Karl-Friedrich Höcker
Encyclopedia
Karl-Friedrich Höcker was a SS
-Obersturmführer
(First Lieutenant) and the adjutant
to Richard Baer
, who was a commandant
of Auschwitz I concentration camp
from May 1944 to February 1945. In 2006, a photo album
created by Höcker, with some 140 pictures from his time at Auschwitz, was given to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
, sparking new interest in his activities as a concentration camp administrator.
), Germany
. His father was a construction worker
, who was later killed in action during World War I
.
Following an apprenticeship as bank teller
he worked at a bank in Lübbecke
before being made redundant. After having been unemployed for two and a half years, he joined the SS in October 1933 and the Nazi Party in May 1937.
and, in 1940, became the adjutant to the commanding SS officer of the Neuengamme concentration camp, Martin Gottfried Weiss. In 1942 Weiss was also the commanding officer of the Arbeitsdorf
concentration camp with Höcker serving as his adjutant. Before being transferred in May 1943 to the Majdanek concentration camp, again as adjutant to Weiss, Höcker followed a course at the SS military academy (Junkerschule) in Braunschweig
. During the same period he also received some military training.
In 1943, he became the adjutant to the commandant at Majdanek during the Operation Reinhardt mass deportations and murders. Afterward, he became adjunct to Richard Baer
, in 1944, who was previously deputy to WVHA
chief Oswald Pohl
in Berlin. In May 1944 Höcker was transferred to Auschwitz, where he remained until the advance of the Soviet army forced camp evacuation in January 1945, when he was transferred to the Dora-Mittelbau concentration camp along with Baer. The two men administered the camp until the Allies arrived. Höcker used false papers to flee the camp and avoid being identified by the British when they captured him.
At his trial in Frankfurt
, part of the noted Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials
, Höcker denied having participated in the selection of victims at Birkenau or having ever personally executed a prisoner. He further denied any knowledge of the fate of the approximately 400,000 Hungarian Jews who were murdered at Auschwitz during his term of service at the camp. Höcker was shown to have knowledge of the genocidal activities at the camp, but could not be proved to have played a direct part in them. In postwar trials, Höcker denied his involvement in the selection process. While accounts from survivors and other SS officers all but placed him there, prosecutors could locate no conclusive evidence to prove the claim.
In August 1965 Höcker was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for aiding and abetting
in over 1,000 murders at Auschwitz. He was released in 1970 and was able to return to his bank post as a chief cashier, where he worked until his retirement.
On 3 May 1989 a district court in the Germany city of Bielefeld sentenced Höcker to four years imprisonment for his involvement in gassing to death prisoners, primarily Polish Jews, in the concentration camp Majdanek in Poland. Camp records showed that between May 1943 and May 1944 Höcker had acquired at least 3,610 kilograms of Zyklon B
poisonous gas for use in Majdanek from the Hamburg firm of Tesch & Stabenow.
created by Höcker came to the attention of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
; the album contains rare images of the life of German functionaries at Auschwitz while the camp remained in operation, including some of the few photos of Josef Mengele
at Auschwitz.
Höcker died in 2000, still claiming that he had nothing to do with the death camp at Birkenau. During his final statement at the Frankfurt Trial in 1965, he said,
Höcker had testified that he never set foot on the ramp during the selection process, despite one survivor recalling an officer with the surname Höcker being present on the ramp.
instead of that of an SS-Obersturmführer
like Karl Höcker. While the show pointed out that Höcker could have been wearing a different uniform, it seems unlikely, due to the strictly hierarchical nature of the SS.
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...
-Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
(First Lieutenant) and the adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...
to Richard Baer
Richard Baer
Richard Baer was a German Nazi official with the rank of SS-Sturmbannführer and commander of the Auschwitz I concentration camp from May 1944 to February 1945. He was a member of N.S.D.A.P...
, who was a commandant
Commandant
Commandant is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy. This usage is common in anglophone nations...
of Auschwitz I concentration camp
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
from May 1944 to February 1945. In 2006, a photo album
Höcker Album
The Höcker Album is a collection of photographs believed to have been collected by Karl-Friedrich Höcker, an officer of the SS during the Nazi regime in Germany. It contains over one hundred images of the lives and living conditions of the officers and administrators who ran the...
created by Höcker, with some 140 pictures from his time at Auschwitz, was given to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust history...
, sparking new interest in his activities as a concentration camp administrator.
Early life and family
The youngest of six children, Höcker was born in the village of Engershausen (now part of Preußisch OldendorfPreußisch Oldendorf
Preußisch Oldendorf is a town in the Minden-Lübbecke district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. in 1905 the town name Oldendorf was changed officially by putting "Preußisch" in front of it, to make the distinction from other towns with the same name more easy .-Geography:Preußisch Oldendorf is...
), Germany
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...
. His father was a construction worker
Construction worker
A construction worker or builder is a professional, tradesman, or labourer who directly participates in the physical construction of infrastructure.-Construction trades:...
, who was later killed in action during 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...
.
Following an apprenticeship as bank teller
Bank teller
A teller is an employee of a bank who deals directly with most customers. In some places, this employee is known as a cashier. Most teller jobs require cash handling experience and a high school diploma. Most banks provide on the job training....
he worked at a bank in Lübbecke
Lübbecke
Lübbecke is a town in northeast North Rhine-Westphalia in north Germany. This former county town lies on the northern slopes of the Wiehen Hills and has around 26,000 inhabitants. The town is in the Eastwestphalian district of Minden-Lübbecke...
before being made redundant. After having been unemployed for two and a half years, he joined the SS in October 1933 and the Nazi Party in May 1937.
Concentration camp administrator
On 16 November 1939 he joined the 9th SS Infantry Regiment based at DanzigGdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
and, in 1940, became the adjutant to the commanding SS officer of the Neuengamme concentration camp, Martin Gottfried Weiss. In 1942 Weiss was also the commanding officer of the Arbeitsdorf
Arbeitsdorf
Arbeitsdorf was a concentration camp established by the Nazis in 1942.-History and the purpose of the camp:In 1936, a German car engineer by the name of Ferdinand Porsche designed a prototype of a car that would be affordable enough for all Germans to buy. He then showed his idea to the then...
concentration camp with Höcker serving as his adjutant. Before being transferred in May 1943 to the Majdanek concentration camp, again as adjutant to Weiss, Höcker followed a course at the SS military academy (Junkerschule) in Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
. During the same period he also received some military training.
In 1943, he became the adjutant to the commandant at Majdanek during the Operation Reinhardt mass deportations and murders. Afterward, he became adjunct to Richard Baer
Richard Baer
Richard Baer was a German Nazi official with the rank of SS-Sturmbannführer and commander of the Auschwitz I concentration camp from May 1944 to February 1945. He was a member of N.S.D.A.P...
, in 1944, who was previously deputy to WVHA
SS-Wirtschafts-Verwaltungshauptamt
The SS-Wirtschafts-Verwaltungshauptamt was responsible for managing the finances, supply systems and business projects for the Allgemeine-SS...
chief Oswald Pohl
Oswald Pohl
Oswald Pohl was a Nazi official and member of the SS , involved in the mass murders of Jews in concentration camps, the so-called Final Solution.-Early years:...
in Berlin. In May 1944 Höcker was transferred to Auschwitz, where he remained until the advance of the Soviet army forced camp evacuation in January 1945, when he was transferred to the Dora-Mittelbau concentration camp along with Baer. The two men administered the camp until the Allies arrived. Höcker used false papers to flee the camp and avoid being identified by the British when they captured him.
Post-war trials
He married before the war and had a son and daughter during the war, with whom he was reunited after his release from 18 months in a British POW camp in 1946. Early in the 1960s he was apprehended by West German authorities in his hometown, where he was a bank official. It is not known why the bank rehired and promoted him after a long absence during which he had nothing to do with banking.At his trial in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, part of the noted Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials
Frankfurt Auschwitz trials
The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials, known in German as der Auschwitz-Prozess or der zweite Auschwitz-Prozess, was a series of trials running from December 20, 1963 to August 10, 1965, charging 22 defendants under German penal law for their roles in the Holocaust as mid- to lower-level officials in the...
, Höcker denied having participated in the selection of victims at Birkenau or having ever personally executed a prisoner. He further denied any knowledge of the fate of the approximately 400,000 Hungarian Jews who were murdered at Auschwitz during his term of service at the camp. Höcker was shown to have knowledge of the genocidal activities at the camp, but could not be proved to have played a direct part in them. In postwar trials, Höcker denied his involvement in the selection process. While accounts from survivors and other SS officers all but placed him there, prosecutors could locate no conclusive evidence to prove the claim.
In August 1965 Höcker was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for aiding and abetting
Aiding and abetting
Criminal=Aiding and abetting is an additional provision in United States criminal law, for situations where it cannot be shown the party personally carried out the criminal offense, but where another person may have carried out the illegal act as an agent of the charged, working together with or...
in over 1,000 murders at Auschwitz. He was released in 1970 and was able to return to his bank post as a chief cashier, where he worked until his retirement.
On 3 May 1989 a district court in the Germany city of Bielefeld sentenced Höcker to four years imprisonment for his involvement in gassing to death prisoners, primarily Polish Jews, in the concentration camp Majdanek in Poland. Camp records showed that between May 1943 and May 1944 Höcker had acquired at least 3,610 kilograms of Zyklon B
Zyklon B
Zyklon B was the trade name of a cyanide-based pesticide infamous for its use by Nazi Germany to kill human beings in gas chambers of extermination camps during the Holocaust. The "B" designation indicates one of two types of Zyklon...
poisonous gas for use in Majdanek from the Hamburg firm of Tesch & Stabenow.
Auschwitz photo album
In 2006, a photo albumHöcker Album
The Höcker Album is a collection of photographs believed to have been collected by Karl-Friedrich Höcker, an officer of the SS during the Nazi regime in Germany. It contains over one hundred images of the lives and living conditions of the officers and administrators who ran the...
created by Höcker came to the attention of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust history...
; the album contains rare images of the life of German functionaries at Auschwitz while the camp remained in operation, including some of the few photos of Josef Mengele
Josef Mengele
Josef Rudolf Mengele , also known as the Angel of Death was a German SS officer and a physician in the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. He earned doctorates in anthropology from Munich University and in medicine from Frankfurt University...
at Auschwitz.
Höcker died in 2000, still claiming that he had nothing to do with the death camp at Birkenau. During his final statement at the Frankfurt Trial in 1965, he said,
- “I only learned about the events in Birkenau…in the course of time I was there… and I had nothing to do that. I had no ability to influence these events in any way…neither did I want them, nor carry them out. I didn’t hurt anybody…and neither did any one die at Auschwitz because of me.”
Höcker had testified that he never set foot on the ramp during the selection process, despite one survivor recalling an officer with the surname Höcker being present on the ramp.
Expert investigation of photographs
In the fall of 2007, photographs of Höcker, his measurements, and a photograph from the Auschwitz Album were compared by experts. The goal was to determine whether a man depicted on the train ramp was Höcker. The man stood with his back to the camera; however, if modern investigative techniques could discern Höcker was indeed this man, his previous testimony would be stricken as false. The photographs showed extremely similar measurements—i.e., size of head, length of forearm and inseam, width of waist and shoulders, and height of knees. Further measurements of the actual Auschwitz ramp remnants were added into the computer model. This allowed for a 3-D study to ascertain the exact height of the man photographed on the ramp. The unknown man had the same height measurement as Höcker. The experts concluded the unknown man photographed was Karl Höcker. However, the show also pointed out that the unknown man in the photograph appeared to be wearing the uniform of an SS-OberscharführerOberscharführer
Oberscharführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that existed between the years of 1932 and 1945. Translated as “Senior Squad Leader”, Oberscharführer was first used as a rank of the Sturmabteilung and was created due to an expansion of the enlisted positions required by growing SA membership...
instead of that of an SS-Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
like Karl Höcker. While the show pointed out that Höcker could have been wearing a different uniform, it seems unlikely, due to the strictly hierarchical nature of the SS.
Sources
- U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum photo gallery
- "In the Shadow of Horror, SS Guardians Frolic," New York Times article by Neil A. Lewis (Sept. 18, 2007)
- Karl Hoecker’s Album slideshow on The New YorkerThe New YorkerThe New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
's website - "Nazi Scrapbooks from Hell", National Geographic Channel. November 30, 2008.
- Holocaust Survivors and Remembrance Project -- Karl Hoecker (Höcker)