Johannes Heinrich Becker (27 September 189821 February 1961) was a German immigrant to Australia and member of the German Nazi Party. He immigrated to Australia in 1927. In 1933 he was appointed as the Nazi state trustee for Australia. He was later the state leader of the Nazi Party of Australia, but was removed as state leader in 1936. During

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 ...

, Becker was interned by the Australian authorities and after the war, in 1947, he was deported to West Germany, where he lived until his death in 1961.

Early life

Becker was born on 27 September 1898 in

Schmalkalden Schmalkalden () is a town in the Schmalkalden-Meiningen district, in the southwest of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is on the southern slope of the Thuringian Forest at the Schmalkalde river, a tributary to the Werra. , the town had a popul ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

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 ...

, the son of art teacher Heinrich Thomas Becker and his wife Frieda Johanne Luise (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Hornäffer). 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 ...

, Becker enlisted in the

Imperial German Army The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the leadership of Kingdom o ...

, with tours in

Verdun Verdun ( , ; ; ; official name before 1970: Verdun-sur-Meuse) is a city in the Meuse (department), Meuse departments of France, department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. In 843, the Treaty of V ...

, France, and

Ypres Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...

, Belgium. Eventually earning the rank of corporal, he was wounded on a couple of occasions and presented with the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

. Becker later attended the

University of Marburg The Philipps University of Marburg () is a public research university located in Marburg, Germany. It was founded in 1527 by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, which makes it one of Germany's oldest universities and the oldest still operating Prote ...

, graduating in 1924 with a degree in medicine. He worked on board a ship as a doctor for a year before emigrating to

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

in 1927.

Career

Becker worked as a doctor at Tanunda,

Barossa Valley The Barossa Valley (Barossa German: ''Barossa Tal'') is a valley in South Australia located northeast of Adelaide city centre. The valley is formed by the North Para River. It is notable as a major list of wine-producing regions, wine-producin ...

but unsuccessfully applied to be a naturalised citizen in 1930. While not officially registered as a doctor in Australia, Becker continued to practise till 1939, earning the ire of the local

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union and professional body for physician, doctors in the United Kingdom. It does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The BMA ...

authorities. Becker emerged victorious in two libel cases against the association and was supported by both his patients and Sir Richard Layton Butler. From 1933 to 1934, Becker made a few trips to Germany. On 1 March 1932, Becker became a member of the German

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 ...

. A year later, he was appointed as the Nazi state trustee (''Landesvertrauensmann'') for Australia. Becker was eventually promoted to state leader (''Landeskreisleiter'') of the Nazi Party of Australia. However, his leadership approach did not impress the Nazi top brass in Berlin and he was removed from his post in late 1936. During World War II, Becker was interned in

Tatura, Victoria Tatura is a town in the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria, Australia, and is situated within the City of Greater Shepparton local government area, north of the state capital (Melbourne) and west of the regional centre of Shepparton. At the 2 ...

and in

Loveday, South Australia Loveday is a town and locality in the Riverland region of South Australia, located east of the Moorook Game Reserve, 6 km south-west of Barmera, and 30 km north-west of Loxton, South Australia, Loxton. Administratively it is part of the ...

. In December 1947, he was deported to

occupied Germany The entirety of Germany was occupied and administered by the Allies of World War II, from the Berlin Declaration on 5 June 1945 to the establishment of West Germany on 23 May 1949. Unlike occupied Japan, Nazi Germany was stripped of its sove ...

and cleared of any wrongdoing by a "denazification" tribunal. Nonetheless, his numerous requests to return to Australia were rejected, and his marriage was annulled by the

South Australian Supreme Court The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court of the Australian state of South Australia. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court hierarchy. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in ...

in 1953.

Personal life and death

Becker married Mona Gertrude Price on 22 August 1932 at the Adelaide-based St Stephan's Lutheran Church; they had a son and a daughter. Becker's son,

Heini Heini is both a given name and a surname. It is mainly a masculine given name in German-speaking countries, but a feminine given name in Finland. However, in Wales, it is a both masculine and feminine given name, meaning 'healthy and spirited'. Cur ...

(born 1935), served as a member of the

South Australian Parliament The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the 47-seat House of Assembly (lower house) and the 22-seat Legislative Council (upper house). General elections are held ...

from 1970 until 1997. Johannes Becker spent his final years in West Germany and died on 21 February 1961 in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Johannes Heinrich 1898 births 1961 deaths German expatriates in Australia German people imprisoned abroad Nazi Party politicians People deported from Australia People from Schmalkalden Prisoners and detainees of the Commonwealth of Australia People interned during World War II University of Marburg alumni