D-IX is a

methamphetamine Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug use, recreational or Performance-enhancing substance, performance-enhancing drug and less commonly as a secon ...

-based experimental performance enhancer developed by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

in 1944 for military application. The researcher who rediscovered this project, Wolf Kemper, said, "the aim was to use D-IX to redefine the limits of human endurance." One dose contained 5 mg

oxycodone Oxycodone, sold under the brand name Roxicodone and OxyContin (which is the extended-release form) among others, is a semi-synthetic opioid used medically for the treatment of moderate to severe pain. It is highly addictive and is a commonly ...

(brand name Eukodal, an analgesic opioid), 5 mg

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

, and 3 mg

(brand name Pervitin). German doctors were enthusiastic about the results, and planned to supply all German troops with the pills, but the war ended before D-IX could be put into mass production, though it did see limited use among a handful of Neger and Biber pilots.

History

Due to increased Allied pressure on the German war effort, Nazi Germany had grown desperate for more soldiers to continue the war effort, and one way to mitigate the massive losses was to increase the combative power of existing

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

soldiers. Though simpler drugs, such as

Pervitin Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug use, recreational or Performance-enhancing substance, performance-enhancing drug and less commonly as a secon ...

and Isophan, helped to keep soldiers stimulated, in March 1944,

Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

Hellmuth Heye requested a drug that could also give users

superhuman strength Superhuman strength is a superpower commonly invoked in fiction and other literary works, such as mythology. A fictionalized representation of the phenomenon of hysterical strength, it is the power to exert force and lift weights beyond what is ...

and a boosted sense of

self-esteem Self-esteem is confidence in one's own worth, abilities, or morals. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", "I am worthy") as well as emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. Smith and Macki ...

. Pharmacologist , and a group of other researchers, were commissioned to develop the drug in

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

, and by later that year, had developed a formula that contained, in each tablet, 5 mg of

, 5 mg of cocaine, and 3 mg of

. Nazi researchers forced drugged prisoners from the

Sachsenhausen concentration camp Sachsenhausen () or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a German Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used from 1936 until April 1945, shortly before the defeat of Nazi Germany in May later that year. It mainly held political prisoners t ...

to march nonstop in circles while carrying a backpack. Most collapsed after 24 hours, but some were able to sustain a march of .

References

{{reflist 1944 introductions German inventions of the Nazi period Psychoactive drugs and the military Stimulants Cocaine Methamphetamine

History

See also

References