In the time of National Socialism became many small resistance movements founded against the Nazi regime. One of the most famous groups is the White Rose. Consisting of six core members, they distributed leaflets in Munich to call on the population to resist National Socialism. At the February 18, 1943 two members of the resistance group were arrested, which led to the end of the group.
White rose meaning
The White Rose was a resistance group against the National Socialist dictatorship and emerged in June 1942 in Munich. It was an intellectual and non-violent group invoking Christian and humanistic values. This was mainly due to the student environment and the strongly formative Christian past of the members.
White Rose Origin
The group is known as the «White Rose» because their first leaflets were headlined «The White Rose». It is not clear why the members chose this heading. In general, however, a white rose represents purity, innocence and loyalty.
The resistance group Weisse Rose was founded in Munich in 1942 and can be used as a symbol for moral courage and Resistance against National Socialism. In between June 1942 and February 1943 written by the members as a whole ssix different leaflets and distributed them in the Munich area and later even throughout Germany. A few flyers even made it abroad. The topics of the leaflets were the atrocities of the National Socialists and the call for active resistance against the Nazi regime.
White rose motifs
In the night am 30 on the May 31, 1942 The Royal Air Force attacked the city of Cologne and this air raid was decisive for the first leaflet by Hans Scholl and Alexander Schmorell. Initially, only the two formed the White Rose. In between July and October 1942 the two (as well as the later member Willi Graf) were assigned to the Eastern Front, where they learned of the mass murders of the local population and saw the misery in the Warsaw ghetto with their own eyes.
These experiences strengthened the plan to take an active stand against National Socialism and after their return they took part in the October 1942 the fight against the Nazi regime again. In addition, Sophie Scholl and Willi Graf joined the group. Together they wanted to clarify the crimes of the National Socialists and call on the population to overthrow.
The group grew around Christoph Probst and their philosophy professor Kurt Hubert. away February 1943 In addition to pamphlets, parts of the group tried to draw attention to the resistance with anti-Nazi slogans on house walls.
White Rose Leaflets
In June and the first half of July each year 1942 Hans Scholl and Alexander Schmorell wrote the first four leaflets after the air raid on Cologne. These were sent anonymously to intellectuals in the Munich area. They repeatedly called for protests against the Nazi regime. Already at this time the Gestapo investigations into the leaflets. Hans Scholl, Alexander Schmorell and Willi Graf were sent to the Eastern Front to support the fighting that same July.
as Gestapo will the secret State Police referred to in National Socialism.
After their return from the front, the White Rose group expanded and they wrote the leaflet entitled «Appeal to all Germans!». This one had a much larger circulation than the previous ones and was ending January 1943 distributed in several southern German and Austrian cities. The aim was to uncover the crimes of the NS regime and to call on the general public to protest against the NS regime.
beginning February 1943 the White Rose expanded its actions. They made contact with other resistance movements, distributed more leaflets written by their professor, and wrote anti-Hitler slogans like «Down with Hitler» and «freedom» on the wall of the university.
One of their leaflets also reached Great Britain, where hundreds of thousands of copies were made and late 1943 were dropped over Germany.
arrest
In another action at Munich University on February 18, 1943 the Scholl siblings were discovered by a caretaker when they were distributing new leaflets inside the university building. This informed the Gestapo and held Hans and Sophie until they arrived. A draft for Christoph Probst’s leaflet was found with the siblings, so he was arrested immediately.
The siblings Scholl and Christoph Probst were all three sentenced to death. Just four days after her arrest, February 22, 1943, they were killed. As a reason for the verdict, the court gave «Decomposition of military power«, «enemy favoritism» and «preparation for high treason» on.
In a second process, the remaining core members of the White Rose, Kurt Huber, Willi Graf and Alexander Schmorell were April 19, 1943 also sentenced to death. Willi Graf was interrogated for months to find other members and was finally killed in October. Many other supporters got away with prison terms.
White Rose Members
The core of the group consisted mainly of male and female students. These were the siblings Hans and Sophie Scholl, Alexander Schmorell, Christoph Probst and Will Graf. The group was rounded out by Professor Kurt Huber. But there were also a number of other supporters from other university towns and intellectual circles.
Hans Scholl
Fig. 1: Hans Scholl
Hans Scholl was born on September 22, 1918 born in Ingersheim as the eldest son of the Scholl family. The Scholl siblings were still from the beginning National Socialism convinced, this quickly gave way to growing criticism. During his medical studies in Munich, Hans met the later members of the White Rose.
There, the students all attended Kurt Huber’s philosophy course together and also met with him to discuss the Nazi regime. However, this was soon not enough for Hans Scholl and Alexander Schmorell, and they began to write the first leaflets.
in the year 1942 Hans was assigned to the Eastern Front as a soldier and only returned in Nov. 1942 back to Munich. The experience there moved Hans to create more pamphlets. With the distribution of the sixth pamphlet of the White Rose, he was February 18, 1943 arrested and four days later, on February 22, 1943 executed by the Nazis.
Sophie Scholl
Fig. 2: Sophie Scholl
Sophie Scholl was born on May 09, 1921 born in Forchtenberg as the fourth of six children. in the year 1942 she began studying biology and philosophy in Munich, where she made friends with her brother Hans’ group of friends.
away 1943 there is evidence that Sophie Scholl participated in the White Rose pamphlets. The pamphlets created before that are uncertain and are more likely to be attributed to her brother Hans Scholl and his friend Alexander Schmorell. At the February 18, 1943 Sophie was also arrested while distributing leaflets and on February 22, 1943 murdered by the Nazis in Munich.
Alexander Schmorell
Fig. 3: Alexander Schmorell
Alexander Schmorell was born on September 16, 1917 born in Russia. In the year 1921 he moved to Munich with his father and grew up bilingual. He learned Hans Scholl in a student company in Munich April 1941 know.
In the period from June 27th until July 12, 1942 Scholl and Schmorell wrote the first four pamphlets the white rose. After that he, Hans Scholl and Willi Graf were sent to the Eastern Front. After the Scholl siblings were arrested, Alexander Schmorell went into hiding, but was recognized and arrested in a bomb shelter during a bomb attack. At the April 19, 1943 He was sentenced to death – his execution took place on July 13, 1943 in Munich.
Kurt Huber
Fig. 4: Kurt Huber
Kurt Huber was born on October 24, 1893 born in Switzerland. When he joined the NSDAP, Huber was given a chair at the University of Munich, but was under the observation of the National Socialists, since his aversion to the National Socialist regime was not unknown.
in the Jear 1942 Huber joined the White Rose and wrote the last leaflet. He was on February 27, 1943 arrested and am April 14, 1943 sentenced to death. The execution took place on 1July 3, 1943 in Stadelheim.
Christopher Probst
Fig. 5: Christoph Probst
Christoph Probst was born on November 06, 1919 born in Upper Bavaria. His stepmother was Jewish, which made him familiar with the threat posed by the National Socialists. in the year 1940 he married with 21 years Herta Dhorn, the two got three children. He too came through his medical school in Munich in the circle of friends around Hans Scholl.
At the time the Scholl siblings were arrested, Christoph Probst was stationed in Innsbruck, where he was February 20, 1943 was arrested because a pamphlet owned by the Scholl siblings could be linked to him. His execution followed two days later February 22, 1942 in Munich.
Will Graf
Fig. 6: Willi Graf
Willi Graf was born on January 02, 1918 born in the Rhineland. He also studied medicine in Munich and was stationed with Hans Scholl and Alexander Schmorell on the Eastern Front. After that, Graf decided to actively resist National Socialism and support his friends in distributing the pamphlets.
Together with his sister Graf am February 18, 1943 arrested. Like Kurt Huber and Alexander Schmorell, Willi Graf was also born on April 19, 1943 sentenced to death. until his execution October 12, 1943 became Count of the Gestapo interrogated to reveal more names of the resistance organization, but this was unsuccessful. Willi Graf was finally aged 25 years killed in Stadelheim prison.
The White Rose – The Most Important
- The White Rose was a resistance movement under National Socialism.
- The core of the group consisted of Hans and Sophie Scholl, Alexander Schmorell, Willi Graf, Kurt Huber and Christoph Probst.
- In total, the members of the White Rose distributed six pamphlets
- During the distribution of the sixth pamphlet, the siblings Hans and Sophie Scholl were arrested and subsequently executed on February 22, 1943 along with the other member, Christoph Probst.
- Later in 1943, Willi Graf, Kurt Huber and Alexander Schmorell were also executed by the National Socialists.
proof
- Fig. 1 – «Hans Scholl» by Weissepedia on Wikimedia (www.wikimedia.org) licensed under Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
- Fig. 2 – «Sophie Scholl» by Unknown on Wikimedia (www.wikimedia.org) licensed under Public Domain
- Fig. 3 – «Alexander Schmorell» by Madelgarius (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Madelgarius) licensed under Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/ 4.0/deed.en)
- Fig. 4 – «Kurt Huber» by SurfinKaos…