| SS-Obersturmbannführer Johannes Hermann Thümmler (August 23, 1906 – April 28, 2002) was Chef des Geheime Staatspolizei (Gestapo – “Chief of Secret Police”) in Chemnitz and Katowice. He also led Kommando Sechzehn (16) Einsatzgruppen D in Croatia. A member of the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP – “German National Socialists’ Workers Party”) since the 1930s, Thümmler was Chef des Gestapo in Dresden before moving to Chemitz. He directed Kommando Sechzehn (16) Einsatzgruppen D for a few months in 1942 in Knin, Croatia. He was appointed Chef des Gestapo in Katowice, Upper Silesia before taking over the Gestapo in Stuttgart in April 1945. After French captivity postwar, he was released in 1948. He testified on November 2, 1964, n the Auschwitz Trial. He stated that “several hundred” death sentences were handed down by court martial, about 60 percent of the sentences, mainly against resistance fighters. “Acquittal was virtually eliminated.” Another charge was dismissed in 1970 as his confession could not be verified as voluntary. Thumler became a member of the Tutzing Protestant Academy. In 1996, the City of Chemnitz attempted to sue him or missing works of art. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0620.jpg |
| Image Size | 145.36 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 917 x 1293 |
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| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | January 1, 1942 |
| Location | |
| City | Berlin |
| State or Province | Berlin |
| Country | Germany |
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| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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