Egbert Hayessen (28 December 1913 – 15 August 1944) was a German

resistance fighter A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

in the struggle against

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 ...

, and a major in the army. Born in

Eisleben Eisleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is famous as both the hometown of the influential theologian Martin Luther and the place where he died; hence, its official name is Lutherstadt Eisleben. First mentioned in the late 10th century, E ...

, Hayessen grew up on the

Hessian A Hessian is an inhabitant of the German state of Hesse. Hessian may also refer to: Named from the toponym *Hessian (soldier), eighteenth-century German regiments in service with the British Empire **Hessian (boot), a style of boot **Hessian f ...

state domain of Mittelhof near

Felsberg Felsberg (german: rock hill, link=no) may refer to: * Felsberg, Hessen, a town in Schwalm-Eder-Kreis, Hessen, Germany * , a part of Überherrn, Landkreis Saarlouis, Saarland, Germany * Felsberg (Odenwald), a mountain in the Odenwald hills, Landk ...

-Gensungen. In 1924, he went to

Roßleben Roßleben is a town and a former municipality in the Kyffhäuserkreis district, with a population of 4,885 (2017). It is located in Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 January 2019, it is part of the town Roßleben-Wiehe. It is situated on the river Unst ...

. There, in 1933 at the Roßleben Monastery School he did his ''

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

''. After his ''Abitur'', Hayessen completed military training at Artillery Regiment no. 12 in

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch dialect, Mecklenburgian Low German: ''Swerin''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germany, second-largest city of the northeastern States of Germany, German ...

as a career officer and rose to major on the General Staff with General

Friedrich Fromm Friedrich Wilhelm Waldemar Fromm (8 October 1888 – 12 March 1945) was a German Army officer. In World War II, Fromm was Commander in Chief of the Replacement Army (''Ersatzheer''), in charge of training and personnel replacement for combat divi ...

, Commander-in-chief of the Reserve Army. Hayessen first learnt of the plot against Hitler and

Operation Valkyrie Operation Valkyrie (german: Unternehmen Walküre) was a German World War II emergency continuity of government operations plan issued to the Territorial Reserve Army of Germany to execute and implement in the event of a general breakdown in civ ...

on 15 July 1944 from

Robert Bernardis Robert Bernardis (7 August 1908 in Innsbruck – 8 August 1944 in Berlin- Plötzensee) was a German army officer and Austrian resistance fighter involved in the attempt to kill Nazi Germany's dictator Adolf Hitler in the 20 July Plot in 1944. A ...

. He turned away from

National Socialism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

and took part in the attempt to assassinate Hitler at the

Wolf's Lair The ''Wolf's Lair'' (german: Wolfsschanze; pl, Wilczy Szaniec) served as Adolf Hitler's first Eastern Front military headquarters in World War II. The headquarters was located in the Masurian woods, near the small village of Görlitz in Ostp ...

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label=Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...

on 20 July 1944, taking on the foreseen logistical connections between City Commandant

Paul von Hase Karl Paul Immanuel von Hase (24 July 1885 – 8 August 1944) was a German career soldier and figured among the members of the resistance against Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime. Biography Hase was born in Hanover. He was the fifth child of Paul and ...

and Police President

Wolf-Heinrich Graf von Helldorf Wolf-Heinrich Julius Otto Bernhard Fritz Hermann Ferdinand Graf von Helldorff (14 October 1896 – 15 August 1944) was an SA-''Obergruppenführer'', German police official and politician. He served as a member of the Landtag of Prussia during th ...

. On the day of the attack, Egbert Hayessen brought Paul von Hase the news of General Fromm's arrest at headquarters on Bendlerstraße in Berlin. At the City Commandant's office, Hayessen then took part in the preparations to occupy the radio building in Berlin and to arrest Propaganda Minister

Joseph 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 19 ...

. On 15 August 1944, Hayessen was sentenced to death by hanging at the '' Volksgerichtshof'', and the sentence was carried out the same day at

Plötzensee Prison Plötzensee Prison (german: Justizvollzugsanstalt Plötzensee, JVA Plötzensee) is a juvenile prison in the Charlottenburg-Nord locality of Berlin with a capacity for 577 prisoners, operated by the State of Berlin judicial administration. The d ...

in Berlin. Egbert Hayessen is memorialized at the Plötzensee Memorial Centre. Furthermore, a plaque in memory of his act of conscience may be seen outside the Mittelhof near Gensungen.

Literature

* Plötzensee Memorial Centre Archive

References

External links

Biography at ''Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand''

Article about Hayessen on his school's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hayessen, Egbert 1913 births 1944 deaths People from Eisleben People from Saxony-Anhalt executed at Plötzensee Prison Executed members of the 20 July plot German Army officers of World War II People from the Province of Saxony People condemned by Nazi courts People executed by hanging at Plötzensee Prison