Hermann Josef Wehrle (26 July 1899 – 14 September 1944) was a German

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 who was killed after the

20 July plot On 20 July 1944, Claus von Stauffenberg and other conspirators attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of Nazi Germany, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia, now Kętrzyn, in present-day Poland. The ...

. Wehrle was drafted into the German Army in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. On 10 December 1918 he joined the Catholic Priest seminary at

Fulda Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival. History ...

but quit soon and began to study Philosophy and catholic philosophy in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

. He worked as a journalist and at the public library of Frankfurt.Biography
In 1938 Wehrle worked at the public school of

Marktbreit Marktbreit am Main () is a town in the district of Kitzingen in the Regierungsbezirk Unterfranken in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated at the most southern point of the Main river. Marktbreit is the birthplace of Alois Alzheimer who first identi ...

, but was forced to resign because of his lack of support for 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 Na ...

. He then started to study catholic theology at the abbey of St. Ottilien. After the monastery was dissolved in April 1941 Wehrle joined the priest seminary of

Freising Freising () is a university town in Bavaria, Germany, and the capital of the Freising ''Landkreis'' (district), with a population of about 50,000. Location Freising is the oldest town between Regensburg and Bolzano, and is located on the Is ...

and was ordained on 6 April 1942. He worked at the catholic congregations of Planegg and in Heilig Blut (

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

–

Bogenhausen Bogenhausen (Central Bavarian: ''Bognhausn'') is the 13th borough of Munich, Germany. It is the geographically largest borough of Munich and comprises the city's north-eastern quarter, reaching from the Isar on the eastern side of the Englischer ...

) and was in contact to

Alfred Delp Alfred Delp (, 15 September 1907 – 2 February 1945) was a German Jesuit priest and philosopher of the German Resistance. A member of the inner Kreisau Circle resistance group, he is considered a significant figure in Catholic resistan ...

. On 13 December 1943

Ludwig Freiherr von Leonrod Ludwig Freiherr von Leonrod (17 September 1906 – 26 August 1944) was a German Army officer who took part in the 20 July plot to kill Adolf Hitler. He was a descendant of the von Leonrod noble family. Leonrod was born in Munich and joined th ...

asked him under the seal of confession about the theological justification of a

tyrannicide Tyrannicide is the killing or assassination of a tyrant or unjust ruler, purportedly for the common good, and usually by one of the tyrant's subjects. Tyrannicide was legally permitted and encouraged in the Classical period. Often, the term tyran ...

. Leonrod was involved in the

and told 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 organi ...

about his confession. Wehrle was arrested on 18 August 1944 and examined as a witness in the trial against Leonrod. He was sentenced to death by the Volksgerichtshof on 14 September 1944 for his knowledge of the plot and executed the same day in

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 ...

next to

Heinrich zu Dohna-Schlobitten Heinrich Burggraf und Graf zu Dohna- Schlobitten (15 October 1882 – 14 September 1944) was a German major general and resistance fighter in the 20 July Plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair in East Prussia. He was a Knight of Ju ...

Nikolaus von Üxküll-Gyllenband Nikolaus Graf von Üxküll-Gyllenband (14 February 1877 – 14 September 1944) was a German businessman who took part in the 20 July plot. Nikolaus von Üxküll-Gyllenband was born in Kőszeg (german: Güns), Kingdom of Hungary and joine ...

and Michael von Matuschka.Biography
of

Michael Graf von Matuschka Michael Graf von Matuschka (29 September 1888 – 14 September 1944) was a German politician who took part in the 20 July plot. Biography Matuschka was born in Schweidnitz, Silesia (today Świdnica, Poland) and studied law at the Universi ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wehrle, Hermann Josef 1899 births 1944 deaths Clergy from Nuremberg People from Bavaria executed at Plötzensee Prison People executed by hanging at Plötzensee Prison Executed members of the 20 July plot Roman Catholics in the German Resistance German Army personnel of World War I People from the Kingdom of Bavaria 20th-century German Roman Catholic priests