Editing Reich Security Main Office (section)

==Organization==
The RSHA "became a typical overblown bureaucracy", wrote British author [[Gerald Reitlinger]]. "The complexity of RSHA was unequalled... with at least a hundred... sub-sub-sections, a modest camouflage of the fact that it handled the progressive extermination which Hitler planned for the ten million Jews of Europe".{{sfn|Reitlinger|1989|p=138}}

===Structure===
The organization at its simplest was divided into seven offices (''Ämter''):{{sfn|Buchheim|1968|pp=172–187}}{{sfn|Weale|2012|pp=140–144}}

* '''Amt I''', "Administration and Legal", originally headed by SS-''[[Gruppenführer]]'' Dr. [[Werner Best]].{{sfn|Höhne|2001|p=256}} In 1940, he was succeeded by SS-''[[Brigadeführer]]'' [[Bruno Streckenbach]]. In April 1944, [[Erich Ehrlinger]] took over as department chief.
* '''Amt II''', "Ideological Investigation", headed by SS-''Brigadeführer'' Professor [[Franz Six]].{{sfn|Höhne|2001|p=256}}
* '''Amt III''', "Spheres of German Life" or the ''[[Sicherheitsdienst#Inland-SD|Inland-SD]]'', headed by SS-''Gruppenführer'' [[Otto Ohlendorf]], was the SS information gathering service for inside Germany.{{sfn|Höhne|2001|p=256}} It also dealt with [[Volksdeutsche|ethnic Germans]] outside of Germany's prewar borders, and matters of [[Culture of German-speaking Europe|culture]].
* '''Amt IV''', "Suppression of Opposition". This was the ''Geheime Staatspolizei'', better known by the sobriquet [[Gestapo]].{{sfn|Weale|2012|p=85}} It was headed by SS-''Gruppenführer'' [[Heinrich Müller (Gestapo)|Heinrich Müller]].{{sfn|Höhne|2001|pp=256–257}} SS-''[[Obersturmbannführer]]'' [[Adolf Eichmann]], one of the main architects of [[the Holocaust]], was head of the Amt IV sub-department called ''[[Reich Security Head Office Referat IV B4|Referat IV B4]]''.{{sfn|USHMM, ''Adolf Eichmann: Key Dates''}}
* '''Amt V''', "Suppression of Crime" ''[[Kriminalpolizei#Nazi Germany|Kriminalpolizei]]'' (Kripo), originally led by SS-''Gruppenführer'' [[Arthur Nebe]]{{sfn|Höhne|2001|p=257}} and later by SS-''Oberführer'' [[Friedrich Panzinger]].{{sfn|Friedlander|1997|p=55}} This was the Criminal Police, which dealt with serious non-political crimes, such as rape, murder, and arson. Amt V was also known as the ''[[Reichskriminalpolizeiamt]]'' (Reich Criminal Police Department or RKPA).
* '''Amt VI''', "Foreign Intelligence Service" or ''[[Sicherheitsdienst#Ausland-SD|Ausland-SD]]'', originally led by SS-''Brigadeführer'' [[Heinz Jost]]{{sfn|Höhne|2001|p=257}} and later by SS-''Brigadeführer'' [[Walter Schellenberg]].
* '''Amt VII''', "Ideological Research and Evaluation"  was a reconstitution of '''Amt II''' overseen by SS-''Brigadeführer'' Professor Dr. [[Franz Six]].{{sfn|Buchheim|1968|p=174}} Later it was headed by SS-''Obersturmbannführer'' [[Paul Dittel]]. It was responsible for the creation of [[antisemitism|anti-semitic]], [[Anti-masonry|anti-masonic]] propaganda, the sounding of public opinion, and monitoring of Nazi indoctrination by the public.

===Leadership===
{{Officeholder table start
| showorder          = y
| showimage          = y
| image_title        = Portrait
| officeholder_title = Chief of SiPo and SD
| showtermlenght     = y
| showelection       = n
| showcabinet        = n
| party_col          = 1
}}
{{Officeholder table
| order2            = {{white|1}}
| image             = Reinhard Heydrich (3x4 cropped).jpg
| military_rank     = SS-{{Lang|de|[[Obergruppenführer]]}}
| officeholder      = [[Reinhard Heydrich]]
| officeholder_sort = Heydrich, Reinhard
| officeholder_note = 
| born_year         = 1904
| died_year         = 1942
| died              = y
| term_start        = 27 September 1939
| term_end          = 4 June 1942
| timeinoffice      = {{ayd|1939|09|27|1942|06|04}}
| alt_party         = Nazi Party
}}
{{Officeholder table
| order2            = {{white|–}}
| image             = Heinrich Himmler (3x4 cropped).jpg
| military_rank     = {{Lang|de|[[Reichsführer-SS]]}}
| officeholder      = [[Heinrich Himmler]]
| officeholder_sort = Himmler, Heinrich
| officeholder_note = 
| born_year         = 1900
| died_year         = 1945
| term_start        = 4 June 1942
| term_end          = 30 January 1943
| acting            = y
| timeinoffice      = {{ayd|1942|06|04|1943|01|30}}
| alt_party         = Nazi Party
}}
{{Officeholder table
| order2            = {{white|2}}
| image             = Ernst Kaltenbrunner (1943) (3x4 cropped).jpg
| military_rank     = SS-{{Lang|de|Obergruppenführer}}
| officeholder      = [[Ernst Kaltenbrunner]]
| officeholder_sort = Kaltenbrunner, Ernst
| officeholder_note = 
| born_year         = 1903
| died_year         = 1946
| term_start        = 30 January 1943
| term_end          = 12 May 1945
| timeinoffice      = {{ayd|1943|01|30|1945|05|12}}
| alt_party         = Nazi Party
}}
{{Officeholder table end}}

====Timeline====
{{#tag:timeline|
ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:17
PlotArea  = top:10 bottom:50 right:100 left:20
AlignBars = late

DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy
Period     = from:01/01/1939 till:01/06/1945
TimeAxis   = orientation:horizontal
ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1939
ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:2 start:1939

BarData =
  barset:PM

PlotData =
  width:5 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-4) anchor:till
  barset:PM

 from: 27/09/1939 till: 04/06/1942 color:black text:"[[Reinhard Heydrich|Heydrich]]" fontsize:10
 from: 04/06/1942 till: 30/01/1943 color:black text:"[[Heinrich Himmler|Himmler]] (acting)" fontsize:10
 from: 30/01/1943 till: 12/05/1945 color:black text:"[[Ernst Kaltenbrunner|Kaltenbrunner]]" fontsize:10

}}