Ernst Heinrich Schmidt (27 March 1912 – 28 November 2000) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

physician and member of the SS, who practised

Nazi 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 ...

medicine in a variety of

German concentration camps German concentration camps may refer to different camps which were operated by German states: *Concentration camps during the Herero and Namaqua genocide ** Shark Island concentration camp * Cottbus-Sielow concentration camp in Cottbus interning Jew ...

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 opposing ...

. He was tried in 1947 and 1975 for complicity in war crimes, but was acquitted both times.

Biography

Schmidt was born in Altenburg,

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 ...

. In 1937, while studying at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...

to become a medical doctor, he joined 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 ...

(Member No. 555,294) and the SS (Member No. 23,069). At the outbreak of

, Schmidt was first assigned to a

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

military hospital.Statement by Heinrich Schmidt on 25 October 1945
In 1941, Schmidt became a camp physician at the Buchenwald concentration camp and then transferred from there to Majdanek concentration camp in June 1942. In October 1943, Schmidt was First Camp Physician at the Gross-Rosen concentration camp and then at Dachau concentration camp in September 1944. Between March 1945 and early April 1945, Schmidt served as camp physician in the Boelke Kaserne subcamp of Mittelbau-Dora in

Nordhausen Nordhausen may refer to: * Nordhausen (district), a district in Thuringia, Germany ** Nordhausen, Thuringia, a city in the district **Nordhausen station, the railway station in the city * Nordhouse, a commune in Alsace (German: Nordhausen) * Narost ...

. Near the end of World War II, in the course of the evacuation of staff and prisoners from the Mittelbau, Schmidt wound up at

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp Bergen-Belsen , or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, in 1943, parts of it became a concentra ...

on 8 or 9 April 1945. Heinrich Schmidt

On 15 April 1945 Belsen was liberated by members of the British Army. Schmidt and Alfred Kurzke testified as witness in the Belsen Trial on 25 October 1945. At this time, he was serving as senior doctor in the

Bergen-Belsen displaced persons camp Bergen-Belsen displaced persons camp was a displaced persons (DP) camp for refugees after World War II, in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. It was in operation from the summer of 1945 until Septem ...

set up by the Allies. He was later arrested and indicted for war crimes in the

Dora Trial The Dora Trial, also the "Dora"-Nordhausen or Dachau Dora Proceeding (german: Dachau-Dora Prozess) was a war crimes trial conducted by the United States Army in the aftermath of the collapse of the Third Reich. It took place between August 7 and ...

, which took place in the context of the Dachau Trials between 7 August and 30 December 1947. Schmidt was accused of allowing inmates to die by withholding medical care. He was acquitted for lack of evidence. Schmidt was again indicted and stood trial at the District Court of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian language, Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second- ...

for war crimes committed at Majdanek concentration camp. The third

Majdanek Trial The Majdanek trials were a series of consecutive war-crime trials held in Poland and in Germany during and after World War II, constituting the overall longest Nazi war crimes trial in history spanning over 30 years. The first judicial trial of ...

( ''Majdanek-Prozess'' in German) began on 26 November 1975, and lasted 474 sessions, Germany's longest and most expensive trial. All the defendants had been SS staff at Majdanek. Schmidt was accused of at least eight murders through his participation in the selections for the gas chambers. Due to a lack of evidence, Schmidt was acquitted on 20 March 1979, and released on 19 April 1979. From 1985, Schmidt lived in

Uetze Uetze �ʏt͡səis a municipality in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Fuhse, approximately east of Hanover. Geography Uetze is the easternmost municipality in the Hanover Region. It is bordered by ...

. He died in Celle in 2000.

Bibliography

* *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schmidt, Heinrich 1912 births 2000 deaths People from Altenburg Leipzig University alumni Physicians in the Nazi Party SS-Hauptsturmführer Buchenwald concentration camp personnel Majdanek concentration camp personnel Gross-Rosen concentration camp personnel Dachau concentration camp personnel Mittelbau-Dora concentration camp personnel Bergen-Belsen concentration camp personnel Dachau trials People acquitted of international crimes Prisoners and detainees of the United States military