Willy Marschler (12 August 1893 – 8 November 1952) was a 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 ...

politician who served as one of the first two Nazis to hold ministerial office in a

German State The Federal Republic of Germany is a federation and consists of sixteen partly sovereign ''states''. Of the sixteen states, thirteen are so-called area-states ('Flächenländer'); in these, below the level of the state government, there is a ...

. He went on to be the Minister-President of

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 ...

through most of the

Third Reich 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 ...

Early life

Marschler was born in

Liegnitz Legnica (; , ; ; ) is a city in southwestern Poland, in the central part of Lower Silesia, on the Kaczawa River and the Czarna Woda. As well as being the seat of the county, since 1992 the city has been the seat of the Diocese of Legnica. L ...

as the son of a mill owner. From 1900 to 1907 he attended ''

volksschule The German term ''Volksschule'' () generally refers to compulsory education, denoting an educational institution every person (i.e. the people, ''Volk'') is required to attend. In Germany and Switzerland it is equivalent to a combined primar ...

'' in Liegnitz and

Plauen Plauen (; ; ) is a town in Saxony, Germany with a population of around 65,000. It is Saxony's 5th most populated city after Leipzig, Dresden, Chemnitz and Zwickau, the second-largest city of the Vogtland after Gera, as well as the largest cit ...

. He then did a commercial apprenticeship for three years and worked as a commercial clerk until 1914. From 1914 to 1918 he participated in the

First World War 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 ...

as a member of Infantry Regiment 94, “Grand Duke of Saxony” and Reserve Infantry Regiment 233. He was wounded twice and was awarded 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 ...

, 2nd class. After discharge from the service, from 1919 to 1923 he worked as a commercial clerk and iron dealer in Halle and

Ilmenau Ilmenau () is a town in Thuringia, central Germany. It is the largest town within the Ilm district with a population of 38,600, while the district capital is Arnstadt. Ilmenau is located approximately south of Erfurt and north of Nuremberg w ...

Nazi career

In November 1922, Marschler joined the Nazi Party and became a member of the Ilmenau ''Ortsgruppe'' (Local Group) headed by

Fritz Sauckel Ernst Friedrich Christoph Sauckel (27 October 1894 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician and convicted war criminal. As General Plenipotentiary for Labour Deployment ('' Arbeitseinsatz'') from March 1942 until the end of the Second Wor ...

. After the Nazi Party was banned in the aftermath of the failed

Beer Hall Putsch The Beer Hall Putsch, also known as the Munich Putsch,Dan Moorhouse, ed schoolshistory.org.uk, accessed 2008-05-31.Known in German as the or was a failed coup d'état by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler, Erich Ludendorff and other leaders i ...

, Marschler was elected to the

Landtag of Thuringia The Landtag of Thuringia is the parliament of the German federal state of Thuringia. It convenes in Erfurt and currently consists of 88 members from five parties. According to the free state's constitution, the primary functions of the Landtag ...

on 10 February 1924 as a member of the

National Socialist Freedom Movement The National Socialist Freedom Movement (, NSFB) or National Socialist Freedom Party (, NSFP) was a short-lived political party in Weimar Germany created in April 1924 during the aftermath of the Beer Hall Putsch. Adolf Hitler and many Nazi le ...

, a Nazi

front organization A front organization is any entity set up by and controlled by another organization, such as intelligence agencies, organized crime groups, terrorist organizations, secret societies, banned organizations, religious or political groups, advocacy ...

. After the ban was lifted, he rejoined the Nazi Party on 7 December 1925 (membership number 24,216) and in the 1929 Thuringian state election, he was returned as a Nazi Party member, becoming the Second Vice-president of the ''Landtag''. He, together with

Wilhelm Frick Wilhelm Frick (12 March 1877 – 16 October 1946) was a German prominent politician of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) and convicted war criminal who served as Minister of the Interior in Adolf Hitler's cabinet from 1933 to 1943 and as the last governor ...

, on 23 January 1930 joined a Thuringian State

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

as the first Nazi Party members to hold

ministerial office Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a specific sector of public administration." Энцикло� ...

in any German State. Marschler was given the portfolio of ''Stadtsrat'' (Councilor of State) for

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

. Frick, as Interior and Education Minister, began to aggressively purge members of the civil service, police and educational system. These actions proved too much for other coalition partners and, after a successful

motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...

against Frick on 1 April 1931, Marschler and Frick resigned. Marschler went on to become the Deputy ''

Gauleiter A ''Gauleiter'' () was a regional leader of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) who served as the head of a ''Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany, Gau'' or ''Reichsgau''. ''Gauleiter'' was the third-highest Ranks and insignia of the Nazi Party, rank in ...

'' to Sauckel in Gau Thuringia. In addition, Marschler was ''

Burgermeister Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, ) is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or executive of a city or town. The name in English was derived from the Dutch . In so ...

'' (Mayor) of

Ohrdruf Ohrdruf () is a small town in the district of Gotha in the German state of Thuringia. It lies some 30 km southwest of Erfurt at the foot of the northern slope of the Thuringian Forest. The former municipalities Crawinkel, Gräfenhain an ...

from 1931 to 1932. After the Nazi Party victory in the 1932 Thuringian state election, Marschler served briefly as the ''Landtag'' President before becoming

Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...

for both Finance and Economics on 26 August 1932 in the cabinet of Minister-President Fritz Sauckel. After the

Nazi seizure of power The rise to power of Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919, when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He quickly rose t ...

at the national level, Sauckel was appointed to the newly created position of Thuringian ''

Reichsstatthalter The ''Reichsstatthalter'' (, ''Reich lieutenant'') was a title used in the German Empire and later in Nazi Germany. ''Statthalter des Reiches'' (1879–1918) The office of ''Statthalter des Reiches'' (otherwise known as ''Reichsstatthalter'' ...

'' (Reich Governor) and Marschler succeeded him as Minister-President of Thuringia on 8 May 1933 while also retaining the portfolios of Finance and Economics. After the dissolution of the ''Landtag'' in October 1933, Marschler went on to be elected as a member of the '' Reichstag'' from electoral constituency 12,

, in November 1933 and would retain this seat until May 1945. After

Fritz Wächtler Fritz Wächtler (7 January 1891 – 19 April 1945) was a Nazi Party official and politician who served as the ''Gauleiter'' of the eastern Bavarian administrative region of Gau Bayreuth. Trained as a primary school teacher, he also became hea ...

left the State ministry on 22 January 1936, Marschler also took on the portfolio of Minister of Education. In 1940 Marschler was appointed head of the Thuringian State office for the Four Year Plan. In 1943 he was promoted to SA-''

Obergruppenführer (, ) was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissioned SS rank after ...

''. A holder of the

Golden Party Badge __NOTOC__ The Golden Party Badge () was an award authorised by Adolf Hitler in a decree in October 1933. It was a special award given to all Nazi Party members who had, as of 9 November 1933, registered numbers from 1 to 100,000 (issued on 1 Oc ...

, Marschler remained at the head of the Thuringian State government through the end of the Nazi regime.

Postwar life

On 30 May 1945, the US Army captured Marschler in

Gera Gera () is a city in the German state of Thuringia. With around 93,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Thuringia after Erfurt and Jena as well as the easternmost city of the ''Thüringer Städtekette'', an almost straight string of ...

and he was

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

. However, due to a serious illness, on 10 October 1946 he was released on

probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offence (law), offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incar ...

from the internment camp near

Darmstadt Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it the ...

. In 1948-1949 he underwent

denazification Denazification () was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society, culture, press, economy, judiciary, and politics of the Nazi ideology following the Second World War. It was carried out by removing those who had been Nazi Par ...

proceedings and was convicted by a Bavarian court. After a stay in

Dortmund Dortmund (; ; ) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the List of cities in Germany by population, ninth-largest city in Germany. With a population of 614,495 inhabitants, it is the largest city ...

he lived in

Ermershausen Ermershausen is a municipality in the district of Haßberge in Bavaria in Germany. Notable people * Narziß Ach (October 29, 1871 in Ermershausen, Bavaria – 25 July 1946 in Munich) was a German psychologist and university lecturer in Königsbe ...

until January 1950. He then moved to

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

, where he died.

References

Sources

* * * * * *

External web links

*
Willy Marschler
i
Files of the Reich Chancellery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marschler, Willy 1893 births 1952 deaths German Army personnel of World War I Mayors of places in Thuringia Members of the Landtag of Thuringia Members of the Reichstag 1933–1936 Members of the Reichstag 1936–1938 Members of the Reichstag 1938–1945 Minister-presidents of Thuringia Ministers of the Thuringia State Government National Socialist Freedom Movement politicians Nazi Party officials Nazi Party politicians People from Legnica Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class SA-Obergruppenführer