Adolf Wagner (1 October 1890 – 12 April 1944) was a
Nazi Party
The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...
official and politician who served as the Party's ''
Gauleiter
A ''Gauleiter'' () was a regional leader of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) who served as the head of a ''Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany, Gau'' or ''Reichsgau''. ''Gauleiter'' was the third-highest Ranks and insignia of the Nazi Party, rank in ...
'' in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
and as the powerful
Interior Minister
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...
of
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
throughout most of the
Third Reich
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
.
Early years
Born in Algringen (today,
Algrange
Algrange (; Lorraine Franconian: ''Oolgréngen'' or ''Algréngen''; german: Algringen) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in northeastern France. They have an association football team, AS Algrange, playing in the regional div ...
) in
Alsace-Lorraine to a coal miner and his wife, Wagner attended ''
volksschule
The German term ''Volksschule'' generally refers to compulsory education, denoting an educational institution every person (i.e. the people, ''Volk'') is required to attend.
In Germany and Switzerland it is equivalent to a combined primary (' ...
'' locally and ''
realschule
''Realschule'' () is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), ...
'' in
Metz
Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...
and
Pforzheim
Pforzheim () is a city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany.
It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the nickname "Goldstadt" ("Golden City") ...
. After serving as a
one-year volunteer
A one-year volunteer, short EF ( de: ''Einjährig-Freiwilliger''), was, in a number of national armed forces, a conscript who agreed to pay his own costs for the procurement of equipment, food and clothing, in return for spending a shorter-than-usu ...
with Infantry Regiment 143, Wagner then studied natural science and mathematics at
Strasbourg University for a year and then mining at
RWTH Aachen University
RWTH Aachen University (), also known as North Rhine-Westphalia Technical University of Aachen, Rhine-Westphalia Technical University of Aachen, Technical University of Aachen, University of Aachen, or ''Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hoch ...
for three years. He received his certification as a
mining engineer
Mining in the engineering discipline is the extraction of minerals from underneath, open pit, above or on the ground. Mining engineering is associated with many other disciplines, such as mineral processing, exploration, excavation, geology, and ...
in 1914 but when the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
broke out he volunteered for service with the
Imperial German Army
The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (german: Deutsches Heer), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the l ...
. He was assigned to Infantry Regiment 135 as a
non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...
on the
western front, was commissioned a ''
Leutnant
() is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German (language), German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland.
History
The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") fro ...
'' in 1917 and served as a
company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...
commander and as an orderly officer at regimental headquarters. He was twice wounded, first by
poison gas
Many gases have toxic properties, which are often assessed using the LC50 (median lethal dose) measure. In the United States, many of these gases have been assigned an NFPA 704 health rating of 4 (may be fatal) or 3 (may cause serious or perman ...
and in 1918 he lost his right leg below the knee. He was awarded the
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...
, 1st and 2nd class, and was discharged at the end of the war in 1918.
Wagner returned to
Lorraine
Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...
after the war but in 1919 was expelled by the French authorities when the area was returned to
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
under the terms of the
Versailles Treaty
The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
. He moved to
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
and found employment as a manager at the United Coal and Ore Mining Union in
Erbendorf
Erbendorf () is a town in the Upper Palatinate (Oberpfalz) region of Germany. As of December, 2006, the town has a population of 5,341.
The following villages are incorporated into the town:
Aschenhof, Birkenreuth, Boxdorf, Eppenhof, Frodersreut ...
. He later worked as a business manager at the
Pinzgau
The Bezirk Zell am See is an administrative district (''Bezirk'') in the federal state of Salzburg, Austria, and congruent with the Pinzgau region ().
The area of the district is , with a population of 84,124 (May 15, 2001), and population dens ...
Mining Company across the Bavarian border in
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
. He was employed at these companies from 1919 to 1929.
Nazi career
Wagner joined the Nazi Party in 1923 (membership number 11,330) and became the ''
Ortsgruppenleiter
''Ortsgruppenleiter'' (Local Group Leader) was a Nazi Party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945. The term first came into being during the German elections of 1930, and was held by the head Nazi of a town or city, or in ...
'' (Local Group Leader) in Erbendorf. He participated in the abortive
Beer Hall Putsch
The Beer Hall Putsch, also known as the Munich Putsch,Dan Moorhouse, ed schoolshistory.org.uk, accessed 2008-05-31.Known in German as the or was a failed coup d'état by Nazi Party ( or NSDAP) leader Adolf Hitler, Erich Ludendorff and othe ...
of 9 November 1923, for which he earned the
Blood Order
The Blood Order (german: Blutorden), officially known as the "Decoration in Memory (of the Munich putsch) of 9 November 1923" (), was one of the most prestigious decorations in the Nazi Party (NSDAP). During March 1934, Hitler authorized the Bl ...
. When the Nazi Party was banned after the failed coup, Wagner joined the Völkischer Block, a Nazi
front organization
A front organization is any entity set up by and controlled by another organization, such as intelligence agencies, organized crime groups, terrorist organizations, secret societies, banned organizations, religious or political groups, advocacy gro ...
. Under its banner, he, along with 22 others, was sent to the
Bavarian ''Landtag'' in the
April 1924 election, serving there until October 1933. In an incident in January 1932, Wagner was sentenced by a court to a fine of or ten days in jail for assaulting a journalist on the floor of the ''Landtag''.
Gauleiter
Five months after the Nazi Party was re-established, he re-joined it on 20 July 1925. On 1 October 1928 he was appointed ''
Gauleiter
A ''Gauleiter'' () was a regional leader of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) who served as the head of a ''Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany, Gau'' or ''Reichsgau''. ''Gauleiter'' was the third-highest Ranks and insignia of the Nazi Party, rank in ...
'' of the
Upper Palatinate
The Upper Palatinate (german: Oberpfalz, , ) is one of the seven administrative districts of Bavaria, Germany, and is located in the east of Bavaria.
Geography
The Upper Palatinate is a landscape with low mountains and numerous ponds and lakes ...
. On 1 November 1929 he was switched to the prestigious post of ''Gauleiter'' of Greater
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, the seat of the Nazi movement. Finally, on 16 November 1930 his Gau absorbed the neighboring Gau of
Upper Bavaria
Upper Bavaria (german: Oberbayern, ; ) is one of the seven administrative districts of Bavaria, Germany.
Geography
Upper Bavaria is located in the southern portion of Bavaria, and is centered on the city of Munich, both state capital and seat o ...
and he became ''Gauleiter'' of
Gau Munich-Upper Bavaria
The Gau Munich–Upper Bavaria (German: ''Gau München–Oberbayern'') was an administrative division of Nazi Germany in Upper Bavaria from 1933 to 1945. From 1930 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area.
H ...
, which was given the special designation ''Traditionsgau''. As ''Gauleiter'' of Munich, Wagner served as the master of ceremonies for the annual commemorations of the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch every 9 November. Also, Wagner was given the honorary title of “Speaker of the Party,” a special designation that entitled him to read the ''
Führer
( ; , spelled or ''Fuhrer'' when the Umlaut (diacritic), umlaut is not available) is a German word meaning "leader" or "guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with the Nazi Germany, Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.
Nazi Germany ...
's'' proclamations at public events such as the annual
Nazi Party rally held in
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
. Wagner's pitch, intonation and speaking style were considered very similar to
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
's.
Shortly after the
Nazi seizure of power
Adolf Hitler's rise to power began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919 when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He rose to a place of prominence in the early years of the party. Be ...
in Germany, Wagner was sent by Hitler to take charge of the Bavarian police apparatus as the State Commissioner (''Staatskommissar'') for the Bavarian Interior Ministry on 9 March 1933. In this post, he controlled all the security apparatus of the state. He advocated the establishment of special
protective custody
Protective custody (PC) is a type of imprisonment (or care) to protect a person from harm, either from outside sources or other prisoners. Many prison administrators believe the level of violence, or the underlying threat of violence within pri ...
facilities that resulted in
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...
, then Acting
Police President in Munich, soon setting up the first Nazi
concentration camp
Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...
in
Dachau. On 23 March, Wagner was made a member of the ''
Sturmabteilung
The (; SA; literally "Storm Detachment") was the original paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party. It played a significant role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s. Its primary purposes were providing protection for Nazi ral ...
'' (SA) with the rank of SA-''
Gruppenführer
__NOTOC__
''Gruppenführer'' (, ) was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party (NSDAP), first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA. Since then, the term ''Gruppenführer'' is also used for leaders of groups/teams of the police, fire de ...
'' and he would be promoted to SA-''
Obergruppenführer
' (, "senior group leader") was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissio ...
'' on 9 November 1937. On 12 April 1933, he was formally appointed
interior minister
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...
and also Deputy
Minister-President
A minister-president or minister president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments with a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government where they preside over the council of ministers. It ...
of Bavaria. He thus wielded enormous power in both the party and the government, despite nominally reporting to ''
Reichsstatthalter
The ''Reichsstatthalter'' (, ''Imperial lieutenant'') was a title used in the German Empire and later in Nazi Germany.
''Statthalter des Reiches'' (1879–1918)
The office of ''Statthalter des Reiches'' (otherwise known as ''Reichsstatthalte ...
'' (Reich Governor)
Franz Ritter von Epp. He was elected a deputy to the ''
Reichstag'' in November 1933 for electoral constituency 24, Upper Bavaria-Swabia. On 28 November 1936, he was also made Bavarian Minister for Education and Culture.
In May 1934, Wagner secured an appointment on the staff of Deputy ''Führer'',
Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess (Heß in German; 26 April 1894 – 17 August 1987) was a German politician and a leading member of the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. Appointed Deputy Führer to Adolf Hitler in 1933, Hess held that position unt ...
to head a task force charged with reform of the Reich structure. An opponent of federalism, Wagner advocated for more centralized control by the Party. By February 1935, Wagner produced a lengthy report titled “Reconstruction of the Reich” calling for the placement of all legislative and executive decision-making power in the hands of Party officials, leaving the State authorities as mere administrative entities. It envisioned new territorial divisions called ''
Reichsgau
A (plural ) was an administrative subdivision created in a number of areas annexed by Nazi Germany between 1938 and 1945.
Overview
The term was formed from the words (realm, empire) and , the latter a deliberately medieval-sounding word wi ...
e'' which cut across traditional federal boundaries. The Party heads of the new areas would be undisputed
viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
s of their jurisdictions. However, Wagner’s “Reichsreform” never got beyond the planning stage for Germany proper because, due to the competing interests involved and significant push-back from the State organs, Hitler soon lost interest. However, it eventually would serve, more or less, as the model when foreign territories were absorbed into the Reich.
Role in the SA purge, Jewish pogroms and religious persecution
Wagner played a key role during the purge of the SA leaders known as the
Night of the Long Knives
The Night of the Long Knives (German: ), or the Röhm purge (German: ''Röhm-Putsch''), also called Operation Hummingbird (German: ''Unternehmen Kolibri''), was a purge that took place in Nazi Germany from 30 June to 2 July 1934. Chancellor Ad ...
on 30 June 1934. When Hitler arrived in Munich, he found that Wagner had already arrested the leaders of the Munich SA. He had also set up patrols at the Munich railway station to check for wanted SA leaders as they arrived in the city. Later that day, when the governor of the
Stadelheim prison
Stadelheim Prison (german: Justizvollzugsanstalt München), in Munich's Giesing district, is one of the largest Prisons in Germany, prisons in Germany.
Founded in 1894, it was the site of many executions, particularly by guillotine during the Nazi ...
refused to hand over six SA leaders to the
SS execution squad because the list of names he received was unsigned, Wagner signed the document in his capacity as Bavarian Interior Minister, and the six were turned over to the SS and summarily executed.
In carrying out the Nazi Party's
anti-semitic
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
policies, Wagner instigated and organized violent anti-Jewish demonstrations in the city center of Munich in May 1935 that were carried out by a mob of about 200 members of the SA and the SS. Additionally, on 9 July 1938, the main
synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
in Munich near the
Marienplatz
Marienplatz (English: Mary's Square, i.e. St. Mary, Our Lady's Square) is a central square in the city centre of Munich, Germany. It has been the city's main square since 1158.
History
During the Middle Ages, markets and tournaments were held ...
was destroyed on Wagner's orders. A few months later, during the ''
Kristallnacht
() or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (german: Novemberpogrome, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) paramilitary and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation from ...
''
pogrom
A pogrom () is a violent riot incited with the aim of massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews. The term entered the English language from Russian to describe 19th- and 20th-century attacks on Jews in the Russia ...
of 9-10 November 1938, rampaging Nazis also destroyed other historic synagogues throughout the city and looted Jewish shops. Then on 12 November, following a speech in which Wagner denounced
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
s as allies of the Jews, a violent mob stoned the residence of
Archbishop
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
Michael Faulhaber who had been at times critical of the Nazis.
As Bavarian Education Minister, on 23 April 1941 Wagner ordered that school prayer be replaced by
Nazi songs
Nazi songs are songs and marches created by the Nazi Party. In modern Germany, the public singing or performing of songs exclusively associated with the Nazi Party is now illegal.
Background
There is often confusion between songs written specifica ...
and that crucifixes and religious pictures be removed from Bavarian classrooms, which outraged the Roman Catholic Church and the heavily Catholic general public.
The opposition to this move was so strong that Wagner was forced to rescind the order on 28 August, one of the rare circumstances of successful public opposition in
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
.
Relationship with Hitler
Despite this setback, Hitler apparently remained on good terms with Wagner, one of the ''
Alter Kämpfer
''Alter Kämpfer'' (German for "Old Fighter"; plural: ''Alte Kämpfer'') is a term referring to the earliest members of the Nazi Party, i.e. those who joined it before the ''Reichstag'' 1930 German federal election, with many belonging to the par ...
'' and holder of the
Golden Party Badge
__NOTOC__
The Golden Party Badge (german: Goldenes Parteiabzeichen) was an award authorised by Adolf Hitler in a decree in October 1933. It was a special award given to all Nazi Party members who had, as of 9 November 1933, registered numbers fr ...
. Confident of his close ties with Hitler, Wagner openly boasted that he often ignored directives from ''
Reichsminister
Reichsminister (in German singular and plural; 'minister of the realm') was the title of members of the German Government during two historical periods: during the March revolution of 1848/1849 in the German Reich of that period, and in the mode ...
s'', and that if they wanted to consult with him on issues, they would have to schedule a visit to Munich. At other times, Hitler made his airplane available to Wagner for trips to
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. Wagner generally had access to Hitler, and could appeal directly to him for support when conflicts arose with other officials, as he was often among the circle of intimates invited to Hitler's residence on the
Obersalzberg
Obersalzberg is a mountainside retreat situated above the market town of Berchtesgaden in Bavaria, Germany. Located about south-east of Munich, close to the border with Austria, it is best known as the site of Adolf Hitler's former mountain resi ...
. Rare 8 mm colour film of Wagner appears in
home movies
A home movie is a short amateur film or video typically made just to preserve a visual record of family activities, a vacation, or a special event, and intended for viewing at home by family and friends. Originally, home movies were made on ph ...
(c. 1938) filmed by Hitler's companion,
Eva Braun
Eva Anna Paula Hitler (; 6 February 1912 – 30 April 1945) was a German photographer who was the longtime companion and briefly the wife of Adolf Hitler. Braun met Hitler in Munich when she was a 17-year-old assistant and model for his ...
. He can be seen talking with Hitler on the terrace of Hitler's Bavarian residence the ''
Berghof'', near
Berchtesgaden
Berchtesgaden () is a municipality in the district Berchtesgadener Land, Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, near the border with Austria, south of Salzburg and southeast of Munich. It lies in the Berchtesgaden Alps, south of Berchtesgaden; the ...
.
War years, illness and death
At the outbreak of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
on 1 September 1939, Wagner was named
Reich Defense Commissioner Reich Defense Commissioner (German: ''Reichsverteidigungskommissar'', RVK) was a governmental position created in Nazi Germany at the outbreak of World War II on 1 September 1939. Charged with overall defense of the territory of the German Reich, th ...
for ''
Wehrkreise'' (Military Districts) VII and XIII. He was the only Commissioner named to head two districts. His jurisdiction included his Gau and four other Bavarian Gaue (
Bayreuth
Bayreuth (, ; bar, Bareid) is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtelgebirge Mountains. The town's roots date back to 1194. In the 21st century, it is the capital of U ...
,
Franconia
Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch'').
The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper Fr ...
,
Mainfranken and
Swabia
Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.
The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...
) as well as the northwestern section of
Reichsgau Sudetenland
The Reichsgau Sudetenland was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1939 to 1945. It comprised the northern part of the '' Sudetenland'' territory, which was annexed from Czechoslovakia according to the 30 September 1938 Munich Agreement. ...
. In this position, Wagner assumed responsibility for
civil defense
Civil defense ( en, region=gb, civil defence) or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from man-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, miti ...
,
air defense
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
and evacuation activities, as well as for managing the local war economy by administering wartime
rationing
Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular ...
and suppressing
black market activities. On 15 November 1940, he became the Housing Commissioner for his Gau and, on 6 April 1942, he was named the Representative in Gau Munich-Upper Bavaria for
Fritz Sauckel
Ernst Friedrich Christoph "Fritz" Sauckel (27 October 1894 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician, ''Gauleiter'' of Gau Thuringia from 1927 and the General Plenipotentiary for Labour Deployment (''Arbeitseinsatz'') from March 1942 unti ...
in his capacity as General Plenipotentiary for Labor Deployment. In this role, Wagner assisted in procuring
forced civilian labor for Germany's wartime industries.
Wagner for many years suffered from the effects of chronic
alcoholism
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...
, and his condition worsened in November 1941 after follow-up operations for his WWI leg injury. In June 1942 Wagner was still recuperating and was replaced in his official duties by
Paul Giesler
Paul Giesler (15 June 1895 – 8 May 1945) was a German Nazi Party functionary responsible for acts of brutality which included killing opponents of the regime in southern Germany. He first joined the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in 1922; he reenrolled on ...
in an
acting capacity
In law, a person is acting in a position if they are not serving in the position on a permanent basis. This may be the case if the position has not yet been formally created, the person is only occupying the position on an interim basis, the perso ...
on 23 June. Then at a Party rally in
Traunstein
Traunstein (Central Bavarian: ''Traunstoa'') is a town in the south-eastern part of Bavaria, Germany, and is the administrative center of a much larger district of the same name. The town serves as a local government, retail, health services, ...
on 15 July 1942, Wagner suffered a
stroke
A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...
that very seriously incapacitated him with impaired speech and mobility. Wagner nominally remained in his posts until a second stroke resulted in his death on 12 April 1944, at which time Giesler was named his permanent successor. The increasingly reclusive ''Führer'' made a rare public appearance to attend Wagner's lavish funeral on 17 April at the
Deutsches Museum
The Deutsches Museum (''German Museum'', officially (English: ''German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology'')) in Munich, Germany, is the world's largest museum of science and technology, with about 28,000 exhibited objects from ...
that included a
eulogy
A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as a ...
by Minister of Propaganda
Josef Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to 194 ...
. The deceased ''Gauleiter'' was posthumously awarded the
German Order, the Nazi Party's highest decoration. He was buried near the ''
Ehrentempel
The Honor Temples (german: Ehrentempel) were two structures in Munich, erected by the Nazis in 1935, housing the sarcophagi of the sixteen members of the Party who had been killed in the failed Beer Hall Putsch (the Blutzeugen, "blood witnesses ...
'' (Honor Temples) which housed the remains of those killed in the Beer Hall Putsch.
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
* Müller, Winfried: ''Gauleiter als Minister. Die Gauleiter Hans Schemm, Adolf Wagner, Paul Giesler und das Bayerische Staatsministerium für Unterricht und Kultus 1933-1945'', In: ''Zeitschrift für Bayerische Landesgeschichte 60'', 1997, (973-1021).
*
*
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagner, Adolf
1890 births
1944 deaths
Gauleiters
Holocaust perpetrators in Germany
Lorraine-German people
Members of the Landtag of Bavaria
Members of the Reichstag of Nazi Germany
Ministers of the Bavaria State Government
Nazi Party officials
Nazi Party politicians
Nazis who participated in the Beer Hall Putsch
People from Algrange
People from Alsace-Lorraine
People of the Weimar Republic
Recipients of the German Order (decoration)
Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class
Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class
Sturmabteilung officers
German Army personnel of World War I