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| Herbert Lange |
Herbert Lange (
29 September 1909 – 20 April 1945 ?) was a
SS-Sturmbannführer.
Lange was born in
Menzlin (Pomerania). He studied law
but failed to obtain a degree and he subsequently joined the NSDAP on
1 May 1932. Three months
later he enlisted in the
Sturmabteilung (SA) and the following year he joined the SS.
He subsequently joined the police becoming a deputy commissioner in
1935.
In
1938 he was promoted to the rank of
SS-Untersturmführer, and in
August 1939
he went to
Frankfurt/Oder for gathering of
Einsatzgruppe VI,
commanded by
SS-Oberführer Erich Naumann, prior to the invasion of Poland.
There were about 150 members. This mobile killing unit followed after the
Wehrmacht when
Poland was invaded.
On
12 September 1939 the
Einsatzgruppe VI marched to
Poznan
in the
Warthegau. Within the confines of
Einsatzgruppe VI a
Sonderkommando was
established, commanded by Lange. He received orders from
Arthur Greiser
(governor of the
Warthegau)
to create a concentration camp in
Poznan. The
KZ Posen (
Poznan)
was established at
Fort VII (Fort Colomb), one of the bastions belonging
to huge Prussian fortifications that encircled
Poznan. Lange was the
first commander of the
KZ Fort VII although only for a short time, from
10-16 October 1939.
It seems that his only tasks were to find a suitable location and organize the camp, staffing and the
admittance of the first prisoners. Once these were completed, his role as camp commandant was finished.
Next (from
mid-October) at the head of his
Sonderkommando (so called
Sonderkommando Lange) he carried out inspections of the mental homes in
Owinska,
Koscian and
Gniezno. This action was probably at the personal request from
Heinrich Himmler to carry out euthanasia actions in Polish mental
homes in the Wielkopolska region. From this time he and his squad operated completely
independently. The
Sonderkommando Lange was subordinated directly to the
RSHA in
Berlin, apart from occasional local instances.
Lange was responsible for the organization and execution of euthanasia actions in several mental homes in
the Wielkopolska region. His
Sonderkommando used for these actions a mobile gas chamber (gas van or
gas trailer) inscribed with an advertisement for "
Kaiser's Kaffee Geschäft". Euthanasia actions by
the
SS-Sonderkommando Lange was carried out at the
-
Owinska Mental Home
(near
Poznan):
15 September - 20 December 1939.
Victims: 1,100
-
Koscian Mental Home:
January - February 1940.
Victims: 3,334
-
Kochanowka Mental Home (near
Lodz):
13-15 March 1940, 27-28 March 1940, June -
August 1940. Victims: 629
-
Warta Mental Home
(near
Sieradz):
2-4 April 1940. Victims: 499
-
Srem Mental Home:
June 1941. Victims: 58
His accomplishments in euthanasia actions in Poland were highly valued in the SS and as a result on
20 April 1940 he was promoted to the rank of
SS-Obersturmführer.
Later Lange was responsible for mass killing actions in the
Konin region,
but officialy from the
end of 1940 until December 1941 he was head of the
Economic’s Crimes department of the
Kriminalpolizei in
Poznan.
On
7 December 1941 Lange became the first commandant of the
Chelmno Death Camp. He organized this camp by orders of
Himmler and
Greiser. Some sources
suggest that Lange selected
Chelmno as the most suitable location for
a death camp. On
21 February 1942 Lange was dismissed from the commandants
position. Together with him two
gas van drivers were also dismissed.
In
1942 his services were needed at the
Reich Main Security Office and he
was transferred to
Berlin. He served under
Arthur Nebe
as a
Kriminalrat (Criminal Investigator) and in
1944 he aided in catching
the conspirators of the attempt on
Hitler’s life, leading to his
promotion to a SS-Sturmbannführer.
The circumstances of his death are not clear. Most of sources announce that he was killed on
20 April 1945 in action, during the battle of
Berlin.
Sources:
Gulczynski, Janusz.
Oboz smierci w Chelmnie nad Nerem, Konin, 1991
Hojan, Artur.
Nazistowska pseudoeutanazja w Krajowym Zakladzie Psychiatrycznym w Koscianie (1939-1940), Koscian 2004
Nawrocki, S.
Policja hitlerowska w tzw. Kraju Warty 1939-1945, Poznan 1970
AGKBZH, investigation files of Arthur Greiser
Documents and notes from private archives of Jerzy Zielonka, Artur Hojan and Zdzislaw Lorek.
© ARC 2005
