Martin Weiss (21 February 1903 – 30 September 1984) was a German Nazi official and '' de facto'' commander of the Vilna Ghetto and a Holocaust perpetrator. He was also the commander of the notorious German - sponsored '' Ypatingasis būrys'' killing squad, which was largely responsible for the Ponary massacre where approximately 100,000 people were shot.

Early life and military service

He was born to a well-to-do Protestant family in Karlsruhe, Germany. Weiss followed his father's steps and received education in plumbing and heating installation. He was an apprentice in his father's shop. From 1923–1927 Weiss lived in South America, helping his brother to establish a farm. After his father's death in 1928, Weiss took over the family business. Two years later he got married. Weiss and his wife had three children. He was not particularly interested in politics and joined Reiter SS, a branch of '' Schutzstaffel'' (SS) that focused on horsemanship and

equestrianism Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding ( Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

, in 1934. In 1937, he also joined the National Socialist German Workers Party. When Nazi Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, he was drafted into the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. Because of his SS membership, he was placed in a

Waffen-SS The (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...

mechanical supply unit, with which he took part in the

Battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

. In August 1940, he returned to his hometown and resumed the family business.

The Holocaust

In spring 1941, he was drafted again and assigned to '' Einsatzkommando'' 3, part of the '' Einsatzgruppe'' stationed in

Bad Düben Bad Düben (), until 1948 Düben is a town in the district of Nordsachsen in Saxony in Germany. It is situated at the southern end of the Düben Heath Nature Park (Düben Heath), between the rivers Elbe and Mulde, which runs through the city cente ...

. In October 1941, he was assigned to work in the Office of the Commander of Security Police ('' Sicherheitsdienst'' or SD) and Security Police ('' Sicherheitspolizei'' or Sipo) in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, then part of the

Reichskommissariat Ostland The (RKO; ) was an Administrative division, administrative entity of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories of Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1945. It served as the German Civil authority, civilian occupation regime in Lithuania, La ...

. Weiss held this position until July 1944. He was responsible for all aspects of the repression against the Jewish population of Vilnius, which is estimated to have been around 50,000 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 ...

. Despite his low rank of technical sergeant (''SS- Hauptscharführer''), he was in charge of the Vilna Ghetto and nearby Lukiškės Prison, as well as the '' Ypatingasis būrys'' killing squad responsible for the Ponary massacre, where Polish Jews and many non-Jewish Poles were brutally killed, including by smashing children heads (according to professional reporter and eyewitness: Józef Mackiewicz, https://jozefmackiewicz.com/ponary-baza-jozef-mackiewicz/) until 1943. The German murderer, Martin Weiss personally supervised 13 to 15 executions at the site. In July 1943, Weiss became chief of the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

prison in Vilnius in occupied Lithuania. In September 1943, he was selected to coordinate the work of the Sonderkommando 1005 to erase evidence of Jewish exterminations i.e unearthing and burning of the corpses. On 27 March 1944, the children under age 16 of Kailis forced labor camp were rounded up in an operation (Kinderaktion) commanded by Weiss. They were taken to the train station; their further fate is not known. Weiss was noted by the innocent people held in the ghetto for his merciless cruelty and frequent beatings. In one instance he shot a man on the spot for trying to bring a few potatoes and a bit of fish through the ghetto gates. There are reports of other German soldiers willing to pardon a Jew, but being afraid to do so knowing that Weiss would certainly not approve such an action. Because of his cruel and capricious conduct in sending Jews of the ghetto to the killing grounds at Ponary, Weiss was known in the ghetto by the paradoxical nickname "Weiss, das Schwarz" or "White, the Black".

Criminal conviction

Weiss was arrested in May 1949. In February 1950, a court in

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...

found him guilty of murder and being an accessory to murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment. In January 1971, Weiss's sentence was suspended; he was granted pardon in 1977.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weiss, Martin 1903 births 1984 deaths SS officers German mass murderers German people convicted of murder German prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Holocaust perpetrators in Lithuania Einsatzgruppen personnel Vilna Ghetto Military personnel from Karlsruhe People from the Grand Duchy of Baden Waffen-SS personnel German Protestants People convicted of murder by Germany Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Germany Nazis convicted of war crimes