In 1939 a number of Czechoslovak professors and students and also some Polish professors from Cracow were imprisoned in Sachsenhausen. They were put in a special block in the camp. So far as I can remember they were not made to work, but neither were they given any special treatment. After a few weeks the professors from Cracow were released, because many German professors had spoken to Goering on their behalf and he had intervened with the Führer to have them set free.
According to my recollection they amounted in all to about a hundred teachers. I myself only saw them on their arrival, and I heard nothing of them during their imprisonment.
I must, however, give a more detailed account of one special prisoner, because of his unique behavior in prison and because I was in a position to know all the facts of the case.
He was the evangelical pastor, Niemöller. He had been a famous U-boat commander in the First World War. He became a pastor after that war. The German evangelical church was split up into numerous separate groups. One of the most important of these groups, the Bekemnniskircbe or Confessional Church, was led by Niemöller. The Führer wished to see the evangelical church reunited into one, and with this aim in view he appointed an Evangelic State Bishop. But many of the groups refused to recognize him, and indeed were bitterly opposed to him. Niemöller was of their number. His parish was in Dalhem, a Berlin suburb. The whole of the Berlin and Potsdam reactionary evangelical opposition joined his congregation, all the old imperial nobility and others dissatisfied with the National Socialist regime. Niemöller preached resistance, and it was this which led to his arrest. He was accommodated in the cell building in Sachsenhausen, where his detention was made as light and pleasant as possible. He could write to his wife as often as he wished. His wife was allowed to visit him every month and to bring him whatever he wanted in the way of books and tobacco and food. He could, if he wished, go for walks in the courtyard of the cell building. His cell, too, was made as comfortable as possible. In short, everything was done for him that was in any way feasible. The commandant had been instructed to keep him constantly in mind and to inquire after his wishes.
The Führer had an interest in persuading Niemöller to abandon the stand he had taken. Well-known people came to Sachsenhausen in order to reason with him, including Admiral Lanz, who was for many years his superior officer in the navy and who was also a member of the Confessional Church. But in vain. Niemöller firmly maintained his attitude that no state had the right to interfere with canon law or to promulgate new laws concerning the Church. These were entirely and solely the concern of the congregation of each church. The Bekenntniskirche flourished. Niemöller became its martyr. His wife was active in furthering his beliefs. I knew all about it, because I read all his mail and also listened to the conversations he had with visitors in the commandant’s quarters. In 1938 he wrote to the commander in chief of the navy, Grand Admiral Raeder, renouncing his right to wear the uniform of a naval officer since he was not in agreement with the state which that navy served. On the outbreak of war he volunteered for service, and requested to be given command of a U-boat. Now it was Hitler’s turn to refuse, on the grounds that Niemöller had declined to wear the uniform of the National Socialist State. As time went by, Niemöller began to flirt with the idea of going over to the Catholic Church. He produced the most curious arguments in support of this, even maintaining that in important matters the Catholic Church and his own were in agreement. His wife vigorously dissuaded him. In my opinion he believed that conversion to the Catholic Church would result in his obtaining his freedom. His followers, however, would never have gone over with him. I had many and searching discussions with Niemöller. He would discuss almost anything, and was interested in subjects far removed from his sphere, but as soon as the conversation turned on church matters, it was as though an iron curtain had been rung down. He stubbornly maintained his standpoint, and would brook no criticism of his obstinacy, however reasonable. Nevertheless his readiness to embrace the Catholic faith must have involved his willingness to recognize the state, since the Catholic Church had done so by virtue of the Concordat.[38]
In 1941 the Reichsführer SS ordered all clerics to be transferred to Dachau, and Niemöller was among them. I saw him there in 19447 in the cell building. He was given even more freedom there, and had the former Evangelical Bishop of Posen, Wurm, to keep him company. He was in good health, despite his long years in prison. His physical needs were always most carefully catered for, and it is certain that nothing was ever done to offend his sensibilities. He was at all times treated with courtesy.[39]
Whereas Dachau was predominantly red because the majority of the prisoners were politicals, Sachsenhausen was green.[40]
The atmosphere in the camps varied accordingly, even though in both of them politicals had the most important jobs. In Dachau there was a certain esprit de corps among the prisoners; this was completely lacking in Sachsenhausen.
The two main colors fought each other fiercely, and it was easy for the camp authorities to use this rivalry for their own ends, and to play the one off against the other.
Escapes were relatively more numerous than in Dachau. Their preparation and execution were also far more subtle and elaborate.
Although an escape in Dachau was regarded as a most unusual event, much more fuss was made in Sachsenhausen, because of the presence there of Eicke. As soon as the sirens went, Eicke, if he happened to be in Oranienburg, would hurry to the camp. He wanted to know every detail of the escape, and he systematically hunted out the culprits whose inattention or negligence had made it possible. The chain of sentry posts often had to stand to for three or four days, if there were reasons to believe that the missing man was still within their circle. For days and nights on end everything connected with the escape was subjected to the closest scrutiny. The officers and especially the commandant, the commander of the protective custody camp, and the officer of the day were given no respite. Eicke was perpetually asking for information as to the progress of the search. In his view no escape ought to be able to succeed. As a result of his keeping the chain of sentry posts standing to, the escaping prisoner, who had hidden himself somewhere or gone to earth, was usually found. But what a strain it was for the camp! The men often had to stand to for sixteen or twenty hours at a stretch. The prisoners had to stay where they were until the sentry posts were stood down. As long as the search continued they were not marched out to work, and only the most essential services maintained. If an escaped prisoner had managed to break through the line of sentry posts, or if he had escaped from a working squad outside the camp, an immense operation was set in motion for his recovery. All the resources of the SS and the police were called into play. The roads and railways were watched. Motorized police squads, equipped with radio apparatus, combed roads and highways. A guard was placed on all bridges over the numerous streams in the Oranienburg district. The occupants of remote houses were warned of the escape, although most of them already knew what had happened since they had heard the sirens. Prisoners were often recaptured thanks to the help given by the civilian population. Those who lived in the neighborhood were aware that the camp contained mostly professional criminals, and the idea of such men being on the loose frightened them. They would immediately report anything they saw to the camp or to the search parties.
38
There follows a brief description of an incident in Pastor Nieniol-ler’s family life, concerning his daughter’s engagement. Since this is of no interest to the public and in no way concerns the subject matter of this book, it is omitted.
39
The following note is taken from the German edition of this book. Pastor Wilhelm Niemöller, brother of Martin Niemöller and author of the book
1. The statement that “the whole of the reactionary opposition” joined his Dahlem congregation is, of course, incorrect. Owing to prevailing circumstances the number of educated persons attending divine services at Dahlem was greater than in most Berlin parishes. The fact that the Dahlem congregation was very much alive cannot be minimized by the use of such words as “reactionary” and “dissatisfied.” For the life of that congregation has lasted far longer than did National Socialism. See my book, page 197.
2. Niemöller never preached “resistance.” The National Socialists failed to understand what his preaching was really about. The Confessional Church attempted to preach that men are men, even if their name is Hitler, but that God is God. That a Jew is also human, Niemöller clearly stated.
3. Niemöller was not permitted to write letters as often as he wished. Usually he might send his wife two letters per month. But at various periods he was not permitted to write at all, and this frequently for months on end. It is doubtful whether Hoess ever read a letter of Niemöller’s, since censorship was done by the “political department.” Frau Niemöller was not allowed to bring her husband any books whatsoever in Sachsenhausen. He was permitted books, within limits, after his move to Dachau, though a very strict censorship was of course imposed. The time during which he was allowed out of his cell—initially twenty minutes, later one hour—was very strictly enforced. Only in Dachau was this somewhat relaxed.
4. Hoess implies that regular inquiries concerning the prisoner’s wishes were the most characteristic aspect of Niemöller’s imprisonment. I myself was allowed on one occasion to visit my brother in Sachsenhausen (September 29, 1938), and came away with a very different impression. The commandant had never then inquired concerning the “wishes” of the prisoner. The prisoner can, indeed, not recall ever having seen the commandant. The statement that his cell was made “comfortable” is pure invention on the part of Hoess.
5. Hitler had no interest in persuading Niemöller one way or the other. The visitor referred to was Admiral von Lanz. He came on his own initiative, and attempted to persuade Niemoller that he state his intention to avoid touching on “political questions” in future. The admiral did not belong to the Confessional Church.
6. Martin Niemöller’s request for reinstatement in the navy was dated September 7, 1939. In it there is no reference to his possible employment as a U-boat commander. The sentence concerning Hitler’s refusal, and particularly the alleged grounds for this, are pure invention. The truth is that on September 29, 1939, Keitel wrote a letter, addressed to: “The Rev. Senior Lieut, (retd.) Niemöller, Oranienburg, near Berlin, Concentration Camp Sachsenhausen.” This letter, written in his own hand, ran as follows: “In reply to your request of September 7, 1938, I regret that I must inform you that your recall to active service with the armed forces is not envisaged. Heil Hitler! Keitel, Col.-Gen.” To the best of my recollection it was only after this that he renounced the right to wear uniform.
7. That Niemöller hoped to obtain his freedom by conversion to Catholicism is nonsense. It is well known that many devout Catholics were in Dachau. From 1941 on he was with three of these (Neuhäusler and others). He studied the doctrines of the Catholic Church in great detail, and for years on end. But this was purely in connection with matters of the faith, of which Hoess can have no comprehension.
8. The statement that the Provincial Bishop D. Wurm was in Dachau is a strange invention. This Bishop of Württemberg was never either in Dachau or in Posen. He was once under house arrest, in Stuttgart in 1934. In the Dachau cell block Martin Niemöller was the only evangelical cleric. The other pastors were in Barrack 26 of the “Priests’ Block.” The confusion can doubtless be traced to the fact that General Superintendent D. Bursche, head of the Polish Evangelical Church, was in Sachsenhausen, where indeed he died during Martin Niemöller’s time there. The commander of the Sachsenhausen protective custody camp should surely have been aware of this.
40
The concentration camp prisoners wore triangles of cloth upon their pajama-like camp uniform, the color of the triangle indicating the category to which they belonged, viz.: red—political, green—professional criminal, black—asocial, yellow—Jew, mauve—homosexual, etc.