As the Allies advanced throughout German occupied territory during the Second World War, they
came across a number of concentration camps.
These sites told the true horror of Hitler’s Third Reich, and the true murderous intent
of his regime.
One lesser known camp which was liberated was Mittlebau-Dora which was a large camp,
and was a sub camp of the Buchenwald complex.
It’s estimated that around 20,000 prisoners died within the barbed wire fences there,
but after the war at the Dora Trials, shockingly only one person was executed for the horrific
crimes there.
So join us today as we look at the story of the sole execution of the guards of mittelbau-dora.
Remember to support our channel, please make sure to subscribe.
In the summer of 1943, the Germans began to man sproduce the V-2 ballistic rocket, but
on the 18th August a bombing raid conducted by the RAF on the factory creating it seriously
damaged the works and facility.
This stopped construction in the factory based on the baltic island of Used, and because
of this Hitler ordered that Himmler should instead use prisoners from the concentration
camps to make the V2.
Different sites were set up for this, and Albert Speer along with Himmler agreed to
create the Mittelwerk underground facility to make the V2.
This would protect it from bombing, and initially once Mittelwerk was created, it was given
a contract for 12,000 rockets.
This was a colossal deal, and meant that the facility would be making 750 million reichsmarks
worth of ballistic missiles.
The facility was based in the Kohnstein, a hill in Thuringia and within days the first
transport of inmates from Buchenwald Concentration camp arrived with SS guards at the Kohnstein.
They were the first inmates in the newly created sub camp of Arbeitslager Dora, and over the
following months more prisoners were taken each day to work in the production of the
V2.
The numbers of prisoners forced to work there swelled to around 10,500 and initially there
were no barrack huts and the prisoners were forced to sleep inside the tunnels where they
were making the missiles, on bunkbeds.
The conditions were incredibly primitive, and they were given barrels to use as toilets.
Many of the workers died from hunger, cold and being overworked to death, and the work
was incredibly heavy and hard.
As time went on, the then were transported to live in an above ground camp based on the
south side of the mountain, but still many were forced to sleep in the tunnels.
Thousands of people died at Dora, and those who were dying were sent away to other camps
such as Bergen Belsen, and it was said that the work detachments at Dora had the highest
death rate in the entire concentration camp system.
Albert Speer, Hitler’s architect when he visited the tunnels to inspect the work going
on was shocked by the conditions, and some of his staff were so appalled they had to
take time off work.
Speer though congratulated the SS on their work creating the underground facility.
The prisoners who worked here came from all over Europe and they included Jews., But they
were treated terribly, and often they were whipped and beaten to the point where bones
were broken and where prisoners even passed away.
Torture was used there, as was execution as a method of deterring people.
It’s believed that 350 people were hanged inside of Dora for a number of things, with
200 being killed for sabotaging the work that was going on.
As prisoners from Auschwitz came to the camp later, it was said that mass executions were
a daily thing, with the SS on some days hanging 30 in some mornings, and then on one occasion
50 were hanged on one day.
60,000 prisoners passed through the gates of Mittelbau-Dora, but it’s believed that
around 20,000 died there.
Many were sent to other camps such as Belsen if they were sick or dying, and there were
a large amount of unregistered people at the camp.
In terms of production of the V2 rocket, the monthly output by May 1944 was around 400
rockets, which was seen as below the projected output of the camp.
It did increase to 600 rockets, but it was clear that the production numbers were not
what the Germans wanted.
Conditions declined in Dora rather quickly, as by November 1944 when the camp became fully
operational, things were already going downhill.
It’s own sub camps began to become very overcrowded and with the winter setting in,
the health of the prisoners declined significantly.
The rate rate rose exponentially, and this was not helped when more prisoners were transferred
from Auschwitz.
Up to 16,000 prisoners arrived from the huge camp, and those who came often were sick and
many died on transport there.
However in early April 1945, the nearby city of Nordhausen was hit heavily by allied bombers,
levelling 75% of the town.
Thousands died, and amongst the dead were up to 1500 prisoners of Mittelbau-Dora.
But in that same month, the Americans were advancing towards the area, and the Germans
forced the prisoners into box cars.
They brutally manhandled them and shot those who were straggling, and a number of trains
packed with thousands of prisoners left for other camps.
A number were also forced on a death march, and those who could not keep up were shot.
Over 1000 prisoners were massacred by guards, SS men and Wehrmacht officers when they were
forced into a barn that was then set on fire.
But as the camp had been evacuated, there were very few left at Dora by the time it
was liberated by the Americans.
The transports of soldiers arrived at Belsen, and many succumbed to the conditions at that
camp.
But after liberation of Dora, a war crimes trial was held to punish those guards and
members of staff who were involved in the running of the forced labour facility and
the camp.
19 men were brought to trial and were accused of crimes that took place at Mittelbau-Dora,
and also its sub camps.
All of the defendants were charged with being involved in the abuse and killing of prisoners
of war, and the prosecution team was made up of Americans.
The whole trial was dominated by the Americans and was run by them, those who liberated the
camp.
The defendants consisted of 14 members of the SS, 4 Kapos and 1 civilian.
The highest ranking defendant was the former physician, Heinrich Schmidt.
The trial began on the 7th August 1947, within the walls of Dachau.
Much of the evidence presented was based around the forced labour conditions at Dora, and
how the staff treated the prisoners.
Witnesses outlined the horror and brutal treatment, and the executions that the guards conducted
on a daily basis.
The verdicts were delivered on Christmas Eve 1947, and 7 life sentences were given, 7 fixed
term prison sentences were given, but there was only one death penalty given out.
The only man to be sentenced to death at the Dora Trial and the subsequent secondary trials
was the Protective Custody Camp Leader, Hans Moser at the Dora complex, and he was a senior
member of the staff.
Whilst here he committed many different atrocities, and he was involved in the executions of prisoners.
During the hangings of prisoners, Moser was known for cutting down the condemned near
death and then rehanging them, to prolong their suffering.
He was later captured, and was involved in death marches and at trial he said.
‘The same way with the same pleasure as you shoot deer, I shot a human being.
When I came to the SS and had to shoot the first three persons, my food did not taste
good for three days.
But today it is a pleasure, and a joy for me,’ referring to how he felt leading the
death marches and shooting prisoners.
At Landsberg Prison, Hans Moser was executed on the 26th November 1948.
He was the only man to be condemned during the Dora Trials, and he was kept at Landsberg
Prison in his cell to await his execution.
In the morning he was brought out of his cell, into the prison courtyard where a gallows
had been created.
This gallows took the life on 100s during the years following the Second World War.
He was handed over to the executioner once his identity was confirmed, and then Moser
was walked up the stairs to meet his maker.
He was accompanied by US guards and also a priest, who asked him for his final words.
Then the executioner placed a black hood over his head, and then the noose before the guards
stepped back and the lever was pulled, plunging to his death.
The execution of Hans Moser was the only one to take place following the Dora trials in
which the allies sought to punish those who were suspected of war crimes at Mittelbau
Dora.
For those 20,000 people who died inside of the camp, there were seemingly insignificant
amounts of justice dished out in the post war trial.
Mittel-bau Dora as mentioned was one of the worst and most dangerous camps, and was known
as a place where the death rate at times was incredibly high.
Once again thanks for watching.
To support, please make sure to subscribe.
Once again thanks for watching.