Alfred Schieske (February 14, 1913 – December 14, 1994) was a German SS-Unterscharführer (junior squad leader) and concentration camp guard during World War II. He served at several Nazi concentration camps, including Sachsenhausen, Neuengamme, and Auschwitz, where he was directly involved in the brutal persecution and murder of prisoners.
Early Life and SS Membership
Born in Landsberg an der Warthe (now Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland), Alfred Schieske joined the Schutzstaffel (SS) in 1934. His career within the SS was primarily focused on the administration and guarding of the Nazi concentration camp system.
Concentration Camp Service
Schieske's assignments included:
- Sachsenhausen: He served as a guard and later a Blockführer (block leader) at Sachsenhausen concentration camp, which was known for its particularly harsh treatment of political prisoners, Jews, Romani people, homosexuals, and other targeted groups.
- Neuengamme: Following his tenure at Sachsenhausen, Schieske was transferred to Neuengamme concentration camp near Hamburg. Here, he continued in his role as a Blockführer, directly overseeing prisoners and enforcing the camp's brutal regime.
- Auschwitz: From 1941, Schieske was assigned to the Auschwitz complex. He served in various capacities, including as a Blockführer in Auschwitz I (the main camp) and later in Auschwitz II-Birkenau, the primary extermination camp. Numerous survivor testimonies implicated him in extreme acts of cruelty, including severe beatings, participation in roll calls that often led to deaths, and involvement in selections for the gas chambers. His actions significantly contributed to the systematic extermination of Jewish people and other victims.
Post-War and Trial
After World War II, Schieske initially evaded immediate capture but was eventually apprehended. He became one of the key defendants in the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials (also known as the Second Auschwitz Trial or the Auschwitz-Birkenau Trial), which took place in West Germany from 1963 to 1965.
During the trial, a substantial body of evidence, including survivor testimonies, directly linked Schieske to severe acts of violence, torture, and murder against prisoners. On August 19, 1965, he was found guilty of murder and complicity in murder by the court. He was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment.
Imprisonment and Death
Alfred Schieske served a portion of his life sentence. In 1988, he was released from prison due to ill health, a common practice in West German jurisprudence for elderly or infirm prisoners at the time. He died on December 14, 1994, at the age of 81.
Legacy
Alfred Schieske remains a historical figure whose conviction in the post-war Auschwitz Trials underscored the direct responsibility of even lower-ranking SS personnel in the atrocities committed in the Nazi concentration and extermination camps. His case forms part of the broader legal efforts to confront and document the crimes of the Holocaust.