Jakob Weiseborn (22 March 1892 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 ...

– 20 January 1939 in Flossenbürg) was a German SS-''

Sturmbannführer __NOTOC__ ''Sturmbannführer'' (; ) was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank equivalent to major that was used in several Nazi organizations, such as the SA, SS, and the NSFK. The rank originated from German shock troop units of the First World War ...

'' (major) and the first commandant of

Flossenbürg concentration camp Flossenbürg was a Nazi concentration camp built in May 1938 by the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office. Unlike other concentration camps, it was located in a remote area, in the Fichtel Mountains of Bavaria, adjacent to the town of F ...

Life

Jakob Weiseborn served in the navy for 18 years. He joined the

NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

(no. 753,119) and SS (no. 17,063). After the ''

Machtergreifung Adolf Hitler's rise to power began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919 when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He rose to a place of prominence in the early years of the party. Be ...

'', he was first employed in the guard unit at

Dachau concentration camp , , commandant = List of commandants , known for = , location = Upper Bavaria, Southern Germany , built by = Germany , operated by = ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) , original use = Political prison , construction ...

as of January 1935 and, following a disciplinary transfer, at

Esterwegen concentration camp The Esterwegen concentration camp near Esterwegen was an early Nazi concentration camp within a series of camps first established in the Emsland district of Germany. It was established in the summer of 1933 as a concentration camp for 2000 so-c ...

from the end of 1935.Holm Kirsten,

Wulf Kirsten Wulf Kirsten (21 June 1934 – 14 December 2022) was a German poet, novelist, and publisher. He is known for his nature poetry and his essays on the history and culture of Saxony. The son of a stonemason, Kirsten was born in Klipphausen, Meisse ...

: ''Stimmen aus Buchenwald. Ein Lesebuch.'', Göttingen 2002, p. 17 In April 1936, Weiseborn took over the post of ''

Schutzhaftlagerführer ''Schutzhaftlagerführer'' (head of the "preventive detention camp") was a paramilitary title of the SS, specific to the concentration and extermination camps '' Totenkopfverbande'' ("Death's-Head units"). A ''Schutzhaftlagerführer'' was in ch ...

'' from Karl d'Angelo in Dachau. From late 1936 until July 1937, he served as ''Schutzhaftlagerführer'' in

Sachsenhausen concentration camp Sachsenhausen () or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a German Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used from 1936 until April 1945, shortly before the defeat of Nazi Germany in May later that year. It mainly held political prisoners ...

and then as second ''Schutzhaftlagerführer'' in

Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; literally 'beech forest') was a Nazi concentration camp established on hill near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within Germany's 1937 borders. Many actual or su ...

. A Buchenwald survivor recalls that he "often punched inmates in the face or kicked them in the belly with his boot." At the prisoner barracks in Buchenwald the following sentence was written: "In his anger God created Hauptsturmführer Weiseborn."Cited from: Eugen Kogon: ''Der SS-Staat.'' München 1974, p. 57 Weiseborn, a chronic alcoholic, became the first commandant of

beginning in May 1938 and remained so until January 1939. On 20 January 1939 in Flossenbürg, Weiseborn committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

by drinking poison in his room, perhaps due to an investigation of his

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

at Buchenwald.Ernst Klee: ''Das Personenlexikon zum Dritten Reich'', Frankfurt am Main 2007, p. 664.''This article contains a translation of the corresponding article in the

German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia (german: Deutschsprachige Wikipedia) is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on March 16, 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia (after the English Wikipedia), ...

Bibliography

Tom Segev Tom Segev ( he, תום שגב; born March 1, 1945) is an Israeli historian, author and journalist. He is associated with Israel's New Historians, a group challenging many of the country's traditional narratives. Biography Segev was born in Jerus ...

. ''Soldiers of Evil: The Commandants of the Nazi Concentration Camps''. 1988, *

Ernst Klee Ernst Klee (15 March 1942, Frankfurt – 18 May 2013, Frankfurt) was a German journalist and author. As a writer on Germany's history, he was best known for his exposure and documentation of medical crimes in Nazi Germany, much of which was concer ...

. ''Das Personenlexikon zum Dritten Reich''. Fischer-Taschenbuch-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 2005, * Holm Kirsten,

. ''Stimmen aus Buchenwald. Ein Lesebuch.'' Wallstein Verlag, Göttingen 2002,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weiseborn, Jakob 1892 births 1939 suicides Military personnel from Frankfurt SS-Sturmbannführer Dachau concentration camp personnel Sachsenhausen concentration camp personnel Buchenwald concentration camp personnel Flossenbürg concentration camp personnel Nazi concentration camp commandants Nazis who committed suicide in Germany Suicides by poison Schutzhaftlagerführer