Himmler?s Reign Of Terror And Ingenious Essay, Research Paper
One man?s sick
mind led to the extermination of an entire generation of
people. These ideas came at the worst possible time,
during World War II. The ideas were horrific and evil and
today they would be viewed as satanic but at the time they
were thought to be glorious and wonderful. This gave
Hienrich Himmler a place as one of the most devious
persons ever. Himmler went to grade school at the
Cathedral where he was an excellent student. It was during
this time that Himmler became interested in Germany?s
history and war (Shrirer 130-131). After he finished grade
school he went to Technical High school. He once again
resumed the role of a good student. At this time Himmler
felt he had no rules or discipline so he dropped out of high
school and enlisted in the Army. While in the Army
Himmler got special tutoring to finish high school (Shrirer
137-138). Himmler attended a small college outside of
Munich. While there he did not fit in very well and did
poorly in his studies. After a short time Himmler left college
and rejoined the military (Stewart 97). Himmler joined a
paramilitary unit outside of Bayer-Munich. He was in a
class of 200 and was the best soldier. His commanding
officer said, ?He?s the best natural soldier I?ve ever seen?
(Goralski 103-104). Himmler did not do much in World
War I. He was rumored to have killed Gihi Rhambal.
People are not one hundred percent sure if he did, but
many believed it was he (Jarmon 132). During this time he
was mainly taking care of his family. He married a lady
Miller 2 named Marga Stoenbauer. Himmler also had a
daughter named Gudren. Gudren was Himmler?s daughter
but not Marga?s. He had Gudren with a mistress. The
mistress left the baby with Himmler right after she was born
and she was never heard from again (Bauer 84-85).
Shortly after World War II broke out, Himmler was
chosen for a special assignment. He received the
assignment because he was probably the best soldier in the
German Army. He was appointed the head of the Gestapo,
the most feared people in Germany. The Gestapo was
formed in 1933 and the massive killings began in 1934
(Rogaski 187-188). Himmler and his men dressed in all
black, so that people would recognize and respect them
(Stewart 131). Himmler was respected for two main
reasons. The first was that many people thought he was
next in command to Hitler. People figured that they
probably should not get involved with the boss. The other
reason people liked Himmler was that Hitler liked him and
if he found out anyone was saying anything about him that
person would be killed. At the beginning of the war
Himmler was a proud follower of Hitler. He thought that
Hitler was next to God. Hitler and Himmler thought
Germany should fight to the end. Himmler was loyal to
Hitler until he too saw Hitler was going crazy. Himmler
decided that he would kill Hitler, take control and end the
war. At the same time he was talking to the Allies about a
peace treaty (Fest 142-144). Himmler felt superior to other
people. He appointed his soldiers to watch over the death
camps. He got rid of all the regular soldiers because he did
not feel they were good enough to be put in charge of such
an important task (Speer 116-117). He was also proud of
the fact he was killing so many Jews. Yet he was not
pleased and thought that they should be killed Miller 3
faster. He then came up with the idea of sterilization and the
use of other medical experiments to kill off Jews (Speer
221). There were many ways to sterilize or kill people. The
people were injected with so many hormones that there
reproductive organs would be destroyed or they
themselves would die (Stewart 306). Himmler was
pleased, but once again it was not good enough. Himmler?s
friend Dr. Porkony came up with the idea of releasing gas
in the showers (Stewart 308). This would kill people at a
tremendous rate. The gas they used was Zyclon-B. This
gas released into the blood stream and clogged up the
arteries causing heart attacks or strokes (Goralski 208).
Himmler was so pleased with this method that he ordered it
to go to every concentration camp. Another man, Dr. Hirt,
also caught Himmler?s eye, but he did it in a strange way.
He showed Himmler his collection of severed and mutilated
heads. Himmler liked Hirt?s ideas and eventually made him
chief doctor for all the concentration camps. After a while
though Himmler found out that Hirt was letting Jews go.
Himmler then put Hirt into a concentration camp as if he
were a Jew (Rogasky 124-125). Many of Himmler?s ideas
were insane. He stated that he was not a killer, but a patron
of science. He believed that not only should a country be
conquered but it should also be exterminated. He also had
a scale for how each death camp was doing. First, there
was the total body count. Second, was the number of dead
bodies. Finally, there was the count of how many people
were experimented on (Bauer 117-120). Miller 4 Towards
the end of the war, Himmler did not want to keep fighting
and killing. Himmler decided to stop the entire killing
because he realized that the war was over and there was
nothing left to fight for. He changed his name and fled
Germany. He was almost out of Germany when he was
captured at a British patrol booth. He was captured on
May 23, 1945 (Podfield 300-301). Himmler died in late
May of 1945. The exact date is unknown. He took a
cyanide pill that he kept in his boot just in case he ever got
caught (Shrirer 281). ? Himmler?s death took away
suffering from millions of people and their families?, quoted
Albert Speer a World War II expert. When it came time to
bury Himmler, he was buried in a false grave. Two nuns
buried him in the middle of a field. These were the only two
people to know where he was buried (Speer 258-259).
Himmler died like many other leaders of the past, with a
murderous impact. He fought bravely and courageously for
what he believed. He died as one of the most infamous
people ever. He was ingenious and smart, yet evil and
sinister. He was worshiped by many, but also hated by
more. His name struck fear into the hearts of millions,
knowing they could have been the next victims. Himmler?s
nature was evil and smart and because of this he will be
remembered forever.