Richard Schulze-Kossens (2 October 1914 – 3 July 1988, born "Richard Schulze") was a

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 ...

member and ''

Schutzstaffel The ''Schutzstaffel'' (; ; SS; also stylised with SS runes as ''ᛋᛋ'') was a major paramilitary organisation under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, and later throughout German-occupied Europe during World War II. It beg ...

'' (SS) commander during the

Nazi era Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

. Before and 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 ...

, he served as a personal

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

to foreign minister

Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich-Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician and diplomat who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. ...

. He also served at different intervals, as an ordinance officer and SS adjutant for

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 ...

and later commanded the SS Division Nibelungen, SS-Junkerschule Bad Tölz. After the war in Europe ended, he was held in an American internment camp for three years and died in 1988.

SS career

Richard Schulze was born in

Spandau Spandau () is the westernmost of the 12 boroughs of Berlin, boroughs () of Berlin, situated at the confluence (geography), confluence of the Havel and Spree (river), Spree rivers and extending along the western bank of the Havel. It is the smalle ...

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 ...

. A year after graduating from gymnasium in 1934, the 20-year-old Schulze entered the ''

Allgemeine SS The ''Allgemeine SS'' (; "General SS") was a major branch of the '' Schutzstaffel'' (SS) paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany; it was managed by the SS Main Office (''SS-Hauptamt''). The ''Allgemeine SS'' was officially established in the autu ...

'' and was assigned to ''6.SS-Standarte'' in

. In November 1934, he served in the

Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler The 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler or SS Division Leibstandarte, abbreviated as LSSAH (), began as Adolf Hitler's personal bodyguard unit, responsible for guarding the Führer's person, offices, and residences. Initially th ...

(LSSAH), one of

's SS bodyguard units. Between 1935 and 1937 took various officer training courses at the SS-Junkerschule Bad Tölz, in

Jüterbog Jüterbog () is a historic town in north-eastern Germany, in the Teltow-Fläming district of Brandenburg. It is on the Nuthe river at the northern slope of the Fläming hill range, about southwest of Berlin. History The Polabian Slavs, Slavic se ...

and Dachau. In May 1937, Schulze became a member of the Nazi Party. Schulze served as personal adjutant to Foreign Minister

from April 1939 until January 1941. Schulze is pictured standing with Molotov, Ribbentrop, Stalin and Soviet Chief of Staff Shaposnikov at the signing of the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, officially the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and also known as the Hitler–Stalin Pact and the Nazi–Soviet Pact, was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Ge ...

of 23 August 1939. From October 1941 and at intervals thereafter, he was an SS ordinance officer and SS adjutant for Adolf Hitler. While serving in these roles, Schulze was also a member of the '' Führerbegleitkommando'' (FBK), which provided personal security for Hitler. In December 1942, Hitler transferred some of the command authority of the FBK to Schulze. He was placed in charge of administration, guidelines for training, discipline, deployment and transfer of members of the unit. By 1944, he was promoted to the rank of SS-'' Obersturmbannführer'' (lieutenant colonel). He became the divisional commander of the 38th SS Division Nibelungen in 1945. At that time, Schulze was the commanding officer of the ''SS-Brigade Nibelungen'' and the SS cadet training school at Bad Tölz.

Later life

After the Second World War ended, Schulze changed his name to "Richard Schulze-Kossens". He was held in an American internment camp for three years. After being released, he worked as a salesman and wrote several books. He remained in contact with a group of former adjutants, secretaries and other staff members who continued to have a favourable view of Hitler following the end of the war. Schulze-Kossens died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

on 3 July 1988. More than 100 former SS members attended his funeral, with many wearing the insignia of an SS veterans association, and his casket was draped with tributes from former SS units. Werner Grothmann and two former Nazi officers provided eulogies.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * New York Times Obituary: Monday, July 11, 1988 – https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/11/obituaries/richard-schulze-kossens-hitler-adjutant.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Schulze-Kossens, Richard 1914 births 1988 deaths SS-Obersturmbannführer Recipients of the Gold German Cross People from Spandau Waffen-SS personnel German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States Adjutants of Adolf Hitler Deaths from lung cancer in Germany