexuals. In order to do this, it had at its disposal special mobile squads, which also could carry out executions. By 1940 the section had already possessed data of some 41,000 homosexuals, both suspected and convicted. From 1936 to 1938 SS official

Josef Meisinger Josef Albert Meisinger (14 September 1899 – 7 March 1947), also known as the "Butcher of Warsaw", was an SS functionary in Nazi Germany. He held a position in the Gestapo and was a member of the Nazi Party. During the early phases of World War ...

was the director of the section at the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

Central Headquarters. Later it was led by criminologist advisor Erich Jacob. In July 1943, Jacob became director of criminology and he worked beside psychiatrist and neurologist

Carl-Heinz Rodenberg Carl-Heinz Rodenberg, sometimes known as Karl-Heinz Rodenberg (19 November 1904 in Heide – 1995) was a German neurologist and psychiatrist. Rodenberg was proficient in the murder of mental patients by the Nazis, the Action T4 "euthanasia" progr ...

, who came on as scientific director. A group of 17 workers was available to both of them. The collection of records, which are believed to be about 100,000, was destroyed in all likelihood in the last days of the war. In a campaign against the Catholic Church, many Catholic priests were arrested on unfounded charges of homosexuality and acts of perversion. These "morality" prosecutions were suspended to show foreigners a good image during the 1936 Olympic Games, but then resumed vigorously after Pope

Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City from ...

had denounced Nazism in his 1937 encyclical

Mit brennender Sorge ''Mit brennender Sorge'' ( , in English "With deep anxiety") ''On the Church and the German Reich'' is an encyclical of Pope Pius XI, issued during the Nazi Germany, Nazi era on 10 March 1937 (but bearing a date of Passion Sunday, 14 March)." ...

. Clergy opposed to the regime, or holding views the Nazis disliked (for instance

pacifism Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaign ...

) were particularly targeted, with false charges of homosexual conduct hiding the real cause. Many, after they had served a prison sentence, were sent to concentration camps (usually the camp at Dachau, which had a special "priest block"). Some did not survive the experience.Paulus Engelhardt:
Korbinian Leonhard Roth OP (1904 -1960) und die „Sittlichkeitsprozesse“ gegen Priester und Ordensleute in der NS-Zeit.
'''This article incorporates information from the corresponding article in the

Spanish Wikipedia The Spanish Wikipedia ( es, Wikipedia en español) is a Spanish-language edition of Wikipedia, a free online encyclopedia. It has articles. Started in May 2001, it reached 100,000 articles on March 8, 2006 and 1,000,000 articles on May 16, 2013 ...

Bibliography

* Grau, Günter: ''Homosexualität in der NS-Zeit. Dokumente einer Diskriminierung und Verfolgung'', Fischer, Frankfurt a.M. 2004, . * Hutter, Jörg: "Die Rolle der Polizei bei der Schwulen- und Lesbenverfolgung im Nationalsozialismus

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reich Central Office for the Combating of Homosexuality and Abortion Persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany Anti-abortion organizations Abortion law Anti-LGBT sentiment Persecution of LGBT people 1936 establishments in Germany 1945 disestablishments in Germany Gestapo Organizations established in 1936 Organizations disestablished in 1945 Nazi Party organizations Homophobia Heinrich Himmler Women in Nazi Germany Discrimination against LGBT people in Germany

History

See also

Bibliography

References