On this date, 7 June
1951, 4 of the 24 defendants at the Einsatzgruppen trial who were sentenced to
death were executed by hanging at Landsberg Prison. I will post the information
about the Commander of Einsatzgruppen B, Erich Naumann from Wikipedia and other
links.
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Erich Naumann at the
Nuremberg Trials.
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Erich Naumann
(29 April 1905 – 7 June 1951) was an SS-Brigadeführer, member of the SD. Naumann
was responsible for genocide in eastern Europe as commander of Einsatzgruppe B and considered a war
criminal.
Early
life and career
Born
29 April 1905, in Meissen, Saxony, Erich Naumann left school at the age of
sixteen and obtained employment in a commercial firm in his home town of
Meissen. He joined the Nazi party in November 1929 (nr. 170257). In 1933,
Naumann joined the SA in a full-time capacity and then became an official and
officer of police. He joined the SD in 1935. He was Chief of Einsatzgruppe B
from November 1941 until February or March 1943.
During
November 1941, reports he sent to Adolf Eichmann state that he was responsible
for the deaths of 17,256 people in Smolensk. Under his command, he admitted
that his Einsatzgruppe possessed three gas vans which "were used to
exterminate human beings".
Nuremberg
After
capture by the Allies, Naumann stood trial at Nuremberg. During the proceedings
he repeatedly stated that he did not consider his actions during his tenure as
commanding officer of Einsatzgruppe B wrong. When asked on the witness stand
whether he saw anything morally wrong about the Führer's orders, he replied
specifically that he:
"considered the decree to be right because it was part of our aim of the war and, therefore, it was necessary".
He
was found guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity and belonging to illegal
organizations, namely the SS and the SD. Naumann was sentenced to death and hanged
shortly after midnight on 7 June 1951.
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