ents of their regime, the Nazi Government took active stops to Increase its power over the German population.
In the field of education, everything was done to ensure that the youth of Germany was brought up in the atmosphere of National Socialism and accepted National Socialist teachings. As early as the 7th April 1933 the law reorganizing the Civil Service had made it possible for the Nazi Government to remove all "subversive and unreliable teachers"; and this was followed by numerous other measures to make sure that the schools were staffed by teachers who could be trusted to teach their pupils the full meaning of National Socialist creed. Apart from the influence of National Socialist teaching in the schools, the Hitler Youth Organization was also relied upon by the Nazi Leaders for obtaining fanatical support from the younger generation. The defendant von Schirach, who had been Reich Youth Leader of the NSDAP since 1931, was appointed Youth Leader of the German Reich in June 1933. Soon all the youth organizations had been either dissolved or absorbed by the Hitler Youth, with the exception of the Catholic Youth. The Hitler Youth was organized on strict military lines, and as early as 1933 the Wehrmacht was cooperating in providing pre-military training for the Reich Youth. support of their policies through the extensive use of propaganda. A number of agencies were set up whose duty was to control and influence the press, radio, films, publishing firms, etc., in Germany, and to supervise entertainment and cultural and artistic activities. All these agencies came under Goebbels' Ministry of the People's Enlightenment and Propaganda, which together with a corresponding organization in the NSDAP and the Reich ing this supervision.
The defendant Rosenberg played a lead-
Chamber of Culture, was ultimately responsible for exercising part in disseminating the National Socialist doctrines on behalf of the Party, and the defendant Fritzsche, in conjunction with Goebbels, performed the same task for the State. the German people to lead and dominate by virtue of their Nordic blood and racial purity; and the ground was thus being prepared for the acceptance of the idea of German world supremacy. the German people, during the years which followed 1933, were subjected to the most intensive propaganda in furtherance of the regime. Hostile criticism, indeed criticism of any kind, was forbidden, and the severest penalties were imposed on those who indulged in it. rendered quite impossible.
During the years immediately following Hitler's appointment as Chancellor, the Nazi Government set about re-organizing the economic life of Germany, and in particular the armament industry. This was done on a vast scale and with extreme thoroughness. for the building of armaments, and in April 1936 the defendant Goering was appointed coordinator for raw materials and foreign exchange, and empowered to supervise all state and party activities in these fields. In this capacity he brought together the War Minister, the Minister of Economics, the Reich Finance Finance Minister to discuss problems connected with war Minister, the President of the Reichsbank and the Prussian mobilization, and on the 27th May 1936, in addressing these men, Goering opposed any financial limitation of war production and added that "all measures are to be considered from the standpoint of an assured waging of war."
At the Party Rally in Nuremberg in 1936, Hitler announced the establishment of the Four Year Plan and the appointment of Goering as the Plenipotentiary in charge. Goering was already engaged in building a strong air force and on the 8th July 1938 he announced to a number of leading German aircraft manufacturers that the German Air Force was already superior in quality and quantity to the English. On the 14th October 1938, at another conference, Goering announced that Hitler had instructed him to organize a gigantic armament program, which would make insignificant all previous achievements. He said that he had been ordered to build as rapidly as possible an air force five times as large as originally planned, to increase the speed of the rearmament of the navy and army, and to concentrate on offensive weapons, principally heavy artillery and heavy tanks. He then laid down a specific program designed to accomplish these ends. The extent to which rearmament had been accomplished was stated by Hitler in his memorandum of October 9th, 1939, after the campaign in Poland. He said:
"The military application of our people's strength "The warlike equipment of the German people is at year 1914.
The weapons themselves, taking a substan with any other country in the world at this time.
They their victorious campaign ... There is no evidence by any country in the world."
Reich ... The A. A. artillery is not equalled military purposes, the Nazi Government found the German armament industry quite willing to cooperate, and to play its part in the rearmament programme. In April 1933, Gustav Krupp von Bohlen submitted to Hitler on behalf of the Reich Association of German Industry a plan for the re-organization of German industry, which he stated was characterized by the desire to coordinate economic measures and political necessity. In the plan itself, Krupp stated that "the turn of political events is in line with the wishes which I myself and the board of directors have cherished for a long time." What krupp meant by this statement is fully shown by the draft text of a speech which he planned to deliver in the University of Berlin in January 1944, though the speech was in fact never delivered. Referring to the years 1919 to 1933, Krupp wrote: "It is the one great merit of the entire German war economy that it did not remain idle during the 30 bad years, even though its activity could not be brought to light, for obvious reasons. Through years of secret work, scientific and basic groundwork was laid in order to be ready again to work for the German armed forces at the appointed hour, without lose; of time or experience ... Only through the secret activity of German enterprise together with the experience gained meanwhile through production of peace time goods, was it possible after 1933 to fall into stop with the now tasks arrived at, restoring Germany's military power." Conference and league of Nations. In 1935 the Nazi Government decided to take the first open stops to free itself from its obligations under the announced that Germany was building a military air fore.
Six days later, Treaty of Versailles.
On the 10th March 1935 the defendant Goering on the 16th March 1935, a law was passed bearing the signatures, among others, of the defendants Goering, Hess, Frank, Frick, Schacht and von Neurath, instituting compulsory military service and firing the establishment of the German Army at a peace time strength of 500,000 men. In an endeavour to reassure public opinion in other countries, the Government announced on the 21st May 1935 that Germany would, though renouncing the disarmament clauses, still respect the territorial limitations of the Versailles Treaty, and world comply with the Locarno Facts. Nevertheless, on the very day of this announcement, the secret Reich Defence Law was passed and its publication forbidden by Hitler. In this law, the powers and duties of the Chancellor and other ministers were defined, should Germany become involved in war. It is clear from this law that by May of 1935 Hitler and his Government had arrived at the stage in the carrying out of their policies whop it was necessary for them to have in existence the requisite machinery for the administration and government of Germany in the event of their policy leading to war. was being carried out, the German armed forces themselves were preparing for a rebuilding of Germany's armed strength.
The German Navy was particularly active in this regard. The official German Naval historians, Assmann and Gladisch, admit that the Treaty of Versailles had only been in force for a few months before it was violated, particularly in the construction of a now submarine arm. which were sponsored by the defendant Raeder, were designed to show the German Treaty of Versailles.
people the nature of the Navy's effort to rearm in defiance of the armament plan for what was called the Third Armament Phase. This contained the sentence.
"All theoretical and practical A-preparations readiness for a war without any alert period."
One month later, in June 1934, the defendant Raeder had a conversation with Hitler in which Hitler instructed him to keep secret the construction of U-boats and of warships over the limit of 10,000 tons which was then being undertaken. conversation with Hitler and the defendant Goaring, in which Hitler said that he considered it vital that the German Navy "should be increased as planned, as no war could be carried on if the Navy was not able to safeguard the ore imports from Scandinavia." excused by the defendant Raeder on the ground that negotiations were in progress for an agreement between Germany and Great Britain permitting Germany to build ships in excess of the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles. This agreement, which was signed in 1935, restricted the German Navy to a tonnage equal to one-third of that of the British, except in respect of U-boats where 45% was agreed, subject always to the right to exceed this proportion after first informing the British Government and giving them an opportunity of discussion.
least four months before any action was taken.
bound themselves to notify full details of their building programme at falsified by 20%, whilst in the case of U-boats, the German historians Assmann and Gladisch say:
"It is probably just in the sphere of submarine the restrictions of the German-British Treaty."
The importance of these breaches of the Treaty is seen when the motive for this re-armament is considered. In the year 1940 the defendant Raeder himself wrote:
"The Fuehrer hoped until the last moment to be England until 1944-5. At that time, the Navy on the high Seas."
their intention to respect the territorial limitations of the Treaty of Versailles. On the 7th March 1936, in defiance of that Treaty, the demilitarized zone of the Rhiheland was ordered by German troops. In announcing this action to the German Reichstag, Hitler endeavored to justify the re-entry by references to the recently concluded alliances between Prance and the Soviet Union, and between Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union. He also tried to meet the hostile reaction which he no doubt expected to follow this violation of the Treaty by saying:
"We have no territorial claims to make in Europe."
AND AGGRESSIVE WAR.
peace charged in the Indictment. Count it One of the Indictment charges the defendants with conspiring or having a common plan to commit crimes against peace. Count Two of the Indictment charges the defendants with committing specific crimes against peace by planning, preparing, initiating, and waging wars of aggression against a number of other States. It will be convenient to consider the question of the existence of a common plan and the question of aggressive war together, and to deal later in this Judgment with the question of the individual responsibility of the defendants. aggressive wars are charges of the utmost gravity. War is essentially an evil thing. Its consequences are not confined to the belligerent states alone, but affect the whole world. national crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole. seizure of Austria and Czechoslovakia: and the first war of aggression charged in the Indictment is the war against Poland begun on the 1st September 1939.
at some of the events which preceded these acts of aggression. The war against Poland did not cone suddenly out of an otherwise clear sky; the evidence has made it plain that this war of aggression, as well as the seizure of Austria and Czechoslovakia, was pre-meditated and carefully prepared, and was not undertaken until the moment was thought opportune for it to be carried through as a definite port of the pre-ordained scheme find plan.
arising out of the immediate political situation in Europe and the worlds they were a deliberate and essential part of Nazi foreign policy. object was to unite the German people in the consciousness of their mission and destiny, based on inherent qualities of race, and under the guidance of the: Fuehrer.
For its achievement, two things were deemed to be essential: the disruption of the European order as it had existed since the Treaty of Versailles, and fix creation of a Greater Germany beyond the frontiers of 1914. This necessarily involved the seizure of foreign territories. able, if these purposes were to be accomplished. The German people, therefore, with all their resources, were to be organized as a great political-military army, schooled to obey without question any policy decreed by the State.
In "Mein Kampf" Hitler had made this view quite plain. It must be remembered that "Mein Kampf" was no mere private diary in which the secret thoughts of Hitler were set down.
Its contents were rather proclaimed from the house-tops. It was used in the schools and Universities and among the Hitler Youth, in the SS and the SA, and among the German people generally, even down to the presentation of an official copy to all newly-married people. By the year 1945 over 6 1/2 million Copies had been circulated. The general contents are well known. Over and over again Hitler asserted his belief in the necessity of force as the means of solving international problems, as in the following quotation:
"The soil on which we now live was not a gift bestowed by Heaven on our forefathers.
They had to conquer it by risking their lives.
So also in power of a triumphant sword."
"Mein Kampf" contains many such passages, and the extolling of force as an instrument of foreign policy is openly proclaimed. in detail. The very first page of the book asserts that "GermanAustria must be restored to the great German Motherland," not on economic grounds, but because "people of the same blood should be in the Same Reich." Wholly insufficient, and if Germany is to exist at all, it must be as a world power with the necessary territorial magnitude.
"Mein Kampf" is quite explicit in stating where the increased territory is to be found:
line through the line of conduct followed by pre-war "Therefore we National Socialists have purposely drawn a Germany in foreign policy.
We put an end to the per subject to her."
"Mein Kampf" is not to be regarded as a mereliterary exercise, nor as an inflexible policy or plan incapable of modification. throughout its pages. secret meetings to which the Tribunal proposes to make special reference because of the light they shed upon the question of the common plan and aggressive war. the 22nd of August 1939 and the 23rd of November 1939. purposes, which are quite unmistakable in their terms. ject to some criticism at the hands of defending Counsel. that they do not purpose to be verbatim transcripts of the speeches they was dated five days after the meeting hid taken place, and that the two record, that the document dealing with the meeting on the 5th November 1937, documents dealing with the meeting of August 22nd 1939 differ from one anther, and are unsigned.
of the opinion that the documents are documents of the highest value, and that their authenticity and substantial truth pre established. have been preserved as such in the archives of the German Government, from whose custody they were captured. Such documents could never be dismissed as inventions, nor even as inaccurate or distorted; they plainly record events which actually took place. 23rd November 1939, when Hitler called his Supreme Commanders together. A record was made of whet was said, by one of those present. At the date of the meeting, Austria and Czechoslovakia had been incorporated into the German Reich, Poland had been conquered by the German armies, and the war with Great Britain and France was still in its static phase. The moment was opportune for a review of past events. Hitler informed the Commanders that the purpose of the Conference was to give them an idea of the world of his thoughts, and to tell them his decision. He thereupon reviewed his political task since 1919, and referred to the secession of Germany from the League of Nations, introduction of compulsory armed service, the occupation of the Rhineland, the the denunciation of the Disarmament Conference, the order for re-armament, the seizure of Austria, and the action against Czechoslovakia.
He stated:
"One year later, Austria came; this step also was considered doubtful.
It brought about a consider able reinforcement of the Reich.
The next step was Bohemia, Moravia and Poland.
This step also was not possible to accomplish in one campaign.
First of all, the western fortification had to be finished.
It was not possible to reach the goal in one effort.
It was satisfied with the Sudeten German territory.
That was only a partial solution.
The decision to march into Bohemia, was made.
Then followed the erection action against Poland was laid, but I wasn't quite order not to strike.
The decision to strike was always in me.
Earlier or later I wanted to solve the problem.
Under pressure it was decided that the East was to be attacked first."
tions present from the beginning, puts beyond any question of doubt the character of the actions against Austria and Czechoslovakia, and the war against Poland.
For they had all been accomplished according to plan; and the nature of that plan must now be examined in a little more detail. things accomplished; at the earlier meetings now to be considered, he was looking forward, and revealing his plans to his confederates. The comparison is instructive. 1937 was attended by Lt.-Col. Hoszback, Hitler's personal adjutant, who 1937 and signed.
compiled a long note of the proceedings, which he dated the 10th November and Raeder, in their capacities as Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe, Reich Foreign Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy respectively, General von Blomberg, Minister of War, and General von Fritsch, the Commander-inChief of the Army. high importance that in other states it would have taken place before the Cabinet. He went on to say that the subject matter of his speech was the result of his detailed deliberations, and of his experiences during his four and a half years of Government. He requested that the statements he was about to make should be looked upon in the case of his death as his last will and testament. Hitler's main theme was the problem of living space, and he discussed various possible solutions, only to set them aside. He then said that the seizure of living space on the continent of Europe was therefore necessary, expressing himself in these words:
"It is not a case of conquering people but of con quering agriculturally useful space.
Itwould also ations.
... The history of ail times - Roman Empire.
and taking risks. Even setbacks are unavoidable without an owner; the attacker always comes up against the proprietor."
He concluded with this observation:
"The question for Germany is where the greatest possible conquest could be made at the lowest cost."
the events which soon followed showed the reality of his purpose. It is Nothing could indicate more plainly the aggressive intentions of Hitler, and impossible to accept the contention that Hitler did not actually mean war; for after pointing out that Germany might expect the opposition of England and France, and analyzing the strength and the weakness of those powers in particular situations, he continued:
"The German question can be solved only by way of force, and this is never without risk.
.. If we to reply to the Questions 'when' and 'how'. In this regard we have to decide upon three different cases."
The first of these three cases set forth a hypothetical international situation, in which he would take action not later than 1943 to 1945, saying:
"If the Fuehrer is still living then it will be his problem not later than 1943 to 1945.
The necessity sideration in Cases 2 and 3." The second and third cases to which Hitler referred show the plain intention to seize Austria and Czechoslovakia, and in this connection Hitler said:
"For the improvement of our military-political advance westwards."
He further added:
"The annexation of the two states to Germany new armies up to a strength of about twelve divisions."
This decision to seize Austria and Czechoslovakia was discussed in some detail;
itself.
the action was to be taken as soon as a favorable opportunity presented now to be directed at the two specific countries, Austria and Czechoslovakia. Hitler actually meant to attack Austria and Czechoslovakia, and that the purpose of the conference was only to put pressure on von Fritsch to speed up the re-armament of the Army. Blomberg, believed that Hitler actually meant war, a conviction which the defendant Raeder claims that he held up to the 22nd August 1939. The basis of this conviction was his hope that Hitler would obtain a "political solution" of Germany's problems. But all that this means, when examined, is the belief that Germany's position would be so good, and Germany's armed might so overwhelming, that the territory desired could be obtained without fighting for it. It must be remembered too that Hitler's declared intention with regard to Austria was actually carried out within a little over four months from the date of the meeting, and within less than a year the first portion of Czechoslovakia was absorbed, and Bohemia and Moravia a few months later. If any doubts had existed in the minds of any of his hearers in November 1937, after March of 1939 there could no longer be any question that Hitler was in deadly earnest in his decision to resort to war. The Tribunal is satisfied that Lt.-Col. Hoszbach's account of the meeting is substantially correct, and that those present knew thatAustria and Czechoslovakia would be annexed by Germany at the first possible opportunity.
THE PRESIDENT: The Tribunal will now adjourn for ten minutes.
(A recess was taken.)
THE PRESIDENT: I will now ask M. Donnedieu de Vabres to continue the reading of the judgment.
The invasion of Austria was a pre-meditated agressive step in
M. DONNEDIEU DE VABRES: furthering the plan to wage aggressive wars against other countries. As a result Germany's flank was protected, that of Czechoslovakia being greatly weakened. The first step had been taken in the seizure of "Lebensraum"; many new divisions of trained fightng men had been acquired; and with the seizure of foreign exchange reserves, the re-armament programme had been greatly strengthened. did not intend either to attack Austria or to interfere in her internal affairs. On the 1st May 1936 he publicly coupled Czechoslovakia wit Austria in his avowal of peaceful intentions; and so late as the 11th July 1936 he recognized by treaty the full sovereignty of Austria...
Austria was in fact seized by Germany in the month of March 1938. For a number of years before that date, the National Socialists in Germany had been cooperating with the National Socialists of Austria with the ultimate object of incorporating Austria into the German Reich. The Putsch of July 25th 1934, which resulted in the assassination of Chancellor Dollfuss, had the seizure of Austria as its object; but the Putsch failed, with the consequence that the National Socialist Party was outlawed in Austria. On the 11th July 1936 an agreement was entered into between the two countries, Article 1 of which stated:
"The German Government recognizes the full sovereignty of the 21st May 1935."
"Each of the two Governments regards the inner Article 2 declared:
political order (including the question of Austrian National Socialism) obtaining in the other country influence."
activities under cover of secrecy; and the National Socialists of Germany gave the Party active support. The resulting "incidents" were seized upon by the German National Socialists as an excuse for interfering in Austrian affairs. After the conference of the 5th November 1937, these "incidents" rapidly multiplied. The relationship between the two countries steadily worsened, and finally the Austrian Chancellor Schuschnigg was persuaded by the defendant von Papen and others to seek a conference with Hitler, which took place at Berchtesgaden on the 12th February 1939. The defendant Keitel was present at the conference, and Dr. Schuschnigg was threatened by Hitler with an immediate invasion of Austria. Schuschnigg finally agreed to grant a political amnesty to various Nazis convicted of crime, and to appoint the Nazi Seyss-Inquart as Minister of the Interior and Security with control of the Police. On the 9th March 1939, in an attempt to preserve the independence of his country, Dr. Schuschnigg decided to hold a plebiscite on the question of Austrian independence, which was fixed for the 13th March 1939. Hitler, two days later, sent an ultimatum to Schuschnigg that the plebiscite must be withdrawn. In the afternoon and evening of the 11th March 1939 the defendant Goering made a series of demands upon the Austrian Government, each backed up by the threat of invasion. After Schuschnigg had agreed to the cancellation of the plebiscite, another demand was put forward that Schuschnigg must resign, and that the defendant Seyss-Inquart should be appointed Chancellor.
first refusing to point Seyss-Inquart as Chancellor, gave way and In consequence Schuschnigg resigned, and President Miklas, after at appointed him.
to cross the border at dawn on the 12th of March and instructed SeyssInquart to use formations of Austrian National Socialists to depose Miklas and to seize control of the Austrian Government. After the order to parch had been given to the German troops, Goering telephoned the German Embassy in Vienna and dictated a telegram in which he wished Seyss-Inquart to send to Hitler to justify the military action which had already been ordered. It was :
"The provisional Austrian Government, which, after the bloodshed.
For this propose it asks the German Government at to send German troops as soon as possible."
Keppler, an official of the German Embassy, replied:
"Well, SA and SS are marching through the streets, but every thing is quiet."
After some further discussion, Goering stated:
"Please show him (Seyss-Inquart) the text of the well, he doesn't even have to send the telegram.
All he needs to do is to say 'Agreed'." Seyss-Inquart never sent the telegram; he never even telegraphed "Agreed." after 10 p.m., he called Keppler and told him to call up Hitler and ` transmit his protests against the occupation. This action outraged the defendant Goering, because "it would disturb the rest of the Fuehrer, Who wanted to go to Austria the next day." At 11:15 p.m. an official in the Ministry of Propaganda in Berlin the General Field Marshal that Seyss-Inquart agrees."
telephoned the German Embassy in Vienna and was told by Keppler: "Tell Austria, and met with no resistance. It was announced in the German press that Seyss-Inqurrt had been appointed the successor to Schuschnigg, and the telegram which Goering had suggested, but which was never sent, was quoted to show that Seyss-Inquart had requested the presence of German troops to prevent disorder. On the 13th March 1938 a law was passed for the reunion of Austria in the German Reich. SeyssInquart demanded that President Miklas should sign this law, but he refused to do so, and resigned his office. He was succeeded by SeyssInquart, who signed the law in the name of Austria. This law was then adopted as law of the Reich by a Reich Cabinet decree issued the same day, and signed by Hitler and the defendants Goering, Frick, von Ribbentrop and Hess. Austria was justified by the strong desire expressed in many quarters for the union of Austria and Germany; that there were many matters in common between the two peoples that made this union desirable ; and that in the result the object was achieved without bloodshed. plainly prove that the methods employed to achieve to object were these of an aggressor. The ultimate factor was the armed might of Germany ready to be used if any resistance was encountered. Moreover, none of these considerations appear from the Hoszbach account of the meetings of the 5th November contrary, all the emphasis is there laid on the advantage to 1937 to have been the motives which actuated Hitler; on the be gained by Germany in her military strength by the annexation of Austria.