NO-2368. Friedrich Entress on Auschwitz

Source: NO-2368.  Only the English translation seems available.

Comment: Entress was a camp doctor.  He was convicted and sentenced to death in the Mauthausen trial in 1946.  This affidavit was given about 1 month before he was hung while seeking clemency.

Text:
I, Friedrich ENTRESS, swear, depose and state as follows:

1.  I, Friedrich ENTRESS, was born on 8 December 1914 in Posen.  There I attended the elementary school, the high school and the university.

2.  I passed my state examination in June 1939, and in the middle of 1942 was given by decree the doctor's title by the Ministry of culture.

3.  I was never a member of the NSDAP.  In 1939 I enlisted in the self defense (Selbstschutz) in Posen voluntarily and was drafted into the Waffen-SS in October 1939.


4.  Until the end of March 1940 I was trained in a medical training course in Freimann near Munich and subsequently until 10 December 1940 I was assistant physician at the SS signal replacement battalion (SS Nachrichten Ersatz Abteilung).  There I started my service as Hauptscharfuehrer and on 20 April 1940 I was promoted to Untersturmfuehrer.

5.  On 3 January 1941 I was assigned as camp physician in the concentration camp Gross-Rosen and remained there until 10 December 1941.

6.  On 11 December 1941 I was transferred as camp physician to the main camp Auschwitz and remained there until 20 October 1943.  During this time I was promoted to Obersturmfuehrer.

7. On 21 October 1943 I was transferred to the concentration cap Mauthausen and was active there as garrison physician and first camp physician until 25 July 1944.  During this time I was promoted to Hauptsturmfuehrer

8.  From 3 August 1944 until the beginning of February 1945 I was first camp physician at the concentration camp Gross-Rosen.

9.  On 10 February 1945 I became assistant physician in surgery at the medical company of the 9th SS Armoured Division "Hohenstaufen".  On 18 May 1945, near Steyr, Austria, I became Prisoner of War, and on 13 July 1945 was transferred to the prison in Gmunden.

10.  On 29 March 1946 I was accused in the Mauthausen trial in Dachua and was sentenced to death on 13 May 1946.  In November 1946 I filed a clemency petition to the War Crimes Branch in Wiesbaden.

Gross Rosen:

11.  Because of my service as camp physician in the concentration camp Gross Rosen I know, that this camp was established in order to utilize the there located stone quarries for the Deutsche Erd- und Steinwerke GmbH.  At the office of the stone quarry was a sign with the name of that firm.

12.  Living conditions for the prisoners in Gross Rosen were worse than in the other camps, because the prisoners were mainly employed in the stone quarries.  Having been camp physician I know that the hardest labour was performed in the stone quarries, and that in all the camps the punishment detachments were located there.

13.  On 3 January 1941, when I came to Gross Rosen, there were about 200 prisoners in the camp.  The beginning of February 1945, when I left Gross Rosen, there were about 7000 prisoners in the main camp.  About 40 000 additional prisoners were in the 80 branch camps.

AUSCHWITZ

14.  Approximately in May 1942 I was first acquainted with the order concerning Euthanasia.  This order eminated from Dr. LOLLING, chief physician of all CC's and went to the CC Auschwitz.  The contents of this order was to apply Euthanasia by injections to uncurable tubercular, uncurable insane patients and to those who were permanently incapable of work.  This order was extended in autumn 1942 to sick patients, who's [sic] and reconvalescence was unlikely within four weeks and to who also Euthanasia was to be applied.  The injections were carried out in Auschwitz with liquid Cyancali.  The garrison physician (Standortarzt) had to cite separately in his monthly report to D III the number of CC inmates who were given Euthanasia.

15.  In the summer of 1942 the first gassings began in Auschwitz-Birkenau.  They concerned in this case the gassings of Jews from Poland and Russia.  The selection of the CC prisoners who were to be gassed took place in the following manner:  The prisoners arrived in Auschwitz tightly packed in closed goods waggons.  The doors were opened and the prisoners with insults and beatings driven from the cars; they had to line up in lines of four at the loading ramp.  The families were torn apart and the women and children had to line up separately from the men.  The prisoners were taken over by the chief of the political section and the officer in charge of the protective custody camp (Schutzhaftlagerfuehrer) or his deputy, a camp doctor and the officer in charge of labor allocation, carried out the selection right there.

16.  All youngsters under sixteen years of age, all mothers who had children with them, all those who were sick or weak were loaded on trucks and brought to the gas chambers.  The remainder of the prisoners were taken over by the Arbeitseinsatzfuehrer and brought to the camp.

17.  Two old farm buildings were used as the first gas chambers, these buildings had been specially reconstructed for the gassings.  This reconstruction was carried out by the SS Construction Office.  The windows were bricked up, the partitioning walls taken out and a special door put in, which shut the chamber airtight.  The space was made to hold three hundred persons.  The prisoners had to undress in a barrack situated next to the gas chamber was were then taken into the gas chamber.  After the doors were closed the gas (Zyclon B) was thrown by three SS men through slits which could be shut, in the gas chambers.  These SS men wore gas masks and were trained in the use of poison gas.  A camp physician had to be present at each gassing, this being necessary because an army regulation prescribed his presence during the use of poison gas, as a safeguard for the SS personnel.

18.  After five minutes the initial loud clamor and groaning had stopped.  After a further 25 minutes the doors were opened and the corpses of the dead taken by a detail of CC inmates wearing gas masks to the open.  The dental gold was removed under the supervision of a Unterscharfuehrer who had been assigned specially to this job by Dr. LOLLING, then the corpses were loaded on lorries and taken to graves which had been dug by a prisoners detail.  After the corpses had been buried the gas chambers were cleaned and were then ready again for the next transport.  The clothing was collected brought to the camp and taken over by the Sturmbannfuehre BURGER.  In the meantime luggage and other personal effects were taken from the loading ramp to the camp and by order of BURGER sorted out by a prisoner detail.

19.  At the end of 1942 I learned that the construction of four new crematoria with modern gas chambers had begun.  At the beginning of 1943 Obergruppenfuehrer POHL came to Auschwitz for an inspection.  The at that time Sturmbannfuehrer BISCHOFF informed in the barracks of the building office and in my presence POHL of the plans for the enlargement of the camp.  The drawings were hanging on the wall, the crematoria in the process of construction being recognisable.

20.  The reason for the new construction of gas chambers and crematoria was the increasing number of transports.  The new crematoria were built in such a manner that the complete process of liquidation could take place in one building.  The prisoners were first taken to the dressing rooms and then to the gas chambers.  The new gas chambers had properly constructed chutes through which gas was let in and a modern ventilation system.  Adjacent to the gas chambers the crematoria were situated, so that the crematoria could carry out the liquidation of the prisoners in an assembly line manner (Laufendes Band).

21.  In September 1944 I was ordered by Dr. LOLLING together with the camp doctors from other camps to Auschwitz.  The reason for this meeting was the opening of the new SS hospital on Auschwitz.  Subsequently to this meeting an inspection of this camp took place, during which Dr LOLLING also inspected the crematoria.

22.  I conclude based on my experiences and my activity in Auschwitz that the facilities of the CC Auschwitz which was subordinated to the SS Main Economics and Administration Office were used for the execution of the extermination policy of the Reichs Main Security Office.

23.  The following departments of the camp Auschwitz knew of the gassings carried out and participated in them.
a) The camp commander or his deputy knew about the gassings and participated in them, because he was present at the selection of the prisoners at the gassings.  He was subordinated to Amtsgruppe D within the T.O (Befehlsmaessig).
b)  The officer for labor allocation knew about the gassings and participated in them, because he was present at the selection of the prisoners to be gassed.  He was subordinated to Amt II D within the T.O
c)  The camp physician knew about the gassings and participated in them, because he had to carry out the selection of the prisoners who were to be gassed and had to be on duty at the gas chambers during the gassings.  He was subordinate to Amt D III within the T.O.
d) The chief of the administration knew about the gassings and participated in them, because he had to occupy himself with the supply of the gas and furthermore was responsible for the collection of the personal effects which the gassed prisoners had brought with them and the further utilization.  He was subordinated to Amt D IV within the T.O.
e) The construction chief knew about the gassings, because he was in charge of the construction of the gas chambers and crematories.  He  was subordinated to Amtsgruppe C within the T.O.
f)  Obergruppenfuehrer POHL knew about the gassings, because the instruction [sic] plans of the camp Auschwitz had been submitted to him by the construction chief.

MEDICAL EXPERIMENTS ON PRISONERS

24.  In the summer of 1942 medical experiments on prisoners began in the camp Auschwitz.  This were typhus and tuberculosis experiments, experiments on sterilization and research on twins.  The prisoners had to be requested from the officer for labor allocation, as long as they were not sick prisoners who were already in the prisoner's hospital.

25.  From October 1943 till February 1944 medical experiments were carried out on CC prisoners in the CC Mauthausen.  This concerned the food experiments of Professor Dr. SCHENK.  Professor SCHENK was inspector of the nutrition of the Waffen SS.

26.  The garrison physicians in the concentration camps had to report monthly on the progress of the experiments to Dr. LOLLING Amt D III.  I cited the number of prisoners who had died of the food experiments in my monthly reports concerning these experiments to Dr. LOLLING.  Dr. VETTER who was in charge of the experiments with IG drugs in Auschwitz told me, that he had discussed them (food experiments) with Dr. LOLLING.  All scientific dissertations which were written on experiments in concentration camps had to be sent to Dr. LOLLING for his appraisal.

27.  I am of the opinion that those participating in the gassings became a willing too, under the pressure of the system prevalent in CCs and the impression made on them during the gassings, by which one can explain that such actions were possible at all.  The divisions and offices of the SS Man Economics and Administration Office are responsible for this.

I have read the above statement consisting of (7) seven pages in the German language and declare that this is the full truth according to the best of my knowledge and belief.  I was given the opportunity to effect changes and corrections in the above declaration.  Those statements I have made voluntarily and without promise of reward whatsoever and was not subjected to any force or threat.
Landsberg, Germany, 14 April 1947
signed Friedrich ENTRESS

Before me, Curt L. Ponger, US Civilian AGE No A444466, Interrogator, Evidence Division, Office of Chief of Counsel for War Crimes, appeared Friedrich Entress, to me known, who in my presence signed the foregoing statement (Eidesstattliche Erklaerung) consisting of 7 pages in the German language and aware that the same was true on the 14th day of April in Nurnberg, Germany.
signed: Curt L Ponger

I Margit Solgo, US Civlian AGO ETO 20105 hereby certify that I am thoroughly conversant with the English and German languages and that the above is a true and correct translation of Document NO-2368.  MARGIT SALGO