Michael Graf von Matuschka (29 September 1888 – 14 September 1944) 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 **Ger ...

politician who took part in 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 ...

Biography

Matuschka was born in Schweidnitz,

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

(today Świdnica, Poland) and studied law at the Universities of Lausanne,

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 ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Biography
and at the University of Breslau, where he passed his doctorate in 1910. He joined the

Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...

as a one year-volunteer at the 4th Silesian Hussars Regiment. Matuschka worked as a junior civil servant in the provincial government administration of

Westfalia Westfalia is the designation of various specially converted Volkswagen camper vans. It is named after Westfalia-Werke, the contractor that built the vans, which is headquartered in the town of Rheda-Wiedenbrück, located in the Westphalia region ...

until 1914. 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 ...

he was wounded on the Eastern Front in 1915 and became a

Prisoner of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n captivity. In 1918 he managed to escape and returned to Germany.Biography
at German Resistance Memorial Center After the end of World War I he worked in several administrative positions and became the county commissioner (Landrat) of Oppeln in May 1923. He was elected for the Center Party as a member of the Prussian Landtag in 1932 but was forced to resign in 1933 as member of the Landtag and as Landrat of Oppeln.Biography
Matuschka worked in the Prussian Ministry of Interior in

and at the administration of the

Province of Silesia The Province of Silesia (german: Provinz Schlesien; pl, Prowincja Śląska; szl, Prowincyjŏ Ślōnskŏ) was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1919. The Silesia region was part of the Prussian realm since 1740 and established as an official p ...

, where he met Fritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg. In 1942, Matuschka became an administrative economic adviser in

annexed Annexation (Latin ''ad'', to, and ''nexus'', joining), in international law, is the forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. It is generally held to be an illegal act ...

Regierungsbezirk Kattowitz East Upper Silesia (german: Ostoberschlesien) is the easternmost extremity of Silesia, the eastern part of the Upper Silesian region around the city of Katowice (german: Kattowitz).Isabel Heinemann, ''"Rasse, Siedlung, deutsches Blut": das Rasse- u ...

. He was supposed to become the head of administration of Silesia by the plotters of 20 July 1944 and was arrested by 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 ...

after the plot failed. Matuschka was sentenced to death by the Volksgerichtshof on 14 September 1944 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 ...

, Hermann Josef Wehrle and

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 ...

. Matuschka was married to Pia née Gräfin von Stillfried und Rattonitz, with whom he had three sons and a daughter.

References

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matuschka, Michael von 1888 births 1944 deaths People from Świdnica Politicians from the Province of Silesia Centre Party (Germany) politicians German Roman Catholics University of Breslau alumni Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni Humboldt University of Berlin alumni German Army personnel of World War I Roman Catholics in the German Resistance Executed conservatives in the German Resistance Executed members of the 20 July plot Prussian Army personnel Counts in Germany People executed by hanging at Plötzensee Prison