Hans-Joachim Caesar (17 May 1905 – 18 May 1990) was a German lawyer and banking official, working for the German

Reichsbank The ''Reichsbank'' (; ) was the central bank of the German Empire from 1876 until the end of Nazi Germany in 1945. Background The monetary institutions in Germany had been unsuited for its economic development for several decades before unifica ...

from 1931 until the end 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 ...

. He was director of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

during

and basically served as "second-in-line" to Vice President

Emil Puhl Emil Johann Rudolf Puhl (28 August 1889 in Berlin – 30 March 1962 in Hamburg) was a Nazism, Nazi economist and banking official during World War II. Career A Nazi, Puhl was director and vice-president of Germany's Reichsbank during World W ...

. From 1940 to 1944, Caesar served as German Banking Administrator/Comptroller ("Bankenkommissar") for France in Paris.

Life

Born in

Neisse The Lusatian Neisse (; ; ; Upper Sorbian: ''Łužiska Nysa''; Lower Sorbian: ''Łužyska Nysa''), or Western Neisse, is a river in northern Central Europe.

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

, Caesar studied law in Marburg, Münster and Kiel, and started to work for Reichsbank in Berlin in December, 1931, shortly before the end of the Weimar Republic. On January 1, 1935, he was appointed "Reichsbankrat" (Reichsbank Councillor), a few years later he became a member of the directorate. As a Reichsbank Director he was, for example, responsible for the administration of U.S. assets and accounts within the territory and zone of control of the Reich. In that role, some authors see Caesar as second-in-line to "de facto" head of the Reichsbank and official Vice President

,Chapter 2: The Chase Nazi Account: in: Charles Higham, 1983, Trading with the enemy - An exposé of the Nazi-American money plot, 1933-1949: Delacorte Press, who managed business operations of Reichsbank on behalf of the nominal head, the President of Reichsbank and Minister of Economy of the Reich

Walther Funk Walther Immanuel Funk (18 August 1890 – 31 May 1960) was a German economist and Nazi official who served as ''Reichsminister'' for the Economy from 1938 to 1945 and president of the Reichsbank from 1939 to 1945. Funk oversaw the mobili ...

. From 1940 until 1944, Caesar was German Bank Comptroller/Administrator in France, located in Paris. In that role, Caesar supervised the Paris branches of Allied banks such as

Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

and

Chase Manhattan Bank JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is an American national bank headquartered in New York City that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of the U.S. multinational banking and financial services holding ...

. Caesar was also responsible for "enemy banks" in German-occupied British territory on the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...

, and visited

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

in January, 1941.

John Nettles John Vivian Drummond Nettles (born 11 October 1943) is an English actor and author. He is best known for his starring roles as detectives in the crime drama television series '' Bergerac'' (1981–1991) in the title role, and ''Midsomer Murders ...

: Jewels and Jackboots: Hitler's British Isles, the German Occupation of the British Channel Islands 1940-1945: Channel Island Publishing; Auflage: 1st Limited edition (24. Oktober 2012): Caesar's role is controversial. Some authors stress his participation in the theft and exploitation of Jewish property, as a close aide of Puhl and Funk. Others point out that he reportedly refused offers of over-eager French bank officials to blackmail Jewish colleagues or assist with the confiscation of Jewish property. However, unlike Funk, who was sentenced to life at the First Nuremberg Trial in 1946, and Puhl, who was sentenced to five years jail at the so-called "Wilhelmstrasse"-Trial, there were apparently no legal proceedings against Caesar. After 1945, Caesar lived in

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

(

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

) and was board member of several German banks, as well as representative of foreign, for example Swiss, banks in Germany. He died in Cologne on May 18, 1990.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caesar, Hans-Joachim 1905 births 1990 deaths Nazi Party officials German Protestants German economists Lawyers in the Nazi Party Central bankers People from Nysa, Poland People from the Province of Silesia University of Marburg alumni University of Münster alumni University of Kiel alumni