Albert Krebs
Encyclopedia
Albert Krebs was the Nazi
Gauleiter
in Hamburg in the time of the Third Reich.
Krebs, a higher archive official's son, did his Abitur
in 1917 after finishing school at the Gymnasium
in Aschaffenburg
and thereafter reported to the military
as a volunteer. He was not deployed in the First World War.
Krebs was discharged in March 1919, leaving him free to begin studies in Germanistics, history
, national economics
, and English language
in Würzburg
, Tübingen
, Marburg
and Frankfurt am Main. In 1922, he graduated and in the same year, he joined the Nazi party, the NSDAP.
Krebs had been busying himself in the youth movement
even before the war. Furthermore, during his studies, he was in the Gildenschaft (a Studentenverbindung
umbrella group) and in the Freikorps
von Epp and Oberland.
In March 1925, Krebs was working at the Deutschnationaler Handlungsgehilfen-Verband (German National Trade Assistants' Federation; DHV) in Spandau
in Berlin
. After the reorganisation of the NSDAP, Krebs joined it in May 1926, and was appointed on 4 November 1926 leader of a group that had formerly been downgraded from Nazi Gau to "local group" (Ortsgruppe). After the group was once again raised to Gau on 26 February 1928, Krebs became Gauleiter of Hamburg.
After some infighting, in which Krebs did not feel he was being supported enough by the party leadership in Munich
, he stepped down as Gauleiter. His time in office officially ended in September 1928. After this time, Krebs began to distance himself from the NSDAP.
In April 1930, Krebs took over the leadership of the Hamburg Betriebszellenorganisation, a Nazi workers' organization.
A further career advance made it possible for him, starting in 1931, to work as honorary editor
-in-chief of the Nazi daily newspaper Hamburger Tageblatt. Owing to an article published early in 1932 that was critical of Kurt von Schleicher
's cabinet, Krebs was upbraided by Adolf Hitler
personally and excluded from the Party.
Professionally, he continued his activities as a national education and cultural consultant at the DHV until its dissolution in April 1934. Thereafter he worked as a freelancer at the German Office Workers' Union (Deutsche Angestellten-Gewerkschaft; DAG). Working from September 1934 within the Hamburg Cultural Administration, Krebs was senate director in his last position.
With the beginning of the Russian Campaign
, Krebs was assigned as special leader of the Propagandabteilung Ostland and took over cultural affairs in the cities of Riga
and Tallinn
Through his acquaintance with Fritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg
, to whom he had been introduced in 1942, Krebs knew in advance about the resistance's plans to overthrow the Führer and also about the attempt on Hitler's life
. After it failed on 20 July 1944, he had to go underground.
In Denazification
proceedings, Krebs was declared "released" in 1947 on the condition that he no longer engage in political activities. On appeal, however, that ban was overturned in proceedings in October 1949.
In his autobiographical
chronicle, published in 1959, "Tendenzen und Gestalten der NSDAP" ("The NDSAP's Tendencies and Shapes"), Krebs portrayed himself as a contemporary who was at first impressed by National Socialism's political ideas and goals, but who after personal experience with Hitler's dictatorial leadership style and the "incompetence in the NS Führer State" withdrew, disappointed, from political life.
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
Gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
in Hamburg in the time of the Third Reich.
Krebs, a higher archive official's son, did his Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
in 1917 after finishing school at the Gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
in Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
and thereafter reported to the military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
as a volunteer. He was not deployed in the First World War.
Krebs was discharged in March 1919, leaving him free to begin studies in Germanistics, history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, national economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, and English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
in Würzburg
Würzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
, Tübingen
Tübingen
Tübingen is a traditional university town in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, on a ridge between the Neckar and Ammer rivers.-Geography:...
, Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
and Frankfurt am Main. In 1922, he graduated and in the same year, he joined the Nazi party, the NSDAP.
Krebs had been busying himself in the youth movement
German Youth Movement
The German Youth Movement is a collective term for a cultural and educational movement that started in 1896. It consists of numerous associations of young people that focus on outdoor activities. The movement included German Scouting and the Wandervogel...
even before the war. Furthermore, during his studies, he was in the Gildenschaft (a Studentenverbindung
Studentenverbindung
A Studentenverbindung is a student corporation in a German-speaking country somewhat comparable to fraternities in the US or Canada, but mostly older and going back to other kinds of...
umbrella group) and in the Freikorps
Freikorps
Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...
von Epp and Oberland.
In March 1925, Krebs was working at the Deutschnationaler Handlungsgehilfen-Verband (German National Trade Assistants' Federation; DHV) in Spandau
Spandau
Spandau is the fifth of the twelve boroughs of Berlin. It is the fourth largest and westernmost borough, situated at the confluence of the Havel and Spree rivers and along the western bank of the Havel, but the least populated.-Overview:...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. After the reorganisation of the NSDAP, Krebs joined it in May 1926, and was appointed on 4 November 1926 leader of a group that had formerly been downgraded from Nazi Gau to "local group" (Ortsgruppe). After the group was once again raised to Gau on 26 February 1928, Krebs became Gauleiter of Hamburg.
After some infighting, in which Krebs did not feel he was being supported enough by the party leadership in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, he stepped down as Gauleiter. His time in office officially ended in September 1928. After this time, Krebs began to distance himself from the NSDAP.
In April 1930, Krebs took over the leadership of the Hamburg Betriebszellenorganisation, a Nazi workers' organization.
A further career advance made it possible for him, starting in 1931, to work as honorary editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
-in-chief of the Nazi daily newspaper Hamburger Tageblatt. Owing to an article published early in 1932 that was critical of Kurt von Schleicher
Kurt von Schleicher
Kurt von Schleicher was a German general and the last Chancellor of Germany during the era of the Weimar Republic. Seventeen months after his resignation, he was assassinated by order of his successor, Adolf Hitler, in the Night of the Long Knives....
's cabinet, Krebs was upbraided by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
personally and excluded from the Party.
Professionally, he continued his activities as a national education and cultural consultant at the DHV until its dissolution in April 1934. Thereafter he worked as a freelancer at the German Office Workers' Union (Deutsche Angestellten-Gewerkschaft; DAG). Working from September 1934 within the Hamburg Cultural Administration, Krebs was senate director in his last position.
With the beginning of the Russian Campaign
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
, Krebs was assigned as special leader of the Propagandabteilung Ostland and took over cultural affairs in the cities of Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
and Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
Through his acquaintance with Fritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg
Fritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg
Fritz-Dietlof Graf von der Schulenburg-Tressow was a German government official and a member of the German Resistance in the July 20 Plot against Adolf Hitler.-Personal development:...
, to whom he had been introduced in 1942, Krebs knew in advance about the resistance's plans to overthrow the Führer and also about the attempt on Hitler's life
July 20 Plot
On 20 July 1944, an attempt was made to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of the Third Reich, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia. The plot was the culmination of the efforts of several groups in the German Resistance to overthrow the Nazi-led German government...
. After it failed on 20 July 1944, he had to go underground.
In Denazification
Denazification
Denazification was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society, culture, press, economy, judiciary, and politics of any remnants of the National Socialist ideology. It was carried out specifically by removing those involved from positions of influence and by disbanding or rendering...
proceedings, Krebs was declared "released" in 1947 on the condition that he no longer engage in political activities. On appeal, however, that ban was overturned in proceedings in October 1949.
In his autobiographical
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
chronicle, published in 1959, "Tendenzen und Gestalten der NSDAP" ("The NDSAP's Tendencies and Shapes"), Krebs portrayed himself as a contemporary who was at first impressed by National Socialism's political ideas and goals, but who after personal experience with Hitler's dictatorial leadership style and the "incompetence in the NS Führer State" withdrew, disappointed, from political life.