Christian Schneider (19 November 1887 – 5 May 1972) was a German chemist, industrial manager and, in the Third Reich, a ''Wehrwirtschaftsführer'' (war economy leader).

Early years

The son of August Schneider, an electrician, and his wife, Babette Weiss, Schneider studied chemistry at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, completing his doctorate in 1911.Christian Schneider (1887–1972)
/ref> He began working with

Alwin Mittasch Paul Alwin Mittasch (Sorbian languages, sorbian: ''Pawoł Alwin Mitaš'') (born 27 December 1869 in Großdehsa/Dažin, today to Löbau, Germany; died 4 June 1953 in Heidelberg, Germany) was a German chemist and scientific historian of Sorbs, Sorbia ...

at the nitrogen laboratory at BASF in 1912 and remained in this role until joining the German Imperial Army in 1914, being injured during the conflict.

Career at IG Farben

Schneider became Carl Krauch's assistant at the IG Farben plant in Leuna in 1919 and soon rose through the corporate ranks. He was appointed an authorised signatory in 1921, a director two years later and became deputy manager of the Ammoniakwerke Merseburg plant in 1924. By 1928 he had been named an alternate member of IG Farben's managing board and was made plant manager at Merseburg in 1936.

Under the Nazis

Soon after Adolf Hitler came to power Schneider sought to underline his commitment to Nazism by becoming a sponsoring member of the Schutzstaffel. He held the rank of honorary

Standartenführer __NOTOC__ ''Standartenführer'' (short: ''Staf'', , ) was a Nazi Party (NSDAP) paramilitary rank that was used in several NSDAP organizations, such as the SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK. First founded as a title in 1925, in 1928 it became one of ...

within the organisation and developed a number of close contacts in the office of the Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler. He joined the Nazi Party proper in 1937 and also became involved in the counter-intelligence work of the

Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...

when he was made ''Hauptabwehrbeauftragter'' (head of security officers) for "Liaison Office W" (or Wehrmacht at IG Farben's headquarters in Berlin that same year). His career growth continued when he was appointed the head of Product Division I (which controlled IG Farben's mining, oil and nitrogen concern) in succession to Krauch, a post which brought with it full membership of the board. He became chief of plant managers in 1939, a role which also gave him responsibility for the slave labourers who worked on behalf of IG Farben at

Auschwitz Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...

. He was made chief of counter-intelligence at IG Farben in 1940 and a ''Wehrwirtschaftsführer'' in 1941. According to Diarmuid Jeffreys, Schneider was made aware of the Holocaust in early 1943 when

Walter Dürrfeld Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 1 ...

told him during a visit to

Buna Werke Buna Werke may refer to: * Buna Werke Schkopau, the first large-scale synthetic rubber plant in Schkopau, Germany * Monowitz Buna Werke Monowitz (also known as Monowitz-Buna, Buna and Auschwitz III) was a Nazi concentration camp and labor camp ...

in early 1943.Jeffreys, p. 275

Post-war

Brought to trial for plunder, slavery and SS membership at the IG Farben trial, Schneider was acquitted on all counts. After his acquittal, he took roles at the Süddeutsche Kalkstickstoff-Werke AG Trostberg and Rheinauer Holzhydrolyse-GmbH, Mannheim. During his life Schneider was twice married, to Frieda Butzengeiger and Hedwig Breidenbach, and fathered four children.

Bibliography

*Diarmuid Jeffreys, ''Hell's Cartel: IG Farben and the Making of Hitler's War Machine'', Bloomsbury, 2009

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schneider, Christian 1887 births 1972 deaths Businesspeople from Bavaria 20th-century German chemists German chemical industry people German Army personnel of World War I IG Farben people SS-Standartenführer University of Erlangen-Nuremberg alumni People from Kulmbach People acquitted by the United States Nuremberg Military Tribunals People from the Kingdom of Bavaria