The Beasts of Buchenwald: Karl & Ilse Koch

Buchenwald Trilogy

by Flint Whitlock

The crime and punishment story of how Nazi SS Colonel Karl Koch and his wife Ilse ran Buchenwald, the most infamous concentration camp of Nazi Germany, where evil reigned unchecked and the inconceivable was commonplace

Genres: History, Holocaust, Nonfiction, War, World War II, Nazi Party, Germany

326 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 31, 2011

About the author

As an art major, Flint Whitlock graduated from the University of Illinois in 1964 with a degree in Advertising Design, but has always been as much a writer as an artist. His love for military history began at an early age—fueled by his father, James, who served with the famed 10th Mountain Division in World War II. Flint also had an uncle who was a military policeman with the 1st Infantry Division and another uncle who served with the Navy in the Pacific.

Wanting to serve his country, Flint was commissioned a Second Lieutenant through the Reserve Officer Commission Training Program and entered active duty in December 1964. After attending the basic Air Defense Artillery officers' course at Fort Bliss, Texas, Flint earned his jump wings at Airborne school at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was then posted to a Nike Hercules battery in Baumholder, Germany. After two years in ADA, he received a branch transfer to the Quartermaster Corps and spent an additional year with the Supply and Maintenance Agency in Zweibruecken, Germany, where he was promoted to captain.


In 1968, Flint was transferred to South Vietnam, arriving one day before the Tet Offensive in January, 1968. He served for six months as a supply specialist at 1st Logistical Command Headquarters at Long Binh, northeast of Saigon, before being transferred to the 14th Inventory Control Center at the same post. He returned to the States in 1969 and spent a year with the 5th Infantry Division Supply and Maintenance Battalion at Fort Carson, Colorado, before resigning his commission and returning to civilian life.

After a stint as the Public Relations Director for the Denver Dynamos of the now-defunct North American Soccer League, he served as a copywriter, art director, and creative director for several major Colorado advertising agencies. While holding down these positions, he also continued to paint and write, becoming a locally prominent artist of the “photo-realist” genre. His attention to visual detail also translated to the written word, as he sought to convey the emotional and physical aspects of the soldier's experience.

To heighten his understanding of, and appreciation for, what the World War II combat soldier went through, he became involved in World War II re-enactment groups, in which he has been active for over 20 years. As a tribute to his father, he founded the 10th Mountain Division Living History Display Group in 1983 (www.tenthmountain.org). He is also a member of the 10th Mountain Division Foundation Board of Directors and the 10th Mountain Division Resource Center Advisory Committee.

Flint Whitlock lives in Denver, Colorado, with his wife, Dr. Mary Ann Watson, a clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at Metropolitan State College of Denver. They have three grown children: Gillian Lee Whitlock, an actress and make-up artist in Hollywood; Suki Montgomery, a psychologist and member of the counseling staff at Ithaca (NY) College; and Matthew Montgomery, an anesthesiologist in Denver. To keep in shape, Flint skis, referees soccer, and plays tennis.

Reviews

[Post Scriptum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quando, nell’aprile del ‘45, i militari americani arrivarono a Buchenwald si trovarono di fronte a uno spettacolo agghiacciante. Com’era possibile che i nazisti avessero agito con tanta brutalità contro altri esseri umani? E com’era possibile che la popolazione avesse taciuto? Non potevano non sapere. Non avevano mai visto migliaia di prigionieri, scheletri in divisa a righe attraversare la piazza della città diretti alle cave per lavorare? La popolazione fu costretta a visitare il campo. Se non avevano voluto vedere prima, ora dovevano. Qualcuno pianse e vomitò. Altri rimasero impassibili davanti ai mucchi di cadaveri, ai forni aperti con i resti delle vittime; indifferenti davanti alla forca, alla tavola con le teste mummificate e rimpicciolite, agli organi umani, al paralume rivestito di pelle umana; impassibili dinanzi alle prove di abusi e crimini contro l’umanità commessi dai loro connazionali. E come poterono rimanere impassibili anche davanti alle baracche dei bambini?

I nazisti costruirono il campo di Buchenwald nel ‘37, disboscarono un vasto territorio. Risparmiarono una quercia conosciuta come “l’albero di Goethe” sotto cui, secondo la leggenda, il grande scrittore aveva lavorato al suo capolavoro, il “Faust”.
Quell’albero fu testimone silenzioso della feroce e folle malvagità umana.
Dal ’37 al ’41 Karl Koch fu comandante a Buchenwald. Uomo privo di qualsiasi sentimento, immune da ogni senso di morale o umana decenza. La seconda moglie, Ilse Kölher, era ambiziosa, dissoluta, brutale, sadica.
A Buchenwald entrambi diedero libero sfogo alle loro perversioni. Atti di brutalità inaudita per il puro gusto di infliggere sofferenza. Feste sontuose e orge sfrenate non bastavano, avevano bisogno del Male per provare piacere, per sentirsi potenti, per riscattarsi dalla loro mediocrità come esseri umani. Quando Koch fu sollevato dall’incarico e inviato a Madjanek, Ilse rimase a Buchenwald con i figli. Continuò a soddisfare i propri appetiti sessuali con gli ufficiali SS, o con i prigionieri, che dopo aver appagato la “cagna di Buchenwald” venivano fucilati. Arricchì la sua collezione di oggetti rivestiti in pelle umana tatuata strappata ai prigionieri. Paralumi, copertine di libri, guanti e pantofole, arazzi. Due teste mummificate, impagliate e ridotte alla grandezza di un pugno occuparono il suo tavolo come fermacarte.
Nel ’43 Karl e Ilse Koch furono arrestati. Le accuse erano appropriazione indebita, falsificazione, minacce agli ufficiali e altro. Durante il processo, alla fine del 1943 a Weimar, Karl fu dichiarato colpevole. Contro Ilse non si trovarono prove sufficienti per dimostrare il suo coinvolgimento nel reato di corruzione, fu liberata. Ilse Koch lasciò Buchenwald, coi due figli, nel febbraio 1944 e si trasferì a Ludwigsburg dove risiedeva sua cognata.
Il 18 dicembre del ‘44 vi fu un secondo processo contro i Koch. Karl giurò d’essere stato ufficiale retto e onesto. Accusò il principe Waldeck di aver mentito per rovinare la sua reputazione; affermò che se c’erano irregolarità nei registri contabili il motivo era da attribuirsi alla sciatteria di chi se n’era occupato.
Nonostante i tentativi per difendersi Karl fu ritenuto colpevole. Ilse negò con forza ogni accusa contro di lei. La corte nazista condannò a morte Karl. Per sua moglie furono chiesti cinque anni di carcere per ricettazione. Inscenò un esaurimento nervoso che le valse l’assoluzione.
Il 3 aprile del ‘45 Karl fu condotto, in manette, sulla collina, dove una volta aveva governato. Fucilato dagli ufficiali SS fu bruciato nel crematorio.
Il 30 giugno del ‘45 bussarono alla porta di Ilse. Questa volta erano gli ufficiali americani. La dichiararono in arresto.
Dopo sedici mesi passati nel Lager 77, finì in cella a Dachau.
Al momento del processo, avvenuto il 12 agosto del ’47, Ilse era incinta, la condanna alla pena capitale si trasformò in ergastolo. Grazie al suo avvocato la sentenza fu ridotta a quattro anni. Liberata venne nuovamente arrestata e condannata definitivamente a vita. Il figlio che nacque durante la detenzione fu affidato ad altri. Non si sa come, il ragazzo oramai ventenne scoprì che Ilse era sua madre. La incontrò e ogni mese le fece visita. Il 2 settempre del 1967, Ilse scrisse un biglietto d’addio al figlio e si tolse la vita. “Non posso fare altrimenti, la morte è la mia salvezza”.

Ilse e Karl sono stati puniti. La loro morte non ha dilavato il peccato di chi ha chiuso gli occhi, di chi ha scagliato pietre contro quelle migliaia di scheletri in divisa a righe gridando: “A morte i maiali!” quando li vedeva attraversare la piazza. Anche chi tace è colpevole. Anche chi si volta dall’altra parte commette un crimine contro l’umanità.

P.S. Chissà se a qualcuno verrà in mente di tradurre la trilogia di Buchenwald di cui fa parte questo volume.
Libro importante, ricco di dettagli e corredato da un centinaio di fotografie.

Qui il video della popolazione in visita al campo di Buchenwald. Guardatelo bene. Guardate l'espressione dei loro volti. Dicono molto.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_co...

[Avi B · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was an interesting read. It was about the lives of Karl and Ilse Koch. Karl was the commander of Buchenwald for a time and it describes what life was like for the inmates under his/their reign. Ilse took an active role within the camp and was equally as sadistic and inhumane towards the prisoners as her husband (In some ways worse!). I still find it unbelievable how people can treat others so awful and brutal and show no remorse.

[Regina Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Arguably, except for 'Auschwitz,' no other word resurrects more memories of inhuman brutality in the twentieth centruy than does 'Buchenwald'. In short order, Buchenwald would become the epitome of the brutal Nazi state." (pg 54) Because of the notable terror that took place, Eisenhower would use Buchenwald to prove to American journalists and congressional members the depths of atrocities perpetrated by Nazi Germany. But, what makes Buchenwald any more brutal than the thousands of other camps? The answer is simple, the couple, Karl and Ilse Koch, that ran the camp. It is deeper than the particularly sadistic pleasure that Ilse took in her unusual power as the Commandant's wife in the operation of the camp. What draws attention to Buchenwald's story is "The gruesome matter of tattooed prisoners and the use of that skin." (pg 83) At the end of the war accusations by inmates levied against Ilse paint a picture of a woman that selected prisoners because of unusual tatoos, having them killed, tanning the skin and using the tattos to make lampshades, slippers, gloves, knife sheaths, wall hangings, and photo-album covers.

I bought this book after attending the author's visit to the Houston Holocaust Museum. In my view, if I were a middle school or high school history teacher, I would use this book as part of the required reading for my class. Whitlock writes in a simple style and yet is still able to drive home the salient points of the book. Further, he does an excellent job of separating fact from the sensational. Lastly, while Karl and Ilse are the main focus of the book, Whitlock is able to weave other important aspects into the text. First, while not condoning these actions, he brought out some very good points about why the American journalists and citizens ignored reports regarding the concentrations camps initially, "but the evidence of atrocities and mass murder was still widely discounted in the West. People simply refused to believe that any government, no matter how barbaric, could treat others with such savage cruelty...Such reports, however, were disbelieved by a great segment of the American populace. Similar stories of German atrocities had circulated during World War I as a way of whipping up anti-German feelings in the West, and almost all of the stories were later found to be false propoganda." (pg 153). Secondly, Whitlock successfully paints a vivid picture of how shocking the conditions of the prisoners were upon liberation. In a letter from Eisenhower to General Marshall, "The visual evidence and the verbal testimony of starvation, cruelty and bestaility were so overpowering as to leave me a bit sick. In one room, where were piled up twenty or thirty naked men, killed by starvation, George Patton would not even enter. He said he would get sick if he did so. I made the visit deliberately, in order to be in a position to give first-hand evidence of these things if ever, in the future, there develops a tendency to charge these allegations merely t propoganda." (pg 174) George S Patton, Jr., the controversial firebrand commander of the US Third Army, known as 'Old Blood and Guts' - an officer who once inspired his troops in battle by telling them to grease the treads of their tanks with the intestines of German soldiers-could not stomach what he saw at Ohrdruf. 'He went off to a corner throughly sick,' wrote US Deputy Under Secretary of State Robert D. Murphy (pg 175).

I do think, however, some people who are well read in this era might find some the simplistic handling of events in the frist part of the book lacking and there is a tendency to be repetitive at times. So, if you fall in to this category I would recommend quickly reading through these chapters. You will be more satisfied around chapter 4.

[kristyna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recenze: http://thebooktalkblog.blogspot.cz/20...

Celkově hodnotím samozřejmě pozitivně, kniha je rozsáhlým souborem informací, z nichž některé překvapí i ty, kdo o druhé světové válce něco vědí. Avšak místy mám výtky - k začátku, který působí trochu jako text učebnice pro ZŠ, ale třeba také k tomu, že autor - jak velmi výstižně řekl jeden z mých vyučujících na VŠ - honí příliš mnoho zajíců najednou. Na pokračování trilogie jsem ale nesmírně zvědavá.

[Gregory · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very well researched, and I came away from it with a much more in-depth understanding of the history of Buchenwald. However, throughout the book I found it very difficult to cope with the author's writing style, which was extremely sensationalist; the attention-grabbing title of the book is essentially rephrased and repeated ad nauseum every couple of paragraphs. The fixation on the macabre obsessions of the Koches really drained my enjoyment of the read.

[Gdybym-wiedziała · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ostatnio postać Ilse Koch przypomniał serial z Netflixa "Potwory- Historia Eda Geina", w którym Gein interesował się nieco zbrodniami wojennymi. W serialu zostało to niepotrzebnie uwydatnione, a szczególnie fascynacja niemiecką zbrodniarką. Serial pokazał kilka fragmentów z życia Koch, a poza tym fantazje Geina z nią związane, które raczej nie miały miejsca. Jeśli jednak kogoś zainteresuje historia Ilse Koch, to polecam zdecydowanie "Bestie z Buchenwaldu", aby uzupełnić wiedzę historyczną. Warto również sięgnąć po recenzowaną na moim blogu książkę o Edzie Geinie "Psychopata" - Harold Schechter.

Książka jest jedną z wielu pozycji o tematyce obozowej dostępnej na rynku wydawniczym. Zainteresowała mnie właśnie ze względu na historię Ilse Koch, jednej z bardziej psychopatycznych kobiet z okresu II Wojny Światowej. Zawsze mnie zastanawiało, skąd bierze się zło, a tym bardziej takie zło w kobietach. Nie ona jedna zapisała się na czarnych kartach historii niemieckiego nazizmu. Irma Grese, Maria Mandl i wiele innych mogą tu służyć za niechlubny przykład.

Śledząc biografie tych kobiet zauważyłam, że nigdy nie wyróżniały się one niczym szczególnym. Ot pospolite kobiety jakich wiele. Czynniki i wybuch wojny pozwolił im na odkrycie swojego mrocznego ja. Ilse Koch ukończyła szkołę handlową, a później pracowała jako sekretarka. W roku 1932 roku wstąpiła do NSDAP, gdzie poznała Karla Kocha swojego przyszłego męża. Od 1937 roku mieszkali oni na terenie obozu w Buchenwaldzie. Tu Ilse Koch rodzi trójkę swoich dzieci (jedno umiera).
Pytanie nasuwa się samo, jak można wychowywać dzieci w takich warunkach. W procesie po wojnie Koch niejednokrotnie podkreślała, że nic nie wiedziała o zbrodniach męża i o tym co się działo w obozie (sic!). Wystarczy nadmienić, iż niedaleko jej domu było krematorium.
Wedle wszelkich świadectw była próżna, okrutna, zimnokrwista, sadystyczna, zdegenerowana i żadna władzy - być może nawet bardziej niż jej mąż.(...) Zyskała sobie różne przydomki, takie jak "Wiedźma Buchenwaldu" i "Suka z Buchenwaldu" str. 83

Kochom powodziło w obozie niezwykle dobrze. Oprócz znacznych przekrętów finansowych wiedli dostatnie życie, jeździli na ferie w Alpy, a latem nad morze. Mieli ogromną kolekcję win. Ilse Koch posiadała ogromne ilości garderoby oraz drogie perfumy oraz piękne zastawy stołowe i srebra.
Sama Koch znalazła przyjemność w dręczeniu więźniów. Zazwyczaj kazała mężowi chłostać tych, który według niej krzywo albo niewłaściwie na nią spojrzeli. Były więzień dr Petr Zenkl wspominał żonę komendanta następująco:

"Żyła z tego i karmiła się tym, co w raz z jej okropnym mężem zdołali wycisnąć z administracji obozu, dziesiątek tysięcy godnych współczucia więźniów i ze sprzeniewierzania funduszy.(...) Spotkanie z nią oznaczało nieszczęście dla każdego więźnia. Czasami wpadała w szał bo [więzień] nie przywitał się, albo odważył się ja przywitać. Czasami, bo odważył się nią spojrzeć, a czasami po prostu była w złym humorze. Podawała jego numer do administracji obozu i nagiego więźnia publicznie bito na oczach tysięcy innych skazańc��w."

Samo małżeństwo Kochów było dalekie od sielanki. Ilse lubiła zdrady i przygody na terenie obozu - a jej mąż nie był jej dłużny. Karl Koch był sadystycznym komendantem. Kazał stosować okrutne kary bicia wobec więźniów. Jedną z osób przodujących w tym procederze był Martin Sommer, który przeszedł do historii jako sadysta obozowy. Lubował się w wykonywaniu kary tzw. "słupka", która polegała na wiązaniu z tyłu rąk więźnia i podwieszania go nad ziemią. Człowiek, który przeszedł taką torturę nie mógł już normalnie funkcjonować, a tym bardziej pracować. Sommer ponadto wstrzykiwał powietrze i fenol w serce więźniów. Wszystko to oczywiście za zgodą Karla Kocha. Prawą ręką komendanta natomiast był Hermann Hackmann, który również słynął z niesłychanego okrucieństwa. Dla przykładu w kamieniołomie kazał umieścić więźnia w katapulcie i wystrzelić go jak ogromny kamień.
Obóz w Buchenwaldzie był piekłem dla więźniów. Dla kontrastu - znajdywały się w nim absurdalne miejsca, jak małe zoo ze zwierzętami czy sala z lustrami w której Ilse Kocha jeździła konno. Jako ciekawostkę należy podać fakt, że Kocha wydał rozkaz dotyczący zoo, gdzie nie wolno się znęcać nad zwierzętami a opiekunowie powinni być troskliwi wobec zwierząt. Kim więc byli w takim razie więźniowie?

Do historii Ilse Koch przeszła gównie jako koneserka tatuaży. Lubiła ona chodzić do kamieniołomu i upatrywać sobie więźniów z ciekawymi tatuażami. Więźniowie ci potem "znikali". Skóry ludzkie z takimi ozdobami ponoć służyły do wykonywania abażurów, etui, okładek na albumy i innych rzeczy codziennego użytku. Więźniów najczęściej zabijano zastrzykiem, zaś ciała przekazywano wydziałowi patologii.

W 1942 roku Karl Koch został komendantem obozu w Majdanku, natomiast Ilse Koch, co może się wydawać dziwne, postanowiła zostać w Buchenwaldzie.

Nad Kochami jednak pojawiły się czarne chmury. Oszustwa i malwersacje, okradanie własnego kraju musiało się skończyć negatywnie.
W 1943 roku, w Weimerze, aresztowało ich SS pod zarzutem korupcji oraz zabójstwa zleconego na trzech więźniach przez Karla Kocha. Razem z dziećmi przenosi się do Ludwigsburga. W sierpniu 1944 roku ponownie Kochowie stają przed sądem. On zostaje skazany na śmierć, natomiast Ilse - uniewinniona po rzekomym załamaniu nerwowym. Jednak jej wolność nie trwa długo, bo już w 1945 roku znowu zasiada na ławie oskarżonych o zbrodnie wojenne. Skazano ją na karę dożywocia, lecz wniosła o rewizję. Zaszła w więzieniu w ciążę, a jej wyrok zredukowano do czterech lat.
Sprawiedliwość spotkała ją od własnych rodaków, którzy na bawarskim trybunale w 1949 roku skazali ją za znęcanie i mordy na niemieckich więźniach. W 1951 roku dostała karę dożywocia i nigdy nie odwołano się do jej apelacji. W roku 1967 Ilse popełniła samobójstwo wieszając się. Napisała w liście do swojego syna Uwe:

"Nie mogę postąpić inaczej. Śmierć jest dla mnie wybawieniem."


A czy to wybawienie uzyskali więźniowie nad którymi znęcała się "suka z Buchenwaldu"? Niejednokrotnie podczas procesu pozowała na ofiarę, mówiła że nie ma pojęcia czym jest obóz. Była osobą próżną i pozbawioną empatii. Okres więzienia i koniec jej życia był takim na jaki zasłużyła. Kobieta, która niczym się nie wyróżniała, przemieniła się w potwora bez skrupułów. Nadmiar władzy uczynił z niej zepsutą i okrutną osobę.

Autor Flint Whitlock opisał w książce historię i funkcjonowanie obozu, małżeństwo Kochów oraz dodał nieco faktów na temat wojny. Ogółem książka stanowi ciekawą pozycję dla osób zainteresowanych kontrowersyjnymi tematami oraz literaturą faktu.

Ocena 9/10

[denudatio_pulpae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Postępki nazistów w obozach koncentracyjnych nie są obecnie żadną tajemnicą. Obóz w Buchenwaldzie wyróżnia jednak fakt, że kierowało nim sadystyczne małżeństwo. Karl i Ilse Kochowie byli parą, o której wzmianki, nawet w obecnych czasach, budzą wiele negatywnych emocji. Nie są to bezpodstawne uczucia, tych dwoje nazistów w bardzo okrutny sposób wykorzystywało swoją władzę nad więźniami obozu. Autor opisując ich przepełnioną okrucieństwem historię w przystępny sposób wplótł również ogólne informacje na temat wojny i okresu tuż po niej. Książka warta uwagi.
8/10

[Fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very well researched book. There were a few things missing in my kindle version, missing photos cut descriptions, but the main book was very good. It explains the background, the history of the key players and the evidence. Much of the evidence has now been lost but it was interesting to read how these people were dealt with after the war. I did read facts I hadnt heard before. Its grim reading.

[Donna Humble · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book provides a lot of details about the Buchenwald concentration camp from it's beginning. It also tells the story of the Commandant and his wife from their first day there until they both were tried in different courts for their crimes.

[SueNote · Rating 3 out of 5]

Author did a lot of research. Horrifying account but needs to be told!

[Kenneth Barber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book tells the story of Karl and Ilse Koch. Karl was in the SS and ran the concentration camp at Buchenwald. Ilse is famous in her own right as the collector of things made of tattooed human skin. These items were supposed to have included lamp shades,book covers, and gloves. At her later trials these allegations were never really proven. The book traces the rise of Karl in the SS and how he came to run Buchenwald. The book details the I humane treatment he meted out and the wealth he acquired from the prisoners. Karl was later tried by the SS on charges of corruption and unauthorized murder. Ilse survived the war and was tried as a war criminal. Her original sentence was reduced and she was released only to be arrested by West German authorities and tried again for times against German citizens. Sentenced to life in prison, she hung herself in her cell. This book is an interesting look at how a concentration camp was run on a day to day basis.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Humbling, intense, yet a very informative.

A fantastic read for those who like this genre of history. This was a devastating period of time which should never be overlooked in today's political arena. If we do not study and learn from the tragic events which lead to the tremendous loss of life of people who had differences of opinions on political, theological, and ethnic perspectives from the ruling authority, we as a globalised world will be doomed to repeat history.

[Walter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will start off by saying that this book feels like reading a tabloid paper. I know it was well researched and the facts check out, but it just felt like I was reading the National Enquirer. That being said the story being told is almost unbelievable, and gives you an idea of the darkness of the human condition.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I see some readers are suggesting this book is interesting. I'd go further and say fascinating and ironic. I have not finished it yet but how ironic that the SS legal department relentlessly pursued Koch for embezzlement of money (however SS money) and harsh cruelty of prisoners when the concentration camp system embodied all this or more. What kind of minds make this differentiation?

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read but quite gruesome. I like to read about the Holocaust end the events surrounding it. But this one went into way to much detail.

[Jason Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the book was great. I think that the end was to much of the court transcripts. I could have read that myself. Otherwise, great read.

[Ladeedebra]

The topic of the Holocaust is never an easy read but it captures our attention nonetheless. I read it with one eye open at times but read til the end. The author does a great job of capturing the facts while telling a story one finds appalling. This is a truth we wish was false but isn't. Once you start the topic you feel the need to read more and more and only go deeper into the time period. I read Lilac Girls and continued from there. Great job by the author of investigating and capturing the history of these two! Difficult to put this into words.