Karl Diebitsch (3 January 1899 – 6 August 1985) was an artist and the ''

Schutzstaffel The ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS; also stylized as ''ᛋᛋ'' with Armanen runes; ; "Protection Squadron") was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, and later throughout German-occupied Europe duri ...

'' (SS) officer responsible for designing much of the SS regalia during the Nazi era, including the chained SS officer's dagger scabbard. Diebitsch worked with graphic designer Walter Heck to draft the well-known all-black SS uniform. Also with his business partner, industrialist Franz Nagy, Diebitsch began the production of art

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...

at the factory Porzellan Manufaktur Allach.

Life

Diebitsch was born on 3 January 1899, in the city of

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. In Hanover he completed his apprenticeship as a decorating painter after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, because of his enlistment in the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Kaise ...

in 1915. He earned the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

, Second Class, while with an artillery battery during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. After a short time being employed as a merchant, he resumed his education. Diebitsch enrolled in the Design School of the Academy of Plastic and Graphic Arts in Munich on 29 October 1919.

Joining the Nazi Party

On 1 May 1920, Diebitsch joined the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

(NSDAP). His membership number was 1,436. From 1920 to 1923 he was a member of the

Freikorps (, "Free Corps" or "Volunteer Corps") were irregular German and other European military volunteer units, or paramilitary, that existed from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. They effectively fought as mercenary or private armies, rega ...

(Free Corps). Two years after the Beer Hall Putsch Diebitsch went on to complete his formal art training in 1925, followed by several years of living and working in Munich as a painter and graphic artist. When the Nazis came to power in 1933, Diebitsch moved his family to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

and there joined the ''Reichsverband Bildender Künstler Deutschlands'' (National Association of German Visual Artists). In 1932, the new all-black SS uniform was designed by Diebitsch with graphic designer Walter Heck. In November 1933 he joined the SS (membership number 141,990), and in 1937 he re-joined the NSDAP, with a membership number of 4,690,956.

Artworks for Nazi Germany

Diebitsch served as the director of SS Porzellan Manufaktur Allach in 1936 until the SS enterprise had its porcelain production facility moved to Dachau. In the same year he designed SS dagger and sword parts, along with many other SS items. In 1938 he received one of the top prizes at a House of German Art exhibition in Munich for his painting titled, ''Mutter'' (Mother). In 1939 Diebitsch designed the letterhead logo of the ''

Ahnenerbe The Ahnenerbe (, ''ancestral heritage'') operated as a think tank in Nazi Germany between 1935 and 1945. Heinrich Himmler, the ''Reichsführer-SS'' from 1929 onwards, established it in July 1935 as an SS appendage devoted to the task of promot ...

'' and crests for SS officers. In May 1939 he designed a window for an exterior wall of the "König-Heinrich" dome at

Quedlinburg Abbey Quedlinburg Abbey (german: Stift Quedlinburg or ) was a house of secular canonesses ''(Frauenstift)'' in Quedlinburg in what is now Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was founded in 936 on the initiative of Saint Mathilda, the widow of the East Frankis ...

. Diebitsch also designed many German postage stamps during the Third Reich. He was given an honorary title of Professor by Adolf Hitler.An honorary title conveyed by Hitler. Johnson, Thomas M., ''Collecting Edged Weapons of the Third Reich'', Volume 6, 1993, pp 78–81. He served on the Personal Staff Reichsführer-SS and designed a

tapestry Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads ma ...

that was created by Elsie Seifert.

It was removed from
Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...
's residence in Berchtesgaden in 1945 by a member of the 506th Parachute Regiment of the American 101st Airborne Division. This piece originally hung in the Reichstag, but was removed to Himmler's residence after a fire which destroyed a similar piece. The construction is of heavy gold bullion thread on a blood red velvet backing. Bullion tassels and chord. Size is approximately 7 x 9 feet.Johnson, Thomas M., ''World War II German War Booty'', Volume II, p 66.

War years and later life

Besides being an artist, Diebitsch was also a reserve officer in the

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

during the course of the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

. He received staff assignments to the ''SS-Totenkopfstandarte'' (SS Death’s Head Regiment), ''SS-Regiment'' "Germania", ''SS-Division'' "Wiking" and the ''Höchste SS- und Polizeiführer Italien'' (Highest SS and Police Leader Italy). Diebitsch was finally promoted to the rank of SS-''

Oberführer __NOTOC__ ''Oberführer'' (short: ''Oberf'', , ) was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) dating back to 1921. An ''Oberführer'' was typically a NSDAP member in charge of a group of paramilitary units in a particular geographic ...

'' (senior colonel) on 20 April 1944. After the war, he was pardoned 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 ...

. In following years Diebitsch worked as a porcelain painter for the Heinrich & Co factory. In 1976, Heinrich Porzellan GmbH in

Selb Selb is a town in the district of Wunsiedel, in Upper Franconia, Bavaria, Germany. It is situated in the Fichtelgebirge, on the border with the Czech Republic, 20 km northwest of Cheb and 23 km southeast of Hof. Selb is well known fo ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

was incorporated into the

Villeroy & Boch Villeroy & Boch (, ) is a German manufacturer of ceramics, with the company headquarters located in Mettlach, Saarland. History The company began in the tiny Lorraine village of Audun le Tiche, where the iron master François Boch set up a pott ...

company association. He died in 1985.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diebitsch, Karl 1899 births 1985 deaths Artists from Hanover Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class SS-Oberführer People from the Province of Hanover Waffen-SS personnel 20th-century Freikorps personnel Imperial German Navy personnel of World War I

Life

Joining the Nazi Party

Artworks for Nazi Germany

War years and later life

See also

References