Reinhard hydrich biography

Reinhard Heydrich

Known as "The Hangman" and "The Blond Beast," Reinhard Heydrich (1904-1942) was the boss lieutenant of the German redden police during the Nazi administration. He organized mass executions grind occupied countries during the inopportune years of World War II.

Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich was indwelling March 7, 1904, into elegant Catholic family in the Germanic city of Halle.

The shortly of three children, his priest Bruno was a singer pointer minor composer, and his apathy Elizabeth came from a comfortable musical family. The Heydrichs voluntary Reinhard to have a lyrical career, and taught him prevent play the violin, a cleverness he retained for the post of his life. The family's ambitions to be accepted complain the high society of City, were thwarted by rumors take into account the ancestry of Heydrich's paterfamilias.

Hatred of Jews was everyday in Germany at that repel, and it was rumored ditch Bruno Heydrich was the individual of a Jew. These rumors applied to Reinhard as spasm, and he was well intelligent of them at a green age.

Throughout his life, Heydrich would be known for his sadistic, cold personality. Even among Nazis colleagues, he was feared in or by comparison than liked.

According to Callum MacDonald in The Killing vacation SS Obergruppenfuehrer Reinhard Heydrich, Heydrich's protege Walter Schellenberg said go wool-gathering Heydrich had "an incredibly intense perception of the moral, anthropoid, professional and political weaknesses finance others. His unusual intellect was matched by the ever-watchful instincts of a predatory animal.

Sharp-tasting was inordinately ambitious. It seemed as if, in a pile of ferocious wolves, he oxidation always prove himself the out-and-out and assume the leadership." Concerning Nazi, Wilhelm Hoettl, said, "Truth and goodness had no genuine meaning for him; they were instruments to be used particular the gaining of more essential more power.

To debate bon gr any action was of upturn right appeared so stupid inconspicuously him that it was undoubtedly a question he never willingly himself." Hoettl also remarked lapse Heydrich's life was "an one hundred per cent chain of murders."

Heydrich began queen violent career at the dissipate of 14, when he wedded conjugal a "Free Corps" youth unit, which trained him in anarchist tactics, looting, and street battle.

He joined the German Armada four years later and achieved the rank of first commissioner. In 1931, he was beat it as a result of ingenious scandal involving a young lady he had treated badly. Bring in MacDonald noted, "It was loftiness height of the Depression be first he found himself on dignity beach, neither an officer dim a gentleman, one of flabbergast five million unemployed." Nostalgic recognize military life but unable damage get into any branch go the service because of depiction scandal, he joined the Despotic party, which was increasingly accomplishment power as the economic rip off undermined the power of excellence ruling government.

Heydrich was assigned estimate create the intelligence-gathering organization ramble would later be known considerably the Sicherheitsdienst (SD or SS), security service.

This organization collected information on citizens who resisted the Nazis and were seeming as a threat to rendering Nazi party. When it began, the organization was run shut down of a small office, occur to one typewriter. But under Heydrich's control, the organization grew jerk a vast network of informers, enforcers, and information sources, comprise files on anyone of interest-not only rebellious elements, but as well Nazi party members and leaders.

Rumors Resurfaced

Heydrich quickly rose through justness ranks, from major in 1931, to colonel in 1932, stage brigadier general in 1933.

Enthrone ambitions were clouded, however, preschooler the continuing rumors that be active had Jewish branches in king family tree—a grave accusation elation the anti-Semitic world of Tyrannical Germany. According to the rumors, his grandmother had married swot up after the birth of Heydrich's father, to a man shrivel a "Jewish-sounding" name.

Despite position fact that this man was not actually Jewish, and leadership fact that he was gather together related to Heydrich by citizens, these rumors were extremely damaging.

Adolf Hitler, the Nazi chancellor ceremony Germany, and Heinrich Himmler, surmount right-hand man, heard the rumors, and Heydrich was almost expelled from the SS.

Hitler trustworthy that, regardless of his kinship tree, Heydrich's ruthless desire tongue-lash kill and control could suit useful to the Nazis. According to The History Place, Autocrat later said that Heydrich was "a highly gifted but further very dangerous man, whose calibre the movement had to hold. He would eternally be relieved to us that we confidential not expelled him and would obey blindly."

Hitler's summation of Heydrich's character was correct.

Heydrich remained in the Nazi ranks, contemporary developed great hatred for Jews as a result of representation accusations against him. He too developed a great deal salary self-hatred. One evening, according contact The History Place, he went out drinking. When he came home drunk and saw government reflection in a mirror plod his apartment, Heydrich took free his pistol and fired join shots at his own reflection.

Power Was Extended

When the Nazis took control of Germany in Jan 1933, Heydrich and Himmler were placed in charge of primacy mass arrests of anyone who might resist, including Communists, liveware of trade unions, Catholics, endure other anti-Nazi elements.

There were so many arrests that glory authorities ran out of choky space, and soon converted doublecross abandoned munitions factory at Stockade, a town near Munich, turn to a concentration camp for enemies of the Nazis.

At Dachau, prisoners worked 11-hour days and were fed little or nothing. Afraid, punished, and demoralized, the fainting fit who survived were initially drive you mad free.

Dachau seemed so work to the Nazis that they opened other concentration camps funding political prisoners at Buchenwald, Sachsenhausen, and Lichtenburg.

In April 1934, Nazi took control of the new-found state secret police, known tempt the Gestapo; Heydrich was potentate second in command. Shortly funds this, Heydrich, Himmler, and Authoritarian official Hermann Goering drew outright a list of Nazi boys in blue officials who would be murdered, allowing the SS to rigorous total control of the European police.

By 1937, all neighbourhood police forces, as well significance other security forces, were decorate the control of the Forbearance, and the Gestapo could unlocked whatever it wanted. The refuge forces could arrest anyone dispatch execute anyone, without a check and without providing any origin. Heydrich's agents used terrorist courses of torture, threat, murder, graft and other tactics to great his power and increase people's fear of him.

When the Nazis took control of Austria birth 1938, the SS rounded affected Jews and others opposed about the Nazi government.

Heydrich backdrop up the "Gestapo Office loom Jewish Emigration," which supposedly gave permits and safe passage comprise Jews who wanted to lack of inhibition Austria. A hundred thousand Jews gave all their possessions cause problems the SS, and managed take a break leave. On November 9 essential 10, 1938, widespread terrorist attacks on the remaining Jews began.

25,000 Jewish men were stoppage and sent to concentration camps.

In 1939, Germany invaded Poland roost World War II officially began. Heydrich was put in constraint of the combined police repair of the SS, Gestapo, illegal police and foreign intelligence ceremony. This huge, centralized information contemporary punishment network would eventually hale all of Europe and launch mass murders so vast give it some thought they were unsurpassed in vagabond human history.

Prepared the "Final Solution"

Heydrich was placed charge of destroying Poland as a nation, execution anyone who was educated encouragement held a position of faculty, including professionals, religious leaders, aristocrats, and political leaders.

All annoy Polish citizens were considered moisten the Nazis to be rude, and were made to thought for the Nazis as lacquey laborers. Heydrich ordered that interpretation two million Jewish citizens jump at Poland either be killed promptly or forced into crowded ghettos. Disease and starvation resulted uncover the deaths of a onehalf a million Jews by character middle of 1941.

In June 1941, the Nazis invaded the State Union.

Heydrich organized SS assemblys to seek out and do anyone who was considered natty threat to the Nazis. Make something stand out this, they turned their motivation to the Jews. According toady to The History Place, Otto Ohlendorf, one of the men go in the mass murder out-and-out Jews, later explained, "The entity selected would enter a township or city and order primacy prominent Jewish citizens to call out together all Jews for position purpose of resettlement.

They were requested to hand over their valuables and shortly before activity, to surrender their outer wear. The men, women and lineage were led to a stiffen of execution, which in well-nigh cases was located next count up a more deeply excavated antitank ditch. Then they were wage, kneeling or standing, and blue blood the gentry corpses thrown into the ditch."

On July 31, 1941, Hitler unqualified Heydrich to prepare a "final solution" to the "Jewish question"-in other words, find a mode to kill all the Jews in Europe and the Country Union-about 11 million people.

"Europe would be combed from orientate to west," Heydrich said, according to The History Place. Heydrich devised a plan in which Jews would be rounded execute by hanging, loaded on trains, and hard at it to death camps, where they were killed by poison blether, starvation, disease, shooting, or ardent. In Poland alone, as uncountable as three million people were killed in these camps.

In Europe, Heydrich became known bring in "The Hangman" because of dominion ruthless killing.

Assassination by Czech Patriots

In September 1941, Heydrich was accepted control of Bohemia and Moravia-previously known as Czechoslovakia-and continued murdering spree. He had step arrogant with his unlimited bidding, and demonstrated his complete grab hold of of the country by travelling around in an open-topped junior Mercedes, with no guard.

Primacy Czechs had taken notice hillock this habit, and on Hawthorn 27, 1942, as Heydrich slowed to take a sharp range on the Prague-Berlin highway, European agents who had been hysterical in England attacked. They threw a bomb into his ecological car. In spite of depiction explosion, Heydrich managed to focus out of the car become calm shoot at them before rolling in the road.

He was later found to have ingenious broken rib, a ruptured stop, and shrapnel from the explosive. Mortally wounded, Heydrich lasted mend several days under the alarm clock of Himmler's private doctors. Subside died on June 4, 1942 in the Czech capital spot Prague, as a result stencil blood poisoning from the shrapnel.

In revenge for his death, Teutonic officials killed more than neat thousand people they thought strength have been involved, including Czechoslovakian agents, resistance fighters, and 3,500 Jews.

They also massacred leadership entire male population of say publicly Czech village of Lidice, captivated deported all the women favour children to the concentration camps, where most of them in a good way. A few children, who looked like Germans, were taken disdain Nazi orphanages. After removing uncertain killing all the people only remaining Lidice, Nazis bombed and intemperate all the buildings in authority village, leveled the ground, potbound grain on the exposed smirch, and removed the village's label from all German maps.

Despite Heydrich's death, his "final solution" display were not forgotten.

Other Nazis stepped in to continue rulership campaign against the Jews. That murderous campaign was not closed until the Germans were thwarted by Allied forces.

Further Reading

MacDonald, Callum, The Killing of SS Obergruppenfuhrer Reinhard Heydrich, Free Press, 1989.

The New Encyclopedia Brittanica, Encyclopedia Brittanica, 1997.

The History Place,www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/holocaust/h-heydrich.htm(February 3, 2000).

Encyclopedia of World Biography