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Christian Wirth

Timeline

1885 - 1944

 

 

Christian Wirth

Born:  24 November 1885 in Oberbalzheim, Laupheim  District Wurttemberg, Germany.

 

Married: Maria Bantel 

 

Children: Eugen and Kurt Wirth

 

Education: Volkschule in Oberbalzheim 1891 – 1899, Fortbildungsschule course in carpentry 1899 -1901.

 

Employment: Apprentice Carpenter with the Buhler Brothers Timber firm in Oberbalzheim

 

Military Service: Grenadier Regiment 123 – “Konig Karl” in Ulm 1905-1907. Re- enlisted with the same regiment as an instructor 1908-1910

 

Police Service: Schutzpolizei – 1910, Schutzmann der Schutzpolizei, Kriminalpolizei

 

Military Service: Lance Corporal in Reserve Infantry Regiment 246 Ulm – Fought on the Western Front in Flanders, The Somme and Aisne- Champagne, wounded in upper right arm.

Military Police with Reserve Infantry Regiment 119, guarding an army supply depot in Stuttgart.

 

Promotions: Sergeant 1915, Acting Officer 1917

 

Awards and Decorations: Iron Cross l and ll Class, Gold Wurttemberg Military Services Medal, Military Service Decorations, Frontline Troop Medal, Black Wound Badge

 

Police Service: Stellvertetender Kriminalwachtmeister at Dienstelle 11, Buchsebnstrase 37 in Stuttgart

 

 

 

1.7.1919

Kriminalwachtmeister

1.4.1920

Kriminalinspektor

1.1.1923

Kriminalkommissar

1.10.1923

Krimminaloberkommissar

1.11.1932

Kriminalinspektor

1.1.1938

Head of Kommissariat 5

 

 

Leader or Deputy Leader of Police Organisations:

 

Reichsverband der Kriminal Beamte Deutschland 1921 – 1933

 

Landwart des Kameradschaftsbund Deutscher Polizei Beamte 1933 -1939

 

Landwart des Landesbund Wurrtemberg

 

Stellvertretender Gausachsarbeiter des Amtes fur Beamte der Fachschaft 9 Polizei

 

Hauptvertrauenensmann des Amtes fur Beamte Kreis Stuttgart

  

Political Organisations:

 

NSDAP 1921 -1925 – First Nazi Party cell formed outside Bavaria

 

DVNP 1925

 

NSDAP 1931 – 1944

 

SA 1933 – 1938 – Sturmfuhrer on the staff of SA- Sturm 119 in Stuttgart

 

Orstgrupenleiter des Kameradschaftsbundes der Ortsgruppe Stuttgart

 

Vertrauensmann fur die Kreisleitung des NSDAP Stuttgart

 

SD/SS Service:

 

SD – SD Hauptstelle Stuttgart 1.12. 1937

 

SS – Untersturmfuhrer 10-8-1939 promoted to SS-Obersturmfuhrer 1.10.1939

 

Head of Police Disciplinary Court 28.2.1939

 

Special police duty – Gestapo Duty Vienna 14.3.1939

 

Special police duty – Attached to Chief of SIPO / SD Prague staff Olomouc Czechoslovakia

 

RSHA Berlin 27.9.1939

 

Aktion T4 Service:

 

Fuhrer’s Chancellery , Voss Strasse Berlin, working with Viktor Brack and Werner Blankenburg of Hauptamt ll in the planning and organisation of the euthanasia operation – later called T4 – October – December 1939.

 

Brandenburg Euthanasia killing centre 10.1.1940 – 3.2.1940 – personally participated in the first gassing experiments

 

Grafeneck Castle – Euthanasia killing centre – Head of Sonderstandesamt und Sicherheits 4.2.1940 – May 1940

 

Hartheim Castle – Euthanasia killing centre - Head of Sonderstandesamt und Sicherheits  May 1940 – 27 June 1940

 

Passed the police examination at the Fuhrungsschule der SIPO und SD in Berlin for promotion to Krimminalkommissar

 

Appointed Lauterungsinspektor of the T4 Euthanasia killing centres for Greater Germany

 

Possibly in Lublin and Chelmno September – December 1941 – exact whereabouts unconfirmed

 

Service Leading up to Aktion Reinhard

 

Arrived in Belzec – inspects construction of the death camp 22.12.1941- dismisses most of the local construction force.

 

Accompanied Adolf Eichmann and Hermann Julius Hofle on an inspection of the construction in progress, and went to the Euthanasia Centre in Bernburg to select the first T4 staff to serve in Belzec death camp.

 

Beginning of January 1942 returned to Belzec with the first group of T4 men.  

 

Aktion Reinhard Service:

 

Commandant of Belzec death camp 1.1.1942 – 31.7.1942

 

Carried out the first gassing experiments with Zyklon B and CO gas – February 1942

 

Supervised the arrival of the first large transport of Jews from Lublin

 

Inspektor of the SS –Sonderkommando Aktion Reinhard – based initially at the Julius Schreck Kaserne in Lublin 1.8.1942

 

Re-organised the Treblinka death camp – End of August – September 1942

 

Established Inspectorate of the SS Sonderkommando Aktion Reinhard on the Old Airfield Camp Lublin December 1942

 

SS- Sturmbannfuhrer 20 January 1943  

 

Played a leading role in Aktion Erntefest – Harvest Festival Massacres of Jewish Workers in Lublin area 3 November 1943

 

Einsatz R Italy Service:

 

Head of the SS and Polizei Sonderkommando Einsatz R based in San Sabba Trieste from September 1943, returned to Lublin briefly for “Aktion Erntefest.”

 

Died 26 May 1944 – shot near Kozina, Istria by Yugoslav partisans

 

Buried with full military honours in the German Military Cemetery in Opcina near Trieste.

 

Remains exhumed in 1959 and reburied in the German Military Cemetery at Costermano on the south eastern shore of Lake Garda, Verona province , northern Italy 1959.

 



Sources:

Unpublished report by Michael Tregenza, used with permission.  
Holocaust Historical Archive – Private papers

 

 

 

 Copyright. Mike Tregenza & Chris Webb  H.E.A.R.T 2007

 

 

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