Streicher Julius: biography. The Streicher Case

Nazi activist Streicher Julius became one of the accused at the Nuremberg trial after the end of World War II. He was sentenced to death, although he did not directly participate in the destruction of civilians. In connection with this, the so-called Streicher incident appeared, which is the responsibility for crimes in the field of propaganda.

Formation of views

The son of the teacher of the Catholic school Streicher Julius was born in 1885. He was one of the few key figures in the Nazi party who was older than Hitler. Streicher was born in Bavaria, where he spent his entire youth. His life, as well as the lives of all his peers, was strongly influenced by the First World War. The young teacher volunteered for the army, where he received several awards for his courage.

The defeat of Germany in the war against the Entente dealt a powerful blow to its society. Streicher Julius was exposed to anti-Semitic and nationalistic sentiments. In peace years in the Weimar Republic there was an upsurge of extreme right-wing political forces. The former teacher left his pedagogical career and began to participate in public life.

Joining the Nazis

In 1919, the Socialist Party of Germany was established, the founder of which was Streicher Julius. He was a skilful organizer, able to unite like-minded people. His party was distinguished by extreme right and anti-Semitic views. In this sense, the organization of Streicher was like a group of activists who united around the young Adolf Hitler. His National Socialist German Workers' Party also began in Bavaria.

In 1921, Hitler nearly lost all his supporters. When he left for Berlin to establish contacts with Moscow like-minded people, some members of the Nazi party in Munich decided to switch to Streicher. Among the defectors was the founder of the NSDAP Anton Drexler. He accused Hitler of dictatorship and inability to listen to the position of opponents.

Approximate Hitler

Despite the mass demarche in the party, the future Fuhrer managed to restore his position thanks to his oratorical talent. It was then that he began to work closely with Streicher. Between the two extreme right-wing politicians, there was much in common. In the end, the Socialist Party of Germany merged with the NSDAP, which was primarily contributed by Streicher.

He became one of Hitler's associates after the Beer Putsch. It was an unsuccessful attempt by the Nazis to come to power in Germany in 1923. When the column of supporters of Hitler was walking along the streets of Munich, Streicher was in its forefront. Already during the Third Reich, the Fuhrer flattered about the dedication of his partner, shown at the most difficult moment.

Sturmovik

In April 1923, Streicher began publishing his own newspaper. It was called "Sturmovik". It is connected with the Streicher case. The printed edition appeared the most radical materials in the country, accusing the Jews of many crimes against Germany. For example, in some articles it was said that Jews practice ritual murders of German children. Also, accusations of Jews in various disasters (the destruction of the airship "Hindenburg", terrorist attacks, etc.) became popular.

The anti-Semitic sentiments that swelled in the "Sturmovik", found a response among the ordinary German population. But while the democratic power of the Weimar Republic existed , Streicher periodically had problems. So in the 1920s he was fired from school for extreme right-wing speeches before the students. The syndrome of Streicher lies in the fact that this propagandist made those around him believe that all Jews and other enemies of the people are to blame for all the troubles. His activities became one of the causes of the Holocaust, which unfolded in the Third Reich.

Gauleiter

Even before coming to power, the Nazi party organized its structure, which existed until the end of the war. Gauleiter posts were created. They were leaders of party cells at the regional level. In 1925, Streicher became Gauleiter of Nuremberg, and in 1929 - Gauleiter of Franconia. He also became one of the top leaders of assault teams.

As Gauleiter, Streicher became famous for his brutal treatment of prisoners and representatives of national minorities. All this happened already at a time when the Nazi party was the only party in the country. Due to his intolerable character, Streicher had a lot of conflict with other top officials of the Nazi Party.

The longest was his quarrel with Goering. Streicher publicly ridiculed his opponent on the pages of the "Sturmovik". For some time he got away with it. At the same time, other Nazi leaders also did not like the editor of the newspaper because of his self-interest and corruption. In 1940, a financial audit of Streicher's entire journalistic activity was carried out. Numerous violations were found. At the same time he was dismissed from all party posts, because in the NSDAP it was believed that his behavior caused great harm to the reputation of the party.

Streicher's anti-Semitism

Nevertheless, the incident of Streicher is also his trusting relationship with Hitler. Perhaps, it was thanks to the old friendship with the Fuhrer that Glavred "Sturmovik" was not subjected to any repression. During the war he concentrated on working on the newspaper. At this time he had a lot of materials for publication. In Germany, the Holocaust was in full swing. Jews under false pretenses were sent to concentration camps, where they were used as free labor. When the allies were on the border of the Reich, Jews were massively disposed of, using gas chambers, executions and other methods of execution.

Those atrocities that occurred in Germany in relation to Jews and other unwanted people were the result of total propaganda, of which Streicher's incident was part. What this is and how much its influence on the minds of contemporaries, continue to study historians.

In Nuremberg

Streicher continued to live in Bavaria. In May 1945, he was arrested by the Americans, when already the whole of Germany was captured by the allies. The propagandist was waiting for the Nuremberg tribunal, where the main Nazi criminals were tried. Many of them committed suicide, realizing that the war was lost. Some of them cut their veins or were already hanging behind bars during the investigation.

Streicher did not do this. He was accused of inciting murder of the Jewish population. It was a crime against humanity. Among those who were sentenced to death were Julius Streicher. Nuremberg was the capital of Franconia, where he used to be a Gauleiter.

The perpetrators were executed by hanging. Julius Streicher was no exception. The last words of the criminal were "Heil Hitler!". This was testified by the executioner, who enforced the sentence.