Citizendia

"Himmler" redirects here. For the military operation, see Operation Himmler. Operation Himmler (less often known as Operation Konserve or Operation Canned Goods) was a Nazi Germany False flag project to create the appearance
Heinrich Himmler
Birth October 7, 1900
(Munich, Germany)
Death May 23, 1945 (aged 44)
(Uelzener Straße 31a
Lüneburg, Germany)
Party National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP)
Political positions
  • Reichsführer-SS (RF-SS: "Reichs leader of the SS") in the NSDAP (1929–1945)
  • Reichs- und Preussischer Minister des Innern (Reichs & Prussian minister of the interior) of Germany (August 1943–1945)
  • Chef der Deutschen Polizei (ChdDtP: "chief of German police") (June 1936–1945)
  • Chef der Heeresrüstung und Befehlshaber des Ersatzheeres (Ch H Rüst u. Events 3761 BC - The epoch (origin of the modern Hebrew calendar ( Proleptic Julian calendar) Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Events 1430 - Siege of Compiègne: Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to relieve Compiègne Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Lüneburg, also known as Lueneburg and Lunenburg in English, is a City in Lower Saxony, Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945 The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the BdE: "chief of army equipment and commander of the replacement army") of Germany (July 1944–1945)
  • Reichskommissar für die Festigung des Deutschen Volkstums (RKFDV: "Reich commissar for the strengthening of Germanism") in the NSDAP (October 1939–1945)
  • Verein Lebensborn e. Lebensborn ( Fount of Life, in Old German) was a Nazi organization set up by SS leader Heinrich Himmler, which provided V. ("president of the ‘Fountain of Life’ society") of the NSDAP (September 1936–1945)
  • Verein Das Ahnenerbe Forschungs- und Lehrgemeinschaft ("president of the ancestral heritage research & teaching society") of the NSDAP
  • Beauftragter der NSDAP für alle Volkstumsfragen ("Nazi Party commissioner for all racial matters")
  • Generalbevollmächtigter für die Verwaltung ("plenipotentiary for administration") of Germany (August 1943–1945). The Ahnenerbe was a Nazi German Think tank that promoted itself as a "study society for Intellectual Ancient History The word plenipotentiary (from the Latin, plenus + potens, full + power has two meanings

Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (listen (help·info) 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a high-ranking German Nazi politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS). Events 3761 BC - The epoch (origin of the modern Hebrew calendar ( Proleptic Julian calendar) Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar Events 1430 - Siege of Compiègne: Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to relieve Compiègne Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Throughout much of the war he was the second-most powerful man in Nazi Germany, having displaced Hermann Göring. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member As Reichsführer-SS he oversaw all police and security forces including the Gestapo. was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945 The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany

As overseer of the concentration camps, extermination camps, and Einsatzgruppen (death squads), Himmler co-ordinated the killing of millions of Jews, between 200,000 and 500,000 Roma,[1][2] many prisoners of war, and perhaps another three to four million Poles, communists, or other groups whom the Nazis deemed unworthy to live or simply 'in the way', including homosexuals, and those with physical and mental disabilities. Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial Extermination camps were two types of facilities that Nazi Germany built during World War II for the systematic killing of millions of people in what has become Einsatzgruppen ( German: "task forces" "intervention groups" were Paramilitary groups formed by Heinrich Himmler and PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The Romani people (singular Rom, plural Roma as a Noun; also known as Romanies or Roma people) are an ethnic group with origins "Life unworthy of life" (in German: "Lebens unwertes Leben") was a Nazi designation for the segments of populace that according to Shortly before the end of the war, he offered to surrender to the Allies if he were spared from prosecution. The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the Common law Adversarial system, or the civil law However, after being arrested by British forces, he committed suicide before he could be questioned.

Contents

Early life

Heinrich L. Himmler was born in Munich to a Bavarian middle-class family. Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. Bavaria ( German:, with an area of 70553 Km² (27241 square miles and almost 12 The middle class, in colloquial usage consists of those who have some economic independence but not a great deal of social Influence or power. His father was Joseph Gebhard Himmler, a secondary-school teacher and principal[3] of the prestigious Wittelsbacher Gymnasium. His mother was Anna Maria Himmler (née Heyder), a devout Roman Catholic and attentive mother. Heinrich had an older brother, Gebhard Ludwig Himmler, who was born on 29 July 1898; and a younger brother, Ernst Hermann Himmler, born on 23 December 1905. Events 1014 - Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat Year 1898 ( MDCCCXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 962 - Byzantine-Arab Wars: Under the future Emperor Nicephorus Phocas, Byzantine troops stormed the city Year 1905 ( MCMV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting [4] Himmler’s childhood was quite normal for the time. His father and mother were strict but were actively involved in the rearing of their three children.

Heinrich was named after his godfather, Prince Heinrich of Bavaria of the royal family of Bavaria, who was tutored by Gebhard Himmler. A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's Baptism. Prince Heinrich of Bavaria ( June 24, 1884 - November 8, 1916) was a member of the Bavarian Royal House of Wittelsbach The Monarchy of Bavaria was abolished in 1918 The current Senior Representative of the former Ruling House of Wittelsbach is Franz Duke of Bavaria. [5] In 1910, Himmler attended Gymnasium in Landshut, where studies revolved around classic literature. A gymnasium (pronounced with ɡ- in several languages is a type of school providing Secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar Landshut is a city in Bavaria in the south-east of Germany both belonging to Eastern and Southern Bavaria In the traditional sense a Classic Book is one written in Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome (see Classics) While he struggled in athletics, he did well in his schoolwork. Also, at the behest of his father, Heinrich kept a diary from age ten until he was 24. He enjoyed chess, harpsichord, stamp collecting, gardening and other extracurricular activities. Chess is a recreational and competitive Game played between two players. A harpsichord is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. Stamp collecting is the Collecting of Postage stamps and related objects such as covers (envelopes or packages with stamps on them Gardening is the practice of growing Plants for their attractive flowers or foliage and Vegetables or Fruits for consumption During Himmler’s youth, and into adulthood, he was never at ease in interactions with women. [6]

Himmler’s diaries (1914-18) show that he was extremely interested in war news. For other uses of the term 'diary' see Diary (disambiguation. He implored his father to use his royal connections to obtain an officer candidate position for him. His parents eventually gave in, allowing him to train upon graduation from secondary school in 1918 with the 11th Bavarian Regiment. Since he was not athletic, he struggled throughout his military training. Later in 1918 the war ended with Germany’s defeat. Thus ended Himmler's aspirations of becoming a professional army officer. He was discharged without ever seeing battle. Though he claimed later to have served in combat, the closest he ever got to it was leading cadets around the parade grounds.

From 1919 to 1922 Himmler studied agronomy at the Munich Technische Hochschule following a short-lived apprenticeship on a farm and subsequent illness. Agronomy is the science and technology of using plants for food fuel feed and fiber Technische Hochschule (acronym TH) is what an Institute of Technology (i [7] Himmler was pursuing a chaste lifestyle when he became interested in a young girl, the daughter of the owner of a place where he ate. Chastity is Sexual behavior of a man or woman acceptable to the ethical norms and guidelines of a culture civilization or Religion. In his diary, he compares his initial encounter with her as like finding himself a sister. Later he experienced rejection when he let her know his true feelings. His difficulty with women persisted throughout his life. His view of them is shown in a diary excerpt:

A proper man loves a woman on three levels: as a dear child who is to be chided, perhaps even punished on account of her unreasonableness, and who is protected and taken care of because one loves her. Then as wife and as a loyal, understanding comrade who fights through life with one, who stands faithfully at one’s side without hemming in or chaining the man and his spirit. And as a goddess whose feet one must kiss, who gives one strength through her feminine wisdom and childlike, pure sanctity that does not weaken in the hardest struggles and in the ideal hours gives one heavenly peace. [8]

Himmler underwent religious turmoil during his studies at Munich Technische Hochschule. In his diaries he claimed to be a devout Catholic, and wrote that he would never turn away from the church. However, he was a member of a fraternity which he felt to be at odds with the tenets of the church: biographers have defined Himmler’s theology as Ariosophy, his own religious dogma of racial superiority of the Aryan race and Germanic Meso-Paganism, partly from his interests in folklore and mythology of the ancient Teutonic tribes of Northern Europe. Armanism and Ariosophy are the names of ideological systems of an Esoteric nature pioneered by Guido von List and Jörg Lanz von Liebenfels Paganism (from Latin paganus, meaning "country dweller rustic" is a word used to refer to various religions and religious beliefs from across the world Himmler became a disbeliever of Christian doctrine and was very critical of sermons given by priests. During this time he became obsessed with the idea of becoming a soldier. He wrote that if Germany did not find itself at war soon, he would go to another country to seek battle.

In 1923, Himmler took part in Hitler’s Beer Hall Putsch under Ernst Röhm. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately The Beer Hall Putsch (also known as the Munich Putsch) was a failed Coup d'état that occurred between the evening of Thursday November 8 Ernst Julius Röhm, (Munich November 28, 1887 – July 2, 1934) was a German military officer and later the commander and co-founder In 1926 he met his wife in a hotel lobby while escaping a storm. Margarete Siegroth (née Boden) was blonde-haired and blue-eyed, seven years his senior, divorced, and Protestant. Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the termination of a Marriage. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. She was physically the epitome of the Nordic ideal. The Nordic race was one of the racial categories into which the Europeans were divided by anthropologists in the first half of the twentieth century On 3 July 1928, the two were married and had their only child, daughter Gudrun, on 8 August 1929. Events 324 - Battle of Adrianople Constantine I defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium. Year 1928 ( MCMXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Gudrun Burwitz, born Himmler was born 8 August 1929. Her parents were Heinrich Himmler, Reichsführer-SS and head of the German Events 1220 - Sweden is defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula. Year 1929 ( MCMXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Himmler adored his daughter, and called her Püppi ("dolly"). Margarete later adopted a son, in whom Himmler showed no interest. Heinrich and Margarete separated in 1940 without seeking divorce. Heinrich was too engulfed in Nazi activities to be a competent husband. Himmler became friendly with a secretary, Hedwig Potthast, who left her job in 1941 and became his mistress. He fathered two children with her — a son, Helge (born 1942), and a daughter, Nanette Dorothea (born 1944).

Rise in the SS

Photo of Heinrich Himmler wearing an early SS uniform (black tie and cap) in the rank of Oberführer.
Photo of Heinrich Himmler wearing an early SS uniform (black tie and cap) in the rank of Oberführer.

Early SS (1927–1934)

Heinrich joined the SS in 1925 and in 1927 became deputy–Reichsführer-SS. The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Upon the resignation of SS commander Erhard Heiden, Himmler was appointed Reichsführer-SS in January 1929. A resignation is the formal act of giving up or quitting one's office or position Erhard Heiden (b Weiler February 23, 1901 &ndash September 1933 was an early member of the Nazi Party and the third commander of the Schutzstaffel was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945 The SS then had 280 members and was a mere battalion of the much larger Sturmabteilung (SA). A battalion is a Military unit of around 500-1500 men usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel The, abbreviated SA, ( German for "Assault detachment" or "Assault section" usually translated as " stormtroop(ers

By 1933, the SS numbered 52,000 members. The organization enforced strict membership requirements ensuring that all members were of Adolf Hitler’s Aryan Herrenvolk ("Aryan master race"). Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Aryan is an English word derived from the Sanskrit " Ārya " meaning "noble" or "honorable" The master race ( German: die Herrenrasse) is a concept in Nazi Ideology, which holds that the Germanic and Nordic Himmler and his deputy Reinhard Heydrich, began an effort to separate the SS from SA control. Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief Black SS uniforms replaced the SA brown shirts in the autumn of 1933. SS uniform refers to the various uniforms worn by the units and departments of the Schutzstaffel (SS between 1925 and 1945 Shortly thereafter, Himmler was promoted to SS-Obergruppenführer and Reichsführer-SS and became an equal of the senior SA commanders, who by this time loathed the SS and its power. Obergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest

Himmler, Hermann Göring, and General Werner von Blomberg agreed that the SA and its leader Ernst Röhm posed a threat to the German Army and the Nazi leadership. Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member Werner Eduard Fritz von Blomberg (2 September 1878 - 14 March 1946 was a leading member of the German Army until January 1938 Ernst Julius Röhm, (Munich November 28, 1887 – July 2, 1934) was a German military officer and later the commander and co-founder Röhm had socialist and populist views and believed that although Hitler had successfully gained power, the "real" revolution had not yet begun and that the SA should become the sole arms-bearing corps of the state. A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, "a turnaround" is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively This left some Nazi leaders believing Röhm was intent on using the SA to undertake a coup.

SS chief Heinrich Himmler (left) with Adolf Hitler
SS chief Heinrich Himmler (left) with Adolf Hitler

Persuaded by Himmler and Göring, Hitler agreed that Röhm had to be murdered. He delegated this task to Reinhard Heydrich, Kurt Daluege and Walter Schellenberg, who ordered the execution of Röhm (carried out by Theodor Eicke) and other senior SA officials, plus some of Hitler’s personal enemies (like Gregor Strasser and Kurt von Schleicher) on 30 June 1934, in what became known as the Night of the Long Knives. Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief Kurt Daluege ( September 15, 1897 &ndash October 24, 1946) was an SS- Oberstgruppenführer and Generaloberst der Polizei Walter (correctly Walther) Friedrich Schellenberg ( January 16[[ 910]] &ndash March 31[[ 952]] was a German Nazi who Capital punishment, the death penalty or execution, is the Killing of a person by judicial process as Punishment. Theodor Eicke ( October 17 1892 &ndash February 26, 1943) was a Nazi official SS- Obergruppenführer, commander Gregor Strasser (also Straßer, see ß) ( May 31, 1892 &ndash June 30, 1934) was a Politician of the German Events 350 - Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, is defeated and killed by troops of the Usurper Year 1934 ( MCMXXXIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Night of the Long Knives (German) or " Operation Hummingbird " was a Purge that took place in Nazi Germany between June 30 and July The next day, the SS became an independent organization.

Consolidation of power

In 1934, Himmler was named head of the Gestapo, the German secret police, and was also named chief of all German police outside Prussia. The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany Secret police (sometimes political police) are a Police agency which operates in Secrecy to maintain National security against internal Prussia ( Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Prūsija Prūsija Prusy Old Prussian: Prūsa) was most recently a historic state Two years later, Himmler gained further authority all of Germany’s uniformed law enforcement agencies were amalgamated into the new Ordnungspolizei (Orpo: "order police"), whose main office became a headquarters branch of the SS as Himmler was accorded the title Chief of the German Police. Law enforcement agency ( LEA) is a term used to describe either an organisation that enforces the laws of one or more governing bodies or an organisation that actively and directly The Ordnungspolizei (Orpo was the name for the uniformed Regular German Police force in existence during the period of Nazi Germany, notably Traditionally, law enforcement in Germany had been a state and local matter.

Despite his title, Himmler gained only partial control of the uniformed police. The actual powers granted to him with the appointment were those previously exercised in police matters by the ministry of the interior, and not even all of those. It was only in 1943, when Himmler was appointed minister of the interior, that the transfer of ministerial power was complete.

Himmler also oversaw the entire concentration camp system. See also List of Nazi-German concentration camps, Extermination camp Prior to and during World War II, Nazi Germany under Hitler maintained Once war began, though, new internment camps not formally classified as concentration camps were established, over which Himmler and the SS did not exercise control. In 1943, following the outbreak of popular word-of-mouth criticism of the regime as a result of the Stalingrad disaster, the party apparatus, professing disappointment with the Gestapo’s performance in deterring such criticism, established the Politische Staffeln (political squads) as its own political policing organ, destroying the Gestapo’s nominal monopoly in this field. The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the

Heinrich Himmler (left) with, from left to right: Reinhard Heydrich, Karl Wolff and an unidentified assistant at the Obersalzberg, May 1939
Heinrich Himmler (left) with, from left to right: Reinhard Heydrich, Karl Wolff and an unidentified assistant at the Obersalzberg, May 1939

With his 1936 appointment, Himmler also gained ministerial authority over Germany’s non-political detective forces, the Kriminalpolizei (Kripo: crime police), which he attempted to combine with the Gestapo into the Sicherheitspolizei (Sipo: security police) under the command of Reinhard Heydrich, and thus gain operational control over Germany’s entire detective force. Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief Karl Friedrich Otto Wolff ( May 13, 1900 &ndash July 17, 1984) was a high-ranking member of the Nazi SS. The Berghof was Adolf Hitler 's home in the Obersalzberg of the Bavarian Alps near Berchtesgaden, Germany. is the standard term for the criminal investigation agency within the Police forces of Germany, Austria and the German-speaking cantons of Switzerland The Sicherheitspolizei (security police often abbreviated as SiPo, was a term used in Nazi Germany to describe the state political and criminal investigation security This merger was never complete within the Reich, with Kripo remaining firmly under the control of its own civilian administration and later the party apparatus as the latter annexed the civilian administration. (ˈraɪk German ˈʁaɪç is a German Loanword cognate with the English Reign, Region, and Rich, but used most to designate However, in occupied territories not incorporated into the Reich proper, Sipo consolidation within the SS line of command proved mostly effective. Following the outbreak of World War II, Himmler formed the Reichssicherheitshauptamt (RSHA: reichs security headquarters) wherein Gestapo, Kripo and the Sicherheitsdienst (SD: security services) became departments. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The RSHA, or Reichssicherheitshauptamt (Reich Security Head Office was a subordinate organization of the SS. The Sicherheitsdienst (SD Security Service was primarily the Intelligence service of the SS and the NSDAP. Attempts in 1940 to use the new RSHA structure to gain full control over the Kripo by giving RSHA regional officers command authority over Kripo offices in their jurisdictions were rebuffed.

The SS during these years developed its own military branch, the SS-Verfügungstruppe, which later became the Waffen-SS. The SS-Verfügungstruppe ( The Combat Support Force) (short SS-VT) were combat divisions of the SS, trained according to the German Army ( Wehrmacht The Waffen-SS ( German for "Armed SS" literally "Weapons SS" was the Combat arm of the Schutzstaffel ("Protective Squadron" Even though nominally under the authority of Himmler, the Waffen-SS developed a fully militarized structure of command and operationally were incorporated in the war effort parallel to the Wehrmacht. Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 Many contemporary commentators refuse to recognize the Waffen SS as in any sense an honorable military organization. Its units were involved in many notorious incidents of murdering civilians and unarmed prisoners. For this reason, postwar war crimes tribunals declared the Waffen SS to be a criminal organization despite the honorable service of its majority.

Himmler and the Holocaust

SS Chief Heinrich Himmler (front right, facing prisoner) on a personal visit to the Dachau Concentration Camp in 1936
SS Chief Heinrich Himmler (front right, facing prisoner) on a personal visit to the Dachau Concentration Camp in 1936

After the Night of the Long Knives, the SS-Totenkopfverbände organized and administered Germany’s regime of concentration camps and, after 1941, the extermination camps in Poland. Dachau was a Nazi German Concentration camp, and the first one opened in Germany located on the grounds of an abandoned munitions Factory near the The Night of the Long Knives (German) or " Operation Hummingbird " was a Purge that took place in Nazi Germany between June 30 and July SS-Totenkopfverbände ( SS-TV) was a German Nazi formation of concentration camps guards Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial Extermination camps were two types of facilities that Nazi Germany built during World War II for the systematic killing of millions of people in what has become Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The SS, through its intelligence arm, the Security Service (Sicherheitsdienst, or SD), dealt with Jews, Gypsies, communists and those persons of any other cultural, racial, political or religious affiliation deemed by the Nazis to be either Untermensch (sub-human) or in opposition to the regime, and placing them in concentration camps. The Sicherheitsdienst (SD Security Service was primarily the Intelligence service of the SS and the NSDAP. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The Romani people (singular Rom, plural Roma as a Noun; also known as Romanies or Roma people) are an ethnic group with origins Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The term race or racial group usually refers to the concept of categorizing Humans into Populations or groups on the basis of various sets A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Untermensch ( German for under man, sub-man, sub-human; plural Untermenschen is a term from Nazi racial Ideology Himmler opened the first of these camps at Dachau on 22 March 1933. Dachau was a Nazi German Concentration camp, and the first one opened in Germany located on the grounds of an abandoned munitions Factory near the Events 238 - Gordian I and his son Gordian II are proclaimed Roman emperor. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He was the main architect of the Holocaust, using elements of mysticism and a fanatical belief in the racist Nazi ideology to justify the murder of millions of victims. The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as Mysticism (from the Greek grc μυστικός mystikos, an initiate of a Mystery religion) is the pursuit of communion with identity List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics Himmler had similar plans for the Poles. Intellectuals were to be killed and most other Poles were to be only literate enough to read traffic signs.

In contrast to Hitler, Himmler inspected concentration camps. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately In August 1941 he witnessed a mass shooting of Jews in Minsk and was said to have been sickened after brain matter from a victim splashed onto his coat; his assistant Karl Wolff had to jump forward and hold him steady. Minsk (Мінск mʲinsk Минск mʲinsk is the Capital and largest city in Belarus, situated on the Svislach and Niamiha rivers Karl Friedrich Otto Wolff ( May 13, 1900 &ndash July 17, 1984) was a high-ranking member of the Nazi SS. [9] After that the Nazis searched for a new and more expedient way to kill which culminated in the use of the gas chambers. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German

Himmler wanted to breed a master race of Nordic Aryans in Germany. The Nordic race was one of the racial categories into which the Europeans were divided by anthropologists in the first half of the twentieth century The " Aryan race " is a concept in European culture that was influential in the period of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries His experience as a chicken farmer had taught him the rudimentary basics of animal breeding which he proposed to apply to humans. He believed that he could engineer the German populace, through selective breeding, to be entirely "Nordic" in appearance within several decades of the end of the war. [10]

Posen speech

On 4 October 1943, Himmler referred explicitly to the extermination of the Jewish people during a secret SS meeting in the city of Poznań (Posen). Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Poznań Lublin Voivodeship This article is about the city in Poland The following are excerpts from a transcription of an audio recording that exists of the speech:

I also want to mention a very difficult subject before you here, completely openly. It should be discussed amongst us, and yet, nevertheless, we will never speak about it in public. I am talking about the Jewish evacuation: the extermination of the Jewish people. It is one of those things that is easily said. "The Jewish people are being exterminated," every Party member will tell you: "Perfectly clear, it’s part of our plans, we’re eliminating the Jews, exterminating them, ha!, a small matter. "

The Second World War

In 1939 Hitler masterminded the Operation Himmler, arguably the first operation of the WWII in Europe. Operation Himmler (less often known as Operation Konserve or Operation Canned Goods) was a Nazi Germany False flag project to create the appearance

Before the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 (Operation Barbarossa), Himmler prepared his SS for a war of extermination against the forces of "Judeo-Bolshevism". Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Jewish Bolshevism, Judeo-Bolshevism, Judeo-Communism, or in Polish Żydokomuna, is a Pejorative Antisemitic expression Himmler, always glad to make parallels between Nazi Germany and the Middle Ages, compared the invasion to the Crusades. The Crusades were a series of military campaigns of a religious character waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal opponents He collected volunteers from all over Europe, especially those of Nordic stock who were genetically closest to Germans, like the Danes, Norwegians, Swedes, and Dutch. The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands After the invasion, Ukrainians, Latvians, Lithuanians, and Estonians volunteers were also recruited, attracting the non-Germanic volunteers by declaring a pan-European crusade to defend the traditional values of Old Europe from the "Godless Bolshevik Hordes". Ukraine (Україна Ukrayina, /ukrɑˈjinɑ/ is a country in Eastern Europe. Latvia ( Latvija officially the Republic of Latvia (Latvijas Republika is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region. Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region Thousands joined and many other thousands were simply conscripted.

The volunteers from the occupied Soviet territories were frequently collaborator policemen pressed en-masse into the Waffen SS once their territories of origin were overrun by the Red Army. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya In the Baltic States many natives volunteered to serve due to their loathing of oppression after the occupation by the Soviet Union. The Baltic states (Balti riigid Baltijas valstis Baltijos valstybės or Baltic countries are three countries in Northern Europe, all members of the The occupation of the Baltic states refers to the occupation of the Baltic states ( Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) first by the The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 As long as they were employed against Soviet troops, they performed acceptably, expecting no mercy if captured. When employed against the Western Allies, they tended to surrender eagerly. Waffen SS recruitment in Western and Nordic Europe collected much less manpower, though a number of Waffen-SS Legions were founded, such as the Wallonian contingent led by Leon Degrelle, whom Himmler planned to appoint chancellor of a restored Burgundy within the Nazi orbit once the war was over. Léon Joseph Marie Ignace Degrelle ( June 15 1906 &ndash April 1 1994) was a Walloon Belgian politician who founded Chancellor or chancellour (archaic ( Latin: cancellarius) is an official Title used in countries whose civilization has arisen Burgundy (Bourgogne Burgund is a region historically situated in modern-day France and Switzerland, inhabited in turn by Celts ( Gauls)

In 1942, Reinhard Heydrich, Himmler’s right hand man was killed near Prague after a terrorist attack by Czech special forces supplied by British Intelligence. Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. Himmler immediately carried out a brutal reprisal, killing the entire male population in the village of Lidice and scattering the women and children. Lidice (Liditz is a village in the Czech Republic just north-west of Prague which as part of Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, was completely destroyed

Interior minister

In 1943, Himmler was appointed Interior Minister. This was a pyrrhic victory. A Pyrrhic victory (ˈpɪrɪk is a victory with devastating cost to the victor Himmler sought to use his new office to reverse the party apparatus' annexation of the civil service and tried to challenge the authority of the party gauleiters.

This aspiration was frustrated by Martin Bormann, Hitler’s secretary and party chancellor. Martin Ludwig Bormann (17 June 1900 – 2 May 1945 It also incurred some displeasure from Hitler himself, whose long-standing disdain for the traditional civil service was one of the foundations of Nazi administrative thinking. Himmler made things much worse still when following his appointment as head of the Reserve Army (Ersatzheer, see below) he tried to use his authority in both military and police matters by transferring policemen to the Waffen-SS.

With Himmler threatening his power base, Bormann could not give him the opportunity fast enough, initially acquiescing in the policies, until furious protests broke out. Then, Bormann came out against the scheme, leaving Himmler much discredited, especially with the party, whose gauleiters now saw Bormann as their protector.

20 July plot

It was determined that leaders of German Military Intelligence (the Abwehr), including its head, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, were involved in the 20 July 1944 plot to assassinate Hitler. The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944 Wilhelm Franz Canaris ( January 1, 1887 &ndash April 9, 1945) was a German Admiral and head of the Abwehr This prompted Hitler to disband the Abwehr and make Himmler's Security Service (Sicherheitsdienst, or SD) the sole intelligence service of the Third Reich. The Sicherheitsdienst (SD Security Service was primarily the Intelligence service of the SS and the NSDAP. The Sicherheitsdienst (SD Security Service was primarily the Intelligence service of the SS and the NSDAP. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers This increased Himmler’s personal power.

General Friedrich Fromm, Commander-in-Chief of the Reserve (or Replacement) Army (Ersatzheer), was implicated in the conspiracy. Friedrich Fromm ( October 8 1888 &ndash March 12 1945) was a German army officer remembered for his betrayal of conspirators Fromm’s removal, coupled with Hitler’s suspicion of the army, led the way to Himmler’s appointment as Fromm’s successor, a position he abused to expand the Waffen SS even further to the detriment of the rapidly deteriorating German armed forces (Wehrmacht). Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945

Unfortunately for Himmler, the investigation soon revealed the involvement of many SS officers in the conspiracy, including some senior ones, which played into the hands of Bormann’s power struggle against the SS, as very few party cadre officers were implicated. Even more important, some senior SS officers began to conspire against Himmler himself, as they believed that he would be unable to achieve victory in the power struggle against Bormann. Among these defectors were Ernst Kaltenbrunner, Heydrich’s successor as chief of the Reichssicherheitshauptamt, and Gruppenführer Heinrich Müller, the chief of the Gestapo. Ernst Kaltenbrunner (4 October 1903 &ndash 16 October 1946 was a senior Nazi official during World War II. The RSHA, or Reichssicherheitshauptamt (Reich Security Head Office was a subordinate organization of the SS. Gruppenführer (literally “Group Leader” was an early Paramilitary Rank of the Nazi Party, first created in 1925 as a senior Heinrich Müller can refer to Heinrich Müller (Gestapo Heinrich Müller (physiologist The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany

Commander-in-chief

In late 1944, Himmler became Commander-in-Chief of the newly formed Army Group Upper Rhine (Heeresgruppe Oberrhein). A commander-in-chief is the Commander of a nation's Military forces or significant element of those forces The German Army Group Upper Rhine (German Heeresgruppe Oberrhein) was a short-lived command of the German Armed Forces ( Wehrmacht) during late 1944 and This army group was formed to fight the advancing U.S. 7th Army and French 1st Army in the Alsace region along the west bank of the Rhine. The Seventh United States Army, formerly the United States Army Europe, is the land component of United States European Command. The First Army (Ire Armée was a field Army of France that fought during World War I and World War II. Alsace (Alsace alzas Alsatian and Elsass pre-1996 German: Elsaß; Alsatia is one of the 26 Regions of France, located on the eastern The Rhine (Rhein Rijn Rhin Reno Rain Rhenus is one of the longest and most important Rivers in Europe at 1320 kilometres (820 mi with an average discharge The U. S. 7th Army was under the command of General Alexander Patch and the French 1st Army was under the command of General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny. General Alexander McCarrell "Sandy" Patch (November 23 1889 – November 21 1945 was an officer in the United States Army, best known for his service Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny ( 2 February 1889 &ndash 11 January 1952) was a French military hero of World

On 1 January 1945, Himmler's army group launched Operation North Wind (Unternehmen Nordwind) to push back the Americans and the French. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar "Operation North Wind" was also a joint German-Finnish naval operation in the Baltic Sea in 1941 see Operation Nordwind (1941. In late January, after some limited initial success, Himmler was transferred east. By 24 January, Army Group Upper Rhine was de-activated after having gone over to the defensive. Events 41 - Gaius Caesar (Caligula, known for his eccentricity and cruel Despotism, is Assassinated by his disgruntled Operation North Wind officially ended on 25 January. Events 41 - After a night of negotiation Claudius is accepted as Roman Emperor by the Senate

Elsewhere the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer) had failed to halt the Red Army’s Vistula-Oder offensive so Hitler gave Himmler command of yet another newly formed army group, Army Group Vistula (Heeresgruppe Weichsel) to stop the Soviet advance on Berlin. The Heer was the land forces component of the German armed forces ( Wehrmacht) from 1935 to 1945, which also included the Navy ( The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya Army Group Vistula ( Heeresgruppe Weichsel) was an Army Group of the Wehrmacht, formed on January 24[[ 945]] Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Hitler placed Himmler in command of Army Group Vistula despite the failure of Army Group Upper Rhine, and despite Himmler’s total lack of experience and his proven inability to command troops. This appointment may have been at the instigation of Martin Bormann, anxious to discredit a rival, or through Hitler’s continuing anger at the "failures" of the general staff. Martin Ludwig Bormann (17 June 1900 – 2 May 1945

As Commander-in-Chief of Army Group Vistula, Himmler established his command centre at Schneidemühl. He used his special train (sonderzug) , Sonderzug Steiermark, as his headquarters. Himmler did this despite the train having only one telephone line and no signals detachment. Eager to show his determination, Himmler acquiesced in a quick counter-attack urged by the general staff. The operation quickly bogged down and Himmler dismissed a regular army corps commander and appointed Nazi Heinz Lammerding. His headquarters was also forced to retreat to Falkenburg. On 30 January, Himmler issued draconian orders: Tod und Strafe für Pflichtvergessenheit —"death and punishment for those who forget their obligations" to encourage his troops. Events 1648 - Eighty Years' War: The Treaty of Münster is signed ending the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain The worsening situation left Himmler under increasing pressure from Hitler; he was unassertive and nervous in any conference. In mid-February the Pomeranian offensive by his forces was actually directed by General Walther Wenck, and after intense pressure from General Heinz Guderian on Hitler, although Himmler did intervene to forbid evacuation of civilians from eastern Pomerania. Walther Wenck ( September 18, 1900 &ndash May 1, 1982) was the youngest General in the German Army during the Second Heinz Wilhelm Guderian ( 17 June, 1888 – 14 May, 1954) was a military theorist and innovative General of the German By early March, Himmler’s headquarters had moved west of the Oder River, although his army group was still named after the Vistula River. The Oder (known in Czech and Polish as Odra) is a River in Central Europe. At conferences with Hitler, Himmler aped his leader’s line of increased severity towards those who retreated.

On March 13, Himmler abandoned his command, and, claiming illness, retired to a sanatorium at Hohenlychen. Events 1138 - Cardinal Gregorio Conti is elected Antipope as Victor IV, succeeding Anacletus II. Guderian visited him there and carried his resignation as Commander-in-Chief of Army Group Vistula to Hitler that night. On March 20, Himmler was replaced by General Gotthard Heinrici. Events 1600 - The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden. Gotthardt Heinrici ( December 25, 1886 – December 13, 1971) was a General in the German Army during World War

As defeat loomed, Himmler was considered by some to be a candidate to succeed Hitler as the Führer of Germany. However, it became known after the war that Hitler never really considered Himmler as a successor, even before his betrayal (see below), believing that the authority that was his as head of the SS had caused him to be so hated that he would be rejected by the party.

Peace negotiations

Heinrich Himmler in 1945.
Heinrich Himmler in 1945.

In the winter of 1944–45, Himmler’s Waffen-SS numbered 910,000 members, with the Allgemeine-SS (at least on paper) hosting a membership of nearly two million. The Waffen-SS ( German for "Armed SS" literally "Weapons SS" was the Combat arm of the Schutzstaffel ("Protective Squadron" The Allgemeine SS (German for "General SS" literally "Universal SS" was the biggest SS branch in terms of members However, by the spring of 1945 Himmler had lost faith in German victory, probably partially due to his discussions with his masseur Felix Kersten and Walter Schellenberg. Felix Kersten ( 30 September, 1898 Dorpat, Russia - 16 April, 1960, Stockholm, Sweden) was before Walter (correctly Walther) Friedrich Schellenberg ( January 16[[ 910]] &ndash March 31[[ 952]] was a German Nazi who [11] He realized that if the Nazi regime was to survive, it needed to seek peace with Britain and the United States. Toward this end, he contacted Count Folke Bernadotte of Sweden at Lübeck, near the Danish border, and began negotiations to achieve a peace treaty with the Allies. A count is a Nobleman in European countries The word count comes from French comte, itself from Latin "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Lübeck ( is the second largest City in Schleswig-Holstein, in Northern Germany, and one of the major The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Himmler hoped the British and Americans would fight their Soviet allies with the remains of the Wehrmacht. A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia.

When Hitler discovered this, he declared Himmler to be a traitor. In Law, treason is the Crime that covers some of the more serious acts of disloyalty to one's sovereign or Nation. He stripped him of his titles and ranks (Reichsführer-SS (Supreme Commander of the SS), Successor of Adolf Hitler (as Reich chancellor), Chief of the German police, Reich commissioner of German nationhood, Reich minister of the interior, Supreme Commander of the Volkssturm, and Supreme Commander of the Home Army) the day before Hitler committed suicide. The Volkssturm (lit "Folkstorm" "People's" or "National Militia" Sturm lit The generally accepted cause of the death of Adolf Hitler on Monday 30 April 1945 is Suicide by gunshot and Cyanide poisoning Hitler’s successor as chancellor of Germany was Joseph Goebbels, an enemy of Himmler's. Paul Joseph Goebbels (German pronunciation ˈɡœbəls English generally ˈɡɝbəlz (29 October 1897 1 May 1945 was a German politician and Reich Minister of Public Hitler also viewed Hermann Göring as a traitor. Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member

Himmler’s negotiations with Count Bernadotte failed. He joined Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, who by then was commanding all German forces within the northern part of the western front, in nearby Plön. Grand Admiral is a historic naval rank generally being the highest such rank present in any particular country Karl Dönitz (ˈdøːnɪts) (16 September 1891 &ndash 24 December 1980 was a German naval Commander who served Plön (ˈpløːn is the district seat of the Plön district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, and has about 13000 inhabitants Dönitz sent Himmler away, explaining that there was no place for him in the new German government.

Himmler next turned to the Americans as a defector, contacting the headquarters of General Dwight Eisenhower and proclaiming he would surrender all of Germany to the Allies if he was spared from prosecution. In Politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (October 14 1890 – March 28 1969 was President of the United States from 1953 until 1961 and a five-star general The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the Common law Adversarial system, or the civil law He asked Eisenhower to appoint him "minister of police" in Germany's post-war government. He reportedly mused on how to handle his first meeting with the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) commander and whether to give the Nazi salute or shake hands with him. Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (abbreviated as SHAEF, pronounced "shāf" was the headquarters of the Commander of Allied forces Eisenhower refused to have anything to do with Himmler, who was subsequently declared a major war criminal. War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war" including but not limited to "murder the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied

Capture and death

Himmler’s corpse after his suicide by poison in Allied custody, 1945
Himmler’s corpse after his suicide by poison in Allied custody, 1945

Unwanted by his former colleagues and hunted by the Allies, Himmler wandered for several days around Flensburg near the Danish border. Flensburg ( Danish: Flensborg, Low Saxon: Flensborg, North Frisian: Flansborj) is an independent town in Attempting to evade arrest, he disguised himself as a sergeant-major of the Secret Military Police, using the name Heinrich Hitzinger, shaving his moustache and donning an eye patch over his left eye,[12] in the hope that he could return to Bavaria. An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the investigation and prevention of crime He had equipped himself with a set of false documents, but someone whose papers were wholly in order was so unusual that it aroused the suspicions of a British Army unit in Bremen. The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. Bremen (ˈbʁeːmən is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany (official name Stadtgemeinde Bremen / City Municipality of Bremen Himmler was arrested on May 22 by Sergeant Arthur Britton, and in captivity, was soon recognized. Events 334 BC - The Greek army of Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia in the Battle of the Granicus. Himmler was scheduled to stand trial with other German leaders as a war criminal at Nuremberg, but committed suicide in Lüneburg by swallowing a potassium cyanide capsule before interrogation could begin. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after Lüneburg, also known as Lueneburg and Lunenburg in English, is a City in Lower Saxony, Germany. Potassium cyanide is an Inorganic compound with the formula KCN Interrogation or questioning is Interviewing as commonly employed by officers of the Police and Military. His last words were Ich bin Heinrich Himmler! ("I am Heinrich Himmler!"). Another version has Himmler biting into a cyanide pill (hidden in-between his lower right teeth) when searched by a British doctor, who then yelled, "He has done it!". Several attempts to revive Himmler were unsuccessful. [13]Shortly afterwards, Himmler’s body was buried in an unmarked grave on the Lüneburg Heath. The phrase Unmarked grave has Metaphorical meaning in the context of cultures that mark burial sites. The Lüneburg Heath (Lüneburger Heide is a region in Lower Saxony, Germany. The precise location of Himmler’s grave remains unknown.

Forgeries, Fabrications and Conspiracy Theories

There were later speculations that the man who committed suicide in Lüneburg was not Himmler but a double. A political decoy is a person employed to Impersonate a Politician, in order to draw attention away from the real person or to take risks on their behalf

This was taken up in the book SS-1: The Unlikely Death of Heinrich Himmler by Hugh Thomas, published in 2001 by 4th Estate. Thomas gained access to the autopsy records. It recorded such details as the amount of hair in the ears of the corpse (p. 172), but it was alleged made no mention of a v-shaped scar which Himmler was known to have had; the remnants of a wound above his left cheekbone, sustained in a fencing duel in his youth. Whilst sections of the work were highly readable, historians dismissed the works primary thesis as baseless, produced to cash-in on the populist genre of the period, manufactured conspiracy fantasies about “surviving Nazis. ”[14]

A recently-published book by pro-Nazi, Holocaust denier Joseph Bellinger, Himmler’s Death[15], offers a speculative account of Himmler’s death, stating that Himmler was assassinated by his British interrogators in May 1945 along with other high-ranking officers of the SS and Werwolf organizations. Userpolbot from http//bioguidecongressgov/scripts/biodisplaypl?index=B000350 AssassiNation is the sixth album by Krisiun, released in 2006 on Century Media. Werwolf ( German for " Werewolf " the spelling "Wehrwolf" is incorrect was a World War II Nazi plan for a

Bellinger’s account was first published in Germany by the ultra-Rightist and extremist [16] Arndt Verlag, [17] Kiel. For the city in the United States, see Kiel Wisconsin. For the name see Kiel (name. It is largely derivative of the mainstream book, Himmler’s Secret War, by Martin Allen, which makes identical allegations, but later admitted to being based on fabricated documents, [18] "in fact produced using a laser printer, documents replete with anachronistic terminology” [19]

Public confirmation of the hoax was forthcoming in "July 2005, it was discovered that a number of files held at The National Archives contained forged documents. " [20]

In May of 2008, a conclusive and thorough British police investigation “identified 29 forgeries that had been slipped into 12 files after 2000” [21]which had been used to support recent Himmler conspiracies and speculations.

The Financial Times newspaper had further “reported the forgeries were cited as sources by a historian who had written three books about World War Two. ” [22]

Author Allen was widely reported to have a history of making sensationalistic accusations and reliance on fabricated materials when writing about other notable Nazis. “When challenged about a supposed letter from the Duke of Windsor to Hitler, Allen responded that it had been given to his late father by Albert Speer, later being found in the author's attic. ” [23]

Convicted writer David Irving whom an English court found was an "active Holocaust denier," as well as an antisemite and racist, and that he "associates with right-wing extremists who promote neo-Nazism. David John Cawdell Irving (born 24 March 1938 is a British writer specializing in the Military history of World War II. Holocaust denial is the claim that the Genocide of Jews during World War II —usually referred to as The Holocaust —did not occur in the Antisemitism (alternatively spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism; also rarely known as judeophobia) is the Prejudice against or hostility List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that Far right, extreme right, ultra-right, or radical right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group The term neo-Nazism refers to post- World War II Political movements Social movements and ideologies seeking to revive Nazism, "[24] and the judge having ruled that Irving had "for his own ideological reasons persistently and deliberately misrepresented and manipulated historical evidence. An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics "[24][25] has similarly made allegations that Himmler was beaten and killed by the British. Relying on the now discredited forgeries, Irving remarked, “Britain's secret agents had secretly and criminally liquidated one of the most wanted men in history”[26] Reputable historians consistently reject such claims, affirming that the British and Allies supported a policy that was committed to having Himmler stand trial. The photograph of the body shows no signs of violence, and there is no supporting forensic evidence, or any other evidence for either Irving or Allen. Forensic Identification is the application of forensic science and technology to identify specific objects from the Trace evidence they leave often at a Crime Evidence in its broadest sense includes anything that is used to determine or demonstrate the Truth of an assertion

Allach porcelain

Main article: Allach (concentration camp)

The porcelain factory Porzellan Manufaktur Allach was established as a private concern in 1935 in the small town of Allach, near Munich, Germany. History During World War II, Allach was opened on March 19th 1943 as the largest subcamp of Dachau concentration camp because of the shortage of workforce Allach porcelain (pronounced 'alak' was produced in Germany between 1935 and 1945 Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. In 1936 the factory was acquired by the SS. Heinrich Himmler saw the acquisition of a fine porcelain factory as a way to establish an industrial base for the production of works of art that would be representative, in Himmler's eyes, of truly Germanic culture. Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. Allach porcelain was one of Himmler’s favorite projects and produced various figurines (soldiers, animals, etc. Allach porcelain (pronounced 'alak' was produced in Germany between 1935 and 1945 Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. ) to compete in the small but profitable German porcelain market.

High-ranking artists were locked into contract. The program of the factory included over 240 porcelain and ceramic models. As output at the Allach factory increased, the Nazis moved production to a new facility near the Dachau concentration camp. Dachau was a Nazi German Concentration camp, and the first one opened in Germany located on the grounds of an abandoned munitions Factory near the The fact that the factory might have been taking advantage of a pool of slave labor provided by the Dachau camp was strongly denied by the factory managers at the Nuremberg Trials. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after Initially intended as a temporary facility, Dachau remained the main location for fine porcelain manufacture even after the original factory in Allach was modernized and reopened in 1940. The factory in Allach was instead retrofitted for the production of ceramic products such as household pottery.

Allach was a sub-camp of the Dachau concentration camp near Munich, located approximately 10 miles from the main camp at Dachau. Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. According to Marcus J. Smith, who wrote "Dachau: The Harrowing of Hell," the Allach camp was divided into two enclosures, one for 3,000 Jewish inmates and the other for 6,000 non-Jewish prisoners. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Smith was a doctor in the US military, assigned to take over the care of the prisoners after the liberation. He wrote that the typhus epidemic had not reached Allach until April 22, 1945, about a week before the camp was liberated. Typhus is any of several similar diseases caused by Louse -borne bacteria [27]

Hitler unlike Himmler did not seem to care as much for Allach porcelain. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Allach porcelain (pronounced 'alak' was produced in Germany between 1935 and 1945 He is quoted as saying, "It’s like looking for ghosts in your attic. What culture can be found in a clay pot?"[28] about Himmler’s efforts at finding evidence about the ancient origins of the Germanic people. What he said could also show his true feelings about Allach porcelain. Allach porcelain (pronounced 'alak' was produced in Germany between 1935 and 1945

The fall of the Third Reich brought an end to the Allach concern. The Allach factories were shut down in 1945 and never reopened.

Historical views

Historians are divided on the psychology, motives, and influences that drove Himmler. Some see him as dominated by Hitler, fully under his influence, seeing himself essentially as a tool, carrying Hitler’s views to their logical conclusion, the executor of Hitler’s direct orders. Others see Himmler as extremely antisemitic in his own right, an even more eager 'ethnic cleanser' than his master. Still others see Himmler as power-mad, devoted to self-aggrandizement, the accumulation of power and influence. There is truth in all three of these positions.

Himmler to some extent accepted the "Hitler dominated" view, opining that if Hitler were to tell him to shoot his mother, he would do it and "be proud of the Führer’s confidence". This unconditional loyalty was the driving force behind Himmler’s unlikely career. But most commentators agree that Himmler was also a murderous racist, of his own accord a willing mastermind of genocide. And most commentators agree that Himmler was power hungry.

According to the Jewish Virtual Library, Himmler’s decisive innovation was to transform the race question from "a negative concept based on matter-of-course anti-Semitism" into "an organizational task for building up the SS . The Jewish Virtual Library is an online Encyclopedia published by the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise (AICE . . It was Himmler’s master stroke that he succeeded in indoctrinating the SS with an apocalyptic ‘idealism’ beyond all guilt and responsibility, which rationalized mass murder as a form of martyrdom and harshness towards oneself. " [8]

The wartime cartoonist Victor Weisz saw Himmler as a terrible octopus, wielding oppressed nations in each of his eight arms. Victor Weisz ( 25 April 1913 &ndash 22 February 1966) was a German-British Political cartoonist, drawing under the name of Vicky [9]

Wolfgang Sauer, historian at University of California, Berkeley, felt that "although he was pedantic, dogmatic, and dull, Himmler emerged under Hitler as second in actual power. The University of California Berkeley (also referred to as Cal, Berkeley and UC Berkeley) is a major research university located in Berkeley His strength lay in a combination of unusual shrewdness, burning ambition, and servile loyalty to Hitler. " [10]

Himmler told his personal masseur Felix Kersten that he always carried with him a copy of the ancient Aryan scripture, the Bhagavad Gita because it relieved him of guilt about implementing the final solution; he felt that like the warrior Arjuna, he was simply doing his duty without attachment to his actions. Felix Kersten ( 30 September, 1898 Dorpat, Russia - 16 April, 1960, Stockholm, Sweden) was before Aryan is an English word derived from the Sanskrit " Ārya " meaning "noble" or "honorable" The Final Solution ( Die Endlösung) was Nazi Germany 's plan and execution of its systematic Genocide against European Jewry during World Arjuna or Arjun ( Sanskrit: अर्जुन arjuna) is one of the heroes of the Hindu epic Mahābhārata, whose name [29]

In an extract in the Norman Brook War Cabinet Diaries[11], Winston Churchill took a view towards Himmler widely shared during the war, advocating his assassination. Norman Craven Brook 1st Baron Normanbrook GCB, PC ( 29 April 1902 - 15 June 1967) was a British civil servant Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 According to Brook, responding to a suggestion that Nazi leaders be executed, "this prompted Churchill to ask if they should negotiate with Himmler ‘and bump him off later’, once peace terms had been agreed. The suggestion to cut a deal for a German surrender with Himmler and then assassinate him with support from the Home Office. ‘Quite entitled to do so’, the minutes record [. . . Churchill] as commenting. " [12]

A main focus of recent work on Himmler has been the extent to which he competed for, and craved, Hitler’s attention and respect. The events of the last days of the war, when he abandoned Hitler and began separate negotiations with the Allies, are obviously significant in this respect.

Himmler appears to have had a distorted view of how he was perceived by the Allies; he intended to meet with US and British leaders and have discussions "as gentlemen". He tried to buy off their vengeance by last-minute reprieves for Jews and important prisoners. According to British soldiers who arrested Himmler, he was genuinely shocked to be treated as a prisoner.

In fiction

References

  1. ^ cited in Re. Holocaust Victim Assets Litigation (Swiss Banks) Special Master's Proposals, September 11, 2000).
  2. ^ "Sinti and Roma", United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
  3. ^ Andersch, A. : Der Vater eines Mörders (The father of a murderer). Diogenes, 2006. ISBN 978-3257236088
  4. ^ Höhne, Heinz (1972). Heinz Höhne (also Hoehne is a German journalist who specializes in Nazi and intelligence History. The Order of the Death’s Head: The Story of Hitler’s SS. London: Pan Books Ltd. ISBN 0-330-02963-0.  
  5. ^ Breitman, p. 9
  6. ^ Breitman, p. 11
  7. ^ Breitman, p. 12
  8. ^ Breitman, p. 13
  9. ^ Obergruppenführer-SS Karl. Retrieved on 2007-07-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1099 - First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon is elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of
  10. ^ Pringle, Heather: The Master Plan: Himmler’s Scholars and the Holocaust. Hyperion, New York, 2006. ISBN 0786868864
  11. ^ Crocker, Harry (2001-11-13). Triumph: A 2,000 Year History of the Catholic Church. Prima Lifestyles. ISBN 0761529241.  
  12. ^ Heinrich Himmler - Petty Bourgeois and Grand Inquisitor by Joachim C Fest
  13. ^ "Heinrich Himmler": Roger Manvall and Heinrich Fraenkel
  14. ^ Rebuilding the Reich [1]
  15. ^ [Meet Joe Bellinger http://holocaustcontroversies.blogspot.com/2006/07/meet-joe-bellinger.html]
  16. ^ Right Wing Extremists[2]
  17. ^ Federal Ministry of the Interior [3]
  18. ^ Dear Mr Hitler: forgeries fool Brits [4]
  19. ^ Historic Forgery and Fraud [5]
  20. ^ The National Archives : Forged Documents[6]
  21. ^ [ UK police find Himmler/Churchill archive forgeries http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSL0342892320080503?sp=true]
  22. ^ [ UK police find Himmler/Churchill archive forgeries http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSL0342892320080503?sp=true]
  23. ^ Historic Forgery and Fraud [7]
  24. ^ a b "The ruling against David Irving", excerpts from High Court Judge Charles Gray's ruling, The Guardian, 11 April 2000. Events 491 - Flavius Anastasius becomes Byzantine Emperor, with the name of Anastasius I. 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar.
  25. ^ "Hitler historian loses libel case", BBC News, April 11, 2000. Events 491 - Flavius Anastasius becomes Byzantine Emperor, with the name of Anastasius I. 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar.
  26. ^ ['Revelations' that cheered the Right http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1493197/%27Revelations%27-that-cheered-the-Right.html]
  27. ^ Liberation of Allach, a Dachau sub-camp,http://www.scrapbookpages.com/Dachauscrapbook/DachauLiberation/Allach.html
  28. ^ "The Private Voice of Hitler", program shown on the History Channel.
  29. ^ Padfield, Peter Himmler New York:1990--Henry Holt Page 402

Sources

See also

External links

Preceded by
Erhard Heiden		 Reichsführer-SS
1929–1945		 Succeeded by
Karl Hanke
Preceded by
Wilhelm Frick		 Interior Minister of Germany
1943–1945		 Succeeded by
Wilhelm Stuckart
Preceded by
None		 Commander of Army Group Upper Rhine
December 10, 1944-January 24, 1945		 Succeeded by
None
Preceded by
None		 Commander of Army Group Vistula
January 25, 1945-March 13, 1945		 Succeeded by
Generaloberst Gotthard Heinrici
(March 20)


Persondata
NAME Himmler, Heinrich Luitpold
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Commander of the Schutzstaffel (SS) and one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany
DATE OF BIRTH 7 October 1900
PLACE OF BIRTH Munich
DATE OF DEATH 23 May 1945
PLACE OF DEATH Lüneburg

Erhard Heiden (b Weiler February 23, 1901 &ndash September 1933 was an early member of the Nazi Party and the third commander of the Schutzstaffel was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945 Karl August Hanke ( 24 August 1903 - 8 June 1945) was an official of the National Socialist German Workers Party ( Nazi Party or Dr Wilhelm Frick (12 March 1877 16 October 1946 was a prominent Nazi official serving as Minister of the Interior of the Third Reich. The Federal Ministry of the Interior (in German, Bundesministerium des Innern or BMI is a ministry of the German federal government Dr Wilhelm Stuckart ( November 16, 1902 &ndash November 15, 1953) was a Nazi Party Lawyer and official a state secretary The German Army Group Upper Rhine (German Heeresgruppe Oberrhein) was a short-lived command of the German Armed Forces ( Wehrmacht) during late 1944 and Events 1041 - Empress Zoe of Byzantium elevates her adoptive son to the throne of the Eastern Roman Empire as Michael V Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 41 - Gaius Caesar (Caligula, known for his eccentricity and cruel Despotism, is Assassinated by his disgruntled Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Army Group Vistula ( Heeresgruppe Weichsel) was an Army Group of the Wehrmacht, formed on January 24[[ 945]] Events 41 - After a night of negotiation Claudius is accepted as Roman Emperor by the Senate Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Events 1138 - Cardinal Gregorio Conti is elected Antipope as Victor IV, succeeding Anacletus II. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Gotthardt Heinrici ( December 25, 1886 – December 13, 1971) was a General in the German Army during World War Events 1600 - The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden. The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Events 3761 BC - The epoch (origin of the modern Hebrew calendar ( Proleptic Julian calendar) Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. Events 1430 - Siege of Compiègne: Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to relieve Compiègne Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Lüneburg, also known as Lueneburg and Lunenburg in English, is a City in Lower Saxony, Germany.
© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org