Karl Eberhard Schöngarth
Karl Eberhard Schöngarth | |
---|---|
War crimes | |
Criminal penalty | Death |
Details | |
Victims | 10,000+ |
Span of crimes | 1941–1945 |
Country | Poland and Netherlands |
Military career | |
Allegiance | HSSPF (1945), Netherlands |
Awards | War Merit Cross, 1st and 2nd class, with Swords |
Karl Eberhard Schöngarth (22 April 1903 – 16 May 1946) was a German lawyer and
Early life
Schöngarth was born on 22 April 1903 in
By 1924, Schöngarth's involvement with the
SS career
Gestapo official
After becoming a court official, Schöngarth began involving himself more heavily in the Nazi Party.
Einsatzgruppe in Poland
For part of the time during his posting in Kraków, Schöngarth led a temporary
Wannsee Conference
The
Schöngarth attended the Wannsee Conference on 20 January 1942, along with SS-Sturmbannführer Rudolf Lange, representing the Reichskommissariat Ostland, who also had participated in the Holocaust with Einsatzgruppe A. The official minutes of the meeting (Wannsee Protocol) do not record any comments from Schöngarth who, given his recent Einsatzgruppe experience, certainly knew exactly what was being proposed and raised no objections. Despite the euphemisms used in the minutes, its author, SS-Obersturmbannführer Adolf Eichmann, testified at his trial in 1961 that the participants: "were discussing the subject quite bluntly, quite differently from the language which I had to use later in the record. During the conversation they minced no words about it at all … they spoke about methods of killing, about liquidation, about extermination."[11]
Police service in Greece and the Netherlands
In June 1942, charges of embezzlement, corruption, plundering and art racketeering were brought against Schöngarth. Himmler decided to defer any disciplinary action in order to quell rumours of corruption in the SS. Later in 1942, disputes arose in the General Government about whether to transport to the east the Jews who were working in the armaments industry. Schöngarth agreed that they were not replaceable and he began to agree with Frank that the policy should be relaxed. Krüger complained to Himmler that Schöngarth was contravening orders and was sympathetic with the views of the civil administration. He insisted that one or the other of them had to go, because they were unable to cooperate.[12] In June 1943, Schöngarth was removed from his post in Poland and was replaced by SS-Oberführer Walther Bierkamp, who had led Einsatzgruppe D.[13] Schöngarth was transferred for disciplinary reasons to an SS anti-aircraft artillery replacement regiment in Munich.[14] This was part of a Waffen-SS unit.[3] After a short training period, he was sent as a company commander with the 4th SS Polizei Panzergrenadier Division to Lamia in occupied Greece, where he remained until July 1944 conducting anti-partisan operations.[14]
From early July 1944 until the German surrender, Schöngarth was again made the Commander of SiPo and SD forces, this time at The Hague in the occupied Netherlands under HSSPF SS-Obergruppenführer Hanns Albin Rauter.[15] After Rauter was seriously wounded in an ambush by members of the Dutch resistance on the night of 6-7 March 1945, Schongarth immediately ordered mass executions in reprisal.[16] A total of 263 Dutch citizens were executed, including 117 at Woeste Hoeve, the location of the ambush. On 10 March, Schöngarth was deputized to act as HSSPF for Rauter while he recovered from his wounds.[14] During the course of the war, Schöngarth was awarded the War Merit Cross, 1st and 2nd class with Swords.[7] After the surrender of German forces in the Netherlands, Schöngarth was taken into custody by British troops.
Trial and execution
After an investigation, British occupation authorities charged Schöngarth with the murder of Americo S. Galle, an American pilot. The charge came after several Dutch people came forward and told British investigators that they had seen Galle's plane being shot down. Galle had been captured alive, but was later escorted into the woods, after which the witnesses said they heard a gunshot.[16] On 21 November 1944, Galle's plane had been shot down in Enschede. He was captured by German soldiers, taken to a villa which the SD was using in Enschede, and had his army clothes changed out for civilian clothes. Schöngarth issued an order to kill Galle.[16]
Several hours later, a car was driven to the area. Erwin Knop (born 16 August 1905), the commander of the local SiPo and the head of a local Einsatzkommando in Enschede, emerged. He was accompanied by Untersturmführer Wilhelm Hadler (born 14 February 1898) and Unterscharführer Herbert Gernoth (born 12 January 1906), both of whom were subordinates to Knop.[16] Knop took Galle into the car. He was followed by Scharführer Erich Lebing, 56, and Waffen-SS Oberscharführer Fritz Boehm, 28, both of whom were attached to the local SD. Obersturmführer Friederich Beeck (born 5 August 1886), the head of the Enschede villa, supervised the execution, choosing a burial site and ordering a grave to be dug. Lebing drove the car into the woods and kept watch as the others prepared to carry out the execution. Knop told Galle in English what was happening, to which the airman responded by being "very downhearted." Hadler and Gernoth dug a shallow grave, after which the rest of the group arrived. Hadler and Gernoth then escorted Galle from the car to the grave, where Gernoth shot him in the back of the neck.[16]
Schöngarth, Beeck, Knop, Gernoth, Hadler, Lebing, and Boehm were tried by a
- "During your period in Holland, how many executions in all did you have to order or sanction?"
- "At the time of that interrogation I thought it would be about 150 to 200 cases, but they were all executions after proper sentences; they were only civilians who were sentenced to death on account of their disturbing order; and that was an order from the Reichskommissar."
Schöngarth denied any involvement in Galle's death. However, all of Schöngarth's codefendants said they had been following his orders. The lawyer for Schöngarth's codefendants accused him of trying to force the blame onto his men.[16]
- "I put it to you that the real truth of what happened on the 21st November is this: a British or American airman landed in the grounds of the Villa and was captured by your men. You yourself decided that he was to be shot. You yourself ordered Knop to have him shot. You then went away in your car leaving your men to take the responsibility, and now that they stand in peril you, their commander, are trying to save your life at their expense."
- "No."
On 11 February 1946, all of the defendants were found guilty. The defense of superior orders was rejected, with five of those convicted being sentenced to death, including Schöngarth. Lebing and Boehm avoided death sentences after using different defenses. Lebing claimed he hadn't realized that Galle was a POW until it was too late since he was wearing civilian clothing. Boehm claimed ignorance and disgust over the execution, and said he'd tried to stop it from happening. Lebing was sentenced to 15 years in prison and Boehm was sentenced to 10 years in prison.[16] After the trial was over, two Dutchmen found Galle's notebook, which showed that he was an American.[17]
Schöngarth and his condemned accomplices were all executed by hanging by Albert Pierrepoint at Hamelin Prison on 16 May 1946. Also hanged on the same day for unrelated crimes at Hamelin were Bruno Tesch and Karl Weinbacher.[18]
While awaiting execution, Schöngarth was interviewed by a Dutch investigator. He was asked about suspected war criminal Pieter Menten and atrocities in which he was suspected of involvement. At the end of the interview, the investigator asked Schöngarth if he was telling the truth, he replied "You know, I have only three weeks to live. That's the whole truth." Shortly before his execution, Schöngarth was visited by Menten; the two turned out to be close friends. Schöngarth told Menten he'd done him many favours in the past. He made Menten promise to look out for his family, after which he gave him legal advice.[16]
SS and police ranks
SS and police ranks[15] | |
---|---|
Date | Rank |
9 November 1936 | SS-Untersturmführer |
30 January 1938 | SS-Obersturmführer |
20 April 1938 | SS-Hauptsturmführer |
1 August 1938 | SS-Sturmbannführer |
10 September 1939 | SS-Obersturmbannführer |
1 January 1940 | SS-Standartenführer |
30 January 1941 | SS-Oberführer |
1 March 1941 | Oberst der Polizei |
30 January 1943 | SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Polizei |
Fictional portrayals
- In the 1984 German television film Die Wannseekonferenz, Schöngarth was played by Gerd Rigauer .
- In the 2001 BBC/HBO film Conspiracy, Schöngarth was played by Peter Sullivan.
- In the 2022 German television film Die Wannseekonferenz, Schöngarth was played by Maximilian Brückner.
Notes and references
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lehrer 2008, pp. 169–170.
- ^ Löschke 2017, p. 133.
- ^ a b Klee 2007, pp. 555–556.
- ^ a b c Dr. Eberhard Schongarth (1903–1946) in the House of the Wannsee Conference Memorial and Education Site
- ^ a b c d Löschke 2017, p. 134.
- ^ a b Bartrop & Grimm 2019, pp. 253–254.
- ^ a b Yerger 1997, p. 87.
- JSTOR j.ctv1rmk6w.
- ^ Rainsford, Sarah (1 April 2019). "Forgotten victims: Uncovering a Nazi massacre". BBC News. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
- ^ Löschke 2017, pp. 138–139.
- ^ Hilberg 1971, pp. 102–103.
- ^ Löschke 2017, p. 141.
- ^ Yerger 1997, p. 31.
- ^ a b c Löschke 2017, p. 142.
- ^ a b Federlein, Norman; Webb, Chris. "Dr Eberhard Karl Schongarth, Security Police Commander". Holocaust Education & Archive Research Team. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "The Rabka Four (Pages 175-211)". www.jewishgen.org. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
- ISBN 978-1-5267-0189-3.
- ^ "Post World War II hangings under British jurisdiction at Hameln Prison in Germany". www.capitalpunishmentuk.org. Retrieved 2022-05-25.
Sources
- ISBN 978-1-440-85896-3.
- Dr. Eberhard Schongarth (1903–1946) in the House of the Wannsee Conference Memorial and Education Site
- Federlein, Norman; Webb, Chris (2008). Dr Eberhard Karl Schongarth, Security Police Commander in the Holocaust Education Archive and Research Team.
- ISBN 978-0-812-96165-2.
- ISBN 978-3-596-16048-8.
- Lehrer, Steven (2008). Wannsee House and the Holocaust. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-786-44092-4.
- Löschke, Olaf (2017). "Eberhard Schongarth, Reich Main Security Office: A Practitioner of Mass Murder". In Jasch, Hans-Christian; Kreutzmüller, Christoph (eds.). The Participants: The Men of the Wannsee Conference. New York: Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-1-785-33671-3.
- Yerger, Mark C. (1997). Allgemeine-SS: The Commands, Units and Leaders of the General SS. Schiffer Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-0145-4.
External links
- Media related to Karl Eberhard Schöngarth at Wikimedia Commons
- Minutes from the Wannsee Conference, archived by the Progressive Review
- Eberhard Schongarth, Reich Main Security Office: A Practitioner of Mass Murder