Ernst Josef Albert Weiner (13 December 1913 – 17 December 1945) was a German ''SS-Hauptsturmführer'' during

World War II 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 ...

. He was most noted for his role in

Operation Blumenpflücken Operation Blumenpflücken ( en, Operation Flower Picking) was a counter- resistance operation in occupied Norway, planned and carried out by the Gestapo/Sicherheitspolizei in 1944 and early 1945. It was planned by Ernst Weiner, and was a part of t ...

during the

occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...

Early life

Ernst Weiner was born on 13 December 1913 in

Neustadt an der Waldnaab Neustadt an der Waldnaab ( Bavarian: ''Neistodt an da Woidnaab'') is a municipality in Bavaria, Germany, and county seat of the district Neustadt an der Waldnaab. Sister cities Neustadt an der Waldnaab has one sister city: * Hays, Kansas ...

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 ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, to a merchant father. After high school, he attended a seminary for a year to train as a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

priest, before giving up theology and working for a time in the Bavarian administration.

World War II

Weiner became a member of the German National Socialist Party (NSDAP) in 1935 and joined the

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 ...

police in 1936. His first police job was at the passport office and later he supervised religious sects. He then worked to secure German industry against sabotage. With the help and friendship of the Nuremberg police president, Dr. Martin, Weiner advanced to become a police adjutant. In February 1944, Weiner was stationed in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

, where he held the ranks of ''SS-Hauptsturmführer'' and ''Kriminalrat.'' He was head of Gestapo Office IV N in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, which operated under the ''

Sicherheitspolizei The ''Sicherheitspolizei'' ( en, Security Police), often abbreviated as SiPo, was a term used in Germany for security police. In the Nazi era, it referred to the state political and criminal investigation security agencies. It was made up by the ...

''. Weiner was involved in a retaliation operation named

, and personally conducted four murders as part of it, killing

Einar Hærland Einar Hærland (3 January 1909 – 12 June 1944) was a Norwegian military officer who was executed during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He was born in Solum as the son of Ole Hærland and his wife Marie, née Knudsen. Einar Hærlan ...

Sigurd Roll Sigurd Emil Roll (14 October 1893 – 24 June 1944) was a Norwegian diplomat and former sprinter who was executed during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He had a brother William Roll (diplomat). Early life and family Roll was born ...

, Gunnar Spangen and Sigrid Hammerø. However, historians Arnfinn Moland and

Tore Pryser Tore Pryser (born 9 January 1945) is a Norwegian historian, who has served as professor at the Lillehammer University College since 1993. Born in Oslo, he took a cand.philol. degree at the University of Oslo. He was appointed at the Lillehamm ...

do not include Hammerø in this list, placing the number of victims at three.Moland, 1999: p. 285

Post-war and death

Following the Nazi surrender and

end of World War II in Europe The final battle of the European Theatre of World War II continued after the definitive overall surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allies, signed by Field marshal Wilhelm Keitel on 8 May 1945 in Karlshorst, Berlin. After German dictator Adolf H ...

on 8 May 1945, Weiner disguised himself in a ''

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

'' uniform and used a false name to blend in with imprisoned German soldiers at a camp near

Støren is the administrative centre of Midtre Gauldal municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located in the Gauldalen valley at the confluence of the rivers Gaula and ''Sokna''. Støren is located on the European route E06 highway ...

Sør-Trøndelag Sør-Trøndelag () was a county comprising the southern portion of the present-day Trøndelag county in Norway. It bordered the old Nord-Trøndelag county as well as the counties of Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, and Hedmark. To the west is the No ...

. Despite being recognised at the camp, and the fact he was wanted for war crimes, Weiner was transferred back to Germany to a camp in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

authorities eventually realised what had happened and had him returned to Norway. The two personnel responsible for letting him return to Germany were both fired. Weiner was interrogated as a part of the post-war legal purge in Norway, but was never convicted: on 17 December 1945, while being held at the

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...

, he shot and killed himself and a fellow prisoner. However, it has been claimed by fellow inmates that he was murdered as an act of revenge.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weiner, Ernst 1913 births 1945 suicides Nazis who committed suicide in prison custody SS and Police Leaders German mass murderers German expatriates in Norway Murder–suicides in Europe Suicides by firearm in Norway SS-Hauptsturmführer Prisoners who died in Norwegian detention 1944 murders in Norway Nazi war criminals

Early life

World War II

Post-war and death

See also

References