The twoTreblinka trials concerning theTreblinka extermination camp personnel began in 1964. Held atDüsseldorf inWest Germany, they were the two judicial trials in a series of similarwar crime trials held during the early 1960s, such as the JerusalemAdolf Eichmann trial (1961) and theFrankfurt Auschwitz trials (1963–65), as a result of which the general public came to realize the extent of the crimes that some two decades earlier had been perpetrated inoccupied Poland by German bureaucrats and their willing executioners. In the subsequent years, separate trials dealt with personnel of theBełżec (1963–65),Sobibor (1966), andMajdanek (1975–81)extermination camps.[1]
In 1946Josef Hirtreiter was arrested in the course of the Allied investigations into the killing of disabled persons in theHadamar killing centre. Although not focused on Treblinka from the beginning, and not serving as a lead-in to the later Treblinka trials, the Hirtreiter trial is viewed by some historians as being part of these.[2] Hirtreiter could not be shown to have been criminally involved at Hadamar; however, he did confess to having worked in a camp near the Polish village ofMałkinia where Jews were killed in agas chamber. Further investigations showed that Hirtreiter had been stationed at theTreblinka extermination camp, where he supervised the victims' disrobing prior to their gassing. He was charged with participation in the mass-murder of Jews, particularly the killing of more than 10 persons, including infants. On 3 March 1951 Hirtreiter was sentenced to life in prison. He was released on health grounds in 1977, and died in 1978.[3][4]
The crimes committed in theGeneral Government territory of occupied Poland were investigated by the Central Agency from July 1959 by the German specialist in the Nazi prosecution Dietrich Zeug, present at the Eichmann trial. His inquiry led to the first arrest of Treblinka deputy commandant on 2 December 1959. Zeug received survivor testimonies fromYad Vashem which allowed him to examine German national archives for more clues. He was the first to establish thechain of command forOperation Reinhard.[5]
The first Treblinka trial began on 12 October 1964 and concerned eleven members of the SS camp personnel, or about a quarter of the total number of SS employed in the extermination of Jews brought aboardHolocaust trains to Treblinka. More than 100 witnesses were called, with incriminating evidence presented byFranciszek Ząbecki, adispatcher employed by theReichsbahn duringthe Holocaust train departures from acrossoccupied Poland, proven by original German waybills he collected. The verdicts were pronounced on 3 September 1965:[6]
| Defendants | Photograph | Rank | Function | Sentence | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kurt Franz |  | SS-Untersturmführer | Deputy commandant | Life imprisonment | Released in 1993; died in 1998 |
| Otto Richard Horn | SS-Unterscharführer | Totenlager – Corpse detail | Acquitted | Died in 1999 | |
| Erwin Lambert |  | SS-Unterscharführer | Built Large Gas Chambers | 4 years imprisonment | Died in 1976 |
| Heinrich Matthes |  | SS-Scharführer | Chief ofTotenlager | Life imprisonment | Died in prison in 1978 |
| Willi Mentz |  | SS-Unterscharführer | Lazarett ("Infirmary", which actually meant shooting victims) | Life imprisonment | Released in 1978 and died 3 months later |
| August Miete |  | SS-Unterscharführer | Lazarett – "Angel of Death" | Life imprisonment | Released in 1985; died in 1987 |
| Gustav Münzberger | SS-Unterscharführer | Totenlager – Gas Chambers | 12 years imprisonment | Released in 1971; died in 1977 | |
| Albert Rum | SS-Unterscharführer | Totenlager – Gas Chambers | 3 years imprisonment | Died in 1970 | |
| Otto Stadie | SS-Stabsscharführer | Camp Administration | 6 years imprisonment | Released in 1965; died in 1977 | |
| Franz Suchomel |  | SS-Unterscharführer | Gold and Valuables | 7 years imprisonment | Released in 1967; died in 1979 |
| Kurt Küttner |  | SS-Oberscharführer | Lower camp of Treblinka II | Arrested/Charged but Died before trial | Died 1964 |
The second Treblinka trial also known as the Stangl trial,[1] was held from 13 May to 22 December 1970, five years after the first group trial for war crimes. In this trial, camp commandantFranz Stangl, expelled three years earlier from Brazil, finally stood accused. Stangl had previously assisted in killing handicapped people duringAktion T4 (the Nazi "euthanasia" programme), and, before moving on to Treblinka, had been the first commandant ofSobibor. Under his supervision, most of the Treblinka killings took place. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, and died in prison on 28 June 1971, during the appeal case.
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