Erna Beilhardt (7 February 1907 – 1999) was a German female guard at

Stutthof concentration camp Stutthof was a Nazi concentration camp established by Nazi Germany in a secluded, marshy, and wooded area near the village of Stutthof (now Sztutowo) 34 km (21 mi) east of the city of Danzig (Gdańsk) in the territory of the German-an ...

during

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. A member of the SS- Aufseherin, or overseer, Beilhardt was also a

nurse Nursing is a health care profession that "integrates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and human functioning; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alle ...

affiliated with the

German Red Cross The German Red Cross (GRC) ( ; DRK) is the national Red Cross Society in Germany. During the Nazi era, the German Red Cross was under the control of the Nazi Party and played a role in supporting the regime's policies, including the exclusion ...

during the last year of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. According to a Polish historian, the case of Beilhardt is the only known instance of an SS guard outright refusing to serve in Stutthof after receiving training.

Early life

Beilhardt was born in Neuteich ( Nowy Staw), near Danzig, on 7 February 1907. Her father died when she was seven years old. Beilhardt's mother, who came from a well-known family of Swiss dairy and cheesemakers who settled in the town, took care of the family by herself. Due to her family's difficult financial situation, especially with the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Beilhardt, who had just graduated from elementary school, went to

East Prussia East Prussia was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1772 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1871); following World War I it formed part of the Weimar Republic's ...

, where she found a job in agriculture. In 1927, Beilhardt moved to Danzig, where she lived with her sister and mother. Her mother opened a dairy warehouse in the town. After moving to Danzig, Beilhardt completed her education at a two-year vocational school and worked as a housekeeper in an apartment with the factory director, Willi Lippert. Between 1930 and 1938, she stayed at home and helped her family run stores. During this time, Beilhardt became involved with the

. In 1933, she joined the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

, seeing it as a way to advance her career. During the war, Beilhardt underwent additional medical training and joined the NSV, the Nazi Party's welfare program. During her interrogation by Polish officials, Beilhardt said she liked her jobs since she got to help German orphans. She was eventually referred to the

by an official of either the Nazi Party or the NSV in the regime's labor office.

Stutthof career

Beilhardt arrived at Stutthof in August 1944 and was trained as an auxiliary guard (''Hilfsaufseherin''). She remained at the central Stutthof camp from 18 September 1944 until 11 October 1944, when she attended an overseer program for six weeks and was then moved to the Stutthof Heiligenbeil subcamp. Beilhardt's time as a supervisor was highly unusual compared with other supervisors. Although she fulfilled the regular roles expected as a supervisor, she was not known to have personally beaten or killed any prisoners. Beilhardt became increasingly disturbed from watching her fellow overseers torture and kill prisoners. After six weeks, she decided to resign. On 20 January 1945, Beilhardt accompanied the evacuation of prisoners to

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

, where she performed nursing duties for wounded German soldiers under the German Red Cross. On 14 July 1945, Beilhardt was working in Swinemünde when she was arrested by

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

troops A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a Squadron (cavalry), squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section (military unit), section or platoon. Exception ...

. She was accused during the first Stutthof trials (25 April – 31 May 1946) of the maltreatment of concentration camp prisoners. During her trial, Beilhardt spoke of her support for Nazism. "I liked the idea of our leader that the whole world would apply to us, that we stand victorious over all countries ... I have been in the NSDAP since 1933." At the same time, however, Beilhardt said: "I did not like this work very much, because they tormented people too much, which I couldn't look at." Due to her voluntary resignation and lack of direct involvement in the abuse or murder of any prisoners, Beilhardt was not sentenced for crimes against humanity. Instead, she received a five-year prison sentence for her membership in the Nazi Party and the SS, making her the only SS-Aufseherin from Stutthof to be convicted by a Polish court and avoid execution. Although Beilhardt completed her sentence in May 1951, she remained in prison for several more months. Beilhardt was released on 21 December 1951. She died in 1999.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beilhardt, Erna 1907 births 1999 deaths Female guards in Nazi concentration camps German people imprisoned abroad German women nurses German nurses German Red Cross personnel People from Nowy Staw People convicted in the Stutthof trials Nazi Party members