Fritz Suhren
Encyclopedia
Fritz Suhren was a German
Schutzstaffel
officer and Nazi concentration camp commandant.
at the same time. He moved over to the SS in October 1931, initially as a volunteer before going full-time in 1934.
under SS supervision he was nevertheless not used as a soldier and instead was stationed at Sachsenhausen concentration camp
in 1941. By 1942 he was Lagerführer (deputy commandant) at the camp and in May of that year ordered camp Lagerältester Harry Naujoks
to hang a prisoner that had been earmarked for execution. Naujoks refused to perform the deed and, whilst Naujoks was able to survive the insubordination, Suhren insisted that he stand beside the prisoner on the gallows
(which had been fitted with a winch in order to prolong the execution) and forced a young inmate to perform the hanging.
. His policy upon taking command in 1942 was to exterminate the prisoners through working them as hard as possible and feeding them as little as possible.
As commandant at Ravensbruck, Suhren had to provide inmates to Dr. Karl Gebhardt
for experimentation. Suhren initially objected to this, mainly because most of the inmates at the camp were political prisoner
s, and he complained to the SS-Reichssicherheitshauptamt about the practice. However the SS command overruled Suhren's doubts and he was forced to apologise to Gebhardt and supply him with the prisoners he demanded. Suhren would later state that he had witnessed experiments that included exposing women to high levels of x rays in order to accomplish sterilisation.
Near the end of World War II
, Franz Goering and Benoit Musy
approached Suhren to ask him to allow a convoy of women to leave the camp and go into the custody of the Scandinavian Red Cross. Suhren however refused the request as it was against superior orders although eventually Goering got the backing of Rudolf Brandt
and Suhren was forced to yield.
, an inmate at Ravensbruck whom he believed to be Winston Churchill
's niece due in part to her using the assumed surname of Churchill in the camp, and drove with her to the United States
base, hoping that her presence would save him. Sansom had in fact been instructed to adopt the false name and to encourage the presumption of her relationship to the British Prime Minister as she was a spy in the camp and the British felt that if the Germans thought she was Churchill's relative they would want to keep her alive as a possible bargaining tool. Suhren would later come to trial for his time as commandant of Ravensbruck and was hanged in 1950.
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...
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...
officer and Nazi concentration camp commandant.
Early years
Suhren joined the Nazi Party in 1928 and the SturmabteilungSturmabteilung
The Sturmabteilung functioned as a paramilitary organization of the National Socialist German Workers' Party . It played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s...
at the same time. He moved over to the SS in October 1931, initially as a volunteer before going full-time in 1934.
SS service
Trained by the WehrmachtWehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
under SS supervision he was nevertheless not used as a soldier and instead was stationed at Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Sachsenhausen or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used primarily for political prisoners from 1936 to the end of the Third Reich in May, 1945. After World War II, when Oranienburg was in the Soviet Occupation Zone, the structure was used as an NKVD...
in 1941. By 1942 he was Lagerführer (deputy commandant) at the camp and in May of that year ordered camp Lagerältester Harry Naujoks
Harry Naujoks
Harry Naujoks was a German anti-fascist and survivor of Sachsenhausen concentration camp.- Biography :...
to hang a prisoner that had been earmarked for execution. Naujoks refused to perform the deed and, whilst Naujoks was able to survive the insubordination, Suhren insisted that he stand beside the prisoner on the gallows
Gallows
A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...
(which had been fitted with a winch in order to prolong the execution) and forced a young inmate to perform the hanging.
Ravensbruck
He was later commandant of the women's camp at Ravensbruck concentration campRavensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück was a notorious women's concentration camp during World War II, located in northern Germany, 90 km north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück ....
. His policy upon taking command in 1942 was to exterminate the prisoners through working them as hard as possible and feeding them as little as possible.
As commandant at Ravensbruck, Suhren had to provide inmates to Dr. Karl Gebhardt
Karl Gebhardt
Karl Gebhardt was a German medical doctor; personal physician of Heinrich Himmler; and one of the main coordinators and perpetrators of surgical experiments performed on inmates of the concentration camps at Ravensbrück and Auschwitz.-Career in the Third Reich:Gebhardt's Nazi career began with his...
for experimentation. Suhren initially objected to this, mainly because most of the inmates at the camp were political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s, and he complained to the SS-Reichssicherheitshauptamt about the practice. However the SS command overruled Suhren's doubts and he was forced to apologise to Gebhardt and supply him with the prisoners he demanded. Suhren would later state that he had witnessed experiments that included exposing women to high levels of x rays in order to accomplish sterilisation.
Near the end of 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...
, Franz Goering and Benoit Musy
Benoit Musy
Benoît Nicolas Musy was a Swiss Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and race car driver.- Biography :Musy was born in Fribourg, Switzerland, the son of president Jean-Marie Musy...
approached Suhren to ask him to allow a convoy of women to leave the camp and go into the custody of the Scandinavian Red Cross. Suhren however refused the request as it was against superior orders although eventually Goering got the backing of Rudolf Brandt
Rudolf Brandt
Rudolf Brandt was a German SS officer during 1933-1945 and a civil servant.A lawyer by profession, Brandt was Personal Administrative Officer to the Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, and a defendant at the Doctors' Trial at Nuremberg for his part in securing the 86 victims of the Jewish skeleton...
and Suhren was forced to yield.
Surrender and death
With the Allies just a few miles from the camp Suhren took Odette SansomOdette Sansom
Odette Sansom Hallowes GC, MBE, Chevalier de la légion d'honneur was an Allied heroine of the Second World War.-Early years:...
, an inmate at Ravensbruck whom he believed to be Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
's niece due in part to her using the assumed surname of Churchill in the camp, and drove with her to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
base, hoping that her presence would save him. Sansom had in fact been instructed to adopt the false name and to encourage the presumption of her relationship to the British Prime Minister as she was a spy in the camp and the British felt that if the Germans thought she was Churchill's relative they would want to keep her alive as a possible bargaining tool. Suhren would later come to trial for his time as commandant of Ravensbruck and was hanged in 1950.