Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk | |
|---|---|
 Krosigk in 1932 | |
| Leading Minister of Germany[a] | |
| In office 2–23 May 1945[b] | |
| President | Karl Dönitz |
| Preceded by | Joseph Goebbels (asChancellor) |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Minister for Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 2–23 May 1945 | |
| Leading Minister | Himself |
| Preceded by | Arthur Seyß-Inquart |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 1 June 1932 – 23 May 1945 | |
| Chancellor | Franz von Papen Kurt von Schleicher Adolf Hitler Joseph Goebbels |
| Leading Minister | Himself |
| Preceded by | Hermann Dietrich |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Johann Ludwig von Krosigk (1887-08-22)22 August 1887 Rathmannsdorf,Duchy of Anhalt, Germany |
| Died | 4 March 1977(1977-03-04) (aged 89) Essen,North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany |
| Political party | Nazi Party (1937–1945) |
| Spouse | |
| Relations | Beatrix von Storch (granddaughter) |
| Children | 9 |
| Parent(s) | Erich Adolf Wilhelm (father) Luise Rosalie Ludmilla (mother) |
| Alma mater | University of Halle University of Lausanne Oriel College, Oxford |
| Occupation | Officer, jurist, politician |
| Civilian awards | Order of the German Eagle Golden Party Badge |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | German Empire |
| Branch/service | Imperial German Army |
| Rank | Oberleutnant |
| Battles/wars | World War I |
| Military awards | Iron Cross, 1st class |
Johann Ludwig "Lutz"Graf[c] Schwerin von Krosigk (BornJohann Ludwig von Krosigk; 22 August 1887 – 4 March 1977) was a German senior government official who served as theminister of finance of Germany from 1932 to 1945 andde factochancellor of Germany during May 1945.
Anon-partisan conservative, he was appointed to the post of Minister of Finance byFranz von Papen in 1932. At the request of PresidentPaul von Hindenburg, he continued in that office underKurt von Schleicher andAdolf Hitler. He and his ministry were involved in the persecution of German and European Jews, including by stealing their property, and laundering money. During May 1945, after the suicides of Hitler and his designated successorJoseph Goebbels, he also served as "Leading Minister" of the short-livedFlensburg Government ofPresidentKarl Dönitz. Schwerin von Krosigk also held the essentially nominal offices of Foreign Minister and Finance Minister in the provisional government that controlled only a small, progressively shrinking portion of Germany, due to the rapid advance of the Allied forces who finally dissolved it and arrested its members.
BesidesAdolf Hitler himself, Schwerin von Krosigk was one of the few members ofHitler's cabinet (along withWilhelm Frick andFranz Seldte) to serve continuously from Hitler's appointment as Chancellor until his death. By accepting theGolden Party Badge personally bestowed by Adolf Hitler, given for honour on 30 January 1937, he automatically became a member of theNazi Party (NSDAP) with membership number 3,805,231. He also joined theAcademy for German Law in 1937.
At the 1949Ministries Trial, he was convicted of laundering property stolen from Nazi victims and financing the concentration camps and sentenced to 10 years in prison; his sentence was commuted in 1951. He later worked as an author and publicist. He died on 4 March 1977.
Born as Johann Ludwig von Krosigk on 22 August 1887 into a family of traditionalLutheranProtestants inRathmannsdorf in theDuchy of Anhalt of theGerman Empire, his father Erich Adolf Wilhelm was a member of an oldnoble but untitled family of Anhalt and his mother Luise Rosalie Friederike Julie Emma Ludmilla was born a countess of the Schwerin family. In 1925 he was adopted by Alfred Wilhelm Detlof Graf von Schwerin, and promoted himself to acount, taking the name Johann Ludwig Graf Schwerin von Krosigk.[2]
Krosigk studied law and political science atHalle andLausanne and then, as aRhodes Scholar, atOriel College, Oxford.
DuringWorld War I, Krosigk served in the German Army, attaining the rank of Lieutenant, and was awarded theIron Cross, 1st class. On 7 February 1918, during the war, he married a baroness, Ehrengard Freiin von Plettenberg (1895–1979), with whom he had four sons and five daughters. In 1922, he became anOberregierungsrat (senior government official) and in 1929, a ministerial director and head of the budget department at the finance ministry. In 1931, he joined the department of reparations payments, formed to deal with thereparations Germany still owed theAllied Powers after theGreat War.
In 1932Franz von Papen appointed Krosigk as national Minister of Finance, and at the request of PresidentPaul von Hindenburg he continued in that office underKurt von Schleicher and throughout the period of Nazi rule. Several members of his family took part in assassination attempts againstAdolf Hitler, but not Krosigk himself. He was rarely seen in public, and Hitler did not hold regular cabinet meetings. Following the final meeting of Hitler's cabinet in 1938 Krosigk did not make any public political statements and instead focused on running his ministry.[3]
Krosigk held his position under both Schleicher and Hitler as a representative of the conservative movement in Germany. While he later claimed to have remained in the role only to prevent "worse things" from happening, he welcomed the Nazi Party's rise to power and both agreed with and contributed to many of its policies. These included measures targeting Germany's Jewish community. While Krosigk's ability to shape Germany's fiscal policies was constrained by the influence of both the President of theReichsbank andHermann Göring (in his role as Plenipotentiary of theFour Year Plan), he was able to implement policies.[4] In August 1938 Krosigk sent Hitler a memorandum which strongly argued against starting a war over theSudeten crisis as the German economy was not yet ready, and claimed that "Communists, Jews and Czechs" were seeking to lure the country into a premature conflict. He argued that Germany should instead "await her hour" and initiate war once it had completed building up its military and economy.[5]
From 1939, Krosigk's ministry was increasingly focused on persecuting Jews and stealing their belongings as well as illegally laundering money.[4]
In February 1945 von Krosigk stressed the importance of preserving Germany's remaining industrial capacities in a letter toReich Minister of Armaments and War ProductionAlbert Speer. This was motivated by his mistaken belief that the Allied bombing campaign directed at Germany had the goal of destroying the country's industry so that it could not be captured by the Soviet Union, and that retaining industrial capacity would position Germany to re-establish friendly relations with the western Allies following the war. It is unclear whether this had any influence of Speer's actions to prevent the implementation of the "scorched earth" policy ordered by Hitler.[6]
In his finaltestament Hitler selected Krosigk to continue as finance minister after his death.[4] He was to serve in a government headed by Goebbels as Chancellor (Reichskanzler). However, Goebbels himself committed suicide only a day later, on 1 May 1945.ReichspräsidentKarl Dönitz then asked Schwerin von Krosigk to succeed him as Chancellor. He declined but accepted the position of "Leading Minister" the following day.[7][8] In a broadcast to theGerman people on 2 May 1945, he became one of the first commentators to refer to an "Iron Curtain" across Europe,[citation needed] a phrase he had picked up from an article byJoseph Goebbels[9] and which was later made famous byWinston Churchill.
Rapidly advancing Allied forces limited the jurisdiction of the new German government to an area aroundFlensburg near theDanish border, where Dönitz's headquarters were located, along withMürwik. Accordingly, this administration was referred to as theFlensburg Government.[10] Dönitz and Schwerin von Krosigk attempted to negotiate an armistice with the Western allies while continuing to resist the Soviet Army.[11] On 7 May 1945, Dönitz authorised the signature of the German Instrument of Surrender to the Allies, which took place inReims before GeneralDwight D. Eisenhower; Dönitz would later authorise theWehrmacht to sign another instrument of surrender inBerlin, in a ceremony presided over by theSoviets. On 23 May 1945, the Flensburg Government was dissolved by order of the Supreme Allied Commander, General Eisenhower, and its members arrested.[12]
Krosigk was put on trial atNuremberg, along with other surviving leading members of the Nazi government. At the conclusion of theMinistries Trial in 1949 he was found guilty of laundering property stolen from Nazi victims and financing the concentration camps, and sentenced to ten years' imprisonment.[13] His sentence was reviewed by the "Peck Panel". He was released during anamnesty in 1951.
In later years, Schwerin von Krosigk wrote several books oneconomic policy and two versions of his memoirs.
Schwerin von Krosigk died on 4 March 1977 inEssen,West Germany, at the age of 89.
He was married to his cousin, Baroness Ehrengard vonPlettenberg-Heeren (1895–1979), daughter of Count Friedrich von Plettenberg-Heeren (1863–1924) and his wife, Countess Ehrengard von Krosigk (1873–1943). They had nine children.
Among them, his daughter, Felicitas-Anita, Countess Schwerin von Krosigk (b. 1941), is the mother ofAlternative for GermanyMember of the German BundestagBeatrix von Storch.[14]
His other daughter, Countess Ehrengard Bertha Minetta Schwerin von Krosigk (1922–2012), married Gottfried vonBismarck (1921-2001), younger brother ofKlaus von Bismarck andPhilipp von Bismarck, brother in law ofGottfried von Einem and uncle ofCaspar von Einem,Minister of the Interior ofAustria.
Media related toLutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk at Wikimedia Commons| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Minister of Finance 1932–1945 | Position abolished |
| Preceded by | Chancellor of Germany 1945 | |
| Preceded by | Minister for Foreign Affairs 1945 | |
North German Confederation.svg) Bundeskanzler (1867–1871) | |
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| German Empire Reichskanzler (1871–1918) | |
Weimar Republic.svg) Reichskanzler (1919–1933) |
|
Nazi Germany.svg) .svg) Reichskanzler (1933–1945) |
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Federal Republic Bundeskanzler (1949–present) | |
 German Empire (1871–1918) | |
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 Weimar Republic (1918–33) | |
 Nazi Germany (1933–45) | |
 German Democratic Republic1 (1949–90) | |
 Federal Republic of Germany (1949–present) | |
1 East Germany | |
