Eric Koch: biography and photos

Eric Koch is a Nazi, whose name is hateful to all Ukrainian people. After being on the post of Reichskommissar of Ukraine, he sentenced to death more than 4 million people. Not to mention how many people by his grace became invalids from an unreasonably hard work in concentration camps.

But why did Eric Koch hate other nations so much? How did it happen that he became the head of the Nazi Ukraine? And how did the dictatorial rule of the Reich Commissar end?

Eric Koch: biography of the early years

The reason for the evil nature of Koch lies in his childhood. Eric's parents - Gustav Adolf and Henrietta Koch - were ardent Lutherans. From an early age, they held their children in a strict discipline, where any violation could lead to serious punishment. Such upbringing had a detrimental effect on Eric Koch's psyche, which would later become a real disaster for his subjects.

An important fact is that their family lived in constant need. Because of this, Eric had to give up the dream of higher education and enter the usual typography school. Later it will make him even more angry, forcing the whole world to hate.

But in the German army he first falls in 1915. According to the official version, Eric Koch is a volunteer. However, according to other sources, such boldness was not inherent in this guy, and he got into regular troops only because of age appeal. It should be noted that during the First World War he never distinguished himself, and therefore returned home in the rank of soldier.

Carier start

After the war, Koch settled down to work on the railway in Elberfeld. Here he was entrusted with the post of assistant to the railway service. But this place was not the peak that Eric Koch dreamed of. The NSDAP (National Socialist German Workers' Party) is the force that an ambitious German dreamed of.

Therefore, in 1922, Koch will apply for membership in the party. Soon after, he was admitted to the ranks of nationalists. And it is here that the leadership qualities of the future Reichskommissar begin to manifest themselves for the first time. Proof of this can be even that in less than one year he gets the powers of the regional treasurer.

A great role in the development of Eric Koch was played by his oratorical skills. The emotional speeches of the Nazi quickly fascinated people, and this was only to his hand. But sometimes his talent played against him. For example, too violent a speech on anti-French actions in the Rhine led to the fact that the nationalist was detained by local authorities.

Fateful meeting

1926 was decisive in the life of Eric Koch - he met Adolf Hitler. The future leader of the Nazis immediately took over the heart of the German. His speeches, his ideas and plans for the future - all this excited Koch's imagination. At that moment, he realized that his whole life was just a prelude to this meeting. Hitler's influence was so strong that after their first conversation Erich began to let go of his mustache, so that even in this trifle resembled his idol.

And already in October 1928 Koch was promoted to Gauleiter (the highest party position of the NSDAP) in East Prussia. After this there is a series of dizzying upsides: 1930 - a deputy of the Reichstag, 1933 - the propresident of East Prussia, and, finally, 1941 - Reichskommissar of Ukraine.

The policy of tyranny

September 1, 1941 in the occupied by the German invaders Ukraine was formed Reichskommissariat. It was headed by none other than Eric Koch. Military service under his command from the first days began to carry out on its territory the purge of disagreeable. At the same time, the cruelty of the Reichskommissar extended not only to men, but also to women and children.

It is noteworthy that for this position, Koch was appointed by Adolf Hitler himself. This is due to the fact that the Reichskommissar himself did not possess either the necessary experience or the proper position in the society. And if you believe the German archives, then Koch and did recommend to send to the territory of Russia, so that he helped suppress the fierce resistance of the Red Army.

However, Hitler was adamant, and therefore Eric Koch until the end of World War II remained the main in Ukraine. With this his power was so powerful that he received the unspoken nickname "Archduke Erich". Only this title did not give him a single drop of mercy or compassion.

The only thing Eric Koch wanted was to devastate Ukraine. On his orders, everything valuable was exported from this country: gold, jewelry, art and even fertile land. Moreover, over 2.5 million Ukrainians were deported to Germany, in order to work there for the benefit of the fascist nation.

Mystic luck

Eric Koch became the object of the hatred of millions of people. Therefore it is not surprising that the Reich Commissar constantly committed attempts. That's only a German possessed either a strong intuition, or a fantastic success, since he never fell into the enemy's network. In this case even Soviet spies failed, which twice tried to adjust the death of Koch.

The fall of the Reich Commissariat

However, his confidence in his own abilities quickly evaporated when the Red Army appeared on the threshold of his residence. Initially, Eric Koch tried to protect his land, but soon gave up. After that, the Reichskommissar's main task was his own salvation, which completely absorbed his thoughts.

In April 1945, he secretly fled to the Hel Spit, from where he reached the sea to East Prussia. Here he hoped to beg for transport to South America - a place where many Nazis decided to hide. But the new government refused him such a desperate request, after which Koch disappeared without a trace from their field of vision.

Ambitions for which it was necessary to pay

Escape to South America from Eric Koch did not work. Therefore, in order not to have good luck, he lay down on the bottom. He founded a small farm near Hamburg under the fictitious name of Rolf Berger. Moreover, in 1948 he even managed to get unemployment benefits by presenting forged documents.

Perhaps, the former Nazi could continue to fool others, if not for his ambitions. Even after the collapse of Germany, he continued to attend the secret meetings of the former Nazis, where he occasionally spoke with fiery speeches. And just at one of such events in 1949 he was identified.

In May of the same year, he was sent to the Soviet Union, since most of his crimes were committed on the territory of this country. And those, in turn, sent Koch to Poland, where he was tried.

It should be noted that this trial lasted for ten years. Only on May 9, 1959 Eric Koch was sentenced to death. However, luck again turned out to be merciful to the Nazi, and soon the punishment was changed from execution to life imprisonment. As a result, the Nazi died in his cell on November 12, 1986, at that time he was 90 years old. That's why today many people think that Eric Koch is a criminal, who never got a fair punishment.