Karl Rahm
Encyclopedia
Karl Rahm was a Sturmbannführer
(Major) in the German Schutzstaffel
who, from February 1944 to May 1945, served as the Commandant of the Theresienstadt concentration camp
. Rahm was the third and final commander of the camp, succeeding Siegfried Seidl
and Anton Burger
.
, in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire
. He apprenticed as a toolmaker and worked for a time in Vienna
, where during the 1920s he was exposed to the activities of the Austria
n Nazi Party. He became a member of the Nazis in the early 1930s and joined the underground Austrian SS
at the same time. In 1938, after the Anschluss
with Nazi Germany
, Rahm became an SS officer attached to SS-Oberabschnitt Donau
under the command of Ernst Kaltenbrunner
. His brother Franz was deported to a concentration camp as a Communist.
in 1939, Rahm was an SS-Obersturmführer
in the Allgemeine-SS. Applying for transfer to full time SS duties, Rahm was attached to the Gestapo
and assigned to the Central Office for Jewish Emigration
where he served under Adolf Eichmann. In 1940, he was transferred to Prague into the same office, as a deputy of Hans Günther. In March 1941, Rahm was briefly sent to the Netherlands
together with Günther, to set up the same institution here, which however failed.
in February 1944 and ordered to assume duties as Commandant (commander) of the Theresienstadt ghetto. One of his first duties was to oversee the camp "beautification project" as a prelude for orchestrating the infamous show-tour of the concentration camp to the International Red Cross. The affair was part of a much larger scheme to influence world opinion that Jews
in Nazi occupied Europe
were well treated. Rahm further supervised the creation of a film
along the same lines.
During his time as Camp Commandant, Rahm oversaw mass deportations of Jews from Theresienstadt to Auschwitz concentration camp
, the heaviest volume of which occurred in the fall of 1944, when 18.000 people were deported within one month.
Rahm was also known for his cynical and rash character; he frequently beat prisoners himself and oversaw torture sessions. On the reverse, Rahm appears to have had an interesting, almost cordial relationship with some Jewish inmates, especially those who shared his working class Viennese background.
. Put on trial, Rahm was found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death. http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/people/e/eichmann-adolf/transcripts/Sessions/Session-045-01.html. Rahm was executed on April 30, 1947, four hours after his guilty verdict had been handed down by the Czech court.
, Rahm is portrayed by British actor Robert Stephens
. John Collin
portrayed Rahm in the miniseries Holocaust.
Sturmbannführer
Sturmbannführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party equivalent to major, used both in the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel...
(Major) in the German 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...
who, from February 1944 to May 1945, served as the Commandant of the Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...
. Rahm was the third and final commander of the camp, succeeding Siegfried Seidl
Siegfried Seidl
Dr. Siegfried Seidl was a World War II Commandant of the Theresienstadt concentration camp located in the present-day Czech Republic. He was later a convicted war criminal.Siegfried Seidl interrupted his law studies after a few semesters and took on various odd jobs...
and Anton Burger
Anton Burger
Anton Burger born in Neunkirchen, Austria, was a Nazi war criminal, Sturmbannführer in the German Nazi SS. In 1942 was sent by Adolf Eichmann to Brussels, Belgium, in order to coordinate the efforts towards deportation of Belgian, Dutch and French Jews. He was later sent to Salonika in Greece by...
.
Early life and Nazi Membership
Rahm was born in 1907 in the city of KlosterneuburgKlosterneuburg
Klosterneuburg is an attractive small town in Lower Austria, Austria with a population of 24,442.It is located on the Danube, immediately north of Vienna, from which it is separated by the Kahlenberg and Leopoldsberg hills...
, in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
. He apprenticed as a toolmaker and worked for a time 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...
, where during the 1920s he was exposed to the activities of the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Nazi Party. He became a member of the Nazis in the early 1930s and joined the underground Austrian SS
Austrian SS
The Austrian SS was a segment of the SS developed in 1934 as a covert force to influence the Anschluss with Germany which would occur in 1938. The early Austrian SS was led by Ernst Kaltenbrunner and Arthur Seyss-Inquart...
at the same time. In 1938, after the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
with 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...
, Rahm became an SS officer attached to SS-Oberabschnitt Donau
SS-Oberabschnitt Donau
SS-Oberabschnitt Donau was the primary division command of the Allgemeine-SS in the country of Austria. The Oberabschnitt was formed in 1934 under Alfred Rodenbücher as an early attempt to influence the Anschluss with Nazi Germany...
under the command of Ernst Kaltenbrunner
Ernst Kaltenbrunner
Ernst Kaltenbrunner was an Austrian-born senior official of Nazi Germany during World War II. Between January 1943 and May 1945, he held the offices of Chief of the Reichssicherheitshauptamt , President of Interpol and, as a Obergruppenführer und General der Polizei und Waffen-SS, he was the...
. His brother Franz was deported to a concentration camp as a Communist.
World War II
At the start of World War IIWorld 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...
in 1939, Rahm was 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...
in the Allgemeine-SS. Applying for transfer to full time SS duties, Rahm was attached to the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
and assigned to the Central Office for Jewish Emigration
Central Office for Jewish Emigration
The Central Office for Jewish Emigration was a designation of Nazi institutions in Vienna, Prague and Amsterdam. Its purpose was to expel Jews from Nazi-controlled areas.- History :...
where he served under Adolf Eichmann. In 1940, he was transferred to Prague into the same office, as a deputy of Hans Günther. In March 1941, Rahm was briefly sent to the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
together with Günther, to set up the same institution here, which however failed.
Theresienstadt
Rahm was promoted to SS-SturmbannführerSturmbannführer
Sturmbannführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party equivalent to major, used both in the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel...
in February 1944 and ordered to assume duties as Commandant (commander) of the Theresienstadt ghetto. One of his first duties was to oversee the camp "beautification project" as a prelude for orchestrating the infamous show-tour of the concentration camp to the International Red Cross. The affair was part of a much larger scheme to influence world opinion that Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
in Nazi occupied Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
were well treated. Rahm further supervised the creation of a film
Theresienstadt (film)
Theresienstadt. Ein Dokumentarfilm aus dem jüdischen Siedlungsgebiet was a black and white projected Nazi propaganda film shot in the concentration camp of Theresienstadt....
along the same lines.
During his time as Camp Commandant, Rahm oversaw mass deportations of Jews from Theresienstadt to Auschwitz 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...
, the heaviest volume of which occurred in the fall of 1944, when 18.000 people were deported within one month.
Rahm was also known for his cynical and rash character; he frequently beat prisoners himself and oversaw torture sessions. On the reverse, Rahm appears to have had an interesting, almost cordial relationship with some Jewish inmates, especially those who shared his working class Viennese background.
Post-War Capture, Trial, and Execution
Rahm evacuated Theresienstadt on May 5, 1945 along with the last of the SS personnel. He was captured shortly afterward by American forces in Austria and extradited in 1947 to CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia
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...
. Put on trial, Rahm was found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death. http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/people/e/eichmann-adolf/transcripts/Sessions/Session-045-01.html. Rahm was executed on April 30, 1947, four hours after his guilty verdict had been handed down by the Czech court.
Depictions in media
In the mini-series War and RemembranceWar and Remembrance
War and Remembrance is a novel by Herman Wouk, published in 1978, which is the sequel to The Winds of War. It continues the story of the extended Henry family and the Jastrow family starting on 15 December 1941 and ending on 6 August 1945. This novel was adapted into a mini-series presented on...
, Rahm is portrayed by British actor Robert Stephens
Robert Stephens
Sir Robert Stephens was a leading English actor in the early years of England's Royal National Theatre.-Early life and career:...
. John Collin
John Collin (actor)
John Collin was a British actor frequently seen on UK television during the 1960s and 1970s mainly in supporting roles. John Collin's best known role was as Detective Sergeant Haggar in the long running BBC police series Z-Cars...
portrayed Rahm in the miniseries Holocaust.