The Potempa murder of 1932 was a cause célèbre during Germany's Weimar Republic and the rise of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party. Committed by Nazi Party members, the brutal murder cast a dark shadow over the political advance of Hitler and the Nazis at the time. Many acts of violence would follow; the Potempa Murder was an early precursor. It led then President Paul von Hindenburg to suspect that the murder was symptomatic of how the Nazi Party operated.
On the night of 9 August 1932, five uniformed Nazi Stormtroopers (Sturmabteilung) burst into the apartment of Konrad Pietzuch, a Communist miner and trade unionist, in the Upper Silesian village of Potempa (now part of the rural community of Krupski Młyn in Poland) and beat him to death in the presence of his mother. The five murderers did nothing to disguise themselves during the attack and they were quickly arrested. After a well-publicized trial in Beuthen (now Bytom, Poland), they were found guilty of murder and sentenced to death. Hitler, along with other senior Nazis, was furious not only with the verdicts but also with the sentences. While the five murderers were in jail, he sent them a telegram: "My comrades! I am bound to you in unlimited loyalty in the face of this most hideous blood sentence. You have my picture hanging in your cells. How could I forsake you? Anyone who struggles, lives, fights, and, if need be, dies for Germany has the right on his side."
Only days earlier, the government of Chancellor Franz von Papen, which strove for law and order amid rising political violence, had passed an emergency decree authorizing the death sentence for politically motivated killings. Chancellor von Papen was not keen to see the five murderers executed soon after the crime as he feared an escalation of Nazi violence nationwide. In September 1932, the government commuted the sentences to life imprisonment, on the ground that the new decree was unknown to the defendants at the time of the murder.
The "Potempa Five" became a significant point of contention in the debates between Hitler, von Papen, and President Paul von Hindenburg over the extent of Nazi participation in the German government. On 30 January 1933, continuing political chaos led to Hitler's being appointed Chancellor. On 21 March 1934, the Nazi government introduced legislation that granted amnesty to anyone in prison who had committed a crime “for the good of the Reich during the Weimar Republic”. All five murderers were released from prison that same month.
In 1939, Paul Lachmann, who was considered the ringleader of the murder, was arrested and sentenced to prison for poaching. He was killed in an air raid in 1945. Two other convicted perpetrators, Reinhold Kottisch and Rufin Wolnitza, were killed in action in the Soviet Union.[1]
^Kluke: Potempa, S. 288 (für Hoppe), S. 292 (für Gräupner und Müller), S. 293 (für Czaja und Hadamik sowie für Nowack).
November 01, 2023
potempa, murder, 1932, this, article, includes, list, references, related, reading, external, links, sources, remain, unclear, because, lacks, inline, citations, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, more, precise, citations, december, 2017, learn. This article includes a list of references related reading or external links but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations December 2017 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Potempa murder of 1932 was a cause celebre during Germany s Weimar Republic and the rise of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party Committed by Nazi Party members the brutal murder cast a dark shadow over the political advance of Hitler and the Nazis at the time Many acts of violence would follow the Potempa Murder was an early precursor It led then President Paul von Hindenburg to suspect that the murder was symptomatic of how the Nazi Party operated On the night of 9 August 1932 five uniformed Nazi Stormtroopers Sturmabteilung burst into the apartment of Konrad Pietzuch a Communist miner and trade unionist in the Upper Silesian village of Potempa now part of the rural community of Krupski Mlyn in Poland and beat him to death in the presence of his mother The five murderers did nothing to disguise themselves during the attack and they were quickly arrested After a well publicized trial in Beuthen now Bytom Poland they were found guilty of murder and sentenced to death Hitler along with other senior Nazis was furious not only with the verdicts but also with the sentences While the five murderers were in jail he sent them a telegram My comrades I am bound to you in unlimited loyalty in the face of this most hideous blood sentence You have my picture hanging in your cells How could I forsake you Anyone who struggles lives fights and if need be dies for Germany has the right on his side Only days earlier the government of Chancellor Franz von Papen which strove for law and order amid rising political violence had passed an emergency decree authorizing the death sentence for politically motivated killings Chancellor von Papen was not keen to see the five murderers executed soon after the crime as he feared an escalation of Nazi violence nationwide In September 1932 the government commuted the sentences to life imprisonment on the ground that the new decree was unknown to the defendants at the time of the murder The Potempa Five became a significant point of contention in the debates between Hitler von Papen and President Paul von Hindenburg over the extent of Nazi participation in the German government On 30 January 1933 continuing political chaos led to Hitler s being appointed Chancellor On 21 March 1934 the Nazi government introduced legislation that granted amnesty to anyone in prison who had committed a crime for the good of the Reich during the Weimar Republic All five murderers were released from prison that same month In 1939 Paul Lachmann who was considered the ringleader of the murder was arrested and sentenced to prison for poaching He was killed in an air raid in 1945 Two other convicted perpetrators Reinhold Kottisch and Rufin Wolnitza were killed in action in the Soviet Union 1 References edithttp www historylearningsite co uk modern world history 1918 to 1980 weimar germany the potempa murder of 1932 http weimar republik enacademic com 615 Potempa Murder http skepticism org timeline august history 8015 sa stormtroopers found guilty murder alleged communist potempa htmlSee also editFranz von Papen Kluke Potempa S 288 fur Hoppe S 292 fur Graupner und Muller S 293 fur Czaja und Hadamik sowie fur Nowack Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Potempa murder of 1932 amp oldid 1180907989, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
