gauzeandgestapo

[gauzeandgestapo]

joseph goebbels and hermann göring photographed catching up ahead of the nsdap nuremberg rally, 1937.

• held annually from 1933 to 1938, the nuremberg rallies were monumental propaganda spectacles, designed to project the power, order, and ideological unity of the third reich. each year was assigned a theme — 1937’s was the “rally of labor” (reichsparteitag der arbeit), emphasising the harmony between the nazi state and the german worker under hitler’s leadership.

• the 1937 rally took place from september 6th –13th, and featured fewer overt military displays than there had been in previous years, instead highlighting civilian strength and national productivity. it came just months after the hitler youth law made membership compulsory, and the event included expansive youth marches, as well as a heavy focus on labor organizations and speeches connecting economic recovery with nazi governance.

• goebbels, as minister of propaganda, was instrumental in the production of these rallies; from the written speeches to the cinematic staging and radio broadcasts. his public image was tightly controlled, but photos like this, showing him engaged in seemingly candid dialogue, contributed to a crafted narrative of accessibility and ideological sincerity.

• göring, in contrast, embodied the regime’s elite power and prestige: heavily decorated, physically imposing, and positioned as a symbol of military-industrial authority. his appearance at the rally reinforced his control over the luftwaffe and the four year plan, both central to hitler’s long-term vision for war readiness.

• goebbels and göring, two of hitler’s closest confidants, had a complicated but long-standing relationship. both were part of the inner circle from the early 1930s and shared in the regime’s rise, but their personal styles and ambitions often clashed. goebbels viewed himself as the ideological engine of the movement, while göring, with his ostentatious lifestyle and military authority, embodied its aristocratic elite. despite frequent political jockeying and occasional rivalry (especially over influence and access to hitler), their public relationship remained one of mutual respect and performative camaraderie.

[gauzeandgestapo]

joseph goebbels aboard a kriegsmarine vessel during a naval outing, likely in the baltic sea region, c. 1939–1940.

• the visit was one of several orchestrated to highlight the unity between nazi germany’s political leadership and its military forces. photo ops like these were common propaganda tools. they were staged and yet casual, seemingly to humanize party elites and show them as ‘engaged’ with the troops.

• in the above photos, goebbels appears alongside senior naval officers, observing operations, steering a launch, and using ship equipment. the events were often documented in detail for the reich’s media apparatus, particularly in signal magazine and ufa newsreels.

• these moments were less about military oversight and more about crafting mythologies: posing the intellectual propagandist as a patriot, part of hitler’s inner circle, aligned with the war effort by sea, land, and air.

[gauzeandgestapo]

joseph goebbels at the pyramids and sphinx during a nazi propaganda visit to giza, egypt, c. 1942.

• the visit took place during the height of the german-afrika korps’ campaign in north africa, when nazi leadership believed the axis powers were on the verge of seizing the middle east. goebbels’s presence was symbolic, and intended to portray the third reich as a rightful inheritor of ancient imperial legacies.

• much of the trip was carefully staged. goebbels was filmed touring archaeological sites, examining hieroglyphs, and speaking with egyptian officials. this was all part of a visual narrative aligning nazi germany with the cultural prestige of ancient civilizations.

• the footage and photographs produced were circulated through german media outlets to bolster morale and suggest inevitability of victory. in reality, the visit occurred just months before rommel’s defeat at el alamein, which marked the turning point in the north african theater.

all gifs are mine!

[gauzeandgestapo]

josef mengele photographed at the institute for hereditary biology and racial hygiene in frankfurt, c. 1940.

the institute was clinical, quiet, and prestigious; part of a broader academic network in nazi germany that lent its scientific legitimacy to eugenics.

the focus was on hereditary diseases, racial classification, and population policy. this meant everything from measuring skulls to compiling genealogies to promoting sterilization.

mengele’s doctoral work and habilitation (post-doctoral qualification) were completed here. his research was often focused on cleft palates and hereditary conditions.

[gauzeandgestapo]

Hello there! Who is your favorite person from the reich to learn about?

hello!

so, goebbels hauled me into the reich pit many many years ago and from there i’ve researched a lot of the usual suspects and sects! admittedly though, i enjoyed learning about josef mengele the most, alongside karl brandt. i find anything medical fascinating. that doesn’t mean that goebbels won’t always have a special place in my heart ;)

thanks for the ask! :)

[gauzeandgestapo]

intro post.

british. law student soon spiraling into an a masters in medical law and ethics. been on reichblr since 2018, but that blog was nuked. probably a mercy.

i post about goebbels, mengele, karl brandt, and the intersection of reich propaganda, reich medicine, reich uniforms… eh, you get the point. it’s niche, it’s bleak, and unfortunately, it’s fascinating.

i also run a true crime sideblog. mostly ian brady, because of course the nazi-obsessed murderer ended up as a the other hyperfixation. nothing is ever simple.

dms are open, as ever, so don’t be afraid to message, i won’t bite. however, i will probably talk your ear off. be it on your head.

clarification: i don’t condone their actions. i just read about them and save photos at 2am like it’s normal.