Oskar Paul Dirlewanger, a German military officer and war criminal, is infamous for his role as the founder and commander of the Nazi SS penal unit ‘Dirlewanger’ during the Second World War. Known for his involvement in some of the most heinous crimes of the war, Dirlewanger’s reputation preceded him even before the outbreak of the war. Born in Wurzburg, he had a history of military service, having fought in the First World War and various conflicts following it. After the war, Dirlewanger’s fate remains uncertain, with reports suggesting he was beaten to death by his guards while in Allied custody, although some theories propose that he managed to escape. Historians have described him as an exceptionally cruel individual, with some labeling him a psychopathic killer and child molester, while others characterize him as violently sadistic.
Quick Facts
- German Celebrities Born In September
- Also Known As: Oskar Paul Dirlewanger
- Died At Age: 49
- Family: father: August Dirlewanger, mother: Pauline Dirlewanger
- Born Country: Germany
- War Criminals
- German Men
- Died on: June 7, 1945
- Place of death: Altshausen
- More Facts
- Education: Goethe University Frankfurt
- Awards: Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross, German Cross
Childhood & Early Life
Oskar Dirlewanger was born on 26th September 1895, in Wurzburg in the German Empire. Not much is known regarding his childhood or parents.
Military Career
Oskar Dirlewanger began his military career in 1913 in the Prussian Army where he served as a machine gunner in the Grenadier Regiment 123. During the First World War, he took part in the German invasion of Belgium, where he was wounded six times. He received the Iron Cross 2nd class and 1st class.
According to German biographer Knut Stang, the war was the contributing factor that led to the deterioration of Dirlewanger’s later mental state and personality. He became an alcoholic and developed sadistic sexual habits.
At the end of the war, he joined different right-wing paramilitary militias to fight against German communists as well as Polish nationalists. He helped suppress an attempted ‘putsch’ during the German Revolution of 1918-1919.
In 1921, he commanded an armored train which moved towards Sangerhausen. Dirlewanger’s attack failed, but he was eventually reinforced by anti-communist troops, forcing the communists to withdraw.
After the Nazi Party gained power, Dirlewanger became known as the town’s liberator from the “Red” terrorists, and he also received an honorary citizenship in 1935.
For a while, he studied at the Goethe University Frankfurt and obtained a doctorate in political science in 1922. The next year, he joined the Nazi Party and the SS. During this time, he held various jobs, including working as the executive director of a textile factory, working at a bank, and at a knit-wear factory.
He was convicted for illegal arms possession and embezzlement multiple times. In 1934, he was also sentenced for two years for the rape of a 14-year-old girl. He lost his job, military honors, as well as his doctorate.
After his release, he went to Spain where he enlisted in the Spanish Foreign Legion during the Spanish Civil War.
Atrocities and War Crimes
At the beginning of the Second World War, Dirlewanger volunteered for the Waffen SS. He was given the rank of Obersturmfuhrer (Senior Storm Leader) and assigned a battalion that eventually became known as the Dirlewanger Brigade. Most of his soldiers were former poachers, and he even recruited convicted criminals, mental asylum patients, and political prisoners.
The unit was assigned to security duties initially in German-occupied Poland, where Dirlewanger was a SS-TV commandant of a labor camp. He was accused of murder and corruption when the camp was investigated for abuse.
Dirlewanger is known to have committed numerous atrocities, including injecting strychnine into Jewish female prisoners and watching them convulse to death. He is also said to have boiled dead Jewish women with horse meat to make soap and killed hundreds of school children in Warsaw.
His unit was assigned for ‘anti-bandit’ operations in Belarus, where he reportedly put civilians inside a barn, set it on fire, and shot anyone trying to escape. At least 30,000 Belarusian civilians are believed to have been killed.
Even though Heinrich Himmler knew about his crimes and atrocities, Dirlewanger received the German cross in December 1943 for extermination of ‘bandits’.
During the suppression of the ‘Warsaw Uprising’, Dirlewanger is known to have committed horrendous crimes, including killing as many as 40,000 civilians during the Wola massacre. He burnt down hospitals with patients inside and subjected nurses to torture and rape.
During the Slovak National Uprising in October 1944, Dirlewanger fought against the advancing Red Army. He was eventually shot in the chest and went into hiding on 22nd April 1945.
Later Years & Death
Dirlewanger never married. He was arrested on 1st June 1945, near the town of Altshausen in Upper Swabia by the French occupation zone authorities. He was recognized by a former Jewish concentration camp inmate and brought to a detention center.
He reportedly passed away a few days later, possibly due to ill-treatment by the guards. However, his death is debated by many; some say that he actually escaped and later only later.