superior officer with touching lack of reflection-an order to carry out which-or even to think out which-was a crime * [Page 177] * * The President: If someone who delivered the explosive remarks at this moment: "It is intended for an attack on the Fuehrer", one must ask whether any healthy man or woman would not have to say to himself or herself: to do nothing now is exactly the same as to have set the explosive off oneself. [Page 178] The President: Just imagine if Rehmer (Rehmer was given orders by one of the conspirators who was his superior officer but refused to obey them)-then a major, now a colonel—had thought: I have received an order, I couldn't! Imagine what would have happened! You cannot assume that when a German officer notices: "The explosive is intended for such and such a purpose", he will just say that one has to accept the thing, one can't do anything against it. In fact he must do something against it. [Page 231] The regime was to be overthrown. A young officer Friedrich Karl Klausing! In April of this year, von Haeften, whom we already know, told him that Stauffenberg, Schulenburg, and others intended to overthrow the regime; the war had no chance of success; the preparations were in the hands of Stauffenberg; would he join in? And he replied: yes. On the 10.7. he was ordered to go and see Stauffenberg. He was told that he was to be escorting officer to go to Berchtesgadenand that he knew what he was doing by this, the action was coming off. He did know what he was doing and he did not refuse. He did not report it. He went along as escorting officer; he was given the assignment of having the car standing by at the Berghof in Berchtesgaden and the plane on the aerodrome. He did that. Stauffenberg came out. He had not carried out the assassination, because the Reichsfuehrer SS had not been there. Four days later, on the 14.7., came a new order to accompany Stauffenberg to the Fuehrer's H. Q. He flew with Fromm and Stauffenberg. Stauffenberg stated that it could go on again this time. And again he was given the assignment of being sure to have the car and the plane standing by correctly. Again he did so. Again nothing came of it. On the 20.7. he was called to Colonel Merz von Quirnheim, who told him: "The Fuehrer is dead, disorder has broken out, no one may leave the Bendler block. 'Walkuere' comes into effect." He received orders to call out the sentries, to send out teleprints, to make telephone calls. He did all this and, in the evening, when the loyal development set in, he threw down his arms, went home and gave himself up the following morning. Certainly, he is young. But in this case youth is no excuse. Certainly, he had as his superiors terrible traitors. Certainly he had got into a ghostly company of traitors. But loyalty, the core of honor, should have proved itself here. No excuse is possible here. There can be no mitigation in this case. [Page 233] He spoke to us about his illness, discoursed upon the influence which Stauffenberg had on him. He should be a soldier and a true German! Here illness does not help, here to refer to another traitor does not help. Here it is only a question of: Loyalty or treachery of oneself. He chose the path of treachery. To him, also exactly the same applies as to all the others. PARTIAL TRANSLATION OF DOCUMENT 3886-PS [Vienna City Council Meeting-6 June 1942] [Page 9 lines 13 to 30 incl.] 3. Reichsstatthalter Reichsleiter Baldur von Schirach expressed his gratitude to city treasurer Dr. Hanke for the work which had been done, above all for the success achieved during the conferences with the Reich Finance Ministry and the Reich Ministry of the Interior. He informed the city councillors that as a result of a conference with Reich Minister for the Interior Dr. Frick, discussions will start shortly concerning the simplification of the administration of the cities of Berlin, Vienna, and Hamburg in order to give to those three cities a special position justified in this matter. This will also strengthen the municipal administration of Vienna although it has given rise to many complaints because of its complicated procedure. A favorable factor, which is of great importance in the transformation of the municipal administrations, is that all offices of the city council are held by men who are closely linked to the party and consequently have their minds open to the right ideas. Finally he disclosed that already in the latter part of summer or in the fall of this year all Jews would be removed from the city, and that the removal of the Czechs would then get under way, since this is the necessary and right answer to the crime committed against the Deputy Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia. (Conclusion of the session at 12:33 hours.) VOELKISCHER BEOBACHTER 17 September, 1933, Page 1 The Jewish Question The Minister had no doubt that the stupid talk abroad about purely internal German affairs, as for example the Jewish question, will quickly be silenced if one realizes that the necessary cleaning up of public life must temporarily entail individual cases of personal hardship, but that nevertheless it only served to establish all the more firmly the authority of justice and law in Germany. COPY OF DOCUMENT 3894-PS Interrogation of Hans Posse at Neumunster, Germany, April 12, 1946, 1340-1700 hrs; present, Lt. Bernard Meltzer, interrogator; H. Ganschow, Interpreter; Jean Holt, Reporter. Questions by Lt. Meltzer to the Witness through the Interpreter: Q. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God? Q. You were attached to the Office of Chief Plenipotentiary A. I was not actually Deputy of the Minister of Economics, I was Secretary of State in the Ministry of Economics, but when the Minister was either sick or away too long. Q. But there were two separate offices, the first the Ministry for Economics and the second a special Office known as the Plenipotentiary for the Economy? A. No, they were not separate. The Ministry for Economics was at the same time Plenipotentiary. Q. But the organizations were separate. A. The civil servants and employees employed by the Ministry of Economics were also employed by the Chief Plenipotentiary for Economics. The staff of the Plenipotentiary was in general taken from the Ministry. Q. To refresh your recollection, I ask you to look at a photo static copy of Document EC-261 which refers to you as the Deputy General for the Plenipotentiary for Economy. A. I was the Deputy Chief Plenipotentiary for Economy and I also deputized for the Minister when he was absent if he was not absent too long. Q. When were you appointed Deputy General? A. As far as I can recollect, the Ministry of Economics was transformed after Schacht had resigned and Goering took over the Ministry of Economics for a short time. In this time, Goering had transformed the Ministry of Economics and merged it with the Four Year Plan. During this time, I was appointed Deputy Chief Plenipotentiary for Economy, but holding at the same time my position as Secretary of State in the Ministry of Economics. Q. Who appointed you Deputy General for Economy? A. No. Q. Did Funk confirm your position after he got into power? A. No. Funk took over the Ministry for Economics from Goering and he was appointed as Chief Plenipotentiary for Economics. Q. How often did you report to Funk in connection with your duties as Deputy General for the Plenipotentiary? A. The Chief Plenipotentiary for Economy never really went into action. Q. That is not answering the question. A. You see, there were several German Ministries that had to deal with economy and the plan was to merge the economic departments of the various ministries and to have them "under one roof". At the same time when the Chief Plenipotentiary was appointed, a Chief Plenipotentiary for the whole German administration was appointed. Q. We are very familiar with all that. A. I intended to give an explanation as to why the Chief Plenipotentiary for Economy never functioned. When the Chief Plenipotentiary for Economy was appointed, the intention was to merge all the Economic departments of the German Ministries, such as Finance, Communications, Agriculture and Economy, under one roof. But the Ministers and the Secretaries of the various German Ministries disliked it and protested. Q. But we have very clear-cut evidence that the Office of Plen ipotentiary for Economy did function as an entity, separate from the Ministry of Economics. A. Well, it did function, but it never achieved its purposes, because there was always discrepancy between the Chief Plenipotentiary for Economics' office and the other economic departments. They conflicted with each other. Q. You mean the Plenipotentiary for the Economy and the Four Year Plan, don't you? A. All the Ministries. For instance, the Ministry for Communication, Finance, etc., they all did not harmonize with the Chief Plenipotentiary for Economy, and there was no harmony between the Four Year Plan. Q. What was the nature of the conflict between the Plenipotentiary for Economy and the Four Year Plan? A. The struggle for power. Q. The struggle for power between Funk and Goering? A. The struggle for power between Funk and Goering, between Funk and the Ministry for Agriculture and Ministry of Communications. Q. How was the struggle finally resolved? A. Never. It was a struggle always continuing under the surface. Q. Did Funk, who had very important powers as Minister of Economics and later as Reichsbank President and as Chief Plenipotentiary for the Economy, actually exercise these powers? A. Yes. But the powers of Goering were stronger. Q. Nevertheless, Funk did exercise important powers? A. Yes. As President of the Reichsbank, Minister of Economics and Plenipotentiary for Economy. Q. I want to go back to the question of the separate function of Plenipotentiary's office. I want to ask you to look at and read over carefully this document which I identify as EC488. This is a photostatic copy of the original German document, captured by the US forces and it deals with planning for the use of prisoners of war. (Witness read document.) You have read that document? Q. Do you have any reason to doubt its authenticity? Q. Did you participate in these discussions about the planning of the use of prisoners of war? |