Julius Ludolf
Encyclopedia
Julius Ludolf was an SS-Obersturmführer, a member of the Waffen-SS
and commander of various satellite camps of Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
in Upper Austria
.
, a satellite camp of the Mauthusen Gusen concentration camp system
in the Karavanke mountains. In August 1943 he took over for Karl Schöpperle in the subcamp of Großraming
and starting from May 1944 the final commander of satellite camp Melk
affiliated with the Steyr-Daimler-Puch
company.
held before a United States military court at Dachau
(part of the Dachau Trials). Apart from overall conditions in the camps, which stood under his responsibility, Ludolf was accused of having on different occasions to have personally stuck or killed Polish and Russian prisoners between October 1943 - May 1944. He was also accused of having ordered, in October 1944, that sixteen hospitalized Czech and Slovak prisoners be killed by lethal injection. He was charged with having arranged, in July 1944, the execution of Russian prisoner who was recaptured after an escape.
Heard as a witness in own case, Ludolf said he never killed a prisoner and at most took actions to enforce camp discipline. Executions of camp escapees would not have taken place on his authority. On May 13, 1946, the US court in Dachau found Ludolf guilty and condemned him to death. After his wife's plea for clemency was rejected, Julius Ludolf was executed on May 28, 1947, at Landsberg Prison
.
Waffen-SS
The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
and commander of various satellite camps of Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen Concentration Camp grew to become a large group of Nazi concentration camps that was built around the villages of Mauthausen and Gusen in Upper Austria, roughly east of the city of Linz.Initially a single camp at Mauthausen, it expanded over time and by the summer of 1940, the...
in Upper Austria
Upper Austria
Upper Austria is one of the nine states or Bundesländer of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders on Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as on the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg...
.
Concentration camp career
Julius Ludolf worked at concentration camps from January 1940 to May 1945. At first he was commander of concentration camp LoiblLoibl Pass
The Loibl Pass or Ljubelj Pass is a high mountain pass in the Karavanke chain of the Southern Limestone Alps, linking Austria with Slovenia...
, a satellite camp of the Mauthusen Gusen concentration camp system
Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen Concentration Camp grew to become a large group of Nazi concentration camps that was built around the villages of Mauthausen and Gusen in Upper Austria, roughly east of the city of Linz.Initially a single camp at Mauthausen, it expanded over time and by the summer of 1940, the...
in the Karavanke mountains. In August 1943 he took over for Karl Schöpperle in the subcamp of Großraming
Großraming
Großraming is a municipality in the district of Steyr-Land in Upper Austria, Austria.-References:...
and starting from May 1944 the final commander of satellite camp Melk
Melk
Melk is a city of Austria, in the federal state of Lower Austria, next to the Wachau valley along the Danube. Melk has a population of 5,222 ....
affiliated with the Steyr-Daimler-Puch
Steyr-Daimler-Puch
Steyr-Daimler-Puch was a large manufacturing conglomerate based in Steyr, Austria, which was broken up in stages between 1987 and 2001. The component parts and operations continued to exist under separate ownership and new names.-History:...
company.
After 1945
After the end of war Julius Ludolf was charged along with sixty other camp personnel in the Mauthausen-Gusen camp trialsMauthausen-Gusen camp trials
The Mauthausen-Gusen camp trials were a set of two consecutive trials of the German World War II criminals, carried over by the Dachau International Military Tribunal. Between March 29 and May 13, 1946, and then from August 6 to August 21, 1947, a total of 69 former Nazi officials were tried...
held before a United States military court at Dachau
Dachau
Dachau is a town in Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany. It is a major district town—a Große Kreisstadt—of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, about 20 km north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants...
(part of the Dachau Trials). Apart from overall conditions in the camps, which stood under his responsibility, Ludolf was accused of having on different occasions to have personally stuck or killed Polish and Russian prisoners between October 1943 - May 1944. He was also accused of having ordered, in October 1944, that sixteen hospitalized Czech and Slovak prisoners be killed by lethal injection. He was charged with having arranged, in July 1944, the execution of Russian prisoner who was recaptured after an escape.
Heard as a witness in own case, Ludolf said he never killed a prisoner and at most took actions to enforce camp discipline. Executions of camp escapees would not have taken place on his authority. On May 13, 1946, the US court in Dachau found Ludolf guilty and condemned him to death. After his wife's plea for clemency was rejected, Julius Ludolf was executed on May 28, 1947, at Landsberg Prison
Landsberg Prison
Landsberg Prison is a penal facility located in the town of Landsberg am Lech in the southwest of the German state of Bavaria, about west of Munich and south of Augsburg....
.
External links
- Zeitgeschichtemuseum Ebensee: Die Verhaftung von Kriegsverbrechern im Raum um Ebensee im Mai 1945, Artikel von Wolfgang Quatember und Susanne Rolinek mit einem Bericht über die Verhaftung von Julius Ludolf mit Fotos (English: The arrest of war criminals in the Ebensee area in May 1945, article by Wolfgang Quatember and Susanne Rolinek with a report on the arrest of Julius Ludolf with photos.)