Germar Rudolf (born 29 October 1964), also known as Germar Scheerer,
is a German chemist and a convicted
Holocaust denier
Holocaust denial is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that falsely asserts that the Nazi genocide of Jews, known as the Holocaust, is a myth, fabrication, or exaggeration. Holocaust deniers make one or more of the following false statements:
* ...
.
Background
Rudolf was born in
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn (officially abbreviated ''Limburg a. d. Lahn'') is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.
Geography
Location
Limburg lies in western Hessen between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn.
The to ...
,
Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...
. In 1983 he took 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 ...
in
Remscheid
Remscheid () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is, after Wuppertal and Solingen, the third-largest municipality in Bergisches Land, being located on the northern edge of the region, on the south ...
, then studied chemistry in
Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...
, graduating in 1989 with a master's degree. As a student, he joined the ''A.V. Tuisconia Königsberg zu Bonn'' and the ''K.D.St.V. Nordgau Prag zu Stuttgart'',
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 ...
fraternities
A fraternity (from Latin ''frater'': "brother"; whence, "brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club or fraternal order traditionally of men associated together for various religious or secular aims. Fraternity in ...
belonging to the
Cartellverband
The Union of Catholic German Student Fraternities (german: Cartellverband der katholischen deutschen Studentenverbindungen or ''Cartellverband'' (CV)) is a German umbrella organization of Catholic male student fraternities (Studentenverbindung). ...
. According to the website “
Informationsdienst gegen Rechtsextremismus The Informationsdienst gegen Rechtsextremismus (IDGR) ''(Information Service against Right-Wing Extremism)'' was a German-language internet portal devoted to collecting information about persons, organisations and publications which promote far-righ ...
” (Information service against right-wing extremism), Rudolf was in 1985, a member of Schlesische Jugend (Silesian Youth), the youth section of the association The
Landsmannschaft Schlesien - Nieder- und Oberschlesien e.V. ("Territorial Association of Silesia - Lower and Upper Silesia").
Still according to the site Informationsdienst gegen Rechtsextremismus, Rudolf participated the year after, at the Reichsgründungskommers (Reich Foundation Parties) of the ultra-nationalist student association
Verein deutscher Studenten (VDSt, German Student League).
In 1989, he also took on editorial responsibilities in the German newspaper of New Right ''
Junge Freiheit
The ''Junge Freiheit'' (JF, "Young Freedom") is a German weekly newspaper on politics and culture that was established in 1986. It has been described as conservative, right-wing, nationalistic and as the "ideological supply ship of right-wing pop ...
'', and was an author in the far-right journals: ''Staatsbriefe'', ''Sleipnir'', ''Deutschland in Geschichte und Gegenwart.''
After supporting the
CSU
CSU may refer to:
* Channel service unit, a Wide area network equivalent of a network interface card
* Chari Aviation Services, Chad, by ICAO airline code
* Christian Social Union (UK), an Anglican social gospel organisation
* Christian Social Un ...
/
CDU, he became a member of the
Republicans
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
.
[A Rebel]
at germarrudolf.com, accessed 27 October 2015 After his military service with the
German Air Force
The German Air Force (german: Luftwaffe, lit=air weapon or air arm, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ''Bundeswehr'') was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War a ...
, in October 1990 he joined the
Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research
The Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research (German: ''Max-Planck-Institut für Festkörperforschung'') was founded in 1969 and is one of the 82 Max Planck Institutes of the Max Planck Society. It is located on a campus in Stuttgart, togeth ...
at
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
, where he prepared a
PhD PHD or PhD may refer to:
* Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification
Entertainment
* '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series
* ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic
* Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group
** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...
thesis.
[
In 1991, Rudolf began work on a paper entitled ''Report on the formation and verifiability of cyanide compounds in the Auschwitz "gas chambers"'' on behalf of the ]Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
attorney Hajo Herrmann
Hans-Joachim "Hajo" Herrmann (1 August 1913 – 5 November 2010) was a World War II Luftwaffe pilot and officer and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.
After the war Hermann became a Nazi activist and l ...
, a former Luftwaffe
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...
pilot. In 1993, this work was reported in the media, and Rudolf was told not to enter the Max Planck Institute again without permission. When he did so, his employment was terminated without notice. In 1994, this dismissal was converted into a termination by mutual agreement. In 1996, the University of Stuttgart
The University of Stuttgart (german: Universität Stuttgart) is a leading research university located in Stuttgart, Germany. It was founded in 1829 and is organized into 10 faculties. It is one of the oldest technical universities in Germany wit ...
asked Rudolf to withdraw his application for a final PhD examination, or it would be denied, rendering his PhD thesis worthless. The legal basis for this is a German law which allows universities to deny or withdraw academic degrees where the candidate has used his academic credentials or knowledge to commit a crime. Rudolf subsequently withdrew his application.[
Between 1991 and 1994, Herrmann and other lawyers used Rudolf's Auschwitz report to defend several Holocaust deniers, among them ]Otto Ernst Remer
Otto Ernst Remer (18 August 1912 – 4 October 1997) was a German ''Wehrmacht'' officer in World War II who played a major role in stopping the 20 July plot in 1944 against Adolf Hitler. In his later years he became a politician and far right act ...
, a former ''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 ...
'' officer charged with ''Volksverhetzung
, in English "incitement to hatred" (used also in the official English translation of the German Criminal Code), "incitement of popular hatred", "incitement of the masses", or "instigation of the people", is a concept in German criminal law that ...
'' (inciting hatred). Rudolf knew his work would be associated with Holocaust denial
Holocaust denial is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that falsely asserts that the Nazi genocide of Jews, known as the Holocaust, is a myth, fabrication, or exaggeration. Holocaust deniers make one or more of the following false statements:
...
, but insisted that even Remer had a right to legal defense. Rudolf stated that his findings at Auschwitz and Birkenau "completely shattered his world view". Among other things, Rudolf's report claims that only insignificant traces of cyanide compounds can be found in the samples taken from Auschwitz. However, Richard Green and Jamie McCarthy from The Holocaust History Project
The Holocaust History Project (THHP) is an inactive non-profit corporation based in San Antonio, Texas. Its archived website offers a comprehensive selection of documents, recordings, photographs, and essays regarding the Holocaust, Holocaust den ...
have criticized the report, saying that like Fred Leuchter
Fred Arthur Leuchter Jr. (born February 7, 1943) is an American manufacturer of execution equipment, and a Holocaust denier best known as the author of the Leuchter report, a pseudoscientific document*"Leuchter and Rudolf have published pseudos ...
in his report, Rudolf did not discriminate against the formation of iron-based cyanide compounds, which are not a reliable indicator of the presence of cyanide, so that his experiment was seriously flawed.
Criminal convictions
In 1995, Rudolf was sentenced to 14 months in prison by the district court of Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
for "inciting racial hatred" via the "Rudolf Report", as Holocaust denial is a criminal offence in Germany. Rudolf avoided prison by fleeing to Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, England, and finally to the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.[ His first marriage was to a German national with whom he had two children, and they settled at ]Hastings
Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England,
east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...
in England, until he and his wife divorced and she returned to Germany with their children.[
All the while, criminal investigations continued in Germany. In August 2004, the district court of ]Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
distrained a bank account in an attempt to confiscate 55% of Rudolf's business turnover from the years 2001-2004, some €214,000, but at that time the account contained only some €5,000. Rudolf and his associates had earned this money by selling Holocaust denial publications which are banned in Germany, but Rudolf's business was in the UK and the US.
On 11 September 2004, Rudolf married a US citizen and settled in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
; the couple later had a child. He applied for political asylum
The right of asylum (sometimes called right of political asylum; ) is an ancient juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereign authority, like a second country or another enti ...
, or at least for the right not to be expelled, but this was rejected in November 2004 on the basis that the application had no merits and was a case of frivolous litigation
Frivolous litigation is the use of legal processes with apparent disregard for the merit of one's own arguments. It includes presenting an argument with reason to know that it would certainly fail, or acting without a basic level of diligence i ...
. Rudolf appealed against this ruling, and in early 2006 the US Federal Court in Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
found that his application was not "frivolous", but upheld the decision that it had no merit.[ The Immigration Services said that Rudolf did not have a right to file an application to remain with his family. On 14 November 2005, Rudolf was extradited to Germany where he was wanted for incitement of racial hatred ('']Volksverhetzung
, in English "incitement to hatred" (used also in the official English translation of the German Criminal Code), "incitement of popular hatred", "incitement of the masses", or "instigation of the people", is a concept in German criminal law that ...
''). On arrival there, he was arrested by the police and transferred to a prison in Rottenburg, then to another in Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
in Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
.
On 15 March 2007, the Mannheim District Court sentenced him to two years and six months in prison for inciting hatred, disparaging the dead, and libel
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
. Rudolf accepted the verdict, and copies of his "Lectures on the Holocaust" were confiscated and destroyed. The prosecution's initial request to confiscate €214,000 was reduced to €21,000, the total turnover from the sales of the book. He was released from prison on 5 July 2009 and now lives in the US with his wife and daughter.
In July 2019, Rudolf was arrested near his home in Red Lion, Pennsylvania for "open lewdness" after being found exercising at 4:06 a.m. in a public park "naked from the waist down."
Publications
After Rudolf was dismissed from the Max Planck Institute, he began to publish books promoting Holocaust denial. He founded Castle Hill Publishers in 1997 based in Hastings
Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England,
east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...
, England with Theses & Dissertations Press as its American outlet. In 2000, Rudolf initiated an English language Holocaust Handbooks Series, a series of Holocaust denial titles which, as of 2013, encompassed 25 titles. Furthermore, Rudolf is closely associated with the Belgian Holocaust denial organization ''Vrij Historisch Onderzoek'' (VHO). Until his arrest in late 2005, he published the now defunct "Vierteljahreshefte für freie Geschichtsforschung" (Quarterly journal for free historical research), described by the German Office for the Protection of the Constitution as "a right-wing extremist organ."''Annual Report of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution 2002''
, Right-Wing Extremist Activities, VII. Revisionism, “German revisionist uses foreign press for agitation,” Page 84.
Selected publications
* ''Auschwitz-Lies: Legends, Lies, and Prejudices on the Holocaust'', with Carlo Mattogno (Theses & Dissertations Press, 2005),
* ''Dissecting the Holocaust: The Growing Critique of Truth and Memory'' (Theses & Dissertations Press, 3rd edition, 2003),
* ''The Rudolf Report: Expert Report on Chemical and Technical Aspects of the Gas Chambers of Auschwitz'' (Theses & Dissertations Press, 3rd edition, 2003),
References
External links
*
Leuchter, Rudolf and the Iron Blues"
An essay by Richard J. Green. The Holocaust History Project (1997)
"Chemistry is not the science: Rudolf, Rhetoric & Reduction"
Response to Rudolf's report by Richard J. Green and Jamie McCarthy. The Holocaust History Project (1999)
The 2004 annual report
by the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (german: Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz or BfV, often ''Bundesverfassungsschutz'') is Germany's federal domestic intelligence agency. Together with the Landesämter für Verfassungss ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudolf, Germar
1964 births
Living people
People from Limburg an der Lahn
20th-century German chemists
German people convicted of Holocaust denial
The Republicans (Germany) politicians