Establishment of the Stasi

Date: February 8, 1950 • Location: Berlin, Germany

The Stasi, the secret police of East Germany, is established.

The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the Stasi, was the intelligence service and secret police of East Germany from 1950 to 1990. It was one of the most repressive police organisations in the world, infiltrating almost every aspect of life in East Germany, using torture, intimidation, and a vast network of informants to crush dissent.