Leopold Hilgarth

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Leopold Hilgarth (born September 8, 1895 in Seewiesen ; † January 9, 1945 in Vienna ) was an Austrian resistance fighter against National Socialism from Hartheim, which belongs to the municipality of Alkoven near Linz .

Hilgarth was one of six children. He learned the trade of shoemaker. After the First World War, Hilgarth joined the Social Democratic Party of Austria . From 1932 until the official ban in 1934 he was secretary of the local organization Alkoven. Hilgarth worked for the Reichspost and from April 1941 for the Reichsbahn at the goods station in Linz . He was married three times and had eight biological children. In 1936 he met the social democrat N. Neumann from St. Martin near Traun , who belonged to the " Revolutionary Socialists Austria ". After the Anschluss of Austria , Hilgarth was held in protective custody for five days for “sedition and communist attitudes” ; But as a social democrat he was able to clearly differentiate himself from the communist camp.

At that time there was a Nazi killing facility in Hartheim Castle near Alkoven , in which mainly mentally ill and disabled people were gassed. The Hilgarth family owned a house not far from the castle, so the horrific events did not go unnoticed. In early 1943, anti-nationalist slogans were painted on walls in alcoves:

“ We don't need an emperor by the grace of God, but neither do we need a murderer from Berchtesgaden.” “Austrians! Hitler started the war - Hitler's fall will end it. "

Letters with statements critical of the regime were also sent to the local group leader of Alkoven, Albert Schrott. The responsible persons could never be clearly identified. However, these actions coincide with the illegal activities of Hilgarth and Ignaz Schuhmann. Leopold Hilgarth and Ignaz Schuhmann had known each other since the 1920s; they exchanged views on the political situation when they took the train to Linz together. By the summer of 1943 at the latest, Hilgarth had decided to produce leaflets for the " Revolutionary Socialists ". He would provide the text and Ignaz Schuhmann would take over the production of the leaflets. Between 1943 and 1944 the two produced four leaflets (print runs 50 to 150 copies) and u. a. distributed in Linz. Johann Keppelmüller, who had access to larger amounts of paper, also joined the two. In addition, a certain Alois Binder from Kleinmünchen took part, where the peel-off material and the typewriter could be accommodated.

After the Gestapo knew about the illegal activity in January 1944 , Hilgarth and Schuhmann were arrested on June 13, 1944. Both were taken to the Linz police prison. At their home further drafts for leaflets and letters to the local group leader Schrott were found. As a result, Karl Schuhmann's brother and his father were arrested. Johann Keppelmüller, who ultimately confessed, and who had meanwhile joined the Wehrmacht in Olmütz , was also taken to the Wehrmacht detention center in Linz.

On August 23, 1944, the senior prosecutor at the Vienna People's Court charged Leopold Hilgarth, Ignaz Schuhmann, Karl Schuhmann and Johann Keppelmüller with high treason and disintegration of the military . On November 3, 1944, the death sentence against Leopold Hilgarth and Ignaz Schuhmann was announced and carried out on January 9, 1945 at the Vienna Regional Court. Karl Schuhmann was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for aiding and abetting and Johann Keppelmüller was sentenced to four months in juvenile prison, which had already been served by remand.

In 2003 a memorial for Hilgarth and Schuhmann was erected in front of Hartheim Castle.

literature

  • Walter Hilgarth: Tied up, tortured, beheaded. Self-published, Eferding 2007, ISBN 978-3-200-01072-7 , 168 pages.
  • Irene Leitner: Nazi euthanasia: knowledge and resistance. Perceptions in the population and the resistance of individuals. In: Brigitte Kepplinger , Gerhart Marckhgott , Hartmut Reese (eds.): Hartheim death center. Upper Austrian Provincial Archives, Linz 2008, ISBN 978-3-900313-89-0 , pp. 242-250.
  • Brigitte Kepplinger : The Hartheim Euthanasia Center 1940-1945 . In: Brigitte Kepplinger, Gerhart Marckhgott, Hartmut Reese (eds.): Hartheim death center . 3. Edition. Linz 2013, p. 63–116 ( antifa-info.at [PDF; 197 kB ; accessed on February 21, 2020]).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Hermann Langbein Symposium 2007, page 29 , accessed on January 27. 2010
  2. ↑ Irene Leitner 2008, p. 244.
personal data
SURNAME Hilgarth, Leopold
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian resistance fighter
DATE OF BIRTH September 8, 1895
PLACE OF BIRTH Lake meadows
DATE OF DEATH January 9, 1945
Place of death Vienna