Walter Friedrich Julius Köhler, (30 September 1897 in

Weinheim Weinheim (; pfl, Woinem) is a town with about 43,000 inhabitants in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is in the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, approximately north of Heidelberg and northeast of Mannheim. Weinheim is known as the "Zwei ...

– 9 January 1989

) was Minister President of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

during the Nazi regime. Köhler was born in

, Baden. He was known as a talented speaker and strict

anti-semite Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

. When the Nazis rose to power, Köhler served under

Robert Heinrich Wagner Robert Heinrich Wagner, born as Robert Heinrich Backfisch (13 October 1895 – 14 August 1946) was a Nazi Party official and politician who served as ''Gauleiter'' and '' Reichsstatthalter'' of Baden, and Chief of Civil Administration for ...

as Minister President of Baden. After the war, Köhler was first assessed as uninvolved with the Nazis. Later this assessment was reversed. In addition to a fine, Köhler was sentenced to three years of imprisonment. Because the time he spent in an internment camp before sentencing was included, he never had to go to prison. Köhler died on 9 January 1989 at the age of 91.

References

* ''Milde Strafen für die Täter: Heidelberg war schon früh eine Hochburg der Nationalsozialisten'', Rhein-Neckar Zeitung/Nr. 261, page 13, 8 November 2008, Rhein-Neckar Zeitung GmbH 1897 births 1989 deaths Nazi Party officials Members of the Reichstag of Nazi Germany People from Baden People from Weinheim {{Germany-Nazi-politician-stub