Hermann Robert Josef Senkowsky (31 July 1897 – 5 April 1965) was an Austrian customs officer and SS-Führer. He also was chief president finance 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 ...

, which would correlate to

finance minister A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfoli ...

occupied Poland ' (Norwegian language, Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV 2 (Norway), TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. ...

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 is also known in

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 ...

for his 1928 customs instructions for Austria, which are, in a modified version, still in use today.

Life

Senkowsky was born on 31 July 1897 in

Scheibbs Scheibbs () is a town in Austria in the Scheibbs (district), Scheibbs district of Lower Austria. In 1886, it became the first town in Austria to have street lighting powered by electricity. Population Mayors *1950-1965: Anton Herok *1965-1983: ...

. He went to school in St. Pölten, where he finished secondary school in 1915. He then joined the armed forces of Austria-Hungary as a volunteer in the

k.u.k. The phrase Imperial and Royal (, ) refers to the court/government of the Habsburgs in a broader historical perspective. Some modern authors restrict its use to the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. During that period, it ind ...

Feldkanonen-Regiment 5,

Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...

. He was transferred to the front in

Volhynia Volhynia or Volynia ( ; see #Names and etymology, below) is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between southeastern Poland, southwestern Belarus, and northwestern Ukraine. The borders of the region are not clearly defined, but in ...

. He reached the rank of

Oberleutnant (English: First Lieutenant) is a senior lieutenant Officer (armed forces), officer rank in the German (language), German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. In Austria, ''Oberle ...

and was an

artillery battery In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to f ...

commander at 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 ...

. From 1919 to 1922 he studied

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

and

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. ...

. During this time he joined the

Greater German People's Party The Greater German People's Party ( German ''Großdeutsche Volkspartei'', abbreviated GDVP) was a German nationalist political party during the First Republic of Austria, established in 1920. Foundation After World War I and the dissolution of ...

. After his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in 1922 he became a civil servant in the finance administration and in 1928 published his ''Zollwachvorschrift'', customs instructions for Austria, which are, in a modified version, still in use today. In January 1930 he was promoted to Ministerialsekretär. Senkowsky was a member of the

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

(#1,089,376) since 20 May 1932 and member of the SS (#310,369) since November 9, 1934. He was relieved of his office in 1934 for his membership in the NSDAP, which was an illegal party in Austria at the time. In November 1934 he was arrested for participating in the

July Putsch The July Putsch () was a failed coup d'état in Austria against the Fatherland Front government of Engelbert Dollfuss by Austrian Nazis from 25 to 30 July 1934. The Austrian Legion and Austrian '' Schutzstaffel'' soldiers with support from ...

, but was released due to lack of evidence. In May 1935 he was arrested for being a member of the NSDAP and was kept in jail until March 1936. Shortly after his release he fled to

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 ...

since he was supposed to be re-arrested for his activities as a

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

. In May 1936 he became a German citizen and worked for the

finance ministry A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

under SS-Gruppenführer

Wilhelm Keppler Wilhelm Karl Keppler (14 December 1882 – 13 June 1960) was a German businessman and one of Adolf Hitler's early financial backers. Introduced to Hitler by Heinrich Himmler, Keppler helped to finance the Nazi Party and later served as one of Hi ...

.Werner Präg / Wolfgang Jacobmeyer (Hrsg.): ''Das Diensttagebuch des deutschen Generalgouverneurs in Polen 1939–1945'', Stuttgart 1975, S. 953 After the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, ), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "German Question, Greater Germany") arose after t ...

he was president finance (customs) in

Upper Austria Upper Austria ( ; ; ) is one of the nine States of Austria, states of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg (state), Salzbur ...

, chief president finance in

Linz 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 ...

and

. After the occupation of Poland he was transferred to the

, where he was president finance and director of the monopolies, until he became SS-Oberführer and chief president finance in January 1942, which correlates to

. After the end of World War II, Senkowsky was arrested by allied forces. He was released in 1947, because

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

did not ask for his extradition as a

war criminal A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...

. After that he lived and worked in Innsbruck where he was in charge of the Tyrolean Foreign-Trade Zone.

Awards and decorations

Medal for Bravery (Austria-Hungary) The Medal for Bravery () () was a military decoration of Austria-Hungary established in 1789 and awarded for bravery in battle until the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918. History Habsburg Empire 1789-1918 The Medal for Bravery w ...

Military Merit Medal (Austria-Hungary) The Military Merit Medal (, , ) was a military decoration of the Empire of Austria-Hungary. It was founded by Emperor Franz Joseph I on March 12, 1890. The Military Merit Medal is often referred to as the "Signum Laudis" (Latin for "sign of prais ...

Karl Troop Cross The Karl Troop Cross () was instituted on 13 December 1916 by Emperor Karl I of Austria-Hungary. The cross was awarded for service up to the end of the First World War to soldiers and sailors of all arms of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces, regar ...

* SS Zivilabzeichen (#169.582) *

Honour Chevron for the Old Guard The Honour Chevron for the Old Guard () was a Nazi Party decoration worn by members of the SS. The silver chevron, which was worn on the upper sleeve on the right arm, was authorised by Adolf Hitler in February 1934. All members of the SS who h ...

War Merit Cross The War Merit Cross () was a state decoration of Nazi Germany during World War II. By the end of the conflict it was issued in four degrees and had an equivalent civil award. A " de-Nazified" version of the War Merit Cross was reissued in 1957 ...

I. and II. class * Honour Cross of the World War *

Sudetenland Medal The 1 October 1938 Commemorative Medal () was commonly known as the Sudetenland Medal. It was a decoration of Nazi Germany awarded during the interwar period, and the second in a series of Occupation Medals. Description Instituted on 18 October ...

with Prague Castle Bar * Bulgarian order for civil merit, knight commander

Books

*''Die Dienstpragmatik: Gesetz vom 25.1. 1914, RGBl. Nr. 15, unter Berücksichtigung der bis 1.12. 1928 eingetretenen Veränderungen mit den Durchführungsvorschriften'', Herausgeber Hermann Senkowsky, Verlag Manz, 1929 *''Die österreichische Zollwachvorschrift samt den einschlägigen Gesetzen, Verordnungen und Erlässen'', Author Hermann Senkowsky, Verlag Manz, 1928

Literature

*''Höchste Nazi-Beamte im General-Gouvernement in Polen in den Kriegsjahren 1939-45'', von Towiah Friedman, Verlag Institute of Documentation in Israel, 2002.Google Booksearch
/ref> *

Ernst Klee Ernst Klee (15 March 1942, Frankfurt – 18 May 2013, Frankfurt) was a German journalist and author. As a writer on Germany's history, he was best known for his exposure and documentation of medical crimes in Nazi Germany, much of which was conce ...

: ''Das Personenlexikon zum Dritten Reich''. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 2007. . (Aktualisierte 2. Auflage) * Werner Präg / Wolfgang Jacobmeyer (Hrsg.): ''Das Diensttagebuch des deutschen Generalgouverneurs in Polen 1939–1945''. Veröffentlichungen des Instituts für Zeitgeschichte, Quellen und Darstellungen zur Zeitgeschichte Band 20, Stuttgart 1975, .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Senkowsky, Hermann 1897 births 1965 deaths People from Scheibbs District Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Austrian prisoners and detainees Greater German People's Party politicians Nazi Party politicians SS-Oberführer Recipients of the Medal for Bravery (Austria-Hungary) German nationalists Prisoners and detainees of Austria Nazis who participated in the July Putsch