December 20, 1963
The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial Opens
Historical context
On this day, December 20, 1963, the first large Frankfurt trial of Auschwitz personnel opened. Twenty-two defendants were in the dock.
Archive record
Read the event, then follow its documented sources and archive threads.
- Date
- December 20, 1963
- Verified sources
- 1
- Archive threads
- 5
On this day, the first large Frankfurt trial of Auschwitz camp personnel opened at the Römer, Frankfurt's city hall. The Hessian State Archives record that 22 defendants were tried. The court applied German criminal law, so the charges were murder and accessory to murder rather than the international count of crimes against humanity used at Nuremberg.
Presiding Judge Hans Hofmeyer delivered the judgments on 19 and 20 August 1965. Six defendants received life sentences, ten received shorter prison terms, and three were acquitted. An Auschwitz trial had already been held in Kraków in 1947. This Frankfurt proceeding opened on 20 December 1963.
Research trail
Sources and further reading
- The 1st Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial · Hessian State Archives · Hessian State Archives View source
Share this history
Support the work
If this history matters to you, you can support Jewish Original.