Richard Quirin (26 April 1908 – 8 August 1942) was a German agent executed as a

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...

for

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

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 one of eight agents involved in

Operation Pastorius Operation Pastorius was a failed German intelligence plan for sabotage inside the United States during World War II. The operation was staged in June, 1942 and was to be directed against strategic American economic targets. The operation was n ...

, and gave his name to the Supreme Court decision on the trial, '' Ex parte Quirin''.

Early life

Born in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

in 1908, Quirin moved to the United States in 1927, living in

Schenectady, New York Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...

. He worked as a

mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning an ...

during this time for

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...

. He lived in the United States from 1927 to 1939, and was a member of the

German American Bund The German American Bund, or the German American Federation (german: Amerikadeutscher Bund; Amerikadeutscher Volksbund, AV), was a German-American Nazi organization which was established in 1936 as a successor to the Friends of New Germany (FoN ...

, as well as an open supporter of the

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

regime.Abella, 31 In 1939, Quirin and his wife returned to Germany. Upon his return, he got a job with

Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a global brand post-W ...

. He worked with Heinrich Heinck at the plant in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

, and the two became the first recruited by Walter Kappe, the publisher of the Bund newspaper ''Deutscher Weckruf und Beobachter'', for what became Operation Pastorius.

Operation Pastorius

After the men were recruited, they were given pseudonyms and false stories to blend in as they returned to America. Quirin's new identity was Richard Quintas, a Portuguese man who moved to Upstate New York from Lisbon when he was three. He was considered by Kappe to be a "cool, cruel man who would not hesitate to kill anyone to accomplish the mission's objectives." On 13 June 1942, Quirin was one of the first four to come to America as he, George John Dasch, Heinck, and

Ernst Peter Burger Ernst Peter Burger (September 1, 1906 – October 9, 1975) was a German-American who was a spy and saboteur for Germany during World War II. He was captured but escaped execution. He was deported to Germany in 1948. Operation Pastorius Born in ...

landed on American soil on a

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

. Several days later, when Dasch turned himself in to the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

, he named Quirin as one of the "true believers" of the operation. On 20 June, Quirin was the first to be arrested, FBI officers surrounding him as he tried to escape.

Trial and execution

At the trial, Quirin took the stand after Heinck. He stated that he did not know the purpose of Operation Pastorius, and was just interested in returning to the United States.Johnson, 187 However, a cross-examination showed that Quirin saw himself as a loyal Nazi and had made no effort to get out of the operation. Quirin was emotionless as he was sentenced to death, only displaying sentiment when telling a guard that he wanted his contacts to know Dasch had "ratted" him out. Quirin and the five others were

electrocuted Electrocution is death or severe injury caused by electric shock from electric current passing through the body. The word is derived from "electro" and "execution", but it is also used for accidental death. The term "electrocution" was coined ...

on 8 August 1942, and buried in a potter's field with numbered graves.Abella, 207

Notes

References

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External links