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Hans Achim Litten (19 June 1903 – 5 February 1938) was a German lawyer who represented opponents of the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

at important political trials between 1929 and 1932, defending the rights of workers during the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is ...

. During one trial in 1931, Litten

subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...

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 ...

to appear as a witness, and cross-examined him for three hours. Hitler was so rattled by the experience that, years later, he would not allow Litten's name to be mentioned in his presence. In retaliation, Litten was arrested on the night of the Reichstag fire along with other progressive lawyers and leftists. Litten spent the rest of his life in one

German concentration camp From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps, (officially) or (more commonly). The Nazi concentration camps are distinguished from other types of Nazi camps such as forced-labor camps, as well as concen ...

or another, enduring torture and many interrogations. After five years and a move to Dachau, where his treatment worsened and he was cut off from all outside communication, he committed suicide. A number of memorials to him exist in Germany, but Litten was largely ignored for decades because his politics did not fit comfortably in either the west or the communist postwar propaganda. Not until 2011 was Litten finally portrayed in the mass media, when the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

broadcast ''

The Man Who Crossed Hitler ''The Man Who Crossed Hitler'' is a 2011 BBC film set in Berlin in the summer of 1931, dramatising the true story in which a lawyer, Hans Litten, subpoenaed Adolf Hitler as a witness in the trial of some Nazi thugs. Hitler has formally renounce ...

'', a television film set in Berlin in summer 1931.

Biographical details

The early years

Litten was born the eldest of three sons in a wealthy family in Halle. His parents were

Irmgard Irmgard is a feminine German given name. Notable people with the name include: * Irmgard of Berg (fl. 12th century), German noble, daughter of Adolf VI, Count of Berg * Irmgard of Chiemsee (c. 831/833 – 16 July 866) * Irmgard of Cleves (c. 130 ...

(née Wüst) and Friedrich Litten (Fritz).Cord Brügmann
''Unvergessener Anwalt''
(PDF) Deutscher Anwaltverein, Deutscher Anwaltverlag (February 1998) pp. 75-81 Fritz was born and raised Jewish, but converted to Lutheranism in order to further his career as a law professor.Book review of ''Crossing Hitler'' and interview with author Benjamin Hett
Retrieved June 2, 2010 He was a nationalist conservative, and served in the army in World War I, earning 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 es ...

, 1st and 2nd Class. He opposed the postwar

. A distinguished jurist and professor of

Roman 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 ...

and civil law, he was

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was name ...

's law school, later becoming

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of that institution. He was also privy counsel (''Geheimer Justizrat'') and adviser to the Prussian government. Irmgard was from an established Lutheran family in Swabia, the daughter of Albert Wüst, a professor at the

University of Halle-Wittenberg Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (german: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg), also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg and the largest and oldest university i ...

. The family left Halle in 1906 and moved to

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

. Litten himself was baptized a Christian - his godfather was

Franz von Liszt Franz Eduard Ritter von Liszt (2 March 1851 – 21 June 1919) was a German jurist, criminologist and international law reformer. As a legal scholar, he was a proponent of the modern sociological and historical school of law. From 1898 until 1917, ...

. Nonetheless, as a youngster he learned

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

, choosing it as one of the subjects for his '' Abitur'' examinations. From his mother, Litten acquired an interest in humanitarian ideas and art, and gained a strong sense of

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

for the threatened, persecuted and disenfranchised. While his father was away at war, Litten once took food from the kitchen to give to a beggar, addressing him as "sir".Irmgard Litten, ''Eine Mutter kämpft gegen Hitler'', Deutscher Anwaltverlag, Bonn (2000) pp. 18, 40, 80-81, 173, 271 Litten's relationship with his father was strained,Gerhard Jungfer
"Hans Litten zum 100. Geburtstag"
(PDF) BRAK-Mitteilungen (2003) pp. 161-163 and his initial interest in

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...

was out of rebellion; he felt his father's conversion was opportunistic. Litten became interested in a German-Jewish youth group with socialist-revolutionary ideas, joining with a school friend, Max Fürst. Nonetheless, at times, he considered himself a Christian. In Dachau he was registered as a Jew, and had to wear the yellow star on his clothing. Litten sought out political debate in his youth. He was shaped by important political and social events of the era, such as World War I, the anti-war demonstration in Berlin on 1 May 1916, when Litten was not quite 13, the German Revolution of 1918–1919, and the arrest and murder of

Karl Liebknecht Karl Paul August Friedrich Liebknecht (; 13 August 1871 – 15 January 1919) was a German socialist and anti-militarist. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) beginning in 1900, he was one of its deputies in the Reichstag fro ...

and Rosa Luxemburg by

Freikorps (, "Free Corps" or "Volunteer Corps") were irregular German and other European military volunteer units, or paramilitary, that existed from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. They effectively fought as mercenary or private armies, rega ...

soldiers in January 1919. There is an anecdote from Litten's school years, when he was asked in the classroom if they should hang a picture of

Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fr ...

, victor of the 1914 Battle of Tannenberg. Litten stated, "I've always been in favour of hanging him.". Litten was pressed into studying law by his father. He was not interested in it, writing in his journal, "When the ox in paradise was bored, he invented jurisprudence."Carlheinz von Brück, ''Ein Mann, der Hitler in die Enge trieb'', Union-Verlag, Berlin (1975) He wanted to study

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

, but nonetheless, he approached his law studies in Berlin and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

with intensity, inspired by the events of the day. The

Kapp Putsch The Kapp Putsch (), also known as the Kapp–Lüttwitz Putsch (), was an attempted coup against the German national government in Berlin on 13 March 1920. Named after its leaders Wolfgang Kapp and Walther von Lüttwitz, its goal was to undo th ...

, the 1924 court case against

and other events convinced Litten that Germany was approaching a very dangerous period. His perception that right-wing radicals were receiving more lenient treatment in court than their opponents led to his decision to become a lawyer. Litten passed his examinations in 1927 with excellent grades and was offered a lucrative job in the

Reich Ministry of Justice ''Reich'' (; ) is a German noun whose meaning is analogous to the meaning of the English word " realm"; this is not to be confused with the German adjective "reich" which means "rich". The terms ' (literally the "realm of an emperor") and ' (l ...

, as well as a good position in a flourishing law firm. He declined both choosing instead to open a law office in 1928 with Dr. Ludwig Barbasch, a friend who was close to the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...

. Politically Litten was on the left, though independent. He valued his independence and once said, "two people would be one too many for my party." Culturally, Litten was conservative, enjoying classical music and poetry such as that of Rainer Maria Rilke, whose work he could recite. He was an internationalist and was able to read English, Italian, and

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

, as well as enjoying the music of the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

. He had a photographic memory and was considered to have a brilliant intellect.

Cross-examination of Hitler

In May 1931, Litten summoned

to testify in the Tanzpalast Eden Trial, a court case involving two workers stabbed by four SA men. Litten cross examined Hitler for three hours, exposing many points of contradiction and proving that Hitler had exhorted the SA to embark on a systematic campaign of violence against the

' enemies. That was crucial because, to appeal to middle class voters, Hitler was trying to pose as a conventional politician and maintained that the activities of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

were "strictly legal". Though a judge eventually halted Litten's questioning, thereby saving Hitler from further damning exposure, newspapers reported on the trial in detail and Hitler was investigated for perjury that summer. Although he survived that inquiry intact, he was rattled by the experience.

The Nazis seize power

By 1932, the Nazi party was in ascendancy. Litten's mother and friends were urging him to leave Germany, but he stayed. He said, "The millions of workers can't leave here, so I must stay too". Hitler's hatred for Litten was not forgotten and in the early hours of 28 February 1933, the night of the Reichstag fire, he was roused from his bed, arrested and taken into

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 pris ...

.Knut Bergbauer, Sabine Fröhlich and Stephanie Schüler-Springorum
''Denkmalsfigur. Biographische Annäherung an Hans Litten 1903–1938''
pp. 229-230, Wallstein-Verlag, Göttingen (2008) Litten's colleagues Ludwig Barbasch and Professor Felix Halle were also arrested. Litten was first sent – without trial – to

Spandau Prison Spandau Prison was located in the borough of Spandau in West Berlin. It was originally a military prison, built in 1876, but became a proto-concentration camp under the Nazis. After the war, it held seven top Nazi leaders convicted in the Nurem ...

. From there, he was moved from camp to camp, despite efforts by his mother to free him, along with jurists and prominent people from in and outside Germany,Hans Litten Prize
Center for Constitutional Rights, official website. Retrieved June 2, 2010 such as

Clifford Allen Clifford Robertson Allen (January 6, 1912 – June 18, 1978) was a Tennessee attorney and Democratic politician. Early life and career Allen was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and graduated from Friends High School (now Sidwell Friends) in ...

and the "European Conference for Rights and Freedom", which had members from several countries. Litten was sent to

Sonnenburg concentration camp Sonnenburg concentration camp (german: Konzentrationslager Sonnenburg) was opened on 3 April 1933 in Sonnenburg (now Słońsk in Poland) near Küstrin (Kostrzyn nad Odrą) in a former Neumark prison, on the initiative of the Free State of Prussia M ...

Brandenburg-Görden Prison Brandenburg-Görden Prison is located on Anton-Saefkow-Allee in the Görden quarter of Brandenburg an der Havel. Erected between 1927 and 1935, it was built to be the most secure and modern prison in Europe. Both criminal and political prisoners we ...

, where he was tortured, along with anarchist

Erich Mühsam Erich Mühsam (6 April 1878 – 10 July 1934) was a German-Jewish antimilitarist anarchist essayist, poet and playwright. He emerged at the end of World War I as one of the leading agitators for a federated Bavarian Soviet Republic, for which h ...

. In February 1934, he was moved to the ''Moorlager'',

Esterwegen Esterwegen is a municipality in the Emsland district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Geography Esterwegen lies in northwest Germany, less than from the Dutch border and about from the sea. Demographics In 2015 the population was 5,280. Government ...

concentration camp in Emsland and a few months later, he was sent to Lichtenburg. The treatment Litten suffered was later described to his mother by an eyewitness. Very early on, he was beaten so badly that the Nazis refused to let even his fellow prisoners see him. He was tortured and forced into hard labor. He attempted suicide in 1933 in an attempt to avoid endangering his former clients, but he was revived by the Nazis so that they could interrogate him further. Litten's suicide attempt came at

, after he buckled under torture administered to extract information about the Felsenecke trial (see below). After revealing some information, he was immediately accused in the press as an accomplice to the murder of an SA man. Litten then wrote a letter to the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...

, saying that evidence gained in such a manner was not true and that he recanted. Knowing what awaited him, he then attempted to take his life. Litten's mother wrote about his ordeal, recounting how injuries sustained by him early on left his health permanently damaged. One eye and one leg were injured, never recovering; his jawbone fractured; inner ear damaged; and many teeth knocked out. She also related how, despite her access to many important people in Germany at that time, including Reichswehrminister

Werner von Blomberg Werner Eduard Fritz von Blomberg (2 September 1878 – 13 March 1946) was a German General Staff officer and the first Minister of War in Adolf Hitler's government. After serving on the Western Front in World War I, Blomberg was appointed chi ...

, Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, Reichsbischof

Ludwig Müller Johan Heinrich Ludwig Müller (23 June 1883 – 31 July 1945) was a German theologian, a Lutheran pastor, and leading member of the pro-Nazi " German Christians" (german: Deutsche Christen) faith movement. In 1933 he was appointed by the Nazi g ...

, Minister of Justice

Franz Gürtner Franz Gürtner (26 August 1881 – 29 January 1941) was a German Minister of Justice in the governments of Franz von Papen, Kurt von Schleicher and Adolf Hitler. Gürtner was responsible for coordinating jurisprudence in Nazi Germany and provided ...

and even then-State Secretary

Roland Freisler Roland Freisler (30 October 1893 – 3 February 1945), a German Nazi jurist, judge, and politician, served as the State Secretary of the Reich Ministry of Justice from 1934 to 1942 and as President of the People's Court from 1942 to 1945. As ...

, she was unable to secure her son's release. Despite his injuries and suffering, Litten strove to maintain his spirits. At one point, in 1934, his situation improved a little bit when he was moved to Lichtenburg. Initially, it was the same, with more beatings, but then he was allowed to work in the book bindery and the library. On occasion, he was able to listen to music on the radio on Sundays. He was well liked and respected by his fellow prisoners for his knowledge, inner strength and courage. One prisoner wrote about a party (allowed by the SS) at which a number of SS men were in attendance. Unafraid of their presence, Litten recited the lyrics of a song that had meant a lot to him in his youth, "Thoughts are free" (in German, ''

Die Gedanken sind frei "" (Thoughts are free) is a German song about freedom of thought. The original lyricist and the composer are unknown, though the most popular version was rendered by Hoffmann von Fallersleben in 1842. Text The idea represented in the title—that ...

''). The prisoner said that apparently the SS men did not grasp the significance of the words.

Dachau and death

In summer 1937, Litten was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp for a month, before finally being sent to Dachau. He arrived on 16 October 1937 and was put in the Jewish barracks. The Jewish prisoners were isolated from others because Jews in other countries were then spreading the grim news about Dachau. Litten's last letter to his family, written in November 1937, spoke of the situation, adding that the Jewish prisoners were soon to be denied mail privileges until further notice. All letters from Jewish prisoners at Dachau ceased at this time. In the face of their depressing situation, the Jews at Dachau made efforts to have culture and discussion in their lives, to keep their spirits up. Litten would recite Rilke for hours and he impressed the other prisoners with his knowledge on many subjects. Underneath, however, Litten was losing hope. On 5 February 1938, after five years of interrogation and torture and a failed escape attempt, Litten was found by several friends from his barracks, hanging in the lavatory, a suicide.Knut Bergbauer, Sabine Fröhlich and Stephanie Schüler-Springorum
''Denkmalsfigur. Biographische Annäherung an Hans Litten 1903–1938''
p. 292, Wallstein-Verlag, Göttingen (2008) Retrieved June 9, 2010 KZ Dachau - Inside the Bunker

The day before his suicide, one of Litten's friends, Alfred Dreifuß, found a noose under Litten's pillow. He showed it to the blockälteste, who said it was not the first that had been found in Litten's possession. At the time, Litten was under interrogation in the "bunker" (see photo). When he came back, he was clearly in a suicidal frame of mind, repeating several times that he "must speak with Heinz Eschen", a prisoner who had just died. He also had recently told his friends that he had had enough of being imprisoned. Another of Litten's Dachau friends, Alfred Grünebaum, said later that Litten was in constant fear of more brutal interrogations and that Litten had given up on ever being free. On the evening of 4 February 1938, it was clear what Litten had in mind, but no one kept watch. In the middle of the night, his bed was discovered empty and his friends found him hanging in the lavatory. Litten wrote a few parting words and that he had decided to take his life.

Highlights of Litten's legal work

During one of his first trials, Litten caused a sensation, setting the stage for his future as a "labor lawyer". He represented workers who were sentenced in March 1921 to a long term at hard labor in a '' Zuchthaus'' for organized resistance against a police raid of a mass uprising in the central German industrial region a year earlier. The police raid was ordered by the Prussian Minister of the Interior,

Carl Severing Carl Wilhelm Severing (1 June 1875, Herford, Westphalia – 23 July 1952, Bielefeld) was a German Social Democrat politician during the Weimar era. He was seen as a representative of the right wing of the party. Over the years, he took a leadi ...

. Litten was able to get some of the workers recognized as political actors, making them eligible under the

amnesty Amnesty (from the Ancient Greek ἀμνηστία, ''amnestia'', "forgetfulness, passing over") is defined as "A pardon extended by the government to a group or class of people, usually for a political offense; the act of a sovereign power offici ...

law of August 1920. Through his law partner, Barbasch, Litten got involved with the ''

Rote Hilfe The Rote Hilfe ("Red Aid") was the German affiliate of the International Red Aid. The Rote Hilfe was affiliated with the Communist Party of Germany and existed between 1924 and 1936. Its purpose was to provide help to those Communists who had be ...

'', a solidarity organization founded by

Wilhelm Pieck Friedrich Wilhelm Reinhold Pieck (; 3 January 1876 – 7 September 1960) was a German communist politician who served as the chairman of the Socialist Unity Party from 1946 to 1950 and as president of the German Democratic Republic from 1949 to ...

and

Clara Zetkin Clara Zetkin (; ; ''née'' Eißner ; 5 July 1857 – 20 June 1933) was a German Marxist theorist, communist activist, and advocate for women's rights. Until 1917, she was active in the Social Democratic Party of Germany. She then joined the ...

that supported worker's families in dire need during the turbulent early years of the

. In addition, the ''Rote Hilfe'' arranged legal support and

legal defense In a civil proceeding or criminal prosecution under the common law or under statute, a defendant may raise a defense (or defence) in an effort to avert civil liability or criminal conviction. A defense is put forward by a party to defeat a s ...

for workers who were under

indictment An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concept often use that of a ...

for their political activities or views. By mid 1929, the ''Rote Hilfe'' had helped nearly 16,000 arrested workers with legal defense and supported the legal rights of another 27,000 cases.

1929: May Day Trial

In 1929, Litten defended participants in the 1929

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. Tr ...

rally in Berlin, known as

Blutmai Blutmai (, ) refers to several days of police brutality against KPD supporters in early May 1929 that led to violence between the communist demonstrators and members of the Berlin Police which was under the control of the Social Democratic Pa ...

("Bloody May 1929"). Annual rallies on 1 May had been taking place in Berlin since 1889. In 1929, however, the rally turned bloody when the city banned all demonstrations and the Berlin police intervened with excessive force.. Confrontations between demonstrators and police erupted and the police began firing live ammunition into crowds and buildings, killing 33 and injuring hundreds, including many bystanders. The workers were charged with severe

breach of the peace Breach of the peace, or disturbing the peace, is a legal term used in constitutional law in English-speaking countries and in a public order sense in the several jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It is a form of disorderly conduct. Public ord ...

and with sedition. In preparation for a defense, Litten founded a committee with Alfred Döblin,

Heinrich Mann Luiz Heinrich Mann (; 27 March 1871 – 11 March 1950), best known as simply Heinrich Mann, was a German author known for his socio-political novels. From 1930 until 1933, he was president of the fine poetry division of the Prussian Academy ...

and

Carl von Ossietzky Carl von Ossietzky (; 3 October 1889 – 4 May 1938) was a German journalist and pacifist. He was the recipient of the 1935 Nobel Peace Prize for his work in exposing the clandestine German re-armament. As editor-in-chief of the magazine ''Die ...

to investigate the event. Litten himself had been at the demonstration and observed the actions of the police. When he went to one man's aid and began writing down the names of victims and eyewitnesses, he was himself beaten by a policeman, even though he had identified himself as a lawyer. Litten filed an indictment against Berlin Police President, , charging him with 33 counts of incitement to commit murder. In his legal notice, he stated: Litten's approach was to focus on the legality of the police use of lethal force. Rather than prosecute individual police officers, Litten sought to hold the President responsible and he accused Zörgiebel of ordering the police to use truncheons and live ammunition against the demonstrators. If the police action was illegal under the

criminal code A criminal code (or penal code) is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that might ...

, the resulting deaths were murders and anything done by the demonstrators was "self-defense in the full legal sense". He argued that Zörgiebel had ordered the police to use lethal force for political, rather than law enforcement reasons. As proof, he produced a 2 May 1929 article from the ''

Berliner Tageblatt The ''Berliner Tageblatt'' or ''BT'' was a German language newspaper published in Berlin from 1872 to 1939. Along with the ''Frankfurter Zeitung'', it became one of the most important liberal German newspapers of its time. History The ''Berline ...

'', where Zörgiebel had written a defense of his actions that showed its political basis. According to

Prussian law Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

, police could use "necessary measures" to maintain public peace and security or prevent a public danger; in other words, it was to be police work and not the result of political conditions. Berlin, Littenstrasse , Hans-Litten-Haus 007

Berlin, Littenstrasse , Hans-Litten-Haus 007

The indictment of Zörgiebel was rejected by the

Public Prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...

s and Litten appealed to a higher court. Zörgiebel turned around and pressed charges against a Leftist who had slapped his ear. Litten then appeared for this worker's defense, arguing that the worker had acted out of justifiable anger about Zörgiebel's 33 murders. The justice rejected Litten's request to produce evidence on the grounds that the 33-count murder indictment against Zörgiebel could be accepted as fact without dropping the culpability of the worker who had hit Zörgiebel on the ear. The objective in Litten's many lawsuits for the victims of police violence was not to litigate individual incidents, but rather to warn about the growing repression in

. He also worked to put paramilitary violence on display, in the hopes it would awaken the

German people , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

to the threat facing them. He saw the methods of the police as approaching those of civil war and as being illegal and worked to prove that in court and to prosecute the responsible parties, even if they were in the highest political circles. He wasn't interested in creating Left Wing

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

s, rather he sought acquittal or an appropriate sentence, which caused him multiple conflicts with the Rote Hilfe and the Communist Party of Germany.

1931: Tanzpalast Eden Trial

On November 22, 1930, an SA Rollkommando attacked a popular dance hall frequented predominantly by left-wing workers. The victims were members of a migrant workers' association that was holding a meeting at the Tanzpalast Eden ("Eden Dance Palace") in Berlin. Three people were killed and 20 injured in an attack that was planned in advance. The subsequent police investigation was plodding and slow. Litten used four of the injured to represent the

plaintiff A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of t ...

, seeking to prove three cases of attempted manslaughter, breach of the peace and assault. In addition to pursuing criminal convictions of the offenders, Litten wanted to show that the Nazis intentionally used terror as a tactic to destroy the democratic structures of the Weimar Republic. Hitler was summoned to appear as a witness in court to that end. Shortly before, in September 1930, Hitler had appeared in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

as a witness at the "

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshape ...

Trial" against two officers charged with conspiracy to commit

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

for having had membership in the

, at that time, forbidden to Reichswehr personnel.John Wheeler-Bennett, ''The Nemesis of Power'', pp. 218-219. (1967) Macmillan, London Hitler had insisted that his party operated legally, that the phrase "National Revolution" was to be interpreted only "politically", and that his Party was a friend, not an enemy of the Reichswehr. Under oath, Hitler had described the SA as an organization of "intellectual enlightenment" and explained his statement that "heads will roll" as a comment about "intellectual revolution".After the Machtergreifung, however, Hitler elaborated further, saying "there will be a German State Court and the

November 1918 The following events occurred in November 1918: November 1, 1918 (Friday) * Liberation of Serbia, Albania and Montenegro – The Serbian First Army under command of Petar Bojović liberated Belgrade from the control of the Centra ...

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

will find atonement and heads will roll". The court called Hitler to appear on the witness stand on 8 May 1931. Litten set out to show that the SA ''Sturm 33'' ("Storm 33") was a ''rollkommando'' (a small, mobile paramilitary unit, generally murderous) and that its attack of the Eden and the resulting murders were undertaken with the knowledge of the party leadership. This would mean that the Nazi Party was not, in fact, a legal and democratic organization and would undermine Hitler's efforts to be seen as a serious politician and statesman. Hitler never forgot the Eden trial, and held a personal antipathy towards Litten. Years later, Litten's name still could not be mentioned in Hitler's presence.

quoted

as saying, "No one will be able to do anything for Litten. Hitler turned red with rage from just hearing Litten's name, once bellowing at Crown Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, 'Anyone who advocates for Litten lands in the concentration camp, even you.'"

Excerpts from the trial

Litten: (…) Did you know that in the circles of the SA there is talk of a special ''roll

kommando A ''Kommando'' (, "unit" or "command") is a general term for special police and military forces in German, Dutch, and Afrikaans speaking nations. It was also the term in the World War II era ''Luftwaffe'' for special units used to test new air ...

''?
Hitler: I haven't heard anything about a ''rollkommando''. (…)
Litten: You said that there will be no violent acts on the part of the National Socialist Party. Didn't Goebbels create the slogan, "one must pound the adversary to a pulp?"
Hitler: This is to be understood as "one must dispatch and destroy opposing organizations". (…)
(The presiding judge read a question formulated by Litten): Did Hitler, as he named Goebbels "Reichsleiter" (Leader for the empire) of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, know of the passage from his book, where Goebbels declares that fear of the

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

cannot be permitted, that parliament should be blown up and the government hunted to hell and where the call to revolution was made again, letter-spaced?
Hitler: I can no longer testify under oath, if I knew Goebbels' book at the time. The theme (…) is absolutely of no account to the Party, as the booklet doesn't bear the Party emblem and is also not officially sanctioned by the Party. (…)
Litten: Must it not be measured against Goebbels' example, to awaken the notion in the Party, that the legality scheme is not far away, if you neither reprimanded nor shut out a man like Goebbels, rather straightaway made him head of Reich Propaganda?
Hitler: The entire Party stands on legal ground and Goebbels (…) likewise. (…) He is in Berlin and can be called here any time.
Litten: Has Herr Goebbels prohibited the further dissemination of his work?
Hitler: I don't know.
n the afternoon, Litten returned to this subject.br /> Litten: Is it correct that Goebbels' revolutionary journal, ''The Commitment to Illegality'' '' as Bekenntnis zur Illegalität', has now been taken over by the Party and has reached a circulation of 120,000? (…) I have concluded that the journal is sanctioned by the Party. (…)
Presiding judge: Herr Hitler, in point of fact, you testified this morning, that Goebbels' work is not official Party aterial
Hitler: And it isn't, either. A publication is an official Party rganwhen it bears the emblem of the Party. Hitler (shouting, red-faced): How dare you say, Herr Attorney, that is an invitation to illegality? That is a statement without proof!
Litten: How is it possible that the Party publishing house takes over a journal that stands in stark contrast to the Party line?
Presiding judge: That doesn't have anything to do with this trial.

1932: Felseneck Trial

The Felseneck Trial was Litten's last major fight against the Nazi Party.Markus Dirk Dubber and Lindsay Farmer
''Modern histories of crime and punishment''
pp. 183-188. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California (2007) Retrieved June 7, 2010 On trial were five Nazis and 19 residents of the Felseneck arbor colony, where many left-wing workers, including Communists and

Social Democrats Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote so ...

, were living. In January 1932, there was a brawl involving about 150 storm troopers and colony residents. The troopers surrounded the colony and attacked with stones and firearms. Two people were killed, Ernst Schwartz, a member of the Berlin SA and Fritz Klemke, a Communist; several others, including two police officers, were injured. The resulting trial had numerous defendants and hundreds of witnesses. Litten's meticulousness began to annoy both the presiding judge and the prosecutors, who began to conspire to get Litten removed from the trial. Although there were no legal grounds, the court expelled Hans Litten both as counsel and ancillary counsel for the plaintiff because he had "unfurled unrestrained partisan propaganda in the trial" and "made the courtroom a hotbed of political passions". This decision was set aside by the court of appeals, whereupon the presiding judge and an official from the criminal division declared the trial to be biased and the trial was unable to proceed. Shortly after that, Litten was again removed from a high court, having been accused of influencing a witness. This time, the action was sustained by the ''Kammergericht'' (Supreme Court) and the court commented further during an investigation of the defense, that the main trial was generally inadmissible. This caused an uproar in the community of Berlin lawyers, including those who were not well-disposed toward Litten. A meeting of Berlin attorneys demanded a change to the law in order to prevent such a curtailment of the fundamental rights of defense attorneys. Litten was excoriated in the Nazi press as the "Red Death Defender" and readers were urged to "Put a stop to his dirty work".Knut Bergbauer, Sabine Fröhlich and Stephanie Schüler-Springorum
''Denkmalsfigur. Biographische Annäherung an Hans Litten 1903–1938''
p. 202, Wallstein-Verlag, Göttingen (2008) It was no longer possible for Litten to go out in public without a bodyguard.

Legacy

Aside from several memorials in Germany, after the war Litten remained unknown for decades because neither western nor communist governments found him suitable for their Cold War propaganda. For the west, Litten had been too involved with communists and for communists, Litten's rejection of Stalinism made him a pariah. Gedenktafel Hans Litten

When East and West Germany were reunited, the lawyers association of Berlin chose to call itself the Hans Litten Bar Association. Every two years, a lawyer is given the "Hans Litten Prize" by the German and European Democratic Lawyers Association. The Israeli lawyer,

Leah Tsemel Leah Tsemel, or Lea Tsemel ( he, לאה צמל, born 19 June 1945) is an Israeli lawyer known for her work in support of Palestinian rights.Ciotti, Paul (April 27, 1988)"Israeli roots, Palestinian clients: Taking the Arab cause to court has earn ...

, and Michael Ratner, an American lawyer and the president of the

Center for Constitutional Rights The Center for Constitutional RightsThe Center for Constitutional Rights
(CCR) is a There is a memorial plaque for Litten located on the former "Neue Friedrichstraße", renamed in Litten's honor in 1951. The federal and Berlin bar associations (''Bundesrechtsanwaltskammer'' and ''Rechtsanwaltskammer Berlin'') have their headquarters at the Hans Litten Haus, also on Littenstraße (see photo). In 2008, the first in-depth biography of Litten in English was written. Author Benjamin Carter Hett, a historian and former lawyer, came across Litten while working on another book. Commenting on the relevance of Litten's life today and the treatment he suffered while imprisoned, Hett said:In an interview, Hett said he wanted to find out how a country let the rule of law get corrupted. He noted that before the Nazi era, Germany was a law-abiding country with a relatively low crime rate, but that the country was fraught with economic problems and worried governments and there were bitter political divisions. As the crises became more severe, the government changed several times, growing more authoritarian and stripping away the rights of Germans. In 2011 Litten's story was filmed by the

...

. ''

'' was written by Mark Hayhurst and directed by

Justin Hardy Justin Hardy (born December 18, 1991) is a gridiron football wide receiver for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He played college f ...

. The role of Hans Litten was played by

Ed Stoppard Edmund Stoppard (born 16 September 1974) is an English actor. He is the son of playwright Tom Stoppard and doctor Miriam, Lady Hogg. Life Stoppard was born on 16 September 1974 in London, England, the son of playwright Tom Stoppard and Miriam ...

. Hayhurst has also written a play on Litten's life, entitled ''

Taken At Midnight ''Taken At Midnight'' is a 2014 play by Mark Hayhurst on the life of Hans Litten, his cross-examination of Adolf Hitler in court in 1931 and his mother's attempts to secure his release after his arrest by the Nazis in 1933. Hayhurst also produced ...

'', which premiered at

Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, it was opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Mart ...

in September 2014 and transferred to Theatre Royal, Haymarket, London in January 2015.

In popular culture

Hans Litten is played by German actor Trystan Putter in Seasons 3 and 4 of the TV show ''

Babylon Berlin ''Babylon Berlin'' is a German neo-noir television series. Created, written, and directed by Tom Tykwer, Achim von Borries, and Hendrik Handloegten. It is loosely based on novels by German author Volker Kutscher. The series premiered on 13 ...

''. Hans Litten's work as a lawyer prior to Hitler becoming Chancellor is featured prominently in Politics, ep. 1 of Season 1 of the 2019 BBC documentary

Rise of the Nazis ''Rise of the Nazis'' is a British documentary series about the rise and fall of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. The first series aired in 2019, followed by the second and third series in 2022. Several historians and military experts give thei ...

Notes

References

External links

*Phil Shannon
Book review of Hett's biography of Litten
Green Left. "The lawyer who defied the Nazis" (April 18, 2009). Retrieved September 4, 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Litten, Hans 1903 births 1938 suicides 20th-century German lawyers 1938 deaths German Jews who died in the Holocaust German people who died in Dachau concentration camp German resistance members People from Halle (Saale) People from the Province of Saxony People who committed suicide in prison custody Suicides by hanging in Germany