Paul Albers

* "13 September 1919" – Bonn (Rhineland)
† "22 September 2009" – Saarbrücken

Starting in April 1939, Paul Albers served in the Leibstandarte SS ‘Adolf Hitler’ Division. After taking a course for SS leaders, in 1943 he was made an SS Untersturmführer in the reserves. In Feb. 1944, Albers joined the Reconnaissance battalion of the 16^th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’, where he would serve as Walter Reder’s adjutant until his surrender. His tasks included keeping the battalion’s war-diary. For this reason, Albers was probably one of the best-informed officers in the unit.

In 1951, he was a witness in the trial of Walter Reder. In 2008, the military prosecutor in La Spezia sentenced Albers – the only surviving officer from the reconnaissance unit – to life in prison.

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Nationality: German
Joined the NSDAP: not verified
Armed force: Waffen-SS
Unit: Leibstandarte SS ‘Adolf Hitler’
SS Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion 16
16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’
Rank: SS-Obersturmführer
Offensive: Poland 1939
Western campaign 1940
Eastern Front 1941-43
Italy 1944-45
Hungary 1945
Confirmed Massacres: Bardine
Vinca
Monte Sole
Post war period: 1951 witness in the Reder trial; 2008 accused, found guilty, and sentenced in La Spezia.

Training and war experience

Early years and entry into SS

Paul Albers was born in 1919 in Bonn. Initially a Catholic, he described himself as Gottgläubig starting in 1942. Albers was a pharmacist. He joined the SS on 1 April 1939 (SS-no. 369 816).

He served as a soldier in the Leibstandarte SS ‘Adolf Hitler’. Between 14 Sept. 1942 and 12 Feb. 1943, he completed an SS-leadership course in Braunschweig; on 10 March 1943 he was made an SS Untersturmführer in the reserves.

Participation in massacres of civilians

In Feb. 1944 Albers was assigned to SS Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion 16 of the 16^th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’. Until the capitulation, he remained in service as Walter Reder’s adjutant.

Albers’ tasks included keeping the battalion’s war-diary.

In Italy with the Reconnaissance Battalion of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’

As an SS-leader, Albers was initially deployed on the Eastern Front in a reconnaissance company of the Leibstandarte SS ‘Adolf Hitler’ Division. Following health problems, on 14 Feb. 1944 he was assigned to SS Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion 16 of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’. Until the capitulation, he remained in service as Walter Reder’s adjutant. Albers’ tasks included keeping the battalion’s war-diary. For this reason, Albers was probably one of the best informed officers in the unit.

On 9 Nov. 1944 Albers was promoted to SS Obersturmführer.

The postwar period

Imprisonment and flight
Witness in the Reder trial and on trial in La Spezia

In 1951 Albers testified as a witness in the trial of Walter Reder and spoke up for his release. In 2008, as the sole surviving officer in the reconnaissance battalion, he stood trial in La Spezia for his role in massacres, was found guilty, and was sentenced to life in prison. He died on 22 Sept. 2009 in Saarbrücken, aged 89.

Sources

Albers’ SS-personnel files are kept in the German Federal Archives, Berlin (R 9361-III/236730 und R 9361-III/514242). Some information on the postwar period can be found in files tied to the trial of Walter Reder, kept in the Rome military court.

Literature

Carlo Gentile, Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Partisanenkrieg: Italien 1943-1945, Paderborn, Ferdinand Schöningh, 2012, pp. 272-284.

Authorship and translation

Author: Carlo Gentile

Translated from German by: Joel Golb

2023

Text: CC BY NC SA 4.0

Paul Albers

Training and war experience

Early years and entry into SS

Participation in massacres of civilians

In Feb. 1944 Albers was assigned to SS Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion 16 of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’. Until the capitulation, he remained in service as Walter Reder’s adjutant.

Albers’ tasks included keeping the battalion’s war-diary.

In Italy with the Reconnaissance Battalion of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’

The postwar period

Imprisonment and flight

Witness in the Reder trial and on trial in La Spezia

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In Feb. 1944 Albers was assigned to SS Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion 16 of the 16^th SS Panzergrenadier Division ‘Reichsführer-SS’. Until the capitulation, he remained in service as Walter Reder’s adjutant.