Emil Maurice | |
|---|---|
 Maurice wearing theBlood Order medal | |
| Oberster SA-Führer | |
| In office 1920–1921 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Hans Ulrich Klintzsch |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1897-01-19)19 January 1897 |
| Died | 6 February 1972(1972-02-06) (aged 75) |
| Spouse | |
| Occupation | Personal chauffeur forAdolf Hitler Reichstag deputy |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
| Branch/service | Schutzstaffel Luftwaffe |
| Years of service | 1919–1945 |
| Rank | SS-Oberführer |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Emil Maurice (German pronunciation:[ˈeːmiːlmoˈʁiːs]; 19 January 1897 – 6 February 1972) was a GermanNazi official and a founding member of theSchutzstaffel (SS). He wasAdolf Hitler's first personalchauffeur, and one of only a few people of mixedJewish andethnic German ancestry to serve in the SS.
Maurice had no Jewish parents or grandparents, and was thus considered a German and not classified as Jewish orMischling under theNuremberg Laws; nonetheless, one of his great-grandfathers (1805–1896) was Jewish, and the more racially stringent SS required officers to proveAryan ancestry back to 1750.[1] Accordingly, he was given the status ofHonorary Aryan by Hitler.[2]
A watchmaker by trade, Maurice was a close early associate ofAdolf Hitler; their personal friendship dated back to 1919 when they were both members of theGerman Workers' Party (DAP).[3] Maurice officially joined the DAP on 1 December 1919 and his party number was 594 (the count began at 501).[4][5] With the founding of theSturmabteilung in 1920, Maurice became the firstOberster SA-Führer (Supreme SA Leader).[5] Maurice led the SA stormtroopers in some fights with other groups during those early days. Hitler later in his bookMein Kampf mentions one fight in particular from November 1921 where Maurice was at the forefront of the SA unit during the fighting.[4]
In July 1921, Maurice became a personal chauffeur for Adolf Hitler.[5] In March 1923, Maurice also became a member of theStabswache (Staff Guard), a small separate bodyguard dedicated to Hitler's service rather than "a suspect mass" of the party, such as the SA.[6][7] It was given the task of guarding Hitler at Nazi parties and rallies. In May 1923, the unit was renamedStoßtrupp (Shock Troop) 'Adolf Hitler'.[8][9] Maurice,Julius Schreck,Joseph Berchtold, andErhard Heiden, were all members of theStoßtrupp.[10] On 9 November 1923, theStoßtrupp, along with the SA and several other paramilitary units, took part in the abortiveBeer Hall Putsch inMunich. In the aftermath of the putsch, Hitler,Rudolf Hess, Maurice and other Nazi leaders were incarcerated atLandsberg Prison for high treason.[11] The Nazi Party and all associated formations, including theStoßtrupp, were officially disbanded.[12]
After Hitler's release from prison, the Nazi Party was officially refounded. In 1925, Hitler ordered the formation of a new bodyguard unit, theSchutzkommando (protection command).[13] It was formed by Schreck and included oldStoßtrupp members Maurice and Heiden.[10][14] That same year, theSchutzkommando was expanded to a national level. It was renamed successively theSturmstaffel (storm squadron), and finally on 9 November theSchutzstaffel ('protection squadron'/SS).[15] Hitler became SS member No. 1 and Emil Maurice became SS member No. 2.[3][5] At that time, Maurice became an SS-Führer in the new organization, although the leadership of the SS was assumed by Schreck, the firstReichsführer-SS.[16] Maurice became Hitler's permanent chauffeur in 1925.[5] Later when Maurice informed Hitler in December 1927 that he was having a relationship with Hitler's half-nieceGeli Raubal, Hitler forced an end to the affair. Maurice was dismissed from Hitler's personal service in 1928, but allowed to remain a member of the SS.[17][18][5] As chauffeur, he was succeeded first by Schreck and thenErich Kempka.
When the SS was reorganized and expanded in 1932, Maurice became a senior SS officer and would eventually be promoted to the rank SS-Oberführer. While Maurice never became a top commander of the SS, his status as SS member #2 effectively credited him as an actual founder of the organization.Heinrich Himmler, who ultimately would become the most recognized leader of the SS, was SS member #168.[19]
After Himmler had becomeReichsführer-SS, Maurice fell afoul of Himmler’s racial purity rules for SS officers when he had to submit details of his family history before he was allowed to marry in 1935. Himmler stated, "without question...Maurice is, according to his ancestral table, not of Aryan descent".[20] All SS officers had to prove racial purity back to 1750,[21] and it turned out that Maurice had one-eighthJewish ancestry: Charles Maurice Schwartzenberger (Chéri Maurice [de] 1805–1896), the founder of theThalia Theater inHamburg, was his great-grandfather.[22]
Even though Maurice had been a party member since 1919, taken part in the abortiveBeer Hall Putsch (for which he was awarded the prestigiousBlood Order), and been a bodyguard for Hitler, Himmler considered him to be a serious security risk given his "Jewish ancestry".[4][23] Himmler recommended that Maurice be expelled from the SS, along with other members of his family. To Himmler's annoyance, Hitler stood by his old friend.[20] In a secret letter written on 31 August 1935, Hitler compelled Himmler to make an exception for Maurice and his brothers, who were informally declared "Honorary Aryans" and allowed to stay in the SS.[2]
Maurice became engaged on 31 March 1935 to the medical student – later doctor – Hedwig Maria Anna Ploetz, the daughter of Colonel Rudolf Ploetz. They married on 5 November 1935 in Munich.[24] At the March 1936 parliamentary election, he became aReichstag deputy for electoral constituency 29 (Leipzig) and retained this seat until the fall of the Nazi regime.[25] From 1937, he was the chairman of the Munich Chamber of Commerce. From 1940 to 1942, he served in theLuftwaffe as an officer.[20]
On 25 May 1945, American forces captured Maurice inStarnberg. In 1948, he was tried and sentenced to four years in a labour camp as a "Class II Nazi" (Offender). He returned to his life as a watchmaker and in 1951 owned a watch shop in Munich. He died in Starnberg on 6 February 1972.[5][20]
| Political offices | ||
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| New office | Supreme SA Leader 1920–1921 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
