Otto-Heinrich Drechsler
Encyclopedia
Otto-Heinrich Drechsler was a prominent German dentist, mayor of Lübeck
, and during the Second World War
from 1941 through 1944 he resided in Riga
as the General Commissioner of Latvia
for the Nazi occupation regime (Reichskommissariat Ostland
).
in 1920. During the Weimar Republic
Drechsler began the study of dentistry, and obtained the degree of Doctor of Dental Arts. In this time, he became a member of the Nordic Union.
motor pool.
From 1 August 1932 through 31 May 1933, Drechsler was acting Gauleiter
(a high rank in the Nazi party) for the party district ("Gau") encompassing Mecklenburg
and Lübeck. On 26 May 1933, Lübeck together with both Mecklenburgs was placed under the authority of a National Governor (Reichsstathalter) named Friedrich Hildebrandt
. He assumed office Lübeck on 8 June 1933 with great pomp and promoted his fellow veteran Drechsler as mayor (Bürgermeister) and Friedrich Völtzer as Senator for Finance and the economy. Additional senators included the Nazis Emil Bannemann (Labor and Welfare), Walther Schröder (Interior), Ulrich Burgstaller (Education and Theater) and Hans Böhmcker (Justice).
Between 1933 and 1937, Drechsler was mayor of Lübeck. In addition to his position as mayor, at the same time he was President of the Senate of Lübeck as in the Prussian state council.
Starting 1 April 1937 he was the first "Senior Mayor of the Prussian Hansa City Lübeck Metropolitan Area ("Oberbürgermeister des preußischen Stadtkreises Hansestadt Lübeck"), and simultaneously from 17 July 1941 through 1944, as Commissioner General (Generalkommissar) for the Nazi occupation authority Reichskommissariat Ostland
, he was responsible for the concentration camps in Latvia.
(Reichsministerium für die besetzen Ostegebiete or RMfdbO), Otto Bräutigam
, noted in his diary of having had a conflict with the military authorities. These disputes, particularly those involving Drechsler's administrative superior, Hinrich Lohse
, were never fully resolved. Based on a settlement with RMfdbO, formal assignment of authority over the administration of Latvian territory, including Riga, was effected on September 1, 1941. One historian, Lumans, states that like Lohse, Drechsler was sympathetic to a limited autonomy for Latvians, but unlike Lohse, he worked well with the SS
, except for Friedrich Jeckeln
, the organizer of huge massacres of Jews at Babi Yar
, Rumbula
and many other places. In addition to his other positions, Drechsler was a member of the board of overseers of an industrial firm called Hochofenwerkes Lübeck AG.
. By October, 1941, Heinrich Himmler
developed a plan (later abandoned) for establishing, near Riga, an extermination camp, of a type that was later developed at Auschwitz concentration camp
and other places in Poland. Jews from Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia (the so-called "Reich Jews") were to be deported to this camp and then murdered. In late October, Himmler informed Lohse and Drechsler of this plan. Also in October, 1941, Drechsler received another report from Alnor, this one concerning the ongoing massacres of the Jews in Liepāja
. In the fall of 1941, Drechsler was closely involved in setting up the Riga ghetto
as a confinement zone for Jews. Historian Ezergailis states that Drechsler may have been present at the largest massacre, at Rumbula
, on November 30, 1941. The great majority of the victims at Rumbula were from the Riga ghetto.
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
, and during the Second World War
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...
from 1941 through 1944 he resided in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
as the General Commissioner of Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
for the Nazi occupation regime (Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland, literally "Reich Commissariat Eastland", was the civilian occupation regime established by Nazi Germany in the Baltic states and much of Belarus during World War II. It was also known as Reichskommissariat Baltenland initially...
).
Early life
Drechsler originally intended a career as professional military officer. In 1914 he became an officer cadet (Fahnenjunker) in the Lübeck infantry regiment of the German Army. As company leader he was severely wounded and as a result, he lost a leg. He was mustered out of the ReichswehrReichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
in 1920. During the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
Drechsler began the study of dentistry, and obtained the degree of Doctor of Dental Arts. In this time, he became a member of the Nordic Union.
Nazi career
In 1925 Drechsler joined the Nazi party; later, he would become supervisor ("Oberstaffelführer") of an SASturmabteilung
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...
motor pool.
From 1 August 1932 through 31 May 1933, Drechsler was acting Gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
(a high rank in the Nazi party) for the party district ("Gau") encompassing Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...
and Lübeck. On 26 May 1933, Lübeck together with both Mecklenburgs was placed under the authority of a National Governor (Reichsstathalter) named Friedrich Hildebrandt
Friedrich Hildebrandt
Friedrich Hildebrandt was an SS Obergruppenführer, a Gauleiter and judged for war crimes in the time of the Third Reich....
. He assumed office Lübeck on 8 June 1933 with great pomp and promoted his fellow veteran Drechsler as mayor (Bürgermeister) and Friedrich Völtzer as Senator for Finance and the economy. Additional senators included the Nazis Emil Bannemann (Labor and Welfare), Walther Schröder (Interior), Ulrich Burgstaller (Education and Theater) and Hans Böhmcker (Justice).
Between 1933 and 1937, Drechsler was mayor of Lübeck. In addition to his position as mayor, at the same time he was President of the Senate of Lübeck as in the Prussian state council.
Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland, literally "Reich Commissariat Eastland", was the civilian occupation regime established by Nazi Germany in the Baltic states and much of Belarus during World War II. It was also known as Reichskommissariat Baltenland initially...
, he was responsible for the concentration camps in Latvia.
Actions during World War II
As territorial commissioner for Latvia, Dreschler took up quarters in Riga at the beginning of August, 1941. At that point in time the military administration had not yet handed over authority to the civil administration. A leading co-worker in the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern TerritoriesReich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories
The Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories was created by Adolf Hitler on July 1941 and headed by the Nazi theoretical expert and Baltic German, Alfred Rosenberg. Alfred Meyer was Rosenberg's deputy. This ministry was created to control the vast areas captured by the Germans in...
(Reichsministerium für die besetzen Ostegebiete or RMfdbO), Otto Bräutigam
Otto Bräutigam
Otto Bräutigam was a German diplomat and lawyer, who worked for the Auswärtiges Amt as well as the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories of Alfred Rosenberg in Nazi Germany. In this position Bräutigam was involved in the holocaust...
, noted in his diary of having had a conflict with the military authorities. These disputes, particularly those involving Drechsler's administrative superior, Hinrich Lohse
Hinrich Lohse
Hinrich Lohse was a Nazi German politician, best known for his World War II rule of the Baltic states.-Early life:...
, were never fully resolved. Based on a settlement with RMfdbO, formal assignment of authority over the administration of Latvian territory, including Riga, was effected on September 1, 1941. One historian, Lumans, states that like Lohse, Drechsler was sympathetic to a limited autonomy for Latvians, but unlike Lohse, he worked well with 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...
, except for Friedrich Jeckeln
Friedrich Jeckeln
Friedrich Jeckeln was an SS-Obergruppenführer who served as an SS and Police Leader in the occupied Soviet Union during World War II...
, the organizer of huge massacres of Jews at Babi Yar
Babi Yar
Babi Yar is a ravine in the Ukrainian capital Kiev and a site of a series of massacres carried out by the Nazis during their campaign against the Soviet Union. The most notorious and the best documented of these massacres took place on September 29–30, 1941, wherein 33,771 Jews were killed in a...
, Rumbula
Rumbula massacre
The Rumbula massacre was the two-day killing of about 25,000 Jews in and on the way to Rumbula forest near Riga, Latvia, during the Holocaust. Save only the Babi Yar massacre in Ukraine, this was the biggest two-day Holocaust atrocity until the operation of the death camps...
and many other places. In addition to his other positions, Drechsler was a member of the board of overseers of an industrial firm called Hochofenwerkes Lübeck AG.
Involvement in The Holocaust
Throughout the time that Drechsler was in Latvia, large numbers of massacres, particularly of Jews, were carried out by the Germans, together with substantial assistance from Latvian collaborators. In addition, the Jews of Latvia were confined to ghettos, which facilitated their enslavement and murder. As early as July, 1941, Drechsler was informed, by his subordinate Gebietskommissar Alnor, of the massacres of the Jews in VentspilsVentspils
Ventspils is a city in northwestern Latvia in the Courland historical region of Latvia, the sixth largest city in the country. As of 2006, Ventspils had a population of 43,806. Ventspils is situated on the Venta River and the Baltic Sea, and has an ice-free port...
. By October, 1941, Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
developed a plan (later abandoned) for establishing, near Riga, an extermination camp, of a type that was later developed at 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...
and other places in Poland. Jews from Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia (the so-called "Reich Jews") were to be deported to this camp and then murdered. In late October, Himmler informed Lohse and Drechsler of this plan. Also in October, 1941, Drechsler received another report from Alnor, this one concerning the ongoing massacres of the Jews in Liepāja
Liepāja massacres
The Liepāja massacres were a series of mass executions, many in public or semi-public, in and near the city of Liepāja , on the west coast of Latvia in 1941 after the Nazi occupation of Latvia. The main perpetrators were detachments of the Einsatzgruppen, the Sicherheitsdienst or SD, the...
. In the fall of 1941, Drechsler was closely involved in setting up the Riga ghetto
Riga Ghetto
The Riga Ghetto was a small area in Maskavas Forštate, neighborhood of Riga, Latvia, designated by the Nazis where Jews from Latvia, and later from Germany, were forced to live during World War II. On October 25, 1941, the Nazis relocated all Jews from Riga and the vicinity to the ghetto while the...
as a confinement zone for Jews. Historian Ezergailis states that Drechsler may have been present at the largest massacre, at Rumbula
Rumbula massacre
The Rumbula massacre was the two-day killing of about 25,000 Jews in and on the way to Rumbula forest near Riga, Latvia, during the Holocaust. Save only the Babi Yar massacre in Ukraine, this was the biggest two-day Holocaust atrocity until the operation of the death camps...
, on November 30, 1941. The great majority of the victims at Rumbula were from the Riga ghetto.