Juana Bormann
Encyclopedia
Juana Bormann (September 10, 1893 – December 13, 1945) was a prison guard at several Nazi
concentration camps, and was executed
as a war criminal at Hamelin
after a trial in 1945. She was not related to leading Nazi Martin Bormann
.
At her trial, Bormann said she had joined the Auxiliary SS in 1938 "to earn more money." She first served at the Lichtenburg concentration camp
, in Lichtenburg
, Saxony under SS Oberaufseherin Jane Bernigau
with 49 other SS women. In 1939 she was assigned to oversee a work crew at the new Ravensbrück
women's camp near Berlin
. In March 1942, Bormann was one of a handful of women selected for guard duty at Auschwitz
in Poland
. Short in stature, she was known for her cruelty. Victims called her "Wiesel" and "the woman with the dogs." In October 1942 Bormann went to Auschwitz-Birkenau
as an Aufseherin. Her supervisors included Maria Mandel
, Margot Drexler
(Drechsel, Dreschel) and Irma Grese
. Juana was eventually moved to Budy, a nearby subcamp where she continued her abuse on the prisoners.
In 1944, as German losses mounted, Bormann was transferred to the auxiliary camp at Hindenburg (now called Zabrze
, Poland
) in Silesia
. In January 1945 she returned to Ravensbrück. In March she arrived at her last post, Bergen-Belsen
, near Celle
, where she served under Josef Kramer
, Irma Grese
and Elisabeth Volkenrath
(all of whom had served with her in Birkenau.) On April 15, 1945 the British army took Bergen-Belsen, finding over 10,000 corpses and 60,000 survivors. The liberators forced all SS personnel to carry the dead.
Bormann was later incarcerated and interrogated by the military, then prosecuted at the Belsen Trial
which lasted from September 17, 1945 to November 17, 1945. The court heard testimony relating to murders she had committed at Auschwitz and Belsen, sometimes unleashing her "big bad wolfhound" German shepherd on helpless prisoners. She was found guilty and hanged
(along with Grese and Volkenrath) on December 13, 1945.
Her executioner, Albert Pierrepoint
, later wrote,
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
concentration camps, and was executed
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
as a war criminal at Hamelin
Hamelin
Hamelin is a town on the river Weser in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Hamelin-Pyrmont and has a population of 58,696 ....
after a trial in 1945. She was not related to leading Nazi Martin Bormann
Martin Bormann
Martin Ludwig Bormann was a prominent Nazi official. He became head of the Party Chancellery and private secretary to Adolf Hitler...
.
At her trial, Bormann said she had joined the Auxiliary SS in 1938 "to earn more money." She first served at the Lichtenburg concentration camp
Lichtenburg (concentration camp)
Lichtenburg was a Nazi concentration camp, housed in a Renaissance castle in Prettin, near Wittenberg in eastern Germany. Along with Sachsenburg, it was among the first to be built by the Nazis, and was operated by the SS from 1933 to 1939. It held as many as 2000 male prisoners from 1933 to 1937...
, in Lichtenburg
Lichtenburg
Lichtenburg is a proper noun referring to:*Lichtenburg, a city in the North West Province of South Africa*Lichtenburg, a Nazi concentration camp in eastern Germany...
, Saxony under SS Oberaufseherin Jane Bernigau
Jane Bernigau
Gerda "Jane" Bernigau was an SS Oberaufseherin in Nazi concentration camps before and during World War II.-Camp work:...
with 49 other SS women. In 1939 she was assigned to oversee a work crew at the new Ravensbrück
Ravensbrück 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 ....
women's camp near Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. In March 1942, Bormann was one of a handful of women selected for guard duty at Auschwitz
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...
in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. Short in stature, she was known for her cruelty. Victims called her "Wiesel" and "the woman with the dogs." In October 1942 Bormann went to Auschwitz-Birkenau
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...
as an Aufseherin. Her supervisors included Maria Mandel
Maria Mandel
Maria Mandel was an Austrian SS-Helferin infamous for her key role in The Holocaust as a top-ranking official at the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp where she is believed to have been directly responsible for the deaths of over 500,000 female prisoners.-Life:Mandel was born in Münzkirchen,...
, Margot Drexler
Margot Dreschel
Margot Dreschel was a prison guard at concentration camps who was born in Neugersdorf, Germany.Before her enlistment as an SS auxiliary, she worked at an office in Berlin. On January 31, 1941, Margot Dreschel arrived at Ravensbrück to begin guard training...
(Drechsel, Dreschel) and Irma Grese
Irma Grese
Irma Ida Ilse Grese was employed at the Nazi concentration camps of Ravensbrück and Auschwitz, and was a warden of the women's section of Bergen-Belsen....
. Juana was eventually moved to Budy, a nearby subcamp where she continued her abuse on the prisoners.
In 1944, as German losses mounted, Bormann was transferred to the auxiliary camp at Hindenburg (now called Zabrze
Zabrze
Zabrze is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. The west district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union is a metropolis with a population of around 2 million...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
) in Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
. In January 1945 she returned to Ravensbrück. In March she arrived at her last post, Bergen-Belsen
Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen was a Nazi concentration camp in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle...
, near Celle
Celle
Celle is a town and capital of the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town is situated on the banks of the River Aller, a tributary of the Weser and has a population of about 71,000...
, where she served under Josef Kramer
Josef Kramer
Josef Kramer was the Commandant of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Dubbed "The Beast of Belsen" by camp inmates; he was a notorious Nazi war criminal, directly responsible for the deaths of thousands of people...
, Irma Grese
Irma Grese
Irma Ida Ilse Grese was employed at the Nazi concentration camps of Ravensbrück and Auschwitz, and was a warden of the women's section of Bergen-Belsen....
and Elisabeth Volkenrath
Elisabeth Volkenrath
Elisabeth Volkenrath was German supervisor at several Nazi concentration camps during World War II....
(all of whom had served with her in Birkenau.) On April 15, 1945 the British army took Bergen-Belsen, finding over 10,000 corpses and 60,000 survivors. The liberators forced all SS personnel to carry the dead.
Bormann was later incarcerated and interrogated by the military, then prosecuted at the Belsen Trial
Belsen Trial
The Belsen Trial was one of several trials that the Allied occupation forces conducted against former officials and functionaries of Nazi Germany after the end of World War II...
which lasted from September 17, 1945 to November 17, 1945. The court heard testimony relating to murders she had committed at Auschwitz and Belsen, sometimes unleashing her "big bad wolfhound" German shepherd on helpless prisoners. She was found guilty and hanged
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
(along with Grese and Volkenrath) on December 13, 1945.
Her executioner, Albert Pierrepoint
Albert Pierrepoint
Albert Pierrepoint is the most famous member of the family which provided three of the United Kingdom's official hangmen in the first half of the 20th century...
, later wrote,
She limped down the corridor looking old and haggard. She was 42 [sic] years old (actual age, 52), standing only a little over five feet. She was trembling as she was put on the scale. In German she said: 'I have my feelings'.
External links
- Juana Bormann at auschwitz.dk