Der Fuehrer - Hitler's Rise to Power (1944) - Heiden

THE BLOOD PURGE 735officials gathered in the Sportpalast in Berlin, Rohm attacked therenewed insolence of the reactionaries: 'One often hears voices from thebourgeois camp to the effect that the S.A. have lost their reason forbeing.' But this is what he wanted to say to these gendemen: thebureaucratic spirit, which had barely changed after January 30, 1933,'must still be changed in a gentle, or, if need be, in an ungentle, manner.'By no means could the National Socialist revolution be regarded ascompleted. At this there was thunderous applause. Then Himmlerappeared before the foodights and exclaimed that 'revolutions aretriumphant only if every man who is sent to a post considers himself,not an official of the state, but of the revolution. And so must it be todayin the National Socialist revolution.' Again there was thunderousapplause. However, when Goebbels came forward and cautiously triedto contradict the two previous speakers, saying that the revolution hadonly one slogan: Germany; that the period of domestic political activitywas over and that the time had come to settle matters with the world,but that 'we could do this only if the people are behind us,' the applausewas much weaker.Important elements in the party leadership had here taken a standagainst stopping the revolution; and the wrath of these now forgottenmen was stronger than Hitler's will. Great concessions were made to the'old fighters.' By a law promulgated in the middle of December andentitled 'On the Unity of the Party and the State,' the chief of staff of theS.A. was made a member of the Reich cabinet with the rank of Minister;thus the burning grievance of the S.A., the disdainful treatment ofRohm, was at least outwardly removed. At the same time, the Fuhrer'sdeputy, Rudolf Hess, was given the rank of Minister.This late and hasty honor was conferred upon Rohm at a momentwhen the S.A. was suddenly and unexpectedly needed again. The'reactionaries' had indeed gained ground. This became apparent whenformer Kaiser Wilhelm wrote, from his exile in Holland to PresidentHindenburg, that the time had come for crowning the reconstruction ofGermany by the restoration of the monarchy. The personal relationsbetween Wilhelm II and Hindenburg were tense; the former Kaiserbelieved that his field marshal had