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»CHILDren’s EUTHANASIA«

From 1940 onwards, the first »children’s departments« began operating in Görden, Dösen, Marsberg and Vienna (»Spiegelgrund«). As the reporting requirement was hardly ever complied with and affected parents showed little willingness to participate, the Reich Ministry of the Interior issued a decree. Among other things, the age of children subject to reporting was raised to 16. As a result, further »special children’s departments« were set up and the number of child murders increased. The Lüneburg »special children’s department« began operating and developed into one of the main murder sites.

The paper is slightly damaged. The decree is typed. There is no handwritten signature.

Excerpt from the decree of the Reich Ministry of the Interior dated 20 September 1941.

NLA Hanover Nds. 721 Lüneburg Acc. 8/98 No. 3/9.

The relevant authorities were emphatically instructed to fulfil their reporting obligations. They were to convince parents that the measure was good for the community and for families. Apparently, the results of a survey conducted by Ewald Meltzer in 1920 were not accurate. The study, which was not published until 1925, stated that 78 percent of parents wanted their children with disabilities to be »saved.« But that was not true.

Registered children and adolescents were examined by the »Reich Committee« and local doctors. The assessment of whether a child or adolescent was »capable of development and education« determined whether they lived or died. Those deemed »incapable« were murdered, and their brains were used for medical research.

More than 30 »children’s wards« were set up in homes, hospitals and institutions for the purpose of »children’s euthanasia«. Not all of them existed during the same period. Around 6,800 children and adolescents are known to have died in »children’s wards«, at least 6,500 of whom were murdered.

Even outside the »children’s wards«, »children’s euthanasia« occurred in many places on an unknown scale.

The paper is yellowed. It is half a DIN A4 page. The document is a form. It has been filled out on a typewriter.

Certificate of death dated 13 September 1941.

Hamburg State Archives 352-8/7 Langenhorn State Hospital No. 86294.

Before the »children’s ward« in Lüneburg was established, at least ten children from the future catchment area were admitted to the two »children’s wards« in Hamburg, Rothenburgsort (1) and Langenhorn (9):

  • Hermann Beekhuis (Leer)
  • Helmuth Beneke (Bremervörde)
  • Gerda Cordes (Uelzen)
  • Marianne Harms (Bardowick)
  • Hillene Hellmers (Leer)
  • Irmgard Jagemann (Bremen)
  • Rosemarie Kablitz (Wilstedt)
  • Edda Purwin (Lüneburg)
  • Günther Schindler (Wilhelmshaven)
  • Hans-Ludwig Würflinger (Bremen)

Five returned home between 1942 and 1943, while the others were murdered. The youngest victim was Hermann Beekhuis. He was murdered at the age of three and a half months in the Rothenburgsort Children’s Hospital. The official date of death is falsified.

The transcript is slightly yellowed. It is densely typed. Individual terms and expressions are underlined in black and red. The document is headed with the names of the interrogating public prosecutor and the court clerk.

Excerpt from the interrogation of Frieda Bergmann on 5 November 1947.

NLA Hanover Lower Saxony 721 Lüneburg Acc. 8/98 No. 3.

On 9 and 10 October 1941, 138 children and adolescents were admitted to the »children’s ward« in buildings 25 and 23 of the Lüneburg mental hospital. They came from the Rotenburg institutions of the Inner Mission. Only nine boys and seven girls from this first group survived. Frieda Bergmann, a nurse in the Lüneburg »children’s ward,« was interviewed in Lüneburg shortly after the war.

It is a black-and-white aerial photograph of the institution's buildings. In the centre, many small, straight-lined plots are visible.

Aerial view of the Rotenburg institutions of the Inner Mission, postcard, before 1945.

ArEGL 99.

The Rotenburg institutions of the Inner Mission were to be used as an auxiliary hospital for Bremen victims of the air war. To this end, the children’s ward was closed and the children being treated there were divided up. Ninety-nine children were sent to the von Bodelschwingh institutions in Bethel, Bielefeld, and 24 children were sent to the Eben-Ezer Foundation in Lemgo. The children who were unable to attend school were transferred to the »children’s ward« in Lüneburg.

For many children and young people with disabilities from the province of Hanover, the Rotenburg institutions of the Inner Mission were a large home. The photos shown here certainly include children and young people who were later murdered in Lüneburg. In the picture of the boys in front of the Wichernhaus, for example, Eckart Willumeit from Celle can be seen on the left.

It is a black-and-white photograph showing ten children. The children are of different ages, ranging from about one and a half to thirteen years old. They are sitting on different chairs. It is a spontaneous picture, not staged. Three women in nurses' uniforms are sitting with the children.

Young people with Brother Karl Stallbaum in front of the Wichernhaus of the Rotenburg Works of the Inner Mission, around 1938. Photographer Kurt Stallbaum.

Archive of the Rotenburg Works of the Inner Mission.

It is a black-and-white photograph. A group of 20 children are standing in a row in front of a bus. The children are wearing coats and hats. They are looking at the camera. Adults are standing behind them.

Group photo of the children’s transport from Hanover-Langenhagen. On the left is the director from Rotenburg, Pastor Johannes Buhrfeind. Behind him on the right is the ward nurse or »house father« Grützmacher.

Archive of the Rotenburg Works of the Inner Mission.

Among the children who were transferred to Lüneburg were 25 who had been moved from the Hanover-Langenhagen mental hospital to Rotenburg on 18 March 1938 after the children’s clinic in Langenhagen had been closed. In addition to Eckart Willumeit, these included Friedrich Daps, Waldemar Borcholte and Hans-Herbert Niehoff. They must be four of the children in the photo.

Interview

Between 1941 and 24 August 1945, a total of at least 762 children and adolescents aged between one day and 16 years were admitted to the »children’s ward« in Lüneburg. Over 440 of them did not survive their stay. It is unclear whether a further 61 children and adolescents survived.

It is a pie chart. It shows that over 60 per cent of the children died.

The mortality rate in the »children’s ward« in Lüneburg was over 60 percent. Since not all fates are known, it may be even higher.

It is a bar chart. There is one bar for girls and one bar for boys. In 1941, there were a total of 19 dead children. In 1942, there were a total of 108 dead children. In 1943, there were a total of 132 dead children. In 1944, there were a total of 120 dead children. In 1945, there were a total of 59 dead children.

Most of the children and adolescents were murdered in 1943 (132) and 1944 (120). Even after the end of the war, the deaths continued. The last admission to the »children’s ward« in Lüneburg took place on 23 August 1945. The patient was one-and-a-half-year-old Heiko Bromm from Hannoversch-Münden. He died two months later.

Whether and how many children and adolescents were referred to a »children’s ward« depended on the actions of parents, midwives, teachers and health authorities. These varied greatly from region to region. There were regions from which no children or only one child was reported and admitted (e.g. Cloppenburg and Vechta). A striking number of children were admitted to the »children’s ward« from Hanover (135), Bremen (39), Celle (33), Lüneburg (33), Bremerhaven (31) and Hildesheim (31).

It is a map of present-day Lower Saxony, including Bremen and Hamburg. The districts are coloured differently. The districts coloured white have admitted fewer than three children. There are only six towns and districts that did not report or admit any children.

The children and adolescents in the Lüneburg »children’s ward« came from what are now the federal states of Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia. This map of the catchment area at that time shows the cities and districts from which they were admitted to the Lüneburg »children’s ward« and how many of them there were.

This is a black-and-white photograph. Herta Ley is wearing a pinafore dress and a checked scarf. She also has a light-coloured cap. She is photographed from the side and is being held by a taller person on her left hand.

Herta Ley, around spring 1932.

ArEGL.

The Leer health authority had some very dedicated employees. Eight of the 13 children from Leer were murdered. Among them was Herta Ley from Westrhauderfehn. She arrived in Lüneburg on 9 October 1941 and was one of the first children to be murdered.

Young people who did not behave in an appropriate manner and were considered »uneducable« were reported by the youth welfare service for admission to a »special children’s ward«. As a doctor at the Wunstorf youth welfare institution, Willi Baumert personally admitted his charges to the »special children’s ward« in Lüneburg. Siegfried Eilers, who came to Lüneburg with his three siblings, also had to go through this experience. His younger brother Ernst did not survive his stay there.

It is a slightly blurred, somewhat scratched black-and-white photograph. Eight people in farm clothing can be seen. Wilhelm Eilers is sitting on the right with his son and daughter. Three women are crouching to the right of them for the photograph. Between them stands a person wearing rough wooden shoes and an apron. Their head is not visible in the picture. Everyone is looking seriously into the camera.

Ernst Eilers in the arms of his father Wilhelm Eilers, with his sister Hannelore standing to his left, Brünninghausen, around 1941.

Private property of Susanne Grünert.

Postcard of the Lüneburg Institution and Nursing Home, 1915.

ArEGL 99.

The postcard shows the Lüneburg Institution and Nursing Home, with the clubhouse (House 36) in the foreground. In the background, you can see houses 24, 23 and 25 (from left to right), which housed the Lüneburg »children’s ward«. There are at least 13 different postcards with different motifs and views of the grounds and individual buildings. Only this card shows all the buildings of the »children’s ward«.

The girls were housed on the upper floor of House 25, while the boys were housed on the ground floor. Another 20 boys were housed on the ground floor of House 23. In autumn 1944, the »children’s ward« moved out of House 23. The boys were transferred to House 25. From the beginning of 1945, House 25 was used as a military hospital. The »children’s ward« moved to House 24 and remained there until 1946.

It is a black-and-white photograph of House 25. It is a two-storey house behind tall trees. The house has wooden balconies with roofing along the entire length of the building.
It is a black-and-white photograph of house number 23. The house has two storeys. It is surrounded by tall trees. A climbing plant grows up the building to the roof.
It is a black-and-white photograph of house 24. The house has two storeys with a converted attic. It has a veranda with a wooden balcony. In front of the house are tall bushes and a garden bordered by hedges.

House 25, 24 and House 23, after 1950.

ArEGL 109.

The document is yellowed. It is densely typed. Some terms have been added by hand. Names and the term »special use« are underlined in red by hand.

Excerpt from the transcript of the interrogation of nurse Marie-Luise Heusmann on 3 November 1947, p. 6.

NLA Hanover Lower Saxony 721 Lüneburg Acc. 8/98 No. 3.

It is a black-and-white photograph. The beds have steel frames with mattresses. Eleven beds can be seen. They are placed close together, separated only by a small side table with a doily. The room has two lattice windows.

Photo taken in a dormitory at the Lüneburg mental hospital after 1945. The furnishings were basic. Only the bare essentials were provided.

ArEGL 122.

There were large bedrooms with too few beds. Children had to share beds or lie on mattresses on the floor. There was not enough laundry and toiletries. Children who could not use the toilet were not washed adequately. They often did not receive clean clothes. Beds were rarely changed, and children lay in their own excrement. Due to poor hygiene and inadequate nutrition, skin and intestinal diseases spread.

When Elly Endewardt wanted to visit her son Jürgen three days after he was admitted, she was not allowed to see him. The mother entered the room anyway and saw a nurse hiding dirty bed linen under the bed. Apart from a duvet that was much too thin, she saw that Jürgen was completely naked despite the winter temperatures. Two weeks later, she visited twice more to speak to the medical director. The next day, Jürgen was dead.

Interview

It is a black-and-white photograph. Elly Endewardt is carrying Jürgen in her arms. Dieter and Ute are holding them both. Elly is wearing a light-coloured, high-necked blouse with a brooch at the neck. Her hair is carefully pinned up. She is looking kindly into the camera. The children are wearing light-coloured clothes and are also looking at the camera. Ute has a large bow in her hair.

Elly Endewardt with her three children Dieter, Jürgen and Ute (from left to right), summer 1942.

Private collection Barbara Burmester | Helga Endewardt.

The paper is light green and perforated. The name and address of Elly Endewardt, her relationship to her son Jürgen, and the date of her visit are handwritten in blue ink in a pre-printed table. Jürgen Endewardt's name appears above the table. In the »Comments« column on the right-hand side of the table, another hand has written »5.12.42 Director's interview« in black ink. Two lines below the other entries is the note »died on 7.12.42«.

Visitor index card for Jürgen Endewardt.

NLA Hanover Hann. 155 Lüneburg Acc. 56/83 No. 234.

Many parents complained that toys they had given their children disappeared. There was no school and no therapy. Nothing was done for the children and young people. Those young people who were »fit for work« had to help with gardening or field work. No one took care of the younger children until they were murdered.

The paper is yellowed. The list was typed on a typewriter. The medications are listed by year. Behind each entry is the consumption for each month. Some numbers are underlined in red. Some information about the medications has been added by hand.

List of medication consumption 1941–1948.

NLA Hanover Lower Saxony 721 Lüneburg Acc. 8/98 No. 3.

Paul Nitsche invented the »Luminal scheme« for the murder of children and adolescents. Excessive doses of the anti-epileptic drug Luminal, which was often prescribed as a sedative, were administered. When given over a longer period of time, this led to shallow breathing and caused respiratory diseases, circulatory and kidney failure. This allowed the murder of »lives unworthy of life« to be carried out in a seemingly natural and inconspicuous manner. In Lüneburg, Veronal and morphine were also used in addition to Luminal.

The consumption of drugs used for murder increased a hundredfold. The amount consumed remained high until 1947. This allows conclusions to be drawn.

The lives of children and young people depended on whether doctors assessed them as »capable of development« and »capable of education.« Poor development or low abilities were deemed »unworthy of life.« Even if extensive care was required, »treatment,« i.e., euthanasia, was considered. Doctors received so-called »authorisations« from the »Reich Committee.« Often, several were issued in a single day, as this list from Eglfing-Haar shows.

The list was typed on a typewriter. Much of the information is difficult to read because it is a poor-quality black-and-white copy. It contains personal details about the individuals, as well as the date of admission, the date of discharge, and where the individuals were released to.

Excerpt from a list of authorisation cases from Major Leo Alexander’s report for the Nuremberg Doctors‘ Trial, in: Lutz Kälber: Kindermord in Nazi-Deutschland (Infanticide in Nazi Germany), in Gesellschaften 2, 2012.

It is a yellowed square sheet of paper. It is the letterhead of the Reich Committee. It is typed, signed by hand and stamped with the Reich eagle.

Letter from the Reich Committee to Otto Wiepel dated 29 September 1942.

NLA Hanover Hann. 155 Lüneburg Acc. 56/83 No. 428

Otto Wiepel was assured by the »Reich Committee« that it would cover the costs of Herbert’s care for five months. That was the calculated life expectancy, because that was all the time the doctors and authorities had to carry out and administer Herbert’s murder.

The referral is slightly yellowed. It is densely printed and typed. Information about Lars Sundmäker and the »Children's ward« in Lüneburg is printed in bold. There is no signature.

Admission order from the »Reich Committee« for the admission of Lars Sundmäker to the »Children’s Ward« in Lüneburg, 8 April 1943.

NLA Hanover Hann. 155 Lüneburg Acc. 56/83 No. 405.

The »Reich Committee« determined admission to a »specialised children’s ward.« It also issued a »treatment recommendation.« Without having seen or met the children and adolescents, the experts Catel, Wentzler and Heinze marked the form with a red cross, a blue minus sign or a »B.« The Lüneburg »children’s ward« received a corresponding »treatment recommendation« in return. The cross meant murder, the »B« stood for »observation« and meant deferral, and the blue minus meant no murder.

There is no clear distinction between the crimes committed against adult patients and those committed against adolescents or minors. Adolescents aged 14 and above who were housed in the »children’s ward« were reported for sterilisation and forcibly sterilised. They were also transferred to killing centres and youth concentration camps, where they were subjected to physical violence and even murder. The children and adolescents housed in Lüneburg were only spared from being transferred to youth concentration camps.

The personal details on the form are filled in by hand. The reasons for the application are typed.

Applications for sterilisation by Max Bräuner and Hans Rohlfing from August 1942.

NLA Hanover Hann. 138 Lüneburg Acc. 103/88 No. 609.

For Ingeborg Wernitz, sterilisation was a mandatory requirement for her to be discharged from the »children’s ward«. The application was submitted four months before her 14th birthday. She was forcibly sterilised on 21 January 1943 and only discharged afterwards.

On 8 September 1943, at least eleven young people under the age of 18 were transferred from the Lüneburg institution and nursing home to the Pfafferode killing centre. Eight of them were murdered there; only one was released before the end of the war. One young woman survived, but was transferred back to Lüneburg in 1947.

The young people murdered in Pfafferode are:

Ilse Allrütz (1928 – 1944)
Richard Bergmann (1926 – 1943)
Rolf Erbguth (1928 – 1943)
Harald Frandsen (1926 – 1944)
Kurt Nolte (1925 – 1944)
Gerda Plenge (1927 – 1945)
Otto Schulz (1927 – 1944)
Ekatharina Taranowa (1926 – 1944)

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