Woah there bucko.
In 1919, Regulations on Weapons Ownership was passed which banned ALL GUNS AND AMMO!
So now you have an entire nation of with an un-known number gun owners with an un-known number of weapons. How to deal with this?
Then in 1928 the communists and socialists forced the conservative party to enact the Law on Firearms and Ammunition which allowed firearm possession with licenses.
Make owning them legal, but have people register them. Now they can start compiling a list and know who owns what.
Then in 1938, they enacted German Weapons Act which basically relaxed all restrictions on guns except hand guns. Rifles and the like were basically open game. Guns could be owned earlier (age 18 instead of 20). The only real restriction were for Jews.
Indeed. Acquisition requirments were relaxed, but that only expanded to hunting permit holders, government workers, and NSDAP members, in addition to the central government, state, and railway officials. Only those deemed trustworthy could get permits, and Jews were banned from manufacturing and transfers, but from what I've read, could still own them assuming they weren't already labeled as an 'enemy of the state', but in Nov of 1938, Jews were banned outright from possessing guns.
How did the government know which of the 'un-trustworthy' had guns? With their registration records.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Germany
Not only did Mr.Hitler actually DECREASE gun restrictions (From the European enacted restrictions)
Not a bad way either to gain support and popularity by the people by standing up to foreign nations telling them what they can or can't do.
BUT he only restricted it from the Jews, not everyone else. If anything that meant that only Jews were bound by the Treaty of Versailles.
And how well did that work out for the Jews and anyone else deemed un-fit, untrustworthy, enemy of state, etc. Made rounding up that much easier anyway.
To put it into perspective:
If the government were to ban guns from all Democrats then it would be a lot like Nazi Germany. But they aren't so it isn't.
Registration, who can't own a gun, or types of guns one can't own, are increasing here too.