The shield and sword of the party is born
Aware that East Germany’s repressive political system lacked popular support, the Politburo of the ruling SED established a new secret police force on 24 January 1950 to combat dissent. Modelled on Stalin’s secret service, the Ministry for State Security (Stasi) was tasked with protecting socialism from its domestic and foreign enemies and preventing East Germans from voting with their feet and leaving for the West.
The Stasi combined the role of a secret police and intelligence service in a single organization and soon expanded to become a comprehensive instrument of surveillance and repression. By 1989, some 90,000 people worked for the Stasi full-time, assisted by 189,000 informants.
About the Deutschlandmuseum
An immersive and innovative experience museum about 2000 years of German history
The whole year at a glance
