In the turbulent years leading to Hitler’s dictatorship, Karl Ernst commanded the Nazi Sturmabteilung in Berlin—the paramilitary force that beat opponents, raided homes, and terrorized Jews in the streets. A former nightclub bouncer turned fanatic, Ernst embodied the ruthless energy of the Brownshirts. Under his command, violence became a tool of politics, and fear a weapon of control. His name was whispered in connection with the burning of the Reichstag and the brutal street purges that silenced dissent.
But when Hitler turned against the SA during the Night of the Long Knives in 1934, Ernst’s loyalty could not save him. Shot by the SS, he became one more casualty of the regime’s hunger for total control—a man who helped build the Nazi machine of terror, only to be destroyed by it.