Arnold Hans Weiss (July 25, 1924 – December 7, 2010) was a German-born refugee from

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

who emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

where he became an intelligence officer working for the Office of Strategic Services during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and played a key role in the discovery of the

last will and testament of Adolf Hitler A last is a mechanical form shaped like a human foot. It is used by shoemakers and cordwainers in the manufacture and repair of shoes. Lasts typically come in pairs and have been made from various materials, including hardwoods, cast iron, and ...

, dictated during the last days of the war in Europe and laying out the succession of leadership following his impending suicide as the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...

overtook Berlin and encircled the Führerbunker.

Early life

Born in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

as Hans Arnold Wangersheim on July 25, 1924, he grew up in an orphanage after being placed there as a child following the divorce of his parents. A Jewish organization arranged for him to be sent to a family in

Janesville, Wisconsin Janesville is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat and largest city in the county. It is a principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Madison–Jan ...

when he was 13 years old.Shapiro, T Rees
"ArnoldWeiss, 86; US soldier who found Hitler’s will after WWII"
''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', December 16, 2010. Accessed January 3, 2010. Both of his parents escaped from Germany on their own, his father to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

while his mother also emigrated to the U.S. He attended the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

and changed his surname to match that of

Howard Weiss Howard William Weiss (October 12, 1917 – November 12, 1997) was an American football fullback. He was drafted in the third round of the 1939 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions and played two seasons with the team. Later he played with the Milwau ...

, a star football player for the school's football team.Weber, Bruce
"Arnold Weiss Dies at 86; Helped to Find Hitler’s Will"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', January 1, 2011. Accessed January 2, 2011.

Military career

Weiss served in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

during World War II, but his training as a

tail gunner A tail gunner or rear gunner is a crewman on a military aircraft who functions as a gunner defending against enemy fighter or interceptor attacks from the rear, or "tail", of the plane. The tail gunner operates a flexible machine gun or a ...

ended when the plane he was in crashed and severely injured his legs. His ability to speak the

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is als ...

led to his being recruited by the O.S.S. for service in Germany. Serving with the

Counterintelligence Corps The Counter Intelligence Corps (Army CIC) was a World War II and early Cold War intelligence agency within the United States Army consisting of highly trained special agents. Its role was taken over by the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps in 1961 and ...

in the months following the fall of Nazi Germany, Weiss questioned many members of the Nazi hierarchy in advance of their trials. Weiss's unit was given the responsibility of confirming

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

's death, and together with

Hugh Trevor-Roper Hugh Redwald Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton (15 January 1914 – 26 January 2003) was an English historian. He was Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Trevor-Roper was a polemicist and essayist on a range of ...

located

Wilhelm Zander Wilhelm Zander (22 April 1911 – 27 September 1974) was an adjutant to Martin Bormann during World War II. He died in Munich in 1974. Biography He was born in Saarbrücken. Although he received only minimal education, Zander built up business in ...

, who had been Martin Bormann's adjutant, using information that had been obtained by contacting members of his family. While being questioned, Zander described the circumstances in Hitler's Berlin bunker in the last days before he committed suicide. Under interrogation, Zander disclosed that he had been sent out of the bunker in order to transport a series of documents, which included an attestation to Hitler's marriage to

Eva Braun Eva Anna Paula Hitler (; 6 February 1912 – 30 April 1945) was a German photographer who was the longtime companion and briefly the wife of Adolf Hitler. Braun met Hitler in Munich when she was a 17-year-old assistant and model for his ...

. Also among the documents that were recovered was Hitler's last will and testament, which named Bormann as his executor and was later introduced as evidence during the

Nuremberg Trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945, Nazi Germany invaded m ...

. Weiss was awarded the Commendation Medal for his role in "apprehending a personality high in the annals of the Nazi system". Another soldier, Herman Rothman, made a claim in a 2009 book that Hitler's will had been located months earlier than the date based on Weiss's account and a book by Hugh Trevor-Roper made no mention of Weiss or of his role in uncovering Hitler's will.

Military awards

Later life

After returning to the United States after completing his military service, Weiss earned a degree in law at the

University of Wisconsin Law School The University of Wisconsin Law School is the professional graduate law school of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, the school was founded in 1868. The University of Wisconsin Law School is guided by a "law in ...

and worked for the

United States Department of the Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States, where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and ...

, where he participated in the establishment of the Inter-American Development Bank. A resident of Chevy Chase, Maryland, Weiss died at the age of 86 due to

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

in Rockville, Maryland on December 7, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weiss, Arnold Hans 1924 births 2010 deaths Wisconsin lawyers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Deaths from pneumonia in Maryland Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States People from Chevy Chase, Maryland People from Janesville, Wisconsin People from Nuremberg People of the Office of Strategic Services United States Army Air Forces officers University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni University of Wisconsin Law School alumni 20th-century American lawyers Military personnel from Wisconsin