Johann Maier (23 June 1906 in Berghofen, today part of

Aham Aham may refer to: People * Aham Okeke (born 1969), Nigerian-born Norwegian sprinter * Aham Sharma, Indian film and television actor Places * Aham, Germany, municipality in Bavaria Other * Aham (Kashmir Shaivism) * Aham (film) * Association of H ...

Lower Bavaria Lower Bavaria (german: Niederbayern, Bavarian: ''Niedabayern'') is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state. Geography Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions () – Landshut and Donau-W ...

– 24 April 1945 in

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...

) was from 1939 until his death a preacher at Regensburg

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

. On 22 April 1945,

Reich Defense Commissioner Reich Defense Commissioner (German: ''Reichsverteidigungskommissar'', RVK) was a governmental position created in Nazi Germany at the outbreak of World War II on 1 September 1939. Charged with overall defense of the territory of the German Reich, th ...

Ludwig Ruckdeschel took city defence to the extreme in Regensburg when

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...

s had already reached the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

. The next day, an excited crowd of people gathered at the Moltkeplatz – nowadays known as Dachauplatz. Johann Maier was there and bade the crowd be quiet as he had something to say. He called for the town's peaceful handover. Even before he had finished his speech, he was seized by plainclothes

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

. Likewise, several other demonstrators were arrested. That evening, Maier was brought before a drumhead court and sentenced to death by

hanging Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging i ...

Michael Buchberger Michael Buchberger (8 June 1874, Jetzendorf – 10 June 1961, Straubing) was a Roman Catholic priest, notable as the seventy-fourth bishop of Regensburg since the diocese's foundation in 739. Life Buchberger was ordained as a priest on 29 Ju ...

, the

Bishop of Regensburg The Bishops of Regensburg (Ratisbon) are bishops of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany.

, was frightened into silence and hid himself in a cellar. On the morning of 24 April 1945 at 3:25, Maier was hanged at Moltkeplatz. About his neck, he wore a sign that said "I am a

saboteur Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a ''saboteur''. Saboteurs typically try to conceal their identitie ...

". Later the

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 ...

and the SS both fled southwards out of town; Regensburg fell without a fight. Grab von Johann Maier, Regensburger Dom

Maier's grave can be found in the Cathedral among the bishops' graves. There is also a memorial plaque at the Cathedral.

References

Literature

*Werner Chrobak, Paul Mai, Barbara Möckershoff: ''50 Jahre danach. Domprediger Dr. Johann Maier und seine Zeit''. Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 1995, *Karl Hausberger: ''Sterben, damit andere leben können. Der Regensburger Domprediger Dr. Johann Maier (1906-1945)''. Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2005, *Anton M. Kormann: ''Domprediger Dr. Johann Maier. Erinnerungen an einen Blutzeugen''. 1995,

External links

Documentary video
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maier, Johann 1906 births 1945 deaths People from the Kingdom of Bavaria People from Bavaria executed by Nazi Germany People condemned by Nazi courts People executed by Nazi Germany by hanging People from Landshut (district) 20th-century German Roman Catholic priests