World War II buffs, especially experts on Nazi Germany, were Gestapo and SS personnel considered civilian law enforcement officers, or were they part of the military?

Hello Randy:

The SS was the paramilitary arm of the Nazi party, and the Gestapo was the secret police.

excon

The Gestapo were Secret police, so they were non-military government agents.  

The SS were military - imagine if you combined the roles of the Secret Service and NAVY Seal units here in the US and you'd have an organization that was organizationally similar to the SS. 

I'm not sure in an authoritarian/totalitarian state if the distinction between police and military is all that useful. The Adama (of Battlestar Galactica fame) Distinction breaks down.

The military of course, for $400, Alex.