Figure 1.-This is a family snapshot of the young von Stauffenberg brothers playing chamber music together at their home near Bamberg in 1917. World War I was rageing at the time. The violinist and pianist are the twins, Berthold (1905-44) and Alexander von Stauffenberg (1905-64). Berhold seems to have a fancy hair style. A reader writes, "Note Berhold's hair cut with soem type of top curl which his brothers do not have. We think it may be just a quirk in the image. The cellist is their younger brother Claus (1907-1944). Claus is the most famous of the three boys since he is the one who attempted to assasinate Hitler. the twins here were 12 years old and Claus was 10, They wear typical upper-class clothes. Berthold and Claus wear short trousers suits with long stockings and white spread (Schiller) collars. Alexander, who is playing the piano, seems to be wearing white knee socks, although the photo is not very clear.

Claus von Stauffenberg was born in Jettingen (1907). He had twin older brothers (Berthold and Alexander). He was very intelligent, but only an average student. He decided on a military career and at age 19 became a cadet. The Germany Army, the Reichswehr was extremely limited because of the Versailles Peace Treaty. He went on to attended the War Academy in Berlin. He was appointed to the General Staff (1938). Germany invaded Poland, launnching World war II (September 1939). Stauffenberg was assigned to the staff of the the staff of 6th Panzer Division. Germany Generals and Hitler gave considerable effort to tanks (panzers), emphasizing speed and mobility. Poland was the world's introduction to what they could do. The turning point of the War, was Hitler's decesion to invade the Soviet Union--Operation Barbarossa (June 1941). During Barbarossa Stauffenberg was horrified by the atrocities committed by Germans, especially the Schutzstaffeinel (SS). He met other officers that shared his revulsion of SS attrocities. Especially important were Henning von Tresckow and Fabin Schlabrendorff). He was promoted to the rank of major. He was severly wounded when his staff car ran into a mine field and was strafed by aircraft. Stauffenberg's injuries were extensive. He lost his left eye, two fingers on the left hand and his right forearm. While recovering, Stauffenberg decided to kill Adolf Hitler and overthrow the Nazi government and began conspiring with like-minded officers. The result was the July Bomb Plot (1944). He was assigned a key role.

Parents

The von Stauffenberg boys came from a very aristocratic German family in Swabia. The von Stauffenbergs were one of the oldest and most distinguished aristocratic Roman Catholic families of southern Germany. Included among Staufenberg's Protestant maternal ancestors were several important Prussian military figures, including Field Marshal August von Gneisenau. He played a major role in the 1813 campaign that drove Napoleon out of Germany. Their father was Alfred Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, the last Oberhofmarschall of the Kingdom of Württemberg. The Weimar Republic ended the German monarchies. He married Caroline Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg (née Gräfin (Countess) von Üxküll-Gyllenband).

Childhood

Claus von Stauffenberg was born in the family castle--Jettingen (1907). Claus had a twin who died in infancy. The family home was located between Ulm and Augsburg in eastern Swabia. At the time this was part of Bavaria. Claus had twin older brothers (Berthold and Alexander). The boys were very close and grew up in a staunchly Catholic family. The boys developed a highly developed sence of ethics. Their parents encouraged the arts, including music and literature. The boys learned to play musical instruments and here you can see them playing (figure 1). The Staufenberg boys joined the Neupfadfinder, a German Scout association and part of the German Youth movement. Claus was highly intelligent, but not arrogant. He had an extrodinary ability to make friends. He was also very good in sports. He developed a passion for horses and would eventually earn a place on the 1936 German Olympics team.

Education

Their parents saw to it that all three boys were solidly educated. Claus was intelligent, but only an average student. The family attributed this to a lack of ambition. It is unclear to what extent his poor health as a boy was a factor here. His more healthy older brothers were high-achieving students. Claus exhibited a special interest in literature. Their father was a military man, but did not insist on a military career for the boys. He considered studying music and architecture.

Choice of Military Career

Germany after World War I became sharply politicized. Claus and his brothers were caught up in the nationalist ferment following World war I. This may explain why he decided on a military career rather than pursuing university studies. Family traditions were also important. Claus joined the family's traditional regiment as a cadet (1926). It was the Bamberger Reiter- und Kavallerieregiment 17 (17th Cavalry Regiment) (1926). It was also known as the Bamberg Horseman. The Germany Army, the Reichswehr was extremely limited because of the Versailles Peace Treaty. He was well liked by the other cadets, but seen as somewhat stand-offish by them. He graduated first in his class and was awarded a special ceremonial sabre for "outstanding achievements" (1930). He was commissioned a lieutenant. Stauffenberg impressed his superiors and was posted to the War Academy in Berlin (1936).

Stefan George

Staufenberg and his brothers was impresed by the poet Stefan George. As a youth, he joined the Stefan George's circle (Georgekreis) and remained a love for George's poetry all his life. Albrecht von Blumenthal introduced the Staufenberg boys Stefan George's influential circle--Georgekreis. Many notable members of the anti-NAZI German resistance would emerge from Georgekreis. Claus would reportedly quote from George's "The Anti-Christ" while recruiting other conspirators. George dedicated "Das neue Reich" (The new Reich) in 1928, including the "Geheimes Deutschland" ("Secret Germany") to Berthold. George's work postulated a new German society ruled by hierarchical spiritual aristocracy. Of course such a theme would have apealed to idealistic youths from an aristocratic family. George is described as Germany's great esotericist and mystic. His circle of intimates and initiates were also known as the "Secret Germany."

German Patriotism

Claus and his brothers grew up to be fervent German nationalists, explaining Claus' choice of a military career. His German patriotism made him highly critical of the Versaiiles Peace Treaty, including the territorial changes and the restrictions on the German military. It should be stressed that the vast majority of Germans believed that Germany had not been fairly treated by the victorious Allies after Woirld War I and wanted the "dismemberment" of the country reversed. This of course does not mean that they wanted war and genocide. (The obvious fact that reversing the Versailles Treaty meant war was a connection that many Germans who voted for the NAZIs did not make.) Thus the Staufenberg boys wwre attracted by the NAZIs, especially the nationalistic rhetoric. It should be stressed that this was not just a right-wing phenomenon. Even Germans with left-wing orientations did not believe that Germany had been fairly treated. The boys eventually turned against Hitler when they realized he would bring nothing but ruin upon Germany. Berhold was the first to make up his mind.

The Wehrmacht

The Wehrmacht was formed in 1934 out of the Weimar Republic's Reichswehr. The Reichswehr was severly restricted by the Versailles Treaty. It also was never strongly supportive of the Republic. Many Reichswehr officers had strong monarchial attachments. Thus there was little resistance to transfering loyalty to Adolf Hitler and the NAZIs. When Hitler agreed to supress Ernst Rhoem and the SA, the deal was done. Hitler and the SS carrird this off in the Night of the Long Knives (1934). The officers and men of the Wehrmacgt than swore a personal oath of loyalty to the new German Führer. Claus von Staufenberg as a young officer would have sworn that oath.

Family

Stauffenberg was still an officer cadet when he met his future wife--Nina Freiin von Lerchenfeld. He was different than most of the other cadets. He was not particularly interested in womanizing nor carousing. Instead he began studying Russian during his training. At a dancing lesson he met a lady that would prove to be the mother of his future wife. She raved about the young officer she met to her daughter, when Nina came home from boarding school. Nina had been born in Lithuania to am ethnic German family. Her mother introduced the two and there was an immediate chemistry. They were engaged in her parents' home in Bamberg (1930). Stauffenberg married Nina (1933). Stauffenberg wore his uniform and a steel helmet. "To wed is to be on duty," he told his new wife. Their first son Berthold was born (1934). They had three sons (Berthold Maria, Franz Ludwig, and Heimeran). Their daughter Valérie was born durting the War (mid­November 1940), A fith child, Konstanze, was born after their father's arrest and summary execution. Berthold after the war became a General in the new West German Army.

Pre-War Military Career (1930-39)

Claus was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant (second lieutenant) in the small Weimar Reublic Reichwehr (1930). The Reichwehr was severely limited by the Versailles Peace Treaty. As part of his military training career, Stauffenberg studied modern weapons at the Kriegsakademie in Berlin-Moabit. His career centered on the use of the horse—-which continued to carry out a large part of German transportation duties throughout World War II. His regiment became part of the 1st Light Division commanded by General Erich Hoepner, who had taken part in the plans for the German Resistance coup (September 1938). This was cut short when British Primeminister Chamberlain unexpectantly caved into Hitler's demands at the Munich Conference. Staufenberg's unit was part of the troops that moved into the Sudetenland, the part of Czechoslovakia that had a German-speaking majority, as agreed to in Munich.

Politics

Staufenberg's politics were that of a staunch German nationalist. Like mmost Germns, he felt that Germany had been mistreated in the Wotld War I Versailles Peace Treaty. He was attracted by the nationalism of the NAZIs, but concerned by their brutality and vulgarity. He thus never joined the Party. We have noted references Staffenberg's aristocratic background made him more of a monarchist which he saw as offering more stability than the Weimar Republic. He was attracted by the NAZI rearmament program and the rebuilding of German prestige. We have noted him referred to as a NAZI. This is not accurate. He was neither a Party member or a fully commited admirer of Hitler. It is a mistake to think of all German patriots, even all right-wing Germans as NAZIs. Stauffenberg remained a deeply religious Catholic even as the NAZIs moved against the Church. The Catholic Church had signed the Reichskonkordat with the NAZI Goverment (1933) soon after Hitler seized power. The Church gave up its political role in exchange for NAZIs guarantees about the free exercize of religion. After a brrief period, NAZI authorities beagn an assault on traditional relgions. Here the Catholic Church waas the main target because the Protestant churches were more willing to acceed to NAZI demands and did not have internatioanl supports like the Catholics. This and the steady escalating attacks on Jews offended Stauffenberg's strong personal commitment to Catholic religious morality and justice. [Hofman, p. 151.] Stauffeberg was deeply disturbed by the brutality of Krisallnacht (1938). Stauffenberg was not without his prejudices, but the brutality the NAZIs exhibted repelled him. Like other Germans, however, he was swept along with the victories in Poland and France. He came to admire Hitler's military acumen. What he saw next during Barbarossa changed his opinion, both the terrible attricities and Hitler's poor military decisions. What is difficult to assess is which wwere more important. Probably it is a questgion that can never be answered.

War Record

Stauffenberg served in the Wehrmacht at the time of Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland (1938). He was also involved in all of Hitler's major campaigns, including: Poland (1939), France (1940), the Soviet Union (1941-42), and Tunisia (1943). Germany invaded Poland, launnching World War II (September 1939). Germany Generals and Hitler gave considerable effort to tanks (panzers), emphasizing speed and mobility. Poland was the world's introduction to what they could do. Staufenberrg was a quartermaster officer in General Erich Hoepner's 1st Light Division (1938). Interestingly he was especially interested in horses and they were an important part of Germany military transport, even as late as Barbarossa. After the Polish campaign it was renamed the 6th Panzer Division (November 1939.) Staufenberg after Dunkirk was assigned to the Army High Command/General Staff Headquarters (May 1940-January 1943). After his he was posted to Tunisia when Hitler rushed reinforcements there. It was in Tunisia that he was wounded.

Poland (1939)

Hitler ordered the invasion of Polamd, launching World War II (September 1939). Stauffenberg's regiment took part in the invasion. Afterwards he seems to have tolerated the way the occupation of Poland had been handled by the NAZI which essentially involved the use of Poles as forced labor to achieve German war-time prosperity. Some claim he even endorsed this and the systematic German exploitation of occpied Poland. [Hoffman, p. 116.] The idea of colonisation was deeply rooted in the German aristocracy. Many aristocrats and those with monarchial sentmernts believed that the East, some of which had been German territory before World War I should be colonised as the Teutonic Knights had done in the Middle Ages. And German victories in the East during World War I had brought huge swaths of territory under German control as recognized by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1918). It is still largely unknown as to Staufengerg's attitides toward the way NAZI Germany had revovered lost German lands as well as additional lands in Poland that had been Tsarist territory begore World War I and occupied by the Germans during the War. It seems that in the early stages of the World War II that Stauffenberh harbored the usual aristocratic and monarchial beliefs typical of late-Imperial times.

France (1940)

Stauffenberg's unit was reorganized and became part of the 6th Panzer Division. He served as officer of its General staff in the invasion of France (May-June 1940). He was awarded the Iron Cross First Class. Like many German officers, he was impressed by the overwhelming military success which were widely attributed to Hitler by Germans within the military as well as the civilian population.

Soviet Union (1941-42)

The turning point of the War, was Hitler's decesion to invade the Soviet Union--Operation Barbarossa (June 1941). During Barbarossa Stauffenberg was horrified by the atrocities committed by Germans, especially the Schutzstaffeinel (SS) and Einsattzgruppen. Too often World War II focuses on the SS when discussing German attricities. The SS cerainly was the center of the Holocaust, but it was not uniquely involved with the attrocities. The SS, SD and Security Police units killed Jews in large numbers. Staufenberg also saw attrocities committed by regular Wehrmacht units that he had so proudly joined as a young man. And it was not just Jews. He also saw terrible abuses of Soviet POWs and the civilian population. Stauffenberg reported specific incidents to Major Joachim Kuhn (August 1942). It has become an issue as to just how much individual Germans knew about the Holocaust and other attrocities. Staufenberg is a good example of the extent to which the attrocities were known in the Whermacht. this and other sources suggest that any men, including regular Whermacht soldiers, serving for any time in the East knew that people were being murdered in large numbers. Now civilians and soldiers stationed in North Africa and the West seem to have known less, but the great bulk of the Whermacht was stationed in the East and overtime as soldiers talked to each other as well as civilians, knowledge spread. This can clearly be seen in the recordings secretky made of German POWs.

Tunisia (1943)

Staufenberg was among the German soldiers rushed to Tunisia after the Allied Torch landings (November 1942). He arrived in Tunisia (early 1943). He served with the 10th Panzer Division, part of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps. He was promoted to the rank of major. He was severly wounded at Sebkhet en Noual, south of Mezzouna when his staff car ran into a mine field and was strafed by aircraft (April 1943). Stauffenberg's injuries were extensive. He lost his left eye, two fingers on the left hand and his right forearm. Surgeons saved his life. As a result, he was evacuated as a casualty and recuperated in the Reich. Otherwise he would have become a POW when the Germans surrendered in Tunisia (May 1943). After he recovered, he was promoted and given a staff assignment in the Home Army.

July Bomb Plot (July 1944)

Even before he was injured Staufenberg was meeting with other officers that shared his revulsion of the SS and the attrocities German forces were committing. He was drawn into the conspiracy against Hitler by his brother Berthod. Especially important were Henning von Tresckow and Fabin Schlabrendorff). Stauffenberg decided s early as 1942 to kill Adolf Hitler and overthrow the Nazi government and began conspiring with like-minded officers. The result was the July Bomb Plot. He was assigned a key role. The key conspirators were Admiral Wilhelm Canaris (head of the Abwehr), Carl Goerdeler, Julius Leber, Ulrich Hassell, Hans Oster (Admiral Canaris' deputy), Henning von Tresckow, Fabin Schlabrendorff, Peter von Wartenburg, Ludwig Beck, and Erwin von Witzleben. As a result of the need for secrecy, many individuals were not directly involved in the plot, but were willing to accept Hitler's removal as demonstrated by the fact that they did not report clearly treasonous conversations. Stauffenberg was promoted to Colonel and appointed Chief of Staff to Home Army Commander General Friedrich Fromm (June 1944). This was the posuition that gave him direct access to Hitler's briefing sessions. The overall plot was much more involved including a range of Wehrmacht officers including General Erwin Rommel. The attemp became known as the July Bomb Plot. The plan was to assasinate the key NAZI leaders (Adolf Hitler, Hermann Goering and Heinrich Himmler ), then use loyal troops to seize control of Berlin and the major government buildings. This would include the important communication facilities in Berlin: telephone and signal centers and radio broadcasting stations. The key target of course was the Führer himself. Several attempts were made on Hitler's life. At least six attempts had to be aborted. Stauffenberg decided he could kill Hitler during a military conference at the Führer Wolf's Lair headquarters (July 20, 1944). The idea was to kill Göering and Himmler with the same bomb. They were not at the conference. Despite orders to abort the bombing, Staufenberg decided to go ahead. Stauffenberg had never previously met Hitler. He carried the bomb in a briefcase and placed it on the floor next to where Hitler was standing. He then left to make a pre-arranged telephone call. The bomb exploded and Staufenberg thought he had suceeded. Hitler had, however, moved the brirf case to the other side of a oak beam supporting the briefing table. Four men were killed. Hitler was badly shaken and his right arm injured, but he was not killed. After Hitler's assasintion, Ludwig Beck, Erwin von Witzleben and Erich Fromm were to take command of the Wehrmacht. This effort was abandoned when it became clear that Hitler had survived.

Execution

Fromm attempting to protect himself, ordered the immediate execution of Stauffenberg along with three other conspirators (Friedrich Olbricht and Werner von Haeften). They were executed by firing squad in the courtyard of the War Ministry. Stauffenberg is reported to have shouted "Long live free Germany" as he was shot. Berthold was executed a week later, being horribly garrotted with a wire around the neck. Alexander survived the War and pursued a career as a historian. He died (1964).

NAZIs Surprised

High NAZI officials new Stauffenberg personally. As part of his staff position with the Home Army, he met many high ranking NAZI officials. They were astonished when they learned that he was responsible. "This isn't the Claus von Stauffenberg I knew," SS Reichsfuhrer Heinrich Himmler reportedly said on learning who was responsible. Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels was also amazed. "If Claus disagreed with the Führer, why didn't he say something? He had plenty of opportunities to speak up." Goebbels often spoke this way. Of course if he had spoken upm he would have been arrested. Party chancellery head Martin Bormann said, "I had lunch with Claus just a month ago. I thought I knew him. We were colleagues. Friends. He didn't have a single negative word to say about Hitler."

Family Arrested

Stauffenberg attempted to shield his wife and children by keeping her totally out of the plot and not holding meetings in his home. Nina was in Lautlingen with their children, mother-in-law, and uncle-in-law (July 20). It was there she and the family learned that her husband had been shot during the night as the leader of the plot to kill Hitler (July 21). The Gestapo arrested Nina along with the children sometime during the next night (July 22/23). Before this she had explained to the children that their father had attempted to kill the Führer. They were too young to understand. This was part of the NAZI policy of arresting the families of those who opposed Hitler (klan arrest). They also arrested her uncle, uncle-in-law, Nikolaus Graf von Üxküll-Gyllenband. The Gestapo took the children away (August 17). They were given a new surname, Meister, and sent to a children's home Bad Sachsa. Younger children whose parents were arrested for political crimes were commonly turned over to good NAZI families for adoption. The colapse of NAZI Germany (May 1945) prevented this fate. Nina gave birth to a fifth child while in custody. Konstanze was born in a NAZI prison maternity center in Frankfurt an der Oder (January 1945). She was held for at time at the Ravensbruck Concentration Camp. She was moved to Italy (Bolzano-Bozen) where she was held by the NAZIs as hostage for the redemption of Reich property. She was rescued by Allied soldiers. After the war, she was released and rejoined her children at the Stauffenberg family home in Lautlingen. Her mother Anna died in a Soviet camp (1945). The Soviets apparently had arrested her as the wife of a wealthy industrialist.

Assessment

Claus and Berthold are today considered martyrs to Hitler's genocidal fanaticism. This was not initially the csase. They were widely seen as traitors, both immediately after the event and even in the early years of the occupation. The wives and children of the conspirators recall veing seen as the children of traitors. Only slowly did German public aditudes begin to change. Although many of the conspirators initially supported Hitler, the support was for hitler's nationalism, not genocide. Their religion was probably a factor in turning them against the dictator. One question that has to be asked about the Wehrmacht officers who conspired against Hitler was what their motives were. Staufenberg and his brother Berthold seem to have been truly apauled by the attrocities they witnessed. Many Wehrmacht officers were more concerned with the fact that Hitler's war was lost and that continuing it was ruining not only Germany, but their beloved Wehrmacht.

Sources

Hoffmann, Peter. Stauffenberg: A Family History, 1905-1944.

Leigh, Michael, Richard Lincoln, amd Henry Baigent. Secret Germany: Claus Von Stauffenberg and the Mystical Crusade.

Created: 2:16 AM 8/20/2008
Last updated: 7:16 PM 8/13/2013