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A Lebensborn birth house
A Lebensborn birth house

Lebensborn (Fount of Life, in German) was a Nazi organization set up by SS leader Heinrich Himmler, which provided maternity homes and financial assistance to the wives of SS members and to unmarried mothers, and which also ran orphanages and relocation programmes for children. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 The, abbreviated SA, ( German for "Assault detachment" or "Assault section" usually translated as " stormtroop(ers The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the For the SS division with the nickname Hitlerjugend see 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend The Hitler Youth ( German:, The early timeline of Nazism begins with its origins in 1896 and continues until Hitler's rise to power. Hitler's rise to power began with Hitler's NSDAP as a fringe political party within the government of the Weimar Republic. 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 article gives an overview about Religion in Nazi Germany and the Nazis ' complex and sometimes contradictory relationship with religion 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 Nuremberg Rally (officially Reichsparteitag, meaning national party convention was the annual rally of the NSDAP (Nazi Party in the years 1923 to 1938 in Kristallnacht ( literally "Crystal night" or the Night of Broken Glass was a Pogrom in Nazi Germany on November 9–10 1938 The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as 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 In the context of this article the term ex-Nazi, or more correctly ex-Nazi Party member refers either to those few who were once Nazis and resigned from the The term neo-Nazism refers to post- World War II Political movements Social movements and ideologies seeking to revive Nazism, Nazism developed several theories concerning races They claimed to scientifically measure a strict hierarchy among "human race " at the top was the " Nordic race Gleichschaltung, meaning "coordination" "making the same" "bringing into line" is a Nazi term for the process by which the Historians and biographers note some difficulty in attributing the political beliefs of Adolf Hitler. The National Socialist Program, also referred to as the 25-point program or 25-point plan was developed to formulate the party policies of first the Austrian German Historians political scientists and even philosophers have studied Nazism with a specific focus on its Religious or semi-religious aspects Nazi propaganda is the term that describes the psychologically powerful Propaganda within Nazi Germany, much of which was centered around Jews consistently Nazi architecture was an architectural plan and integral part of the Nazi party 's plans to create a Cultural and Mein Kampf ( English: My Struggle/My Battle) is a book by Adolf Hitler. Nazism developed several theories concerning races They claimed to scientifically measure a strict hierarchy among "human race " at the top was the " Nordic race The racial policy of Nazi Germany refers to the policies and laws implemented by Nazi Germany, asserting the superiority of the so-called " Aryan race " and Nazi eugenics were Nazi Germany 's race-based social policies that placed the improvement of the race through Eugenics at the center of their The Doctors' Trial (officially United States of America v Karl Brandt et al Nazi human experimentation was a series of controversial medical experiments on large numbers of prisoners by the German Nazi regime in its Concentration 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 The Parti national social chrétien was a Canadian Political party formed by Adrien Arcand in February 1934. The German American Bund or German American Federation (German Amerikadeutscher Bund) was an American Nazi organization established in the 1930s The Hungarian National Socialist Party was a political epithet adopted by a number of minor Nazi parties in Hungary before the Second World War. Nasjonal Samling (Norwegian for "National Gathering" or "National Unification" hereafter abbreviated as NS was a fascist party in Norway The National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands (Nationaal-Socialistische Beweging in Nederland NSB was a Dutch Fascist and later national socialist National Socialist Bloc (in Swedish: Nationalsocialistiska Blocket) was a Swedish national socialist Political party formed in the Disambiguation you may be looking for the National Socialist Party (UK, a left-wing organisation The National Socialist League was a short lived political movement Danmarks Nationalsocialistiske Arbejderparti (National Socialist Workers’ Party of Denmark or DNSAP, was the largest Danish Nazi party before and during The Ossewabrandwag ("Oxwagon Sentinel" (OB was a nationalist Afrikaner organisation in South Africa, founded in Bloemfontein on February The Arrow Cross Party ( Hungarian: Nyilaskeresztes Párt – Hungarista Mozgalom, literally "Arrow Cross Party-Hungarist Movement" was a Far-right For the militiamen of the Military Frontier, see Uskoci The Ustaša - Croatian Revolutionary Movement ( Croatian: This is a list of words terms concepts and Slogans that were specifically used in Nazi Germany. The term neo-Nazism refers to post- World War II Political movements Social movements and ideologies seeking to revive Nazism, This article describes semi-religious developments of Nazism after 1945 The völkisch movement is the German interpretation of the populist movement with a romantic focus on Folklore and the "organic" A list of Nazi Party (NSDAP leaders and officials. A Gunter d'Alquen - Chief Editor of the SS official Between 1925 and 1945 the German SS grew from a mere eight members to over a quarter of a million Waffen-SS and well over a million Allgemeine-SS members In the context of this article the term ex-Nazi, or more correctly ex-Nazi Party member refers either to those few who were once Nazis and resigned from the In the context of this article the term ex-Nazi, or more correctly ex-Nazi Party member refers either to those few who were once Nazis and resigned from the A spring is a point where Groundwater flows out of the ground and is thus where the Aquifer surface meets the ground surface The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. 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 Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. Initially set up in Germany in 1935, Lebensborn expanded into occupied countries in western and northern Europe during the Second World War. 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 In line with the racial and eugenic policies of Nazi Germany, the Lebensborn programme was restricted to individuals who were deemed to be "biologically fit" and "racially pure" "Aryans", and to SS members. The racial policy of Nazi Germany refers to the policies and laws implemented by Nazi Germany, asserting the superiority of the so-called " Aryan race " and Nazi eugenics were Nazi Germany 's race-based social policies that placed the improvement of the race through Eugenics at the center of their The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the In occupied countries, thousands of women facing social ostracism because they were in relationships with German soldiers and had become pregnant, had few alternatives other than applying for help with Lebensborn.

After World War II it was falsely reported that Lebenborn was a breeding programme. 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 This article focuses on selective breeding in domesticated animals This was not true because individuals were not forced to have sex with selected partners. [1] However, the programme did aim to promote the growth of "superior" Aryan populations through providing excellent health care and by restricting access to the programme with medical selections that applied eugenic and "race" criteria. Although Lebensborn did process the adoptions by German families of a small number of children who had been kidnapped in eastern Europe, it was not involved in the kidnapping of thousands of Polish children who were subjected to "Germanisation" by sending them to re-education camps and fostering them out to German families. Kidnapping of Polish children by Nazi Germany (Rabunek dzieci part of the Generalplan Ost (GPO the secret Nazi plan during World War II judged by the Germanisation (also spelled Germanization) is either the spread of the German language, people and culture either by force or Assimilation This project, also directed by Himmler, was carried out by other segments of the Nazi bureaucracy.

Contents

Background

The Lebensborn e. V. (eingetragener Verein, "registered association") was founded on December 12, 1935, in part as a response to declining birth rates in Germany, in order to promote the policies of Nazi eugenics. Eingetragener Verein or eV ("registered association" is a legal status for a Registered Voluntary association in Germany Located in Munich, the organisation was partly an office within the Schutzstaffel (SS) and responsible for certain family welfare programmes, and partly a society for Nazi leaders. Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the The purpose of the programme was to provide incentives to encourage Germans, especially SS members, to have more children.

On September 13, 1936, Himmler wrote the following to members of SS[2]:

The organization "Lebensborn e. The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the V. " serves the SS leaders in the selection and adoption of qualified children. The organisation "Lebensborn e. V. " is under my personal direction, is part of the race and settlement central bureau of the SS, and has the following obligations:

(1) aid for racially and biologically-hereditarily valuable families
(2) the accommodation of racially and biologically-hereditarily valuable mothers in appropriate homes, etc.
(3) care of the children of such families
(4) care of the mothers
It is the honourable duty of all leaders of the central bureau to become members of the organisation "Lebensborn e. V. ". The application for admission must be filed prior to 23/9/1936.

In 1939, membership stood at 8,000 , of which 3,500 were SS leaders with mandatory membership. [3] The Lebensborn office was part of SS Rasse und Siedlungshauptamt (SS Office of Race and Settlement) until 1938, when it was transferred to Hauptamt Persönlicher Stab Reichsführer-SS (Personal Staff of the Reich Leader SS), ie. directly overseen by Himmler. Leaders of Lebensborn e. V. were SS-Standartenführer Max Sollmann and SS-Oberführer Dr. Gregor Ebner.

Implementation

Initially the programme served as a welfare institution for wives of SS officers; the organisation ran facilities, primarily maternity homes, where women could give birth or get help with family matters. Furthermore, the programme accepted unmarried women who were either pregnant or had already given birth and were in need of aid, provided that both the woman and the father of the child were racially valuable. Later such facilities also served as temporary homes, orphanages and as an adoption service. When dealing with non-SS members, parents and children were usually examined by SS doctors before admittance.

The first Lebensborn home (known as Heim Hochland) opened in 1936 in Steinhöring, a tiny village not far from Munich. The first home outside of Germany opened in Norway in 1941. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional

While Lebensborn e. V. established facilities in several occupied countries, activities were concentrated around Germany, Norway and the occupied north-eastern Europe, mainly Poland. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The main focus in occupied Norway was aiding children born by German soldiers and Norwegian women; in north-eastern Europe the organisation, in addition to services provided to SS members, engaged in the movement of children, mostly orphans, to families in Germany.

Lebensborn e. V. had facilities, or planned to, in the following countries (some were merely field offices):

About 8,000 children were born in Lebensborn homes in Germany, and another 8,000 in Norway. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands Luxembourg (Groussherzogtum Lëtzebuerg Grand-Duché de Luxembourg Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small Landlocked country in Western Europe, bordered by Elsewhere the total number of births was much lower. For more information about Lebensborn in Norway, see war children. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional A war child refers to a child born to a native parent and a parent belonging to a foreign military force (usually an occupying force but also soldiers stationed at military bases

Post-war trial

After the war the branch of the Lebensborn organisation operating in north-eastern Europe was accused of kidnapping children deemed racially valuable in order to resettle them with German families. However, of approximately 10,000 foreign-born children located in the American-controlled area of Germany after the war, in the trial of the leaders of the Lebensborn organisation (United States of America v. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The RuSHA Trial (or officially The United States of America vs Ulrich Greifelt, et al. ), the court found that only 340 had been handled by Lebensborn e. V. . The accused were therefore acquitted on charges of kidnapping.

The court did find ample evidence of an existing kidnapping/forced movement programme of children in north-eastern Europe, but indicated that these activities were carried out by individuals who were not members of Lebensborn. Exactly how many children were moved by Lebensborn or other organisations remains unknown due to the destruction of archives by SS members prior to fleeing the advancing Allied forces. From the trial's transcript[4]:

The prosecution has failed to prove with the requisite certainty the participation of Lebensborn, and the defendants connected therewith in the kidnapping programme conducted by the Nazis. While the evidence has disclosed that thousands upon thousands of children were unquestionably kidnapped by other agencies or organisations and brought into Germany, the evidence has further disclosed that only a small percentage of the total number ever found their way into Lebensborn. And of this number only in isolated instances did Lebensborn take children who had a living parent. The majority of those children in any way connected with Lebensborn were orphans of ethnic Germans.

As a matter of fact, it is quite clear from the evidence that Lebensborn sought to avoid taking into its homes, children who had family ties; and Lebensborn went to the extent of making extensive investigations where the records were inadequate, to establish the identity of a child and whether it had family ties. When it was discovered that the child had a living parent, Lebensborn did not proceed with an adoption, as in the case of orphans, but simply allowed the child to be placed in a German home after an investigation of the German family for the purpose of determining the good character of the family and the suitability of the family to care for and raise the child.

Lebensborn made no practice of selecting and examining foreign children. In all instances where foreign children were handed over to Lebensborn by other organisations after a selection and examination, the children were given the best of care and never ill-treated in any manner.

It is quite clear from the evidence that of the numerous organisations operating in Germany who were connected with foreign children brought into Germany, Lebensborn was the one organisation which did everything in its power to adequately provide for the children and protect the legal interests of the children placed in its care.

Upon the evidence submitted, the defendant Sollmann is found not guilty on counts one and two of the indictment.

In Norway the Lebensborn organisation handled approximately 250 adoptions. In most of these cases the mothers had agreed to the adoption, though not all were informed that their child would be sent to Germany. The Norwegian government brought back all but 80 of these children after the war. The Norwegian Lebensborn records are intact, the majority stored at the The National Archival Services of Norway.

Post-war sensationalism

Himmler's effort to secure a racially pure Greater Germany, the fact that Lebensborn was one of Himmler's race programmes and sloppy journalism on the subject in the early years after the war led to false assumptions about the programme. Großdeutschland ( German for "Greater Germany" or "Large Germany" is a term referring to the concept of one German Nation-state The main misconception was that the programme involved supervised or even coercive selective breeding. This was not the case. Yet the programme did aim to promote the growth of Aryan populations, though encouraging relationships between German soldiers and "Nordic" women in occupied countries, and access to Lebensborn was restricted in line with the eugenic and racial policies of Nazism, which could logically be referred to. . . as supervised and/or coercive selective breeding. Until the last days of the war, the mothers and the children at maternity homes got the best treatment available, including food, even though many others in the area were starving. Because of this, once the war ended many townspeople turned on the women, beating them, cutting off their hair, and running them out of the community.

The first stories reporting that Lebensborn was a coercive breeding programme can be found in the German magazine Revue, which ran a series on the subject in the 1950s. The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive On January 13, 1961, the German film Der Lebensborn (also known as Ordered to Love (US) and Fountain of Life (International)), produced by Artur Brauner, was released, later to gain worldwide circulation. The film purported that young girls were forced to mate in Nazi camps. [5] In 1986, a CBS drama series made the less exaggerated but nonetheless incorrect claim that Lebensborn involved supervised selective mating:

CBS Drama Explores Nazis' Plan For A `Master Race, The Seattle Times - October 19, 1986
Of all the many terrible aspects of the Nazi regime, one of the least familiar was the party's plan to create a Master Race through lebensborn. This was a programme intended to mate the most Aryan of German girls with the most Aryan of S. S. members.

However, recently discovered records and ongoing testimony of Lebensborn children (and some of their parents) shows that some SS men sired children in Himmler's Lebensborn program. Many Lebensborn children were born to unwed mothers. Lebensborn survivors many times suffered ostracism or other damage. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article626101.ece

Open meeting

In November of 2006 an open meeting took place between several Lebensborn children, with the intent of dispelling myths and encouraging those affected to investigate their origins. [6]

See also

Books

References

  1. ^ Eddy, Melissa. "Documents Shed Light on Secret Nazi Programmes. " May 6, 2007 (AP).
  2. ^ Axis History Forum • View topic - Extracts from SS Soldiers Friend [Der Soldatenfreund] 1943
  3. ^ http://www.wernigerode.de/WRPortal/Landkreis/Buergerservice/Kreisgeschichte/Lebensborn.htm
  4. ^ Trial of Ulrich Greifelt and Others. United Nations War Crimes Commission. Part III
  5. ^ Lebensborn (1961)
  6. ^ Nazi 'master race' children meet, BBC News, November 4, 2006

External links

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