When the Nazis came into power in 1933, they envisioned a new powerful German nation, free of foreigners and other ‘undesirables’ such as Jews, criminals, homosexuals and the mentally ill, populated only by the purest Aryan race.
The Sterilisation Laws of 1933.
To create this racially pure nation a series of laws were introduced. The Law for the Prevention of Hereditarily Diseased Progeny came into effect in 1934, it stipulated initially that adults with any one of a list of hereditary diseases or conditions should be sterilised. The list included schizophrenia, hereditary blindness or deafness, epilepsy, physical deformity amongst others. Amendments to the law in the following years included sterilisation of chronic alcoholics and children over the age of ten with any of the listed conditions. In the 1930s, knowledge of hereditary conditions, genetics and psychiatry was much less advanced than it is today. As a result hundreds of thousands of Germans were sterilised.
Nazi Economic Policies Behind “Euthanasia”
Due to the Nazis fanaticism with eugenics and racial hygiene, people housed in institutions throughout Germany, were deemed as “life unworthy of life” and “useless mouths”. In 1939 with the prospect of war imminent, the need for beds, clothes, food and money for armaments was paramount and was not to be wasted on unproductive members of society. Henceforth the T4 programme, so called because its headquarters were at Tiergartenstrasse 4, Berlin, began. The term “euthanasia” in this case was just another example of the Nazis use of euphemisms.
Mentally and Physically Impaired Children were also Included
There were numerous children’s centres and wards situated throughout Germany. The favoured method of killing in these centres would be doses of barbiturates added to their food on a daily basis. This would not cause immediate death but would lead to fatal pulmonary complications such as TB, the death certificate could then cite natural causes.
The Nazis Begin Gassing on a Mass Scale
Adults would be transferred from institutions to one of a number of specially designed facilities. Soon the T4 Programme grey vans arriving at an institution would be enough to incite fear and panic into the patients. What happened at these centres was soon to be applied to the Death Camps. On arrival the patients were told they were to shower or be deloused, in the sealed chamber gas would be pumped through fake shower heads, at this time carbon monoxide was used. The bodies were then cremated, sometimes an urn of ashes was sent to the relatives, the reason for cremation being given as to stop the spread of contagious diseases.
Covering up Mass Murder
Inevitably relatives of victims, and people living near these centres which had crematoria were suspicious as to what was happening. Relatives would be told their relation was being transferred, any attempts to visit them would be delayed, and soon afterwards they would be informed of their death. Any inquiries were placated with lies, such as an outbreak of disease at the centre, blood poisoning from sores, TB as mentioned before, and with elderly patients, stroke was often given as the cause of death. Those who persisted in demanding answers from the authorities were politely threatened and warned not to interfere.
Doctors, Physicians, Nurses and “Euthanasia”
The T4 Programme entailed a lot of paper work, doctors and nurses filled in forms whose answers determined which patients would receive “treatment” at a special centre and who would not. They were aware of what was happening, and some believed granting a ‘merciful death’ to mentally or physically ill people was part of their duty as a medical professional, others left their jobs as they did not want to be involved. Some purposely filled in forms deliberately giving answers that would favour a patient, however a number of similar forms from one institution would warrant a visit from T4 personnel.
Eventually mass gassing was stopped in Germany, but other methods of killing such as lethal overdoses were not. Mass gassing was soon to be applied elsewhere as the Germany Army advanced further and further east.
In the eyes of the Nazis the T4 Programme was a success, as rough estimates put the number of deaths of German citizens at around 200,000.
Sources
Burleigh, M. The Third Reich. A New History. London: Macmillan, 2000.
Friedlander, H. The Origins of Nazi Genocide. North Carolina: North Carolina University Press, 1997.
