Heinz Brücher
Encyclopedia
Heinz Brücher was a member of special science unit SS Ahnenerbe
(ancestral heritage), PhD
(1938, Tübingen) in botany
.
In June 1943, 28-year-old Untersturmführer
(Second Lieutenant) Brücher was tasked with an expedition to the Soviet Union. Hauptsturmführer
(Captain) Konrad von Rauch and an interpreter identified as 'Steinbrecher' were also involved in the expedition. Brücher is also known as the person who saved and preserved the significant part of scientific legacy of Nikolai Vavilov
.
In February 1945, Brücher was ordered to destroy the 18 research facilities that were being studied, to avoid their capture by advancing Soviet forces. He refused, and after the second world war Brücher emigrated to Argentina and received there in 1948 a professorship in genetics and botany at University of Tucumán
(Tucumán, Argentina
), then in Caracas (Venezuela), Asunción (Paraguay) and later in Mendoza and Buenos Aires (Argentina).
Brücher wrote a number of books on the history of grain (1950), origin, evolution and domestication of tropical plants (1977) as well as the monograph Useful plants of neotropical origin and their wild relatives (1989).
On the 17th December, 1991 he was killed on his farm Condorhuasi in the district Mendoza (Argentina). His murder apparently occurred as a result of a burglary. However, some sources suggested that Brücher was working on a virus to combat the cocaine plant, and drug lords were implicated in his murder.
Ahnenerbe
The Ahnenerbe was a Nazi German think tank that promoted itself as a "study society for Intellectual Ancient History." Founded on July 1, 1935, by Heinrich Himmler, Herman Wirth, and Richard Walther Darré, the Ahnenerbe's goal was to research the anthropological and cultural history of the Aryan...
(ancestral heritage), PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
(1938, Tübingen) in botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
.
In June 1943, 28-year-old Untersturmführer
Untersturmführer
Untersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the German Schutzstaffel first created in July 1934. The rank can trace its origins to the older SA rank of Sturmführer which had existed since the founding of the SA in 1921...
(Second Lieutenant) Brücher was tasked with an expedition to the Soviet Union. Hauptsturmführer
Hauptsturmführer
Hauptsturmführer was a Nazi rank of the SS which was used between the years of 1934 and 1945. The rank of Hauptsturmführer was a mid-grade company level officer and was the equivalent of a Captain in the German Army and also the equivalent of captain in foreign armies...
(Captain) Konrad von Rauch and an interpreter identified as 'Steinbrecher' were also involved in the expedition. Brücher is also known as the person who saved and preserved the significant part of scientific legacy of Nikolai Vavilov
Nikolai Vavilov
Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov was a prominent Russian and Soviet botanist and geneticist best known for having identified the centres of origin of cultivated plants...
.
In February 1945, Brücher was ordered to destroy the 18 research facilities that were being studied, to avoid their capture by advancing Soviet forces. He refused, and after the second world war Brücher emigrated to Argentina and received there in 1948 a professorship in genetics and botany at University of Tucumán
Universidad Nacional de Tucumán
The National University of Tucumán is a national university in the Tucumán Province, in the northwest region of Argentina.-General information:...
(Tucumán, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
), then in Caracas (Venezuela), Asunción (Paraguay) and later in Mendoza and Buenos Aires (Argentina).
Brücher wrote a number of books on the history of grain (1950), origin, evolution and domestication of tropical plants (1977) as well as the monograph Useful plants of neotropical origin and their wild relatives (1989).
On the 17th December, 1991 he was killed on his farm Condorhuasi in the district Mendoza (Argentina). His murder apparently occurred as a result of a burglary. However, some sources suggested that Brücher was working on a virus to combat the cocaine plant, and drug lords were implicated in his murder.