Hans Krebs (National Socialist)
Encyclopedia
Hans Krebs was a Moravian
Nazi Party member and SS-Brigadeführer from Czechoslovakia
.
in Moravia
when it was part of the Habsburg Empire and was involved in the German
nationalistic movements from his youth. In 1911 he became the manager of the German Workers' Party (Deutsche Arbeiterpartei) in Vienna
.
After the outbreak of World War I
Krebs volunteered to serve in the Austro-Hungarian Army
. He fought in the South Tyrol
, received several awards and rose to the rank of lieutenant
. After the war Krebs became involved in the National Socialist German Workers' Party
(DNSAP) in the new Czechoslovakia
and became the editor of the Iglauer Volkswehr newspaper. Iglau had become the second largest German-speaking enclave (Sprachinsel) inside Czechoslovakia
and there was great political dissatisfaction among the Germans in Czechoslovakia
.
Krebs was apparently in contact with Adolf Hitler
and was also a member of the Czech
Parliament several times. In 1933 he was stripped of his parliamentary immunity and imprisoned. Krebs then fled to Nazi Germany
, where he became a member of the SS and rose to the rank of SS-Brigadeführer. In the mid 1930s he wrote two books arguing the Sudeten German case : Kampf in Böhmen (Berlin, 1936) and Wir Sudetendeutsche (Berlin, 1937).
Having joined the nationalist movement early, he along with Rudolf Jung
and Hans Knirsch
was one of the few original Moravian
National Socialists
to remain in the party after 1933. During the Sudeten Crisis, Himmler and the SS favoured Krebs over Konrad Henlein
, and tried to play them off against one another to some degree. Krebs returned to Moravia
in 1939 and participated in the harsh persecution of political opponents of the Nazi regime. He was formally appointed Oberregierungsrat im Reichsinnenministerium (chief executive officer in the Reich
Ministry of the Interior) and apparently held this post during World War II
.
After the war Krebs was executed by the Czechoslovak government in Prague
in 1947.
Moravians (ethnic group)
Moravians are the modern West Slavic inhabitants of the historical land of Moravia, the easternmost part of the Czech Republic, which includes the Moravian Slovakia. They speak the two main groups of Moravian dialects , the transitional Bohemian-Moravian dialect subgroup and standard Czech...
Nazi Party member and SS-Brigadeführer from Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
.
Career
Hans Krebs was born in the ancient town JihlavaJihlava
Jihlava is a city in the Czech Republic. Jihlava is a centre of the Vysočina Region, situated on the Jihlava river on the ancient frontier between Moravia and Bohemia, and is the oldest mining town in the Czech Republic, ca. 50 years older than Kutná Hora.Among the principal buildings are the...
in Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
when it was part of the Habsburg Empire and was involved in the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
nationalistic movements from his youth. In 1911 he became the manager of the German Workers' Party (Deutsche Arbeiterpartei) in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.
After the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Krebs volunteered to serve in the Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
. He fought in the South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
, received several awards and rose to the rank of lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
. After the war Krebs became involved in the National Socialist German Workers' Party
German National Socialist Workers' Party (Czechoslovakia)
The German National Socialist Workers' Party was a protofascist party of Germans in Czechoslovakia, successor of the German Workers' Party from Austria-Hungary. It was founded in November 1919 in Duchcov. Most important party activists were Hans Knirsch, Hans Krebs, Adam Fahrner, Rudolf Jung and...
(DNSAP) in the new Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and became the editor of the Iglauer Volkswehr newspaper. Iglau had become the second largest German-speaking enclave (Sprachinsel) inside Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and there was great political dissatisfaction among the Germans in Czechoslovakia
Germans in Czechoslovakia (1918-1938)
From 1918 to 1938, after the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, more than 3 million ethnic Germans were living in what became the Czech lands of the newly created state of Czechoslovakia. Ethnic Germans had lived in Bohemia, a part of the Holy Roman Empire, since the 14th century , mostly in...
.
Krebs was apparently in contact with 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...
and was also a member of the Czech
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
Parliament several times. In 1933 he was stripped of his parliamentary immunity and imprisoned. Krebs then fled to Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, where he became a member of the SS and rose to the rank of SS-Brigadeführer. In the mid 1930s he wrote two books arguing the Sudeten German case : Kampf in Böhmen (Berlin, 1936) and Wir Sudetendeutsche (Berlin, 1937).
Having joined the nationalist movement early, he along with Rudolf Jung
Rudolf Jung
Rudolf Jung was an instrumental force and agitator of German-Czech National Socialism and, later on, became a member of the German Nazi Party....
and Hans Knirsch
Hans Knirsch
Hans Knirsch was an Austro-German activist from Moravia for Austrian National Socialism. After the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, he led the original party in Bohemia, called the Sudeten German National Socialist Party...
was one of the few original Moravian
Moravians (ethnic group)
Moravians are the modern West Slavic inhabitants of the historical land of Moravia, the easternmost part of the Czech Republic, which includes the Moravian Slovakia. They speak the two main groups of Moravian dialects , the transitional Bohemian-Moravian dialect subgroup and standard Czech...
National Socialists
National Socialist German Workers Party
The National Socialist German Workers' Party , commonly known in English as the Nazi Party, was a political party in Germany between 1920 and 1945. Its predecessor, the German Workers' Party , existed from 1919 to 1920...
to remain in the party after 1933. During the Sudeten Crisis, Himmler and the SS favoured Krebs over Konrad Henlein
Konrad Henlein
Konrad Ernst Eduard Henlein was a leading pro-Nazi ethnic German politician in Czechoslovakia and leader of Sudeten German separatists...
, and tried to play them off against one another to some degree. Krebs returned to Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
in 1939 and participated in the harsh persecution of political opponents of the Nazi regime. He was formally appointed Oberregierungsrat im Reichsinnenministerium (chief executive officer in the Reich
Reich
Reich is a German word cognate with the English rich, but also used to designate an empire, realm, or nation. The qualitative connotation from the German is " sovereign state." It is the word traditionally used for a variety of sovereign entities, including Germany in many periods of its history...
Ministry of the Interior) and apparently held this post during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
After the war Krebs was executed by the Czechoslovak government in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
in 1947.