The Nuremberg Trials (Vol.4). International Military Tribunal

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СКАЧАТЬ now proceed to offer evidence on the make-up and powers of the Reichsleitung or the Leadership Corps, which consisted of the Reichsleiter or Reich Leaders of the Nazi Party—and they are shown on that long horizontal list at the top of the chart—the Hauptämter (main offices), and the Ämter, or officeholders.

      The Reichsleiter of the Party were annexed to Hitler, the highest officeholders in the Party hierarchy. All of the Reichsleiter in the main office and officeholders within the Reichsleitung were appointed by Hitler and directly responsible to him.

      I quote from the first paragraph of Page 4, Document 1893-PS:

      “1. The Führer appoints the following political directors:

      “(a) Reichsleiter and all political directors, to include the directors of the Womens Leagues, within the Reich Directorate (Reichsleitung).”

      The significant fact to be grasped is that through the Reichsleitung perfect co-ordination of the Party and State machinery was guaranteed. The Party manual puts it this way—and I quote from the fourth sentence of the third paragraph of Page 20 of that document. You will find the page number at the bottom, Page 20. It is a very short quotation. I quote: “In the Reichsleitung the arteries of the organization of the German people and of the German State merge.”

      If Your Honors please, there is a little different translation in that portion in your book. To prove . . .

      THE PRESIDENT: Just a moment, please. It begins, “It is in the Reich Directorate where the strings of the organization of the German people and of the German State merge.” Is that it?

      COL. STOREY: Yes, Sir, that is it. This translation says, “the arteries of the organization of the German people and of the German State merge.”

      To prove that the Reichsleiter of the Leadership Corps included the most powerful coalition of political overlords in Nazi Germany, it is necessary only to put in evidence their names. The list of Reichsleiter now to be offered in evidence will include the following defendants now on trial before this Tribunal: Rosenberg, Von Schirach, Frick, Bormann, Hans Frank, and the late Defendant Robert Ley.

      The evidence to be introduced will show that the Defendant Rosenberg was the leader of an organization named for him, the “Einsatzstab Rosenberg”—which is not shown on this chart, if Your Honor please—which carried out a vast program of looting and plunder of art treasures throughout occupied Europe.

      The evidence will further show that, as representative of the Führer for the supervision of Nazi ideology and schooling, Rosenberg participated in an aggressive campaign to undermine the Christian churches and to supersede Christianity by a German National Church founded upon a combination of irrationality, pseudo-scientific theories, mysticism, and the discredited cult of the racial state. It will further be shown that the late Defendant Ley, acting as the agent of Hitler and the Leadership Corps, directed the Nazi assault upon the independent labor unions of Germany and that before destroying himself he first destroyed the bastion of republican society, a free and independent labor movement, replacing it by a Nazi organization, the German Labor Front, or the DAF, and employed this organization as a means of exploiting the German labor force in the interests of the conspiracy and to instill Nazi ideology among the ranks of the German workers.

      It will be shown that the Defendant Frick participated in the enactment of many laws which were designed to promote the conspiracy in its several phases.

      The Defendant Frick shares responsibility for the grave injury done by the officials of the Leadership Corps to the concept of the rule of law by virtue of his efforts to give the color of law and formal legality to a large volume of Nazi legislation which was violative of the rights of humanity, such as the Nazi discriminatory legislation designed to degrade, stigmatize, and eliminate the Jewish people of Germany and German-occupied Europe.

      Though the Defendant Bormann is physically absent from the dock, the evidence as to his responsibility in directing and furthering the course of the Nazi conspiracy is here and expands with the record in this case. As Chief of the Party Chancellery, right under Hitler, the Defendant Bormann was an extremely important force in directing the activities of the Leadership Corps. As will be shown, a decree of January 16, 1942 provided that the participation of the Party in all important legislation, governmental appointments, and promotions had to be undertaken exclusively by Bormann. He took part in the preparation of all laws and decrees issued by the Reich authorities and gave his assent to those of the subordinate governments.

      I now refer to Document 2473-PS, Exhibit Number USA-324. You will find that the English translation contains a list of the Reichsleiter of the NSDAP set forth on Page 170 of this book. It was edited by the late Defendant and Reichsleiter for Party Organization, Robert Ley. The names of the 15 Reichsleiter in office in 1943 will be found on Pages 1 and 2 of Document 2473-PS.

      If the Tribunal please, I will not read all of them but will call attention only to certain of them, as follows:

      Martin Bormann, Chief of the Party Chancellery; then we skip over to Wilhelm Frick, Leader of the National Socialist faction in the Reichstag, shown on the big chart over at the second box from the end on the right; Joseph Goebbels, Reich Propaganda Leader of the NSDAP, shown also on the same level; Heinrich Himmler, Reich Leader of the SS, the Deputy of the NSDAP for all questions of Germandom; Robert Ley, Reich Organization Leader of the NSDAP and Leader of the German Labor Front; Victor Lutze, Chief of Staff of the SA; Alfred Rosenberg, representative of the Führer for the supervision of all mental and ideological training and education of the NSDAP; Baldur von Schirach, Reich Leader for the education of the youth of the National Socialist Party; and then, finally, Franz Schwarz, Reich Treasurer of the National Socialist Party.

      The principal functions of the Reichsleiter, which we might call directors, included the responsibility of carrying out the tasks and missions assigned to them by the Führer or by the Chief of the Party Chancellery, the Defendant Martin Bormann. The Reichsleiter were further charged with insuring that Party policies were being executed in all the subordinate areas of the Reich. They were also responsible for insuring a continual flow of new leadership into the Party.

      With respect to the function and the responsibilities of the Reichsleiter I now quote from Page 20 of Document Number 1893-PS:

      “The NSDAP represents the political conception, the political conscience, and the political will of the German nation. Political conception, political conscience, and political will are embodied in the person of the Führer. Based on his directive and in accordance with the program of the NSDAP, the organs of the Reich Directorate directionally determine the political aims of the German people. It is in the Reich Directorate”—or Reichsleitung—“that the arteries of the organization of the German people and State merge. It is the task of the separate organs of the Reich Directorate to maintain as close a contact as possible with the life of the nation through their sub-offices in the Gau . . . .

      “The structure of the Reich Directorate is thus that the channel from the lowest Party office upwards shows the most minute weaknesses and changes in the mood of the people . . . .

      “Another essential task of the Reich Directorate is to assure a good selection of leaders. It is the duty of the Reich Directorate to see that there is leadership in all phases of life, a leadership which is firmly tied to National Socialist ideology and which promotes its dissemination with all of its energy . . . .

      “It is the supreme task of the Reich Organization Leader to preserve the Party as a well-sharpened sword for the Führer.”

      The domination of the German Government by the top members of the Leadership Corps was facilitated by a СКАЧАТЬ