There’s a claim thrown around with annoying regularity that German Jews could have stopped the Holocaust if only they were armed. Since the narrative involves Hitler and guns being banned, everyone seems to take it at face value. Problem is, it’s not true.
Most of the gun-control laws in Germany came from the Weimar Republic and its attempts to comply with the Treaty of Versailles. In January 1919, the Reichstag enacted legislation requiring the surrender of nearly all guns to the government. They passed the Law on the Disarmament of the People the following year. In 1928 they passed the Law on Firearms and Ammunition, which allowed for some civilian firearms ownership but imposed a strict registration scheme.
Bear in mind, all these measures passed before Adolph Hitler was in any position of authority. In 1938, the Law on Firearms and Ammunition was actually loosened quite a bit. Permits were only required for handguns and handgun ammunition. Long guns and ammunition were deregulated. Members of the NSDAP were completely exempted. This was quickly followed by the 1938 Regulations Against Jews’ Possession of Weapons.
There are a couple of takeaways here. The first is that the broad restrictions and registration requirements predated the Third Reich. In fact, with one glaring exception, gun ownership became easier in the prewar period.
Second, by the time Hitler came to power, there were very few guns in civilian ownership. The country’s manufacturing capabilities had been curtailed for almost two decades, and the existing supply was thinned out by the previous regulation. While specifically denying ownership to Jews was a predatory and offensive thing, it’s unlikely they (or other civilians) possessed firearms in significant numbers. When German weapons manufacturing picked back up under Hitler, it was solely for the purpose of military armament.
While specifically denying ownership to Jews was a predatory and offensive thing, it’s unlikely they ever possessed firearms in significant numbers in the first place. Institutional anti-Semitism had been a thing since pretty much forever, but it became an institutional thing in the 19th century. Even when no law forbade it, gun dealers refused to sell their products to Jews because of social pressures.
There are good and cogent arguments against gun registries and bans, but the Hitler thing really isn’t one.