Erwin Lambert
Encyclopedia
Erwin Hermann Lambert was a perpetrator of the Holocaust
. In profession, he was a master mason
, building trades foreman, Nazi Party member and member of the Schutzstaffel
with the rank of SS-Unterscharführer
(Corporal). He supervised construction of the gas chambers
for the Action T4
euthanasia
program at Hartheim
, Sonnenstein, Bernburg
and Hadamar, and then at Sobibor
and Treblinka extermination camp
s during Operation Reinhard
. He specialized in building larger gas chambers that killed more people than previous efforts in the extermination program.
, in the Niederbarnim district. His father was killed in the First World War; his stepfather owned a construction firm in Schildow. After basic schooling, Lambert became an apprentice, first to a locksmith, and then to a mason
. After passing his apprentice exam, he attended a school for the building trades in Berlin
in the mid-1920s and passed his examination for master mason in the mid-1930s. He was always employed, working as a mason and, after becoming a master mason, as a foreman for various Berlin construction firms.
Lambert joined the Nazi Party in March 1933, after Hitler's assumption of power, and first worked within the Party as a Blockleiter
in Schildow. Lambert was not yet a member of any of the party's paramilitary organizations.
Late in 1939, the Action T4
program tried to recruit Lambert, who had been recommended by the local office of the German Labour Front
. Lambert hesitated to change jobs and leave his ailing mother, but in January 1940, he accepted the program's offer. Lambert was hired to serve as a construction foreman who supervised the other workers; he was "the traveling construction boss of Action T4
".
Lambert's primary task was to direct construction work at the T4 killing centers, particularly the construction of gas chambers
and crematoria. In testimony Lambert claimed that he merely erected room dividers and installed doors, a claim largely discredited. Since Brandenburg
and Grafeneck had already been completed before Lambert joined the T4 program, he worked at Hartheim
, Sonnenstein, Bernburg
, and Hadamar as the program's "expert for the construction of gas chambers".
After T4's termination, Lambert was posted to Operation Reinhard
in Lublin
for the purpose of bricklaying assignments which constructed the gas chambers in Sobibor
and Treblinka extermination camp
s. At Lublin Lambert joined the SS. During this time, however, his work was often interrupted for further construction jobs in Germany and Austria involving the still-ongoing Action 14f13
. With the help of Ukrainian volunteers and condemned Jewish prisoners, Lambert rapidly constructed solid gassing facilities at Sobibor and Treblinka:
According to his own testimony at the Sobibor Trial (lead defendant Kurt Bolender
), Hagen, Germany, September 6, 1965 until December 20, 1966:
In addition, Lambert directed construction at several nearby forced labor camps such as Dohorucza and Poniatowa
. Reportedly, Lambert remained an uninvolved expert devoted solely to his work and not interested in the conditions which surrounded it. According to one survivor, Jankiel Wiernik
, Lambert avoided looking at dead bodies and treated his Jewish work crew in a professional manner.
After Operation Reinhard
, Lambert was posted to Trieste
, where he continued to participate in genocide
by installing cremation facilities at the concentration camp Risiera di San Sabba
.
After the war, Lambert was arrested on 28 March 1962. At the First Treblinka Trial
in 1965, Lambert was tried for the first time and sentenced to four years imprisonment for aiding and abetting the murder of at least 300,000 people. Having already served this time, he was allowed to live as a free man. At the Sobibor Trial in 1966, Lambert was acquitted. At the trials Lambert denied involvement in the killing operation and claimed that he merely suspected that the buildings would be used for killing. On 15 October 1976 Erwin Lambert died.
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
. In profession, he was a master mason
Stonemasonry
The craft of stonemasonry has existed since the dawn of civilization - creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone from the earth. These materials have been used to construct many of the long-lasting, ancient monuments, artifacts, cathedrals, and cities in a wide variety of cultures...
, building trades foreman, Nazi Party member and member of the Schutzstaffel
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
with the rank of SS-Unterscharführer
Unterscharführer
Unterscharführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party used by the Schutzstaffel between 1934 and 1945. The SS rank was created after the Night of the Long Knives...
(Corporal). He supervised construction of the gas chambers
Gas Chambers
Gas Chambers is a fast, hollow and shallow point break type of wave. Being that it is a high performance wave it is well suited for the average to pro level surfer. Gas Chambers is located on the North Shore of Oahu about a 1/4 of a mile north of Ehukai Beach Park and 1/2 a mile west of Sunset...
for the Action T4
Action T4
Action T4 was the name used after World War II for Nazi Germany's eugenics-based "euthanasia" program during which physicians killed thousands of people who were "judged incurably sick, by critical medical examination"...
euthanasia
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
program at Hartheim
Hartheim Euthanasia Centre
The Hartheim Euthanasia Centre was a Nazi killing centre that was part of their euthanasia programme, since also referred to as Action T4. It was housed in Hartheim Castle in the municipality of Alkoven near Linz in Austria.- Statistics :...
, Sonnenstein, Bernburg
Bernburg
Bernburg is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, capital of the district of Salzlandkreis. It is situated on the river Saale, approx. 30 km downstream from Halle. The town is dominated by its huge Renaissance castle featuring a museum as well as a popular, recently updated bear pit in its...
and Hadamar, and then at Sobibor
Sobibór extermination camp
Sobibor was a Nazi German extermination camp located on the outskirts of the town of Sobibór, Lublin Voivodeship of occupied Poland as part of Operation Reinhard; the official German name was SS-Sonderkommando Sobibor...
and Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka was a Nazi extermination camp in occupied Poland during World War II near the village of Treblinka in the modern-day Masovian Voivodeship of Poland. The camp, which was constructed as part of Operation Reinhard, operated between and ,. During this time, approximately 850,000 men, women...
s during Operation Reinhard
Operation Reinhard
Operation Reinhard was the code name given to the Nazi plan to murder Polish Jews in the General Government, and marked the most deadly phase of the Holocaust, the use of extermination camps...
. He specialized in building larger gas chambers that killed more people than previous efforts in the extermination program.
Biography
Lambert was born on 7 December 1909 in Schildow, a small town in Mühlenbecker LandMühlenbecker Land
Mühlenbecker Land is a municipality in the Oberhavel district, in Brandenburg, Germany.-History:The municipality shared its borders partly with the former West Berlin, and so during the period 1961-1990 it was separated from it by the Berlin Wall....
, in the Niederbarnim district. His father was killed in the First World War; his stepfather owned a construction firm in Schildow. After basic schooling, Lambert became an apprentice, first to a locksmith, and then to a mason
Stonemasonry
The craft of stonemasonry has existed since the dawn of civilization - creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone from the earth. These materials have been used to construct many of the long-lasting, ancient monuments, artifacts, cathedrals, and cities in a wide variety of cultures...
. After passing his apprentice exam, he attended a school for the building trades 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...
in the mid-1920s and passed his examination for master mason in the mid-1930s. He was always employed, working as a mason and, after becoming a master mason, as a foreman for various Berlin construction firms.
Lambert joined the Nazi Party in March 1933, after Hitler's assumption of power, and first worked within the Party as a Blockleiter
Blockleiter
Blockleiter was a Nazi Party political rank which existed between the years of 1930 and 1945. The Blockleiter was the lowest political official of the NSDAP, responsible for the political supervision of a neighborhood or city block and formed the link between the NSDAP and the general...
in Schildow. Lambert was not yet a member of any of the party's paramilitary organizations.
Late in 1939, the Action T4
Action T4
Action T4 was the name used after World War II for Nazi Germany's eugenics-based "euthanasia" program during which physicians killed thousands of people who were "judged incurably sick, by critical medical examination"...
program tried to recruit Lambert, who had been recommended by the local office of the German Labour Front
German Labour Front
The German Labour Front was the National Socialist trade union organisation which replaced the various trade unions of the Weimar Republic after Adolf Hitler's rise to power....
. Lambert hesitated to change jobs and leave his ailing mother, but in January 1940, he accepted the program's offer. Lambert was hired to serve as a construction foreman who supervised the other workers; he was "the traveling construction boss of Action T4
Action T4
Action T4 was the name used after World War II for Nazi Germany's eugenics-based "euthanasia" program during which physicians killed thousands of people who were "judged incurably sick, by critical medical examination"...
".
Lambert's primary task was to direct construction work at the T4 killing centers, particularly the construction of gas chambers
Gas Chambers
Gas Chambers is a fast, hollow and shallow point break type of wave. Being that it is a high performance wave it is well suited for the average to pro level surfer. Gas Chambers is located on the North Shore of Oahu about a 1/4 of a mile north of Ehukai Beach Park and 1/2 a mile west of Sunset...
and crematoria. In testimony Lambert claimed that he merely erected room dividers and installed doors, a claim largely discredited. Since Brandenburg
Brandenburg Euthanasia Centre
The Brandenburg Euthanasia Centre , officially known as the Brandenburg an der Havel State Welfare Institute The Brandenburg Euthanasia Centre , officially known as the Brandenburg an der Havel State Welfare Institute The Brandenburg Euthanasia Centre , officially known as the Brandenburg an der...
and Grafeneck had already been completed before Lambert joined the T4 program, he worked at Hartheim
Hartheim Euthanasia Centre
The Hartheim Euthanasia Centre was a Nazi killing centre that was part of their euthanasia programme, since also referred to as Action T4. It was housed in Hartheim Castle in the municipality of Alkoven near Linz in Austria.- Statistics :...
, Sonnenstein, Bernburg
Bernburg
Bernburg is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, capital of the district of Salzlandkreis. It is situated on the river Saale, approx. 30 km downstream from Halle. The town is dominated by its huge Renaissance castle featuring a museum as well as a popular, recently updated bear pit in its...
, and Hadamar as the program's "expert for the construction of gas chambers".
After T4's termination, Lambert was posted to Operation Reinhard
Operation Reinhard
Operation Reinhard was the code name given to the Nazi plan to murder Polish Jews in the General Government, and marked the most deadly phase of the Holocaust, the use of extermination camps...
in Lublin
Lublin
Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...
for the purpose of bricklaying assignments which constructed the gas chambers in Sobibor
Sobibór extermination camp
Sobibor was a Nazi German extermination camp located on the outskirts of the town of Sobibór, Lublin Voivodeship of occupied Poland as part of Operation Reinhard; the official German name was SS-Sonderkommando Sobibor...
and Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka was a Nazi extermination camp in occupied Poland during World War II near the village of Treblinka in the modern-day Masovian Voivodeship of Poland. The camp, which was constructed as part of Operation Reinhard, operated between and ,. During this time, approximately 850,000 men, women...
s. At Lublin Lambert joined the SS. During this time, however, his work was often interrupted for further construction jobs in Germany and Austria involving the still-ongoing Action 14f13
Action 14f13
Action 14f13, also called "Sonderbehandlung 14f13", was a campaign of the Third Reich to murder Nazi concentration camp prisoners. Also called "invalid" or "prisoner euthanasia", the campaign culled the sick, elderly and those deemed no longer fit for work from the rest of the prisoners in a...
. With the help of Ukrainian volunteers and condemned Jewish prisoners, Lambert rapidly constructed solid gassing facilities at Sobibor and Treblinka:
According to his own testimony at the Sobibor Trial (lead defendant Kurt Bolender
Kurt Bolender
Heinz Kurt Bolender was an SS-Oberscharführer during the Second World War. In 1942 Bolender operated the gas chambers at Sobibor extermination camp, thereby directly perpetrating acts of genocide against Jews and Gypsies during the Nazi operation known as Operation Reinhard.After the war,...
), Hagen, Germany, September 6, 1965 until December 20, 1966:
In addition, Lambert directed construction at several nearby forced labor camps such as Dohorucza and Poniatowa
Poniatowa
Poniatowa is a town in southeastern Poland, in Opole Lubelskie County, in Lublin Voivodship, with 10,500 inhabitants .-Historical antecedents:A village named Poniatowa had existed near the site of the present town for about 750 years...
. Reportedly, Lambert remained an uninvolved expert devoted solely to his work and not interested in the conditions which surrounded it. According to one survivor, Jankiel Wiernik
Jankiel Wiernik
Jankiel -Yaakov Wiernik was a Polish-Jewish Holocaust survivor who was an influential figure in the Treblinka extermination camp uprising of August 1943...
, Lambert avoided looking at dead bodies and treated his Jewish work crew in a professional manner.
After Operation Reinhard
Operation Reinhard
Operation Reinhard was the code name given to the Nazi plan to murder Polish Jews in the General Government, and marked the most deadly phase of the Holocaust, the use of extermination camps...
, Lambert was posted to Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
, where he continued to participate in genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
by installing cremation facilities at the concentration camp Risiera di San Sabba
Risiera di San Sabba
Risiera di San Sabba was a Nazi concentration camp for the detention and killing of political prisoners during World War II, located in Trieste, northern Italy. SS members Odilo Globocnik and Karl Frenzel, and Ivan Marchenko are all said to have participated in the killings at this camp. Erwin...
.
After the war, Lambert was arrested on 28 March 1962. At the First Treblinka Trial
Treblinka trials
Two judicial trials directly concerning the Treblinka extermination camp have been held after World War II, both of them in Düsseldorf, Germany. These Treblinka trials belong to similar trials held during the early 1960's, such as the Jerusalem Adolf Eichmann trial and the Frankfurt Auschwitz...
in 1965, Lambert was tried for the first time and sentenced to four years imprisonment for aiding and abetting the murder of at least 300,000 people. Having already served this time, he was allowed to live as a free man. At the Sobibor Trial in 1966, Lambert was acquitted. At the trials Lambert denied involvement in the killing operation and claimed that he merely suspected that the buildings would be used for killing. On 15 October 1976 Erwin Lambert died.