The Decisive Onslaught of the Executioners

The very name commonly used for this dramatic event, which unfolded over a few dozen hours in the summer of 1934, is a paradox: the majority of the events, including the mass executions, actually took place during the day. Adolf Hitler and his cohorts created a unique moment in history. With a single, terrifying blow, they not only eliminated the opposition within their own ranks but, following the motto that murder is permissible, also silenced anyone who stood in their way. Had someone wronged them in the past? Kill them! Could they cause trouble in the future? Kill them! Are they too ambitious? Kill them! Do they know too much? Kill them! A complex web of causes, intentions, and consequences, but a simple solution. Just keep killing. This was perfectly in line with the words of Kurt Ilges, an officer in Heydrich's SS security service: “Do you know what bloodlust means? I feel like I'm allowed to wade in blood.” The callous nature of the Nazi movement was then revealed in its full, naked truth—a warning that the world failed to heed sufficiently.

Most of the events described in the book relate to Hitler's “Third Reich” and take place within its territory. For us, Czechoslovakia is relevant, for example, as the post-war scene for the just punishment of some of the Nazis mentioned, or the prominent émigré Otto Strasser, who saved his life by fleeing to Prague—unlike his murdered brother Gregor. However, the main message, which is also relevant to our modern history, lies in Cílek's precise and insightful depiction of the early steps a totalitarian power takes to consolidate its existence. The crimes of the Nazis in that fateful year for Germany, 1934, are all too similar to those committed by the Czechoslovak communists at the beginning of their dictatorship. That is why we believe this publication also belongs in our Czech TIME Edition. Lest we forget…