Former concentration camp secretary Irmgard F. died at the age of 99: A chapter ends

Former concentration camp secretary Irmgard F. died at the age of 99: A chapter ends

The former German concentration camp secretary Irmgard F. died at the age of 99. This was reported by the Tagesschau . Her death marks the end of a chapter that is deeply rooted in German post -war history. Irmgard F. last lived in a retirement home in Quickborn, in the Pinneberg district.

IRMGARD F. worked as a stenotypist in the command of the Stutthof concentration camp near Gdansk. According to the Kleine Zeitung . She played a crucial role in the warehouse's administrative apparatus, since almost all of the correspondence ran over her desk. F. was a close confidante of the camp commander Paul Werner Hoppe and was aware of the terrible conditions in the camp, including the systematic killing of prisoners.

legal consequences

In 2022, Irmgard F. was guilty of murder in over 10,000 cases for help. The Stutthof process, which began on September 30, 2021 and lasted over a year with a total of 40 days of negotiations, caused a sensation worldwide. She was sentenced to two years on probation and guilty in 10,505 cases aid to murder and in five cases aid for attempted murder. The verdict was confirmed in August 2023 by the Federal Court of Justice in Leipzig, as the

F.'s case is emblematic for the legal processing of the National Socialist crimes, which only slowly progressed after the Second World War. Many perpetrators, like Irmgard F., were able to avoid their responsibility largely for decades. In the context of the time, the roles of concentration camp staff and the Naziodes, which orchestrated such crimes, were often interwoven.

While Irmgard F.'s term in the Stutthof concentration camp, which was founded in 1939, around 110,000 people were detained, almost 65,000 of whom did not survive. These shattering numbers are part of the story, which are documented in the archives of the time, among others in the Federal Archives . While the camp was forgotten in the population, responsibility for the crimes committed there continues.

Irmgard F. was aware of the crime committed under their supervision. The Federal Court of Justice found that it did both physical and psychological aid through its willingness to serve. From her workplace she had a view of part of the site, including the chimney of the crematorium, and she knew the condition of the prisoners.

The death of Irmgard F. also makes the need to not forget these painful chapters of history. The legal and social processing of the National Socialist past is still crucial for understanding and memory of the crimes that have happened there.