Franz Hössler Franz Hößler | |
|---|---|
 Franz Hößler in British custody, August 1945 | |
| Born | (1906-02-04)4 February 1906 Oberdorf,German Empire |
| Died | 13 December 1945(1945-12-13) (aged 39) Hamelin Prison, Allied-occupied Germany |
| Criminal status | Executed |
| Conviction | War crimes |
| Trial | Belsen trial |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
| Branch | Schutzstaffel |
| Years of service | 1933–45 |
| Rank | SS-Obersturmführer |
| Service number | NSDAP #1,374,713 SS #41,940 |
| Unit | SS-Totenkopfverbände |
| Commands | SchutzhaftlagerführerAuschwitz SchutzhaftlagerführerMittelwerk SchutzhaftlagerführerBergen-Belsen |
Franz Hößler, alsoFranz Hössler (German:[ˈfʁantsˈhœslɐ]ⓘ; 4 February 1906 – 13 December 1945) was aNazi GermanSS-Obersturmführer andSchutzhaftlagerführer at theAuschwitz-Birkenau,Dora-Mittelbau andBergen-Belsen concentration camps duringWorld War II. Captured by the Allies at the end of the war, Hößler was charged withwar crimes in the FirstBergen-Belsen Trial, found guilty, and sentenced to death. He was executed by hanging atHamelin Prison in 1945.
Hößler was born in 1906 in Oberdorf, a village in the municipality of Martinszell im Allgäu, in theSchwabenland of theGerman Empire. The son of aforeman, he quit school early to become aphotographer. Later employed as awarehouse worker, he wasunemployed during theGreat Depression of the 1930s.[1] He joined theNazi Party in early November 1932 (member no. 1,374,713) and theSS (member no. 41,940).[2] Hößler was married and had three children.[3]
During his time in the SS, Hößler rose to the rank ofSS-Obersturmführer and became a reserve officer in theWaffen-SS.[4][5] After the establishment of theDachau concentration camp in July 1933, he became the first member of the guard staff and worked later as acook. He served at Dachau until after the outbreak ofWorld War II.[6][7]
In June 1940, Hößler was transferred to the newly openedAuschwitz I concentration camp as it received thefirst mass transports. He managed the camp kitchens and was occasionally used as a subcamp supervisor (German:Kommandoführer).[6] He then became a Work Service Leader (German:Arbeitsdienstführer) at the camp in early 1941.[2] On 28 July 1941, Hößler accompanied a shipment of 575 selected Auschwitz I inmates tothe euthanasia center at Sonnenstein Castle, where they were murdered as part of theAction 14f13 program.[8] In June 1942, Hößler, together withOtto Moll andHans Aumeier, participated in killing 168 survivors of a failed uprising in the punishment section of Auschwitz I.[7] For a few months during 1942 he was also responsible for the construction of a holiday resort for theSS inŻywiec, the so-called "Solahütte".[6]
AfterAuschwitz-Birkenau was formally expanded into anextermination camp in 1942, Hößler took on various commands there. From September to November 1942, a brigade composed of prisoners calledSonderkommando Hößler exhumed 107,000 corpses from mass graves around Auschwitz I in order to burn them in the new Auschwitz II crematoria. The prisoners of theSonderkommando were then almost invariably murdered after the action. To conduct this disposal, Hößler, along withRudolf Höß andWalter Dejaco, had previously visited theChelmno extermination camp on 16 September 1942 to observe tests conducted byPaul Blobel.[9]
At the same time Hößler worked as before in the old crematorium at the main camp Auschwitz I, including gassings in the bunkers.Johann Kremer, SS camp doctor from 30 August to 17 November 1942, recorded a transport of 1,703 Dutch Jews to the main camp managed by Hoßler. The incident was described in his diary:
In connection with the gassings I described in my diary dated 12.10.1942, I declare that on that day about 1,600 Dutch were gassed. This is an approximate figure, which I stated as a result of what I had heard from others. The action was led [by] SS officer Hößler. I remember that he tried to drive the whole group into a single bunker. This he achieved up to a last man who could not be crammed further into the bunker. Hoßler shot this man with a revolver. This is the reason why I wrote in the diary: "Gruesome scene before the last bunker! (Hößler!)".[10]
By the middle of 1943, Hößler became involved in recruiting so-called "Aryan" prison women, with the prospect of better food and care, for a newly opened camp brothel at the Auschwitz I main camp.[11] He was then promoted to the senior role ofSchutzhaftlagerführer at theAuschwitz-Birkenau women's camp in August 1943, which he directed together withOberaufseherinMaria Mandl. In this role he participated in selections and gassings. He succeededPaul Heinrich Theodor Müller in this capacity.Filip Müller, one of the very fewSonderkommando members who survivedAuschwitz,paraphrased Hößler's speech given to trick a group of Greek Jews in the undressing room at the portals of the gas chambers:
On behalf of the camp administration I bid you welcome. This is not a holiday resort but a labor camp. Just as our soldiers risk their lives at the front to gain victory for theThird Reich, you will have to work here for the welfare of a new Europe. How you tackle this task is entirely up to you. The chance is there for every one of you. We shall look after your health, and we shall also offer you well-paid work. After the war we shall assess everyone according to his merits and treat him accordingly.
Now, would you please all get undressed. Hang your clothes on the hooks we have provided and please remember your number [of the hook]. When you've had your bath there will be a bowl of soup and coffee or tea for all. Oh yes, before I forget, after your bath, please have ready your certificates, diplomas, school reports and any other documents so that we can employ everybody according to his or her training and ability.
Would diabetics who are not allowed sugar report to staff on duty after their baths.[12]
For a short time between 15 March to 15 May 1944, Hößler was also camp commander (German:KZ-Kommandant) of the Neckarelz concentration camp inMosbach,Germany, a subcamp of the largerNatzweiler-Struthof camp complex in occupied France. Following theAllied invasion of France in June 1944, he returned to the Auschwitz main camp where he was Protective Custody Camp Leader until its final evacuation in January 1945.[6]
In January 1945, as theRed Army overran German positions on theEastern Front, the SS personnel at Auschwitz evacuated to theMittelbau-Dora concentration camp. Auschwitz commanderRichard Baer took over the Dora portion of the complex and Hößler was again made a Protective Custody Camp Leader.[13] On 5 April 1945, as American3rd Armored Division closed in on Mittelbau-Dora, Hößler led a forced evacuation of prisoners to the railhead for transfer to the still-functioningBergen-Belsen concentration camp. The prisoners were then led on adeath march for the last stage of their journey.[14]
On 8 April 1945, Hößler arrived with his transport atBergen-Belsen and became deputy camp commander underJosef Kramer.[15] There he directly shot prisoners until the liberation of the camp, crimes for which he would be eventually arrested and tried. On 15 April 1945, Hößler was found hiding among the prisoners in camouflaged clothing and was detained with the remaining SS staff by a unit of theBritish Army. The SS detainees were then forced to bury thousands of corpses lying around on the camp grounds in mass graves.[16]
Hössler and 44 other camp staff were tried in theBelsen Trial by a British military court atLüneburg. The trial lasted several weeks from September to November 1945. During the trial,Anita Lasker testified that Hössler took part in selections for the gas chamber.[17]
Hössler was sentenced to death by hanging on 17 November 1945, and the sentence was carried out by British hangmanAlbert Pierrepoint on 13 December 1945 atHameln prison.[6]
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