Hans Aumeier
| Hans Aumeier | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
20 August 1906 Amberg, Germany |
| Died | 28 January 1948 (aged 41) Montelupich Prison, Kraków |
| Nationality | German |
| Occupation |
 Sturmbannführer
|
| Known for | Deputy commandant of Auschwitz concentration camp |
| Political party | National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) |
Hans Aumeier (20 August 1906 – 28 January 1948) was an SS-Sturmbannführer (major), the deputy commandant of Auschwitz concentration camp and a Nazi war criminal. One of the most important men at Auschwitz, being deputy to the commandant, Aumeier was different from other SS officers as he was poorly educated.
Aumeier was born on 20 August 1906 in the small town of Amberg, Germany, where he attended elementary school for four years and then secondary school for just three years. In 1918 he left school without any qualifications to take up an apprenticeship as a turner and fitter in a local rifle factory, following his father’s career. In 1923 he left the small factory in Amberg and began work for a bigger company in Munich. In 1925 he tried to join the Reichswehr but failed and returned to the rifle factory in Munich, but he couldn’t settle down and after taking up similar positions in other factories in Berlin, Bremen and Cologne he became unemployed. Throughout the period 1926–1929, Aumeier moved from one job to another, and was in and out of employment, taking part-time work and summer jobs in order to survive. He was an early member of the Nazi Party, joining in December 1929, and in 1931 he joined the SA and was soon employed as a driver at the SA headquarters in Berlin. Later in December 1931 he was transferred to the SS where he worked in the garage as a driver, and was on the staff of Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler. He had now found a job he liked and the discipline of the SA and SS suited Aumeier well, he felt he belonged, although he wanted to be a soldier.
On 1 February 1942 he was transferred to Auschwitz concentration camp and was appointed as head of Department III, and named Schutzhaftlagerführer at Auschwitz I, where he remained until 16 August 1943. It was during this time at Auschwitz that Aumeier made a name for himself, he was responsible for many methods, including tortures, beatings, and executions. On 19 March 1942, 144 women were shot at the execution wall in the courtyard of Blocks 10 and 11 on Aumeier’s orders. Again on 27 May 1942 he was present at a mass execution of 168 prisoners who were shot in the same manner.
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