During the night of October 15, 1946, ten out of twelve major war criminals sentenced to death at the Nuremberg trials were executed. However, two individuals managed to escape this fate. Reich Marshal Hermann Goring decided to end his own life by taking a vial of cyanide just two hours before he was supposed to be hanged. Another person who avoided execution was Reichsleiter Martin Bormann. He had attained considerable influence within the Nazi Party and operated in Hitler’s shadow, despite being relatively unknown outside the upper ranks of the Party.
As the war approached its end, several high-ranking Nazi officials were escaping. Hermann Goring had fled to the west and was captured by American soldiers after Hitler’s reported death. In Hitler’s political testament, Goring was expelled from the party, while Martin Bormann was appointed Party Minister. According to Jochen Von Lang, Goebbels and Bormann held a military briefing on May 2, 1945. Despite Goebbels’ decision to take his own life already made, Bormann desperately wanted to survive. The final entry in Bormann’s diary states “escape attempt!” What happened to Martin Bormann after that night remains an enigma, with various theories ranging from plausible to sensational.
Born in Saxon on June 17th, 1900 to a Postal Clerk, Reichsleiter Bormann gained complete control over the Reich’s structure and remained relatively unknown to the public. In 1920, he became a member of an anti-Semitic organization and later joined the Freikorps in 1923. During this period, he was imprisoned for one year due to committing murder. Soon after his release, Bormann assumed the position of a financial administrator within the Nazi Party. By 1933, he had climbed up the ranks and achieved positions such as Reichsleiter, General of SS forces, and Chief of Staff under Rudolf Hess. When Hess fled to England, Bormann voluntarily assumed his responsibilities and became Hitler’s deputy.
Despite facing opposition within the Party, Bormann possessed enough power and authority to instill fear even in Goebbels, as explained by Goring. He considered himself a respectable figure and expressed this feeling in a letter he wrote to his wife on April 2nd, 1945. In the letter, he discussed the prospect of meeting death with pride and dignity if it was fated, comparing it to perishing in King Attilas hall like the Nebeliung. However, when presented with an opportunity to fight, Bormann made desperate efforts to ensure his own survival. Ultimately, after the war ended, Allied leaders decided to prosecute high-ranking Nazis for their crimes during Nuremberg trials.
Despite evidence of Martin Bormann’s death, the Allies chose to prosecute him in absentia due to concerns that his reappearance would raise doubts about Hitler’s survival. The objective behind this decision was to maintain Allied credibility while holding Bormann accountable for his numerous crimes. Dr. Friedrich Bergold, despite acknowledging the unfairness of the situation, undertook the challenging role of defending a missing man. Ultimately, Reichsleiter Martin Bormann received a death sentence from the International Tribunal.
On the night of May 1-2, 1945, Martin Bormann was last seen in Berlin. He tried to negotiate with the Russians for safe passage through enemy lines but his request for a ceasefire was rejected. In an effort to escape the city, groups from the Führerbunker left every twenty minutes. Bormann was accompanied by Axmann, Kempka, and Stumpfegger. He wore an unranked SS uniform and a leather overcoat while carrying Hitler’s will in his pocket to maintain his position of power. They faced difficulties reaching their destination at the Friedrichstrasse Subway station due to Weidendammer Bridge being controlled by the Russians. Crossing became impossible as there were no tanks for protection.
Miraculously, a few German tiger tanks and armored personnel carriers appeared, providing support for Bormann’s group as they crossed the bridge. Bormann and Stumpfegger stood together, with Kempka following closely behind, and Axmann further back. Tragically, a Russian projectile struck the tank next to Bormann, causing it to explode. From this moment on, it becomes challenging to determine the true fate of Bormann due to conflicting accounts. However, the events leading up to this point are undisputed according to the information available.
Two men who were with Bormann that night provide testimonies that are widely believed. One of them is Erich Kempka, Hitler’s chauffeur. According to Kempka’s account, he saw Bormann engulfed in flames when the tank exploded. The blast knocked Kempka unconscious, and when he regained consciousness, he did not see Bormann’s body, although he believed him to be dead. The other witness, Artur Axmann, the leader of the Hitler Jugend, stated that after the explosion, the group split up but Bormann and Stumpfegger eventually reunited with him and Gunter Weltzin (Axmann’s adjutant). Together, they approached Lehrter Bohnn of 5-Bahn station.
Russians had been seen on the platform, which frightened Stumpfegger and Bormann causing them to flee. Later, Axmann discovered the motionless bodies of Bormann and Stumpfegger around three o’clock in the morning. Although they seemed lifeless, there were no signs of blood or physical harm. It is known that the leaders in the bunker had been provided with poison capsules.
Axmann presumed that both individuals had used cyanide capsules to kill themselves. Unfortunately, Weltzin couldn’t confirm this as he died in Russian captivity. These two were the last people to have encountered Bormann, but their accounts’ credibility has been heavily debated. A major complication is that both witnesses held high positions within the Nazi hierarchy, giving them a motive to fabricate accounts. However, they insisted they didn’t know Bormann, which was also claimed by others who knew him. The conflicting nature of their stories raises doubts about the truthfulness of their testimonies despite being present on the bridge and seeing Bormann.
Both men were near Bormann when the tank exploded. However, Kempka stated that he did not see Bormann’s body and doubted his survival. This cast doubt on Kempka’s testimony. On the other hand, Axmann claimed to have seen the body but admitted he lacked medical expertise to confirm Bormann’s death. Axmann’s statements were not considered in Bormann’s Nuremberg trial because they could not be verified. Without a body, it was difficult to prove either claim. Those who believed that Bormann was dead wanted to find his body to put an end to the unbelievable stories of his post-war activities.
In 1964, Jochen Von Lang and First Public Prosecutor Joachim Richter conducted an excavation for the remains of Martin Bormann, based on the claim of a man who stated that he was coerced by the Russians to bury Bormann and Stumpfegger. This man identified the alleged grave, as he knew the body was Bormann’s due to the pocketbook found by his boss. Von Lang confirmed this account and the man guided them to the location where the bodies had previously been before being moved to the burial site. This spot matched the one described by Axmann, who had claimed it was where he had last seen them. However, the search yielded no results.
Seven years later, Von Lang was present for the excavation near the suspected grave and witnessed the discovery of two bodies. These bodies were later confirmed to be those of Bormann and Stumpfegger. Interestingly, they were found about thirty-six feet away from the previously searched area. The authentication of the bodies relied on dental records reconstructed from memory by Dr. Hugo Blaschke in 1945. The press conference held in West Germany announced the finding of these remains. However, since the dental records were recreated from memory, their reliability is questionable. Additionally, there is a chance that the pocketbook discovered by the Russians could have been counterfeited or intentionally used as a diversion.
Interestingly, instead of attacking the dental records, those who wanted to discredit the discovery suggested two alternative explanations. One person claimed that the remains were a clever forgery, suggesting that a man from a concentration camp had received Martin Bormann’s dental work. Another disputed the findings based on information from a Soviet source, stating that the Russians had exhumed Bormann from his Berlin grave and reburied him in an unmarked grave in East Germany, following instructions from Moscow. However, these reasons appear to be speculative and lacking evidence. Additionally, critics often mocked the discovery because it was made by a group of ditch diggers. The reason for this was that excavating the entire area of the suspected grave would not have been approved by German authorities.
There are numerous and incredible tales surrounding Martin Bormann’s survival, with many asserting that he is still alive. In 1961, Dr. Fritz Bauer, a renowned prosecutor of Nazi war criminals, expressed his belief in Bormann’s continued existence. This led to a surge of reports revealing Bormann’s whereabouts. One individual saw Bormann inside a tank in Berlin rather than next to it, while another claimed to know precisely where in Argentina he resided. In addition, there were allegations of Bormann corresponding with his wife, who lived in post-war Italy. However, the validity of these stories remains unconfirmed, leaving the truth about Bormann’s fate uncertain. Numerous more accounts also emerged.
Paul Manning wrote a book about the post-war life of Bormann, in which he detailed how Bormann had managed to escape to Spain through the Salzburg airport. The bishop of Munich supported Manning’s account. According to Manning, this surviving Bormann played a significant role in West Germany’s economic recovery after the war. However, the author’s claims, which can be seen as a conspiracy theory, become even more far-fetched when he mentions the harassment he faced from Bormann’s personal Gestapo. Manning’s evidence mainly consists of a photocopy of Bormann’s bank account in Argentina, which appears rather weak.
Unfortunately, Von Lang almost invalidates this proof by revealing that the Argentinean Secret Service was bribed for a mere fifty American dollars. Another book suggests that Bormann escaped Germany using a submarine. (Interestingly, some sources do confirm that Bormann was on a submarine sunk by the British, which adds credibility to this theory.) He successfully reached Chile and then relocated to Argentina, surviving with President Peron’s assistance. Farago then explains how Richter, who took over from Joachim Bauer in the search for Bormann, considered Farago’s information to be “vague… and of no use in our investigation.”
The author discredited himself by stating that Martin Bormann had successfully escaped to South America, according to a report titled “On the Trail of Martin Bormann” conducted by Major L. Besymenski, assigned by the Soviet KGB. This investigation took two years of meticulous research and was written during the Cold War era. Both sides involved, as per various sources, found it advantageous to implicate the other in Bormann’s disappearance, possibly a propaganda tactic to accuse the opposing side of aiding the Nazi Empire.
Despite the abundance of books on Martin Bormann’s post-escape adventures, the ones portraying his survival are largely fictional. These works are merely based on conspiracy theories and circumstantial evidence. In contrast, the remains discovered in West Germany were positively identified as Martin Bormann’s. However, since a West German court did not officially declare him dead, but rather it being announced through a press conference, the absolute veracity of these remains cannot be guaranteed. The fate of Martin Bormann will likely never be completely resolved, yet the enigma surrounding his disappearance has captivated many. Nazi-hunters have kept the legend alive as they seek to bring those responsible to justice, a legitimate pursuit. Until every individual involved in the atrocities of the Nazi Party has been punished, those who witnessed their evils cannot truly absolve themselves from this immorality.
Bibliography:
- Bormann, Martin. The Bormann Letters. Ed. H. R. Trevor-Roper. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1954.
- Farago, Ladislas. Aftermath: Martin Bormann and the Fourth Reich. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1974.
- Manning, Paul. Martin Bormann: Nazi in Exile. Secaucus: Lyle Stuart Inc., 1981.
- McGovern, James. Martin Bormann. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1968.
- Stevenson, William. The Bormann Brotherhood. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc., 1973.
- Telford Taylor. The Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials: A Personal Memoir. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.
- Von Lang, Jochen. Bormann: The Man Who Manipulated Hitler. Translated by Chista
- Armstrong and Peter White. New York: Random House, 1979.
