The perpetrators

The individual biographies on our website offer insight into the socialization, careers, and dispositions of some of the persons participating in the massacres in Italy. An additional focus is on the path their lives took following the war.  

In collective profiles, we treat the structures and contexts of the military formations in which the German soldiers served. The formations discussed here are the ones exercising violence against Italy’s civilian population to an extraordinary degree. We offer an overview of their composition, their embedding in the Nazi regime’s military apparatus, and their deployment in the Second World War, with special focus on their time in Italy.

Filter

Expand Filter Collapse Filter

Armed force

Locations

  • The black and white photograph shows two soldiers in profile on the left. Both are wearing helmets, one is standing behind the other. They are looking at a document that the one in front is holding in his hands.
    © BArch, Bild 101I-476-2080-19 / Fot. Brünning

    Fallschirm-Panzer-Division "Hermann Göring"

    • Cornia
    • San Pancrazio
    • Cavriglia
    • Monchio, Susano e Costrignano
    • Cervarolo and Civago
    • Vallucciole

  • 16. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Reichsführer-SS"

    • Sant'Anna di Stazzema
    • Valla e Bardine di San Terenzo
    • Vinca
    • Monte Sole
    • San Cesario sul Panaro
  • A black and white photo that shows five SS officers taking a walk on a square surrounded by buildings. The men all walk side by side with Paul Albers in the middle.
    © Private archive Nils Olger, Vienne

    Paul Albers *  1919 †  2009

    • Monte Sole

    1951 witness in the Reder trial; 2008 accused, found guilty, and sentenced in La Spezia.

  • The black-and-white portrait shows Anton Galler from head to chest. He is looking directly into the camera. Galler is wearing the uniform of the Schutzpolizei without a cap.
    © BArch, R 9361-III/50618

    Anton Galler *  1915 †  1995

    • Sant'Anna di Stazzema

    Lived a largely normal life in Austria

    Proceedings on account of Nazi crimes in Poland were terminated

    Emigration first ...

  • A black and white photo showing Klaus Konrad as a young man in uniform without his hat.
    © BArch, PERS 6-151481

    Klaus Konrad *  1914 †  2006

    • San Polo

    SPD politician

    Subject of legal proceedings by Giessen prosecutor’s office beginning 1967 

    Acquittal 1972

     ...

  • Wolfgang Lehnigk-Emden *  1922 †  2006

    • Caiazzo

    Ingegnere civile e architetto

  • A black and white portrait of Helmut Looß: He wears his uniform without a cap. His collar patch identifies him as a Hauptsturmführer. He is not looking directly into the camera.
    © BArch, R 9361-III/121436

    Helmut Looß *  1910 †  1988

    • Sant'Anna di Stazzema
    • Valla e Bardine di San Terenzo
    • Vinca
    • Monte Sole

    Interrogated as a witness in a number of legal proceedings

    1965-1969: Court proceedings in Bremen

    1968-1971: civil ...

  • A black and white shot of Walter Reder showing him from head to chest. He looks directly into the camera and wears his SS uniform, but no cap.
    © BArch, R 9361-III/159357

    Walter Reeder *  1915 †  1991

    • Valla e Bardine di San Terenzo
    • Vinca
    • Monte Sole

    Arrest in Austria 1945; extradition to Italy in 1948. Trial before military court in Bologna 1951, sentenced to life in ...

  • A black and white portrait of Willfried Segebrecht in SS uniform without a cap. His head is turned slightly to the left of the camera.
    © BArch, R 9361-III/191417

    Willfried Segebrecht *  1919 †  1993

    • Valla e Bardine di San Terenzo
    • Vinca
    • Monte Sole

    Entrepreneur in Kirchheim unter Teck

    Civic engagement

    Never brought to justice for participation in actions in Vinca ...

  • A portrait in black and white from 1940 showing Max Simon from head to torso. He is wearing glasses and his SS uniform: the skull on his cap identifies him as a member of the SS Totenkopf division. His collar patches show that he was an SS-Standartenführer at the time the photo was taken.
    © BArch, Bild 101III-Cantzler-042-16 / Fot. Cantzler / CC-BY-SA 3.0

    Max Simon *  1899 †  1961

    • Sant'Anna di Stazzema
    • Valla e Bardine di San Terenzo
    • Vinca
    • Monte Sole
    • San Cesario sul Panaro

    Trial before a British military court in Padua; death sentence 1947. Commuted to life imprisonment in 1951 and ...

  • Black and white photograph of Josef Strauch from 1956: He can be seen from head to shoulders and is wearing a dark suit with tie. Strauch is standing slightly to the left in profile and is not looking at the camera.
    © (Der Spiegel 28/1956)

    Josef Strauch *  1910 †  1970

    • Padule di Fucecchio

    Trial and sentencing in Italy; politician; national director of the party ‘All-German Bloc’ (Gesamtdeutscher Block/Bund ...

No results found. Try different keywords or remove search filters
Seitenanfang