Theodor Berkelmann (17 April 1894 – 28 December 1943) was a German SS functionary during the Nazi era who served as the Higher SS and Police Leader in

Saarland The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...

and Moselle 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 ...

Biography

Theodor Berkelmann was born in

Le Ban-Saint-Martin Le Ban-Saint-Martin (; ) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Population See also * Communes of the Moselle department The following is a list of the 725 communes of the Moselle department of Franc ...

near

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

, in Alsace-Lorraine, which was then part of Germany. During 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 ...

, he served in the German Army. Berkelmann served as a soldier, before being promoted to officer. He was awarded 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 ...

Ist class. By 1936, Berkelmann was promoted to SS- Gruppenführer. At the beginning 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 ...

, Berkelmann was appointed Higher SS and Police Leader in

and Moselle. In 1942, he was promoted to the grade of "SS-

Obergruppenführer ' (, "senior group leader") was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissio ...

". Berkelmann died of a brain tumor in

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...

, in 1943.The Private Heinrich Himmler: Letters of a Mass Murderer, Katrin Himmler et al, 2016

References

Sources

* (de) Ruth Bettina Birn: ''Die Höheren SS- und Polizeiführer. Himmlers Vertreter im Reich und in den besetzten Gebieten.'' Droste Verlag, Düsseldorf, 1986. * (de) Joachim Lilla : ''Statisten in Uniform. Die Mitglieder des Reichstags 1933-1945'', Droste, Düsseldorf 2004. * (de) Erich Stockhorst: 5000 Köpfe - Wer war was im Dritten Reich, Kiel 2000. * (de) Klaus D. Patzwall (Hg.): Das Goldene Parteiabzeichen und seine Verleihungen ehrenhalber 1934 -1944, Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall, Norderstedt 2004.

External links

* (de
Theo Berkelmann at Saarländische Biografien
* (de

1894 births 1943 deaths People from Alsace-Lorraine Military personnel from Metz Members of the Reichstag of Nazi Germany SS and Police Leaders Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class 20th-century Freikorps personnel Deaths from brain cancer in Poland Waffen-SS personnel SS-Obergruppenführer German Army personnel of World War I {{Germany-mil-bio-stub