End of war and escape

1942 became Hellmuth like all gau leaders also realm defense commissioner. In this characteristic it could a concrete shelter be established in direct proximity of its mansion "at the last blow" as "command place ", which it with its family as well as further faithful one for the order. On the day of the English terror bomb attack, that 16. March 1945, which cost 5000 the life, made 90000 humans shelterless and the large destruction of the old part of town led, was Hellmuth outside of the city.

To 19. March 1945 wrote Hellmuth on the title page "of the Main-Frankish newspaper ":

"And hate-fulfilled we stand for steadfast to our obligation. We know only one: everything do for the day of the revenge, which comes. "

The former realm Minister for armament and war production, Albert Speer, wrote in its "memories to 1969 "over a meeting with Hellmuth in March 1945:

'' ""Â… In peppering castle I visited the gau leader Hellmuth, which let me participate in its good-ordered breakfast board. While we awarded to land sausages and eggs, the gau leader explained with largest matter of course that he had arranged the destruction of the Schweinfurter taper roller bearing industry for the execution of the Hitler decree; the representatives of the works and the party places waited already in another area for its instructions. The plan was well invented: The oil baths of the special machines should be into fire; thus the machines became useless scrap iron after the experiences of the Fliegerangriffe. It was not to be convinced first the fact that such destruction was nonsense and addressed the question to me, when the leader uses the crucial miracle weapon. It has information about boron man and Goebbels from headquarters, according to which this employment is imminent. As already so often I had to explain also to him that a miracle weapon does not exist. I knew the fact that the gau leader to the group of the reasonable ones belonged and requested him to accomplish the destruction instruction of Hitler not. I continued that it was senseless in view of this situation to take by breakups of industrial plants and bridges to the people the absolutely necessary base of life.

I mentioned German troop massing, which were pulled together east of pig ford, in order to back-conquer in the Gegenstoss the center of our arms production; with which I not even log, since the highest guidance planned an imminent counter attack indeed. The old, much-proven argument that Hitler could not continue its war without ball bearings, did finally its effect. The gau leader whether convinced or not to make was not ready to take over the historical debt all victory prospects by the destruction of the Schweinfurter factories destroyed. "

Goebbels noted 29 under that. March 1945 in its diary:

"Morning runs in with us a report from peppering castle, to which somewhat hope sounds. The gau line communicates that one is complete the situation gentleman there and that Aschaffenburg free-free again from the enemy. Our realm propaganda office leader Dr. Fischer took care of particularly affectionately those, which go-ate white flags when approaching the enemy. They are subjected in gau the Main Franconia of a rabiaten treatment, which they also earn ".

Briefly before invasion of the American troops avowed Hellmuth in a last call to 28. March 1945:

"The situation is not serious, but by any means hopeless! The guidance meets all measures, which the situation requires. The hour of our probation came! Who forgets only one second its obligation, is traitor at the thing of the people. Cowards are to be eliminated inconsiderately! In our hearts only the hate and the will may have place to decided resistance. Also of Main Franconias the opponent is to report that he found a determined and courageous people! "

Subsequently, he did exactly what he had forbidden the common people comrade during menace of the death penalty; it fled with its family and the gau line as well as the mayor Memmel on 2 April 1945 first after Untermerzbach with Ebern and then over hate ford on 9 April 1945 after Eggolsheim with Forchheim in Frankish Switzerland. On 14 April 1945 the NSDAP in Main Franconias dissolved officially. Its wife and children found finally in Upper Bavaria protection, while Hellmuths trace in Tirol lost itself. In Bavaria into American war shank turned out, he remained unidentified. Together with its former aide it fled to Northern Germany.

Post-war period

After two years in secret, in which he lived as an agricultural worker in the area Kassel and later under the name Hans Oster was in a dental practice in Bussum active, it was arrested by the British military police in the small locality lain between Bremen and In Dachau he was accused before a US military court to be jointly responsible for shooting of made an emergency landing allied fliers in September 1944.

On requests of Hellmuths sister Hedwig, which the bishop Matthias Ehrenfried could do as "a true good catholic lady ", used these with a request for grace from 23 October 1947 for on 10 October 1947 by the general Military Court in Dachau for death by the strand condemned Hellmuth. The straight bishop had had to suffer from the church-hostile losses of the former gau leader, which culminated in several storms 1934 and 1938 on the palace. In appeal proceedings 1951 the death sentence was converted into life imprisonment; the detention time was finally reduced on 20 years. Hellmuth remained however only to June 1955 in the war criminal prison Landsberg, since also he was seized by the pardon wave at that time. It went to its dismissal to Kassel, where it did not back-frighten 1956 a home coming remuneration at a value of 5.160,-- To request DM. After five years complaint through all instances, Hellmuth this amount was actually awarded. By the in its " he remained not only unbeeindruckt for former gau and the protests "of the federation of the war-damaged, war survivors and old-age pensioners Deutschlands, but erdreistete themselves also still "the greeting gift "after the Heimkehrergesetz to stress. This remained however malfunctioned for it.

Against the protest of the cash-medical combination of Lower Franconia and the German trade union federation, Hellmuth received the preference/advantage before 21 competitors during the permission for all health insurance companies by the compulsory health insurance scheme Reutlingen, where he established himself 1958 as a dentist.

Already during its prison time in Landsberg at the Lech Hellmuth 1947 undertook a failed attempted suicide. Before it had written welfare Hitler with its own blood ""the wall of its cell. The same repeated it characteristic way on 20 April 1968, the anniversary of Hitler's birthday. Hellmuth died from own hand at the age of 72 years in Reutlingen. Its urn in the family grave in market broad was buried.

Against Hellmuth a Entnazifizierungsverfahren was introduced during its Landsberger detention time, was not led however to end. This would have had surely also no success. "Drilled to last ", that is also the retrospective estimate of its oldest daughter Gailana, which had take over a heavy inheritance and finally their first names at the age of 21 years change let.

Literature

• "Peppering castle in the third realm ", exhibition catalog, peppering castle 1983
• Rockenmaier, Dieter W., "the third realm and peppering castle. Attempt of an inventory admission ", Main press judge peppering castle 1983
• Felbor, Ute "race biology and leaving science in the medical faculty of the University of peppering castle 1937 - 1945 ", king living & Neumann peppering castle 1995 (Dr. - Hellmuth plan)
• District peppering castle "district peppering castle. Our homeland under Hitler's despotism in documents, experiences and fates ", peppering castle 1988
• Fasel, Peter, "contributions to LV history in Lower Franconia ". Peppering castle 1996
• Flade, Roland, "our century ", peppering castle 1998

Related links

• Dr. - Hellmuth plan

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