31:
351:, who had initially been reluctant to have Helwig as one of his men. However Helwig did blot his copybook when it was discovered that he boasted of his atrocities at Sachsenhausen to a group of non-Germans after getting drunk in a bar, breaking protocol about keeping concentration camp activities quiet. Indeed, as was the case for all of the commandants at Sachsenhausen, Helwig's command was noted for its viciousness.
273:, a struggle in which Helwig eventually sided with Himmler, leaving the SA for the SS in 1929. Already 48 and generally considered to be of low intelligence it was unclear what use he could be to the SS but nonetheless he was received enthusiastically both due to his friendship with Himmler and the fact that he had put loyalty to the Nazi Party above his own finances by getting suspended from work due to his
375:
Helwig appealed to be allowed to continue but neither Eicke nor
Himmler would be moved. Given a 5000 Mark severance in order to convince him to leave he returned to Hemsbach. His standing as a party loyalist ensured that the SS continued to help him find employment and after a few failed attempts he
334:
By this time it was unclear what role Helwig could possibly fill in the SS and a superior officer had written a personal letter to
Himmler to this effect. Within the letter it was suggested that his prison experience might make it possible for him to command a concentration camp and Himmler acted on
362:
at the camp but it emerged that the operation had not been approved by a judge and
Winiarz had had no chance to appeal, both of which were laid down as essential in such cases. Himmler put the blame on Eicke who in turn argued that it had been Helwig who had mixed up the orders, having become
326:
he retired from SS duty but was dismayed to find his pension only stretched to 202 Marks a month. Helwig recovered from his health issues rapidly and sought to return to the SS. He was readmitted reluctantly, largely on the basis of his long service (which entitled him to the
297:
although there is no record of him accomplishing anything during his brief spell in the institution. In the meantime his old rival Wagner had re-established his control of Baden, Himmler having long since departed to serve as
363:
confused by a sudden influx of new prisoners at the time. Eicke told
Himmler that the 57-year-old Helwig was "totally decrepit ... both mentally and physically" and recommended he be removed as commandant. He was replaced by
265:. A founder of the local branch of the reorganised Nazi Party in 1925, he was elected a city councilman not long after. At the time in Baden Nazi politics were dominated by a personality clash between local strongmen
318:
On account of his long military service he initially served the SS as voluntary commander of a battalion and then a regiment. Following the Nazi takeover he was then appointed a governor of
406:
church in
Hemsbach throughout his SS career despite the faith being officially discouraged, died in his hometown in 1952 before any legal proceedings could be brought against him.
206:
and the youngest of 15 children Helwig apprenticed as a bricklayer in his home village of
Hemsbach. Discontented with life as a bricklayer the 19-year-old Helwig enlisted in the
30:
829:
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in the SS despite having previously been described by Eicke as not officer material, finished the war as the liaison officer between the northern command of the
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809:
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238:. Although his personal position was largely untouched, Helwig nonetheless became deeply resentful of the situation in his native
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in an infantry regiment before leaving in early 1914 to work as a court clerk. Helwig was only a few months out of the army when
303:
354:
Helwig lost his position the following year over a somewhat pedantic clash between the SS hierarchy and
Justice Minister
814:
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Helwig returned to his post with the court before eventually moving on to a role as a minor official at the
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from early, his beliefs caused him trouble professionally and he was suspended from his job following the
294:
223:
219:
250:, which he had been heard to praise at work. By this time Helwig was already officially a member of the
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prison, a role that he did not last long in due to the mentally taxing nature of the work. Following a
307:
235:
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broke out, prompting him to re-enlist. Returning to the same battalion Helwig saw action on both the
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over a failure to obey protocol. An inmate of
Sachsenhausen, Johannes Winiarz, was given a forced
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World
Without Civilization: Mass Murder and the Holocaust, History and Analysis, Volume 1
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Helwig initially followed a career in Nazi politics, following a personal endorsement to
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he fulfilled a number of roles within Nazism down the years. He was born and died in
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Suspended from work, Helwig was able to devote more of his time to the SA and the
125:
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384:, he oversaw the building of a fuel camp that also doubled as a place to hold
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this suggestion, and made him commandant of the women's camp at
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and was soon being put forward as a candidate for promotion by
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Statisten in
Uniform. Die Mitglieder des Reichstags 1933-1945.
239:
302:, and ensured that Helwig would not be a candidate in the
310:, a body that was abolished following the Nazi takeover.
402:Helwig, who remained an active member of his local
170:(25 September 1881 – 24 August 1952) was a German
242:which was under French occupation. An admirer of
776:
830:Members of the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic
670:
668:
666:
621:, University Press of America, 2005, p. 363
825:Sachsenhausen concentration camp personnel
691:Droste Verlag, Düsseldorf 2004, p. 225 f.
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840:Lichtenburg concentration camp personnel
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306:, instead ensuring his demotion to the
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391:. The veteran, who by this time was a
380:that suited his talents. Based on the
256:Deutschvölkischer Schutz und Trutzbund
293:he was returned as a delegate to the
810:German Army personnel of World War I
800:People from the Grand Duchy of Baden
835:Nazi concentration camp commandants
280:
197:
186:commandant. An early member of the
13:
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14:
851:
756:Sachsenhausen concentration camp
345:Sachsenhausen concentration camp
140:Sachsenhausen concentration camp
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795:People from Rhein-Neckar-Kreis
726:Lichtenburg concentration camp
637:
624:
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254:, having initially joined the
136:Lichtenburg concentration camp
1:
509:, Berkley Books, 1991, p. 126
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36:
16:German politician (1881–1952)
339:. In July 1937 he succeeded
7:
687:Joachim Lilla et al (ed.),
10:
856:
730:November 1936 – July 1937
308:Landtag der Republik Baden
236:German Ministry of Justice
762:
760:July 1937 – January 1938
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732:
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210:. He rose to the rank of
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84:
70:
46:
28:
21:
815:Sturmabteilung personnel
617:Robert Melvin Spector,
329:Golden Nazi Party Badge
184:Nazi concentration camp
805:Nazi Party politicians
304:November 1932 election
271:Robert Heinrich Wagner
230:Joining the Nazi Party
289:from Himmler. In the
112:Years of service
746:SS-Standartenführer
737:Alexander Piorkowski
716:SS-Standartenführer
467:SS-Standartenführer
410:Ranks and promotions
376:found a role in the
208:German Imperial Army
64:Grand Duchy of Baden
735:SS-Sturmbannführer
459:SS-Sturmbannführer
767:Hermann Baranowski
718:Hermann Baranowski
472:12 September 1937
417:Helwig's SS Ranks
399:and Himmler's HQ.
365:Hermann Baranowski
291:July 1932 election
773:
772:
763:Succeeded by
733:Succeeded by
709:Military offices
487:
486:
483:SS-Brigadeführer
456:30 November 1930
378:Organisation Todt
367:soon afterwards.
343:as commandant of
324:nervous breakdown
165:
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160:Organisation Todt
57:25 September 1881
847:
820:SS-Brigadeführer
744:Preceded by
714:Preceded by
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705:
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685:
679:
676:Soldiers of Evil
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661:
658:Soldiers of Evil
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645:Soldiers of Evil
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632:Soldiers of Evil
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606:Soldiers of Evil
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593:Soldiers of Evil
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575:Soldiers of Evil
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549:Soldiers of Evil
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531:Soldiers of Evil
527:
510:
507:Soldiers of Evil
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440:24 October 1929
414:
413:
389:prisoners of war
281:Political career
267:Heinrich Himmler
248:Beer Hall putsch
198:Military service
126:SS-Brigadeführer
101:
77:
56:
54:
41:
38:
33:
19:
18:
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451:SS-Sturmführer
443:SS-Truppführer
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331:) and loyalty.
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314:Camp commandant
300:Reichsführer-SS
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258:after the war.
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212:master sergeant
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156:Other work
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754:Commandant of
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748:Karl Otto Koch
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724:Commandant of
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448:10 April 1930
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341:Karl Otto Koch
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252:Sturmabteilung
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224:Eastern Fronts
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78:(aged 70)
74:24 August 1952
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697:3-7700-5254-4
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634:, pp. 130-131
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464:13 July 1931
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393:Brigadeführer
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382:Eastern Front
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368:
366:
361:
357:
356:Franz Gürtner
352:
350:
349:Theodor Eicke
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204:forest ranger
202:The son of a
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188:Nazi movement
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180:Schutzstaffel
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89:German Empire
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480:5 June 1944
430:28 May 1929
401:
374:
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287:Adolf Hitler
284:
260:
244:Adolf Hitler
233:
201:
182:general and
174:politician,
167:
166:
146:Battles/wars
94:Nazi Germany
76:(1952-08-24)
790:1952 deaths
785:1881 births
434:SS-Anwärter
371:Later years
337:Lichtenburg
216:World War I
176:World War I
168:Hans Helwig
150:World War I
40: 1933
23:Hans Helwig
779:Categories
490:References
404:Protestant
263:Nazi Party
172:Nazi Party
85:Allegiance
53:1881-09-25
503:Tom Segev
397:Wehrmacht
360:vasectomy
295:Reichstag
178:veteran,
117:1933-1945
115:1900-1918
91:(to 1918)
66:, Germany
678:, p. 132
660:, p. 131
647:, p. 169
595:, p. 130
577:, p. 129
551:, p. 128
533:, p. 127
320:Bruchsal
192:Hemsbach
132:Commands
100:Service/
80:Hemsbach
60:Hemsbach
674:Segev,
656:Segev,
643:Segev,
630:Segev,
608:, p. 20
604:Segev,
591:Segev,
573:Segev,
547:Segev,
529:Segev,
220:Western
35:Helwig
695:
386:Soviet
275:Nazism
102:branch
425:Rank
422:Date
240:Baden
693:ISBN
269:and
222:and
122:Rank
71:Died
47:Born
781::
665:^
582:^
556:^
538:^
514:^
505:,
277:.
226:.
194:.
62:,
37:c.
699:.
55:)
51:(
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