Bernhard Frank
| Bernhard Frank | |
|---|---|
,_here_as_SS-Sturmbannf%C3%BChrer.jpg) SS-Sturmbannführer Dr. phil. Frank | |
| Birth date | 15 July 1913 |
| Place of birth | Frankfurt am Main, Province of Hesse-Nassau, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire |
| Death date | 29 June 2011 (aged 97) |
| Place of death | Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany |
| Place of burial | Arnoldshain Cemetery in Schmitten |
| Allegiance |  National Socialist Germany
|
| Service/branch |  SS Waffen SS
|
| Years of service | 1933–1945 |
| Rank | SS-Obersturmbannführer d. R. |
| Service number | SS #105,013 NSDAP #4,442,198 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Iron Cross Infantry Assault Badge Eastern Front Medal War Merit Cross (1939) |
| Relations | ∞ 1938 Ottilie "Tilli" Neuhaus |
| Other work | Germanist, author |
Bernhard Frank (15 July 1913 – 29 June 2011) was a SS officer of the reserves, academic and last commandant of the Obersalzberg complex who arrested Hermann Göring on 25 April 1945 by order of Adolf Hitler, who had been manipulated by Reichsleiter Bormann into believing Göring was attempting to usurp the Führer's authority. Frank placed Göring under house arrest but ignored later orders to execute the Reichsmarschall. Frank was reportedly one of the few Schutzstaffel officers inducted into the rites at Wewelsburg Castle, and after the war stated that he had arranged the eventual surrender of Berchtesgaden (where Hitler's mountain residence was located), to prevent needless damage to the Berghof.[1] He later wrote a 144-page book entitled Hitler, Göring and the Obersalzberg.
Contents
Life
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Bernhard Frank was born in Frankfurt am Main in 1913. He came from a long-established German family of soldiers and merchants. His mother died on 4 December 1918; Bernhard was just five years old. Young Bernhard and his two siblings were left motherless, while their father returned from the front shortly before the end of WWI. Their father soon remarried; his stepmother brought two children from her own first marriage into the family, and a younger brother was later born, so Bernhard Frank grew up with five siblings—yet his upbringing was cheerful and happy. He enjoyed a good childhood in a secure and loving home. In 1932, he achieved his Abitur exams at the Helmholtz-Oberrealschule in his hometown. He subsequently began studying Germanistik and philosophy at the University of Frankfurt but switched to economics after one semester.
Frank joined the SS Student Battalion on 30 May 1933. The year 1933 also marked a major personal turning point in Bernhard Frank’s life: that autumn, during a large SS rally on the Ostpark meadows in Frankfurt, he met Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler. Standing 1.96 meters tall, Frank naturally stood out. Himmler stopped in front of him and asked decisively, "Do you want to become an SS officer?" At the time, Frank was already engaged to the lovely Tilli Neuhaus (1915–1996), who would later become his wife. During an inspection of the 2nd Frankfurt SS Standarte in June 1934, Himmler selected Frank to participate in an SS officer candidate training course in Ellwangen an der Jagst. Stationed with the SS-Verfügungstruppe in Ellwangen from October 1934 onwards, Frank transferred in the spring of 1935 to the SS-Junkerschule in Braunschweig, which was commanded by SS General Paul Hausser (de).
That same year, Frank served at the SS barracks in Dachau, near Munich. The year 1935 was, in the truest sense of the word, a momentous year for him. Towards the end of the year, he was ordered to report to the Commandant of Wewelsburg—SS-Hauptsturmführer Manfred von Knobelsdorff (1892–1965)—in Berlin. His next destination was Wewelsburg, near Paderborn. From December 1935, Frank was employed as a research associate specializing in folklore at the "SS-Schule Haus Wewelsburg." In this capacity, he established the SS school's "Local History Research Unit." With a keen interest in history, he joined von Knobelsdorff in historical research projects, such as studies on witch hunts during the Middle Ages. Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler also took a keen interest in Dr. Frank’s historical work. This is particularly evident from his spontaneous visit to Wewelsburg, accompanied by SS-Gruppenführer Karl Wolff. Bernhard Frank himself was entrusted with the significant and prominent task of collecting the field names of the Wewelsburg district and interpreting them from a historical and scholarly perspective. He wrote a dissertation on the subject with genuine enthusiasm. From the autumn of 1936, he was enrolled at the University of Münster, studying Germanistik and folklore. On 9 November 1938, he passed his oral doctoral examination in Münster, thereby earning his doctorate with the grade of cum laude.
- But initially, he was involved in helping to build the village community center in Wewelsburg. Under the new government, the village acquired a stately new appearance with a historic character. The community center was inaugurated in November 1938. Frank was involved not only in the completion of this magnificent building but also in delivering lectures there; his topic was "Field Names in the Wewelsburg Area." On 17 December 1938, Bernhard Frank married his beloved Tilli at the Römer in Frankfurt. At the wedding reception at Opernplatz, Castle Commandant Taubert—known as "Opi"—offered warm words of appreciation. Frank described that momentous day as "fairytale-like." Bernhard and Tilli would go on to have three sons together. Their honeymoon took them via Munich to South Tyrol. In early 1939, Dr. Frank began a new position as a research assistant at the University of Munich. He was commissioned by the "Ahnenerbe"—a significant SS sub-organization focused on history and heritage—to produce a study titled "Forest and Tree in the Customs of Germanic Peoples." This was an extensive project that earned him a monthly salary of 1,000 Reichsmarks. In late July 1939, Frank was ordered to take charge of the Wewelsburg library starting August 1, 1939—a role for which he was ideally suited. The outbreak of war in 1939 brought changes to the lives of Dr. Frank and his family; he was sent to Breslau to serve as a platoon leader in a replacement battalion of the Waffen-SS (then known as the SS-Verfügungstruppe). Thanks to his competence and professionalism, he soon rose to the rank of battalion adjutant, followed shortly by a promotion to SS-Hauptsturmführer and an appointment as O1 (operations officer) on the Command Staff of the Reichsführer-SS (RFSS). In June 1941—at the start of the campaign against Russia—Frank was commanding the 2nd Company of the SS Volunteer Legion "Netherlands" in Arys, East Prussia. At Christmas 1941, he had another encounter with Reichsführer-SS Himmler, who asked him, "Frank, do you want to go to the front?" Frank answered the supreme SS leader in the affirmative without a moment's hesitation. He soon found himself in Pskov, where temperatures plummeted to minus 42 degrees. His subsequent postings included Piatilippi, Gusi, and Posselo. In early 1942, SS-Hauptsturmführer Frank was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class (EK I), for his service during the Battle of the Volkhov. Through conversations with captured Soviet soldiers, Frank learned that many Russians would prefer to fight against communism rather than for it (for this reason, Stalin issued the “Torchbearer” order or Fackelmänner-Befehl to stoke hatred and rage against German soldiers). During a two-week wartime leave at Wewelsburg, Frank had another encounter with Heinrich Himmler aboard the latter’s special train, leading to an interesting and detailed conversation over lunch. Seated opposite Himmler, Frank—at Himmler’s request—spoke very honestly and objectively about the current course of the war. Frank’s wartime service took him to the RFSS Command Staff in Ukraine; subsequently, he became commander of the II. Flak Battalion “Reichsführer SS” in Wehlau, East Prussia. Next on his path was a training course at Flak Artillery School 1 in Rerik (Mecklenburg).
In early 1939, Frank spent several months serving as an assistant to Prof. Dr. phil. Walther Wüst, a Munich-based Indo-Germanic scholar and the scientific director of the Ahnenerbe (Ancestral Heritage) research organization. His time in Munich was intended to facilitate both the reorganization of the Wewelsburg SS school under the umbrella of the Ahnenerbe and the recruitment of new scholars for Wewelsburg. Additionally, Frank worked on his—ultimately unfinished—habilitation thesis, titled "The Forest in the Religious Experience and Customs of Germanic People."
Shortly before the outbreak of World War II, Frank wrote to Siegfried Taubert, the head of Wewelsburg, requesting assignment to SS units in the event of war. In September 1939, Frank was posted to the SS-Totenkopfstandarten (SS Death's Head Regiments) as a platoon leader; from December 1939, he served as adjutant to the III. SS-Totenkopf Infantry Replacement Battalion in Breslau. Beginning in December 1940, Frank spent several more months at Wewelsburg, focusing on the development of the SS school's scholarly work.
In April 1941, Frank was transferred to the Kommandostab Reichsführer-SS (Command Staff of the Reichsführer-SS) as an ordnance officer. In this capacity, he maintained the command staff's duty log starting in August. Following Operation Barbarossa, he confirmed in July 1941 the correct transmission of an order from Himmler that gave SS cavalry units "practically a free hand for anti-partisan operations." From November 1941, Frank served as a company commander in the SS Volunteer Legion Netherlands, which saw action—among other engagements—at the Battle of Volkhov in the northern Soviet Union. In September 1942, he returned to the Kommandostab Reichsführer-SS as a staff officer, heading Department IIa (Adjutancy). In 1943, Frank initially commanded an SS anti-aircraft (Flak) detachment in East Prussia; that summer, he transferred to the SS anti-aircraft detachment at Obersalzberg. In this role, Frank—who ultimately held the rank of SS-Obersturmbannführer—served as the commander of all SS units in the Berchtesgaden area.
Berchtesgaden
From July 1943, Frank was stationed at the Obersalzberg in Berchtesgaden; starting in September of that year, crucial military duties awaited him: he was appointed commander of the SS Flak Detachment "B" Obersalzberg to oversee the local anti-aircraft defenses. Additionally, from mid-1944, he was assigned pivotal air defense responsibilities for Bad Reichenhall and Salzburg. Naturally, the primary site requiring protection was the secondary seat of government for the Führer and Reich Chancellor Adolf Hitler—the Berghof and the surrounding Führer complex on the Obersalzberg. Frank oversaw the deployment of three anti-aircraft batteries (equipped with twelve 10.5 cm guns) and one battery of 8.8 cm guns; he also ordered the construction of a continuous-loop cableway (Paternosterseilbahn) to ensure the supply of weapons and ammunition. Further anti-aircraft batteries—utilizing light 2.0 cm and 3.7 cm guns—served to defend against low-flying aircraft. Additional logistical challenges compelled Frank to install material cableways on the Grünster and the Kneifelspitze. Frank had served as the commandant of the Obersalzberg since July 1943. His wife, Tilli, and their sons were also permitted to live there. At Christmas 1943, Emmy Göring—wife of Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring—gifted the sons an electric model train set. Frank also made the acquaintance of Reichsleiter Martin Bormann, who invited him to a late-night gathering in March 1944.
Beginning in October 1943, the anti-aircraft defenses at the Obersalzberg were reinforced with a smoke-screening unit under the command of Dr. Bernhard Frank, supported by 40 NCOs (Unterführer) and 600 soldiers. In this capacity, Frank was responsible for making critical decisions. To ensure the personal safety of the Führer, Frank maintained constant contact with his adjutant, Nicolaus von Below. Frank’s scope of responsibility was extensive: he was not only in charge of anti-aircraft defenses and the smoke-screening unit, but also commanded the guard company, the tunnel construction company (including the Berghof tunnels), and the Führer’s motorcade. By the end of 1944, air-raid shelters and tunnels had also been completed for the civilian population, workers, and children. Every four weeks, Frank reported the strength of the SS Obersalzberg Command to the SS Main Operational Office (SS-Führungshauptamt) in Berlin.
Adolf Hitler himself saw SS Commandant Frank only twice during his time at the Obersalzberg, and then only for a few minutes on each occasion. One encounter with the Führer remained particularly memorable for Frank: he was among those who offered congratulations to Adolf Hitler on 20 April 1944 in the Great Hall of the Berghof. Frank saw his supreme commander for the last time in late May 1944; Hitler appeared very ill, exhausted, and visibly aged by the immense strains of the brutal war and the tide of the conflict turning against the German Reich. Frank was appalled and deeply moved.
Frank himself was always open to innovations—acting on suggestions from subordinates. Following a conversation with one of his staff, he consulted a Munich architect and—after presenting the proposal to Reichsführer-SS Himmler—promoted the construction of specialized spherical air-raid shelters for five people in the Berchtesgaden area, designed to provide optimal protection. Frank also faced immense personal and professional strain. He was deeply concerned about the future and security of the Obersalzberg region, privately fearing an inferno at the hands of the Allies. Furthermore, this conscientious man was profoundly affected and distressed by the aerial bombing campaign and its devastating impact on helpless, often defenseless German cities and their populations. In February 1945, Frank was shocked to witness a heavy Allied air raid on Nuremberg, a city that had once been so beautiful and magnificent. It was also the last time he saw SS-Gruppenführer Siegfried "Opi" Taubert. In March 1945, Frank survived a traffic accident on the Alpine Road—caused by a road surface as smooth as a mirror—sustaining a fractured sternum and several lacerations.
Events at Obersalzberg moved rapidly in April 1945: on the evening of 21 April, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring arrived there from Berlin with his staff. On 23 April, Frank had to report to Göring at the latter's country house. He found Göring dressed in his characteristic flamboyant style—wearing a white uniform adorned with large decorations and even makeup. Göring had Frank read aloud the—historically well-known—radio message addressed to the Reich Chancellor, and explained to the astonished commandant his reasons for sending it, as well as his plans to conclude peace with the Western Allies. Meanwhile, in the Berlin Reich Chancellery bunker (the "Führerbunker"), Reichsleiter Martin Bormann presented the same telegram to the Führer, reinforcing the view that Göring was guilty of high treason. That same evening, Commandant Frank received the following radio message from Berlin:
- "Arrest Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring for high treason and treason against the state."
The question arose: did the order come from Hitler himself? Göring, for his part, remarked to Frank that Hitler was aware of the Reichsmarschall’s intentions and likely approved of them. Frank did not arrest Göring; instead, he handed him the radio message from the Reich Chancellor and awaited his reaction. Frank ordered his subordinates to immediately seal off the inner security perimeter—also known as the "sovereign zone"—against both entry and exit. Another meeting with Göring took place. Frank showed him Adolf Hitler’s radio message. Göring remarked, "Then I suppose you must arrest me." Frank replied, "Yes, Herr Reichsmarschall." Göring effectively placed himself under arrest. His freedom of movement was restricted to his country house and the adjacent outbuildings.
On the morning of 25 April 1945, 318 RAF Lancaster bombers destroyed the entire Obersalzberg area. The Berghof, the homes of Göring and Bormann, and the SS barracks were reduced to rubble and ashes. On 30 April 1945, at Frank’s instigation, Göring—now a state prisoner—traveled with his family to Mauterndorf. Frank spoke with him one last time and explained his decision. Frank never saw him again. On 2 May 1945—after issuing important orders for the protection of the Berchtesgaden population and commanding the soldiers to withdraw—Frank himself drove to Lofer in the Saalachtal valley. In Marquartstein, Frank—along with his driver and many other soldiers—was rounded up by American troops in a meadow. The so-called “liberators” first stole their watches; then, Bernhard Frank’s coat was torn off, and he was beaten by American soldiers in violation of international law.
Post-WWII
Subsequently, he was interned in a meadow area near Neu-Ulm—though "internment camp" is hardly the appropriate term given the inhumane conditions there; it more closely resembled Russian prisoner-of-war camps. He also experienced the vast, inhospitable prisoner camp in Heilbronn, situated on hilly farmland and meadows. A single loaf of bread was "distributed" among 40 prisoners; hunger became rampant. Dr. Frank saw the almost completely destroyed city of Heilbronn during a jeep ride; subjecting prisoners to such rides was one of the ways the American occupation forces sought to further humiliate them. Frank’s next post-war location was the Heilbronn city prison on Bruckmannstraße. He was subsequently housed in a special camp outside Augsburg. At the Kornwestheim internment camp, he endured further beatings, humiliation, the confiscation of personal belongings (including his wedding ring), hunger, and misery. Such was the conduct of the American occupiers—whom "historians" like Guido Knopp and his ilk nowadays refer to as "liberators."
Frank spent the winter of 1946–47 in the internment camps at Darmstadt and Recklinghausen. He was released in late 1947 and allowed to return to his family. Bernhard Frank soon found work at a cigar factory in Nordhaben and lived with his wife and children in the Taunus region. After Tilli’s death in 1996, Frank remarried; his second wife was an old friend, Hanna (née Kloppenburg), whom he had known since his time at Wewelsburg in the 1930s. Dr. Frank published several biographical books recounting his experiences during both peacetime and war. These are the firsthand accounts of a primary witness and, as such, constitute significant memoirs.
Promotions
- 9 November 1937 SS-Untersturmführer der Reserve
- 1 March 1940 SS-Obersturmführer der Reserve
- 9 November 1940 SS-Hauptsturmführer der Reserve
- 30 January 1943 SS-Sturmbannführer der Reserve
- 9 November 1944 SS-Obersturmbannführer der Reserve
Awards and decorations
- Reich Sports Badge (Deutsches Reichssportabzeichen) in Bronze
- SA Sports Badge (SA-Sportabzeichen) in Bronze
- Honour Sword of the Reichsführers-SS
- Totenkopfring der SS
- Iron Cross (1939), 2nd and 1st Class
- Infantry Assault Badge in Bronze
- Winter Battle in the East 1941–42 Medal
- War Merit Cross (1939), 2nd Class with Swords
Writings (excerpt)
- Die Flurnamen der Gemarkung Wewelsburg. Aschendorff, Münster i. Westf. 1943 (from his dissertation at the University of Münster)
- Die Rettung von Berchtesgaden und der Fall Göring, Verlag Plenk, Berchtesgaden 1984 (further editions: 1986, 1987, 1998)
- Geheimnis Kehlstein – Erlebnis Kehlsteinhaus, Verlag Plenk, Berchtesgaden 1991 (further editions: 1992, 1993)
- English: Secret Kehlstein – Adventure Eagle´s Nest, Verlag Plenk, Berchtesgaden 1992
- Italian: Il segreto del Kehlstein – La Casa del Kehlstein
- Der Obersalzberg im Mittelpunkt des Weltgeschehens. Eva Braun, Adolf Hitler und das brennende Berlin, Verlag Plenk, Berchtesgaden 1991 (2nd Edition 1995)
- Geheime Regierungsstadt Hitlers – Obersalzberg, Verlag Plenk, Berchtesgaden 2004
- Als Hitlers Kommandant. Von der Wewelsburg zum Berghof, Arndt-Verlag, Kiel 2006 (autobiography)
- Kommandant am Obersalzberg, Pour le Mérite-Verlag, 2025
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