Dr. Hans Posse (6 February 1879 – 7 December 1942) was a German

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

museum curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

, and, for over three years, from June 1939 until his death, the special representative of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

appointed to expand the collection of paintings and other art objects which Hitler intended for the so-called "

Führermuseum The ''Führermuseum'' or ''Fuhrer-Museum'' (English language, English: Leader's Museum), also referred to as the Linz art gallery, was an unrealized art museum within a cultural complex planned by Adolf Hitler for his hometown, the Austrian ci ...

" in

Linz, Austria Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

. The museum, which was never built, was to be the core of a cultural center which was part of a planned general rebuilding of the city intended to have it surpass

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and rival

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

Life and career

Posse was the son of Otto Adalbert Posse, an historian and

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

who was director of the Saxon Central State Archive in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. The younger Posse studied

art history Art history is the study of Work of art, artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Tradit ...

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and history in

Marburg Marburg (; ) is a college town, university town in the States of Germany, German federal state () of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf Districts of Germany, district (). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has ...

and

, and received his doctorate in 1903 in Vienna under

Franz Wickhoff Franz Wickhoff (7 May 1853 – 6 April 1909) was an Austrian art historian, and is considered a member of the Vienna School of Art History. Early life Franz Wickhoff was born on 7 May 1853 in Steyr. He studied at the University of Vienna under ...

with a thesis on the 17th century Roman painter Andrea Sacchi. Posse's museum career began that same year as a volunteer at the

Kaiser Friedrich Museum The Bode Museum (), formerly called the Emperor Frederick Museum (), is a listed building on the Museum Island in the historic centre of Berlin. It was built from 1898 to 1904 by order of German Emperor William II according to plans by Ernst ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, where he soon became the assistant to and protégé of

Wilhelm von Bode Wilhelm von Bode (10 December 1845 – 1 March 1929) was a German art historian and museum curator. Born Arnold Wilhelm Bode in Calvörde, and known as Wilhelm Bode for most of his career, he was ennobled in 1913, and thereafter adopted the ar ...

, the museum's director.Spotts (2002), p.189 Posse made a name for himself in the world of art history by his handling of the museum's collections of German, Dutch and English paintings; a two-volume inventory catalog was published in 1911. He spent several years in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

as an assistant at the city's German Institute of Art History, and in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

as a researcher at the

Bibliotheca Hertziana Bibliotheca may refer to: * ''Bibliotheca'' (Apollodorus), a grand summary of traditional Greek mythology and heroic legends * ''Bibliotheca historica'', a first century BC work of universal history by Diodorus Siculus * ''Bibliotheca'' (Photius ...

, which resulted in a work on the ceiling paintings of

Pietro da Cortona Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...

. His later publications would investigate Lucas Cranach and the German Impressionist

Robert Sterl Robert Hermann Sterl (23 June 1867 – 10 January 1932) was a German painter and graphic artist. Life Sterl was born in Großdobritz, now part of Dresden, the son of a stonemason. From 1881 to 1888, he attended the Dresden Academy of Fine ...

. In 1910, at age 31, thanks in large part to the efforts of Bode, Posse was appointed to be the director of the Dresden Picture Gallery, also known as the ''Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister'' ("Old Master's Gallery") or simply the "Dresden Gallery".

Dresden Gallery

Posse reorganized the museum along the new ideas of Bode, and built up its holdings of German paintings, primarily from the 19th century, paying particular attention to the Dresden Romantics. Called up for military service in

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 ...

, he wrote to Bode from the front lines in 1914 "I would be very happy to participate in the division of the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

." After the war, from the summer of 1919, he began to add

expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

works to the museum. He was a significant supporter and friend of

Oskar Kokoschka Oskar Kokoschka (1 March 1886 – 22 February 1980) was an Austrian artist, poet, playwright and teacher, best known for his intense expressionistic portraits and landscapes, as well as his theories on vision that influenced the Viennese Expre ...

, the

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n expressionist artist,

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

, who was at the time a professor at the

Dresden Academy of Fine Arts The Dresden Academy of Fine Arts (German language, German ''Hochschule für Bildende Künste Dresden''), often abbreviated HfBK Dresden or simply HfBK, is a vocational university of visual arts located in Dresden, Germany. The present institutio ...

and become a lodger in Posse's apartment. When Posse put together the German contribution to the XIII Venice Biennale in 1922, he featured Kokschka's work. As curator of the Dresden International Art Exhibition 1926 and both the 1922 and 1930 Venice Biennales, Posse advocated for

avant-garde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...

works to be considered as a legitimate part of the German art world. This stance provoked bitter opposition from

German nationalist German nationalism () is an ideological notion that promotes the unity of Germans and of the Germanosphere into one unified nation-state. German nationalism also emphasizes and takes pride in the patriotism and national identity of Germans a ...

artists, whose attacks he suffered from 1926 on. In his speech on 12 June 1926 for the opening of the International Art Exhibition, Posse emphasized the international orientation of Dresden's contemporary art life, which was necessary for the artists of Dresden to remain relevant, and avoid the stagnation of provincialism and possible extinction. He also pointed out the strategic importance of the Exhibition as a window to the international world of art, especially after the isolation of the war years. In 1931 Posse founded the New Masters Gallery on

Brühl's Terrace Brühl's Terrace () is a historic architectural ensemble in Dresden, Germany. Nicknamed "The Balcony of Europe", the terrace stretches high above the bank of the river Elbe, and is located north of the recently rebuilt Neumarkt Square and the F ...

in Dresden, which was based on the Dresden Gallery's "Modern Department" collection of 19th and 20th century paintings, including Romantics, Expressionists and

Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

works.

Relationship with the Nazis

Adolf Hitler's National Socialist German Worker's Party (NSDAP, commonly called 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 ...

), had, following their leader's example, long taken a strong stance against all modern art styles, which it called " degenerate art" or " Bolshevik art". After Hitler was appointed Chancellor in January 1933 – the so-called "seizure of power" – the Nazi Party in Dresden launched a smear campaign against Posse, accusing him of displaying "degenerate art" in the museum, and claiming, inaccurately, that he was partly

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. At least one of his attackers, Walter Gasch, was motivated by a desire for Posse's job.Spotts (2002), pp.190-91 Posse was nevertheless able to keep his position, at least temporarily, by distancing himself from the Modernist works he had previously championed. He argued that of the 310 works added to the collection under his leadership, only 33 were dated after 1910, that many of those were gifts and on loan, and he had received them only in the spirit of helping local artists.Spotts (2002), p.190 At about the same time, Posse – whose housekeeper and future wife had joined the Nazi Party in 1931 – applied to become a party member, and received his interim membership card in December 1933. His opponents, however, prevented him from becoming a full member; he remained a provisional member of the Party until June 1934, when his membership was finally rejected. In December 1937, the Nazi campaign resulted in the confiscation and sale of 56 paintings from the New Masters Gallery, including works by

Edvard Munch Edvard Munch ( ; ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His 1893 work ''The Scream'' has become one of Western art's most acclaimed images. His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dread of inher ...

Max Beckmann Max Carl Friedrich Beckmann (February 12, 1884 – December 27, 1950) was a German painter, drawing, draftsman, printmaker, sculpture, sculptor, and writer. Although he is classified as an Expressionist artist, he rejected both the term and the m ...

and

Emil Nolde Emil Nolde (born Hans Emil Hansen; 7 August 1867 – 13 April 1956) was a German painter and printmaker. He was one of the first Expressionists, a member of Die Brücke, and was one of the first oil painting and watercolor painters of the early ...

, and on 7 March 1938 Posse was summoned to answer for having hung these paintings. It was suggested that he retire, but he refused and took a leave of absence instead. Nevertheless, he was fired, only to be rehabilitated by Hitler, probably through the influence of art dealer Karl Haberstock, who often sold paintings to Hitler, as well as to Posse for the Dresden Gallery. Hitler visited Dresden on 18 June 1938, and questioned Posse about his dismissal. He asked for and examined the documents connected with the firing, and made the decision that Posse should get his position back. He and Martin Bormann were led through the museum by Posse.

Hitler's Special Envoy

A year later, on 20 June 1939, Hitler summoned Posse to his summer home, the '' Berghof'', and told him that he wanted Posse to be the head of what would be perhaps the most massive art acquisition project in history, the gathering of paintings and other art works for Hitler's planned art museum in

, the city Hitler considered to be his hometown. What came to be called the "

" – which was never built – was to be the core of a cultural center which was part of a general rebuilding of the city intended to have it surpass

and rival

. Posse's job would be to supplement Hitler's own previously purchased collection of mostly 19th century Germanic Romantic paintings. According to Posse's diary, Hitler told him that the museum would contain "only the best of all periods from the prehistoric beginnings of art ... to the nineteenth century and recent time," and the works were to be obtained both by purchase and by confiscation. "You are ... to deal only with me. I shall make the decisions," Posse was told. The next day, Hitler set up the ''Sonderauftrag Linz'' ("Special Commission: Linz") in

and appointed Posse as his special envoy. A few days later, on 26 June, Hitler signed a letter intended to give Posse the authority he would need to do the job. He wrote:

I commission Dr. Hans Posse, Director of Dresden Gallery, to build up the new art museum for Linz Donau. All Party and State services are ordered to assist Dr. Posse in fulfillment of his mission.

Although Hitler had favored German and Austrian paintings from the 19th century, Posse's focus was on early German, Dutch, French, and Italian paintings.Enderlein, Angelika; Flacke, Monika and Löhr, Hanns Christian
"Database on the Sonderauftrag Linz (Special Commission: Linz): History of the Linz collection

German Historical Museum The German Historical Museum (), known by the acronym DHM, is a museum in Berlin, Germany devoted to German history. It describes itself as a place of "enlightenment and understanding of the shared history of Germans and Europeans". It is ofte ...

The ''Sonderauftrag'' not only collected art for the ''Führermuseum'', but also for other museums in the German Reich, especially in the eastern territories. The artworks would have been distributed to these museums after the war. The ''Sonderauftrag'' had approximately 20 specialists attached to it: "curators of paintings, prints, coins, and armor, a librarian, an architect, an administrator, photographers, and restorers."Plaut (1946) The sizable staff included Robert Oertel and Gottfried Reimer of the Dresden Gallery, Friedrich Wolffhardt, an SS officer, as curator of books and autographs; Leopold Rupprecht of the ''

Kunsthistorisches Museum The Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien ( "Vienna Museum of art history, Art History", often referred to as the "Museum of Fine Arts, Vienna") is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on the Vienna Ring Road, i ...

'' as curator for armour, and Fritz Dworschak, also of that museum, as curator for coins.

Collecting for Linz

Immediately following the Nazi Anschluss with Austria " thousands of paintings were quickly seized following a general ban on Jewish art dealers and gallery owners. With many fleeing abroad, their holdings were ruthlessly liquidated and "Aryanized." On July 10, 1939, Posse visited the Austrian central depot of artworks confiscated from Jewish art collections, noting in his travel diary "Over 8000 pieces". In the late summer and autumn of 1939, Posse traveled a number of times to Vienna to the Central Depot for confiscated art in the Neue Burg to pick out art pieces for the Linz museum, and in October he gave to

Martin Bormann Martin Ludwig Bormann (17 June 1900 – 2 May 1945) was a German Nazi Party official and head of the Nazi Party Chancellery, private secretary to Adolf Hitler, and a war criminal. Bormann gained immense power by using his position as Hitler ...

, for Hitler's approval, the list of artworks confiscated from the Vienna

Rothschilds The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish noble banking family originally from Frankfurt. The family's documented history starts in 16th-century Frankfurt; its name is derived from the family house, Rothschild, ...

which Posse had selected for the museum. These included works by

Hans Holbein the Elder Hans Holbein the Elder ( , ; ; – 1524) was a German painter. Life Holbein was born in the free imperial city of Augsburg (Germany), and died in Issenheim, Alsace (now France). He belonged to a celebrated family of painters; his father wa ...

van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (; ; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Spanish Netherlands and Italy. The seventh child of Frans van Dyck, a wealt ...

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

Frans Hals Frans Hals the Elder (, ; ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He lived and worked in Haarlem, a city in which the local authority of the day frowned on religious painting in places of worship but citizens liked to decorate thei ...

Tintoretto Jacopo Robusti (late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594), best known as Tintoretto ( ; , ), was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized th ...

Gerard ter Borch Gerard ter Borch (; December 1617 – 8 December 1681), also known as Gerard Terburg (), was a Dutch Golden Age painter mainly of genre subjects. He influenced his fellow Dutch painters Gabriel Metsu, Gerrit Dou, Eglon van der Neer and Johan ...

and

Francesco Guardi Francesco Lazzaro Guardi (; 5 October 1712 – 1 January 1793) was an Italian painter, nobleman, and a member of the Venetian School (art), Venetian School. He is considered to be among the last practitioners, along with his brothers, of the clas ...

, among others.Spotts (2002), p.198 These 182 pieces were included in Posse's July 1940 list of 324 paintings he had chosen for the museum's collection. Other works which Hans Posse purchased in Vienna for the Linz collection included

's '' The Artist in his Studio'',

Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...

's '' The Toilet of Venus'',

Antonio Canova Antonio Canova (; 1 November 1757 – 13 October 1822) was an Italians, Italian Neoclassical sculpture, Neoclassical sculptor, famous for his marble sculptures. Often regarded as the greatest of the Neoclassical artists,. his sculpture was ins ...

's ''Polyhymnia'', and several works by

. Among the many paintings Haberstock sold to the collection were two Rembrandts, one of which, ''Portrait of Hendrickje Stoffels'' is now thought to be from the Rembrandt workshop and not a work of the master. Oddly, Hitler purchased these for an inflated price, despite the fact that the seller was a partly Jewish woman and the paintings could have been confiscated. Posse also purchased over 200 pieces which Jewish owners fleeing Nazi Germany had managed to get into Switzerland. On the other hand, Posse also acquired confiscated or looted art in Czechoslovakia, Poland and the Netherlands.Spotts (2002), p.198-202 Posse commission

Erhard Göpel Erhard Göpel (born June 3, 1906 in Leipzig, † October 29, 1966 in Munich) was a German art historian and high level Nazi agent who acquired art, including looted art, for Hitler’s Führermuseum. Life and work before 1939 Erhard Göpel (als ...

to explore the Dutch art market. Posse also went to Poland to examine confiscated artworks there, selecting works by Leonardo,

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), now generally known in English as Raphael ( , ), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of paintings by Raphael, His work is admired for its cl ...

, and

for the museum in Linz, although these pieces never actually left the control of the

General Government The General Government (, ; ; ), formally the General Governorate for the Occupied Polish Region (), was a German zone of occupation established after the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany, Slovak Republic (1939–1945), Slovakia and the Soviet ...

, the rump of Poland left after Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union took the territory they wanted. On 10 June 1940, Posse wrote to Bormann:

The special delegate for the safeguarding of art and cultural properties has just returned from Holland. He notified me today that there exists at the moment a particularly favorable opportunity to purchase valuable works of art from Dutch dealers and private owners in German currency. Even though a large number of important works have doubtless been removed recently from Holland, I believe that the trade still contains many objects which are desirable for the Führer's collection, and which may be acquired without foreign exchange.

As a result of this, accounts of about 500,000 ''Reichsmarks'' were opened in Paris and Rome for Posse's personal use, and, around July 1940, he expanded the scope of the ''Sonderauftrag Linz'' into

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

when he established an office in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

as ''Referent für Sonderfragen'' (Adviser on "Special Questions"). Posse was able to report to Bormann that as of March 1941 he had spent 8,522,348 ''Reichsmarks'' on artworks for the ''Führermuseum''. He later bought most of the Mannheimer Collection in 1944, including

's ''Jewish Doctor'' – assisted by the threat of confiscation from the Nazi government of

Arthur Seyss-Inquart Arthur Seyss-Inquart (; ; 22 July 1892 16 October 1946) was an Austrian Nazi politician who served as Chancellor of Austria in 1938 for two days before the ''Anschluss''. His positions in Nazi Germany included deputy governor to Hans Frank in t ...

– with the remainder of the collection being purchased in the same manner in France later on. The collecting of the ''Sonderauftrag Linz'' includes many such cases of forced sale, using funds from sales of Hitler's book ''

Mein Kampf (; ) is a 1925 Autobiography, autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. The book outlines many of Political views of Adolf Hitler, Hitler's political beliefs, his political ideology and future plans for Nazi Germany, Ge ...

'' and stamps showing his portrait. Members of the ''Sonderauftrag Linz'' made a considerable number of purchasing trips throughout Europe, acquiring a significant number of artworks, and also arranged purchases through art dealers."The Führer's prerogative and the planned Führer Museum in Linz"
Art Database of the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism website When Posse went to France, he took Nazi art looter Karl Haberstock with him, and the dealer, working through 82 local agents, purchased 62 pieces for the Linz collection, including works by

, Brueghel, Watteau and

Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged compositions reference erudite aspects of clas ...

.Spotts (2002) p.206 In the "authoritarian anarchy" and "administrative chaos" that was typical of the way the Third Reich operated, the ''Sonderauftrag Linz'' was not the only Nazi agency collecting art works. In France, as in many other countries in Europe, the office of '' Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg'' (Special Purposes Reich Leader Rosenberg, ERR) was the primary agency. Hitler issued on 18 November 1940 a directive, a ''Führerbefehl'' similar to the ones he had issued for Poland and Austria, announcing his prerogative over all confiscated art in the occupied Western territories. Rosenberg thus became a formal procurement agent for the ''Führermuseum''. This apparently brought about some internecine squabbling, as Posse had been given the authority to act on Hitler's behalf, and the German commanders of occupied countries were required to keep him regularly informed about their confiscations of artwork. Probably because of the interference of

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...

– who was busy using the ERR to confiscate art for himself – Posse formally requested that the Reich Chancellery reiterate his power to act for the ''Führer''. The result was a "general high-level directive" confirming Hitler's primacy through Posse, and a direction to Posse to review the ERR's inventory in regard to the needs of the planned museum in Linz. '' S.A.

Gruppenführer __NOTOC__ ''Gruppenführer'' (, ) was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party (NSDAP), first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA. Since then, the term ''Gruppenführer'' is also used for leaders of groups/teams of the police, fire d ...

'' Prince Philipp of Hessen was a connoisseur of the arts and architecture and acted as Posse's principal agent in Italy, where he lived with his wife, a daughter of King Victor Emmanuel. A grandson of the German Emperor Frederick III, and a great-grandson of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

, Philipp provided "a veneer of aristocratic elegance which facilitated important purchases from the Italian nobility." Philipp assisted Posse in purchasing 90 paintings from Italy, and bought several more for the Linz collection on his own account. Another dealer used by Hans Posse was Hildebrand Gurlitt, through whom he made expensive purchases of tapestries, paintings and drawings. In October 1939, Hitler and

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

had made an agreement that any Germanic artworks in public museums in the

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

– a traditionally German-speaking area which had been given to Italy after the First World War in return for entering the war on the side of the

Triple Entente The Triple Entente (from French meaning "friendship, understanding, agreement") describes the informal understanding between the Russian Empire, the French Third Republic, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was built upon th ...

– could be removed and returned to Germany, but when Posse attempted to do so, with the assistance of

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...

's ''

Ahnenerbe The (, "Ancestral Heritage") was a pseudoscientific organization founded by the ''Schutzstaffel'' in Nazi Germany in 1935. Established by ''Reichsführer-SS'' Heinrich Himmler in July 1, 1935 as an SS appendage devoted to promoting racial the ...

'', the Italians managed to keep putting things off, and no repatriations ever took place.

Relationship with Hitler

Hitler was pleased with Posse's work – the curator became one of the few people whose artistic opinion Hitler respected – and in April 1940 awarded him the honorific title of "Professor",Spotts (2002), p.193 something the ''Führer'' did for many of his favorites in the arts, such as architects

Albert Speer Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer (; ; 19 March 1905 – 1 September 1981) was a German architect who served as Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production, Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany during most of W ...

and Hermann Giesler; sculptors

Arno Breker Arno Breker (19 July 1900 – 13 February 1991) was a German sculptor who is best known for his public works in Nazi Germany, where he was endorsed by the authorities as the antithesis of degenerate art. He was made official state sculptor, ...

and

Josef Thorak Josef Thorak (7 February 1889 in Vienna, Austria – 26 February 1952 in Bad Endorf, Bavaria) was an Austrian-German sculptor. He became known for oversize monumental sculptures, particularly of male figures, and was one of the most promi ...

; and photographer Heinrich Hoffmann; among others.

Death

Posse died on 7 December 1942 of oral cancer in a clinic in Berlin. His funeral was a high state event to which Hitler invited the directors of all art museums in the Reich; Propaganda Minister

Joseph Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief Propaganda in Nazi Germany, propagandist for the Nazi Party, and ...

delivered the eulogy, although there was no mention made of the Linz Museum project, since it was a state secret. Posse had gathered more than 2500 art works for the Linz museum in the three years he was head of the ''Sonderauftrag Linz''. Posse's successor as Hitler's special envoy was the art historian and former director of the

, Hermann Voss.

Nazi-looted art

Research is ongoing into the artworks looted from Jewish collectors 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 ...

that Posse acquired. A research database listing the art destined for Hitler's Linz museum was published in 2008 by the German Historical Museum. The German Lost Art Foundation also lists artworks acquired by Hans Posse.

References

Notes Bibliography * Edsel, Robert M. with Witter, Bret (2009) ''The Monuments Men''. New York: Center Street, 2009. * Fest, Joachim C. (1975)

973 Year 973 ( CMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Spring – The Byzantine army, led by General Melias ( Domestic of the Schools in the East), continues the op ...

''Hitler''. Winston, Richard and Winston, Clara (trans.) New York: Vantage Press. * Iselt, Kathrin (2009) ''"Sonderbeauftragter des Führers": Der Kunsthistoriker und Museumsmann Hermann Voss (1884–1969)'', Böhlau, Köln / Weimar / Wien 2010, ''Studien zur Kunst'', Band 20, zugleich Dissertation an der Technische Universität Dresden. * Joachimides, Alexis (2001) ''Die Museumsreformbewegung in Deutschland und die Entstehung des modernen Museums 1880–1940.'' Dresden: Verlag der Kunst, Dresden. * Plaut, James S. (1946
"Hitler's Capital"
''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

'' (October 1946) * Schwarz, Birgit (2004) "Hitler's Museum" in ''Die Fotoalben Gemäldegalerie Linz''. Vienna: Böhlau Verlag, 2004. * Schwarz, Birgit (2004a) ''Hitlers Sonderbeauftragter Hans Posse.'' in Lühr, Hans-Peter (ed.) ''Die Ausstellung "Entartete Kunst" und der Beginn der NS-Kulturbarbarei in Dresden.'' Dresden: Dresdner Geschichtsverein. , S. 77–85 (= ''Dresdner Hefte'', Jahrgang 22, Heft 1 r. 77. * Schwarz, Birgit (2014a) ''Auf Befehl des Führers. Hitler und der NS-Kunstraub''. Stuttgart/Darmstadt: Theiss Verlag. * Schwarz, Birgit (2014b) ''Rittmeister und Excellenz. Oskar Kokoschka und Hans Posse 1919 bis 1923'' in ''Wiener Jahrbuch für Kunstgeschichte,'' Band 62, 2014, S. 231–254, .

External links

Literature by and about Hans Posse in the catalog of the German National Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Posse, Hans 1879 births Writers from Dresden 1942 deaths German curators