Karl Franz Gebhardt Personal physician and school friend of Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler Date of Birth: 23.11.1897 Country: Germany

1. Biography of Karl Franz Gebhardt
2. Early Life and Education
3. Involvement with National Socialism
4. Medical Career and SS Ranks
5. Medical Experiments and Controversies
6. Arrest and Execution

Biography of Karl Franz Gebhardt

Karl Franz Gebhardt was a personal physician and childhood friend of Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler. He was a Nazi war criminal and one of the leaders of medical experiments conducted on prisoners in concentration camps such as Ravensbrück and Auschwitz. Born on November 23, 1897, in Hage, Bavaria, Karl Gebhardt was a professor, a doctor of medicine, an SS group leader, and a SS lieutenant general. He was also Himmler's personal physician, with whom he had been friends since their school days.

Early Life and Education

After finishing school, Karl Gebhardt joined the front lines during World War I and ended the war as a lieutenant. He was captured towards the end of the war but was awarded the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd class for his bravery in action. In 1919, he joined the 15th Volunteer Company and participated in suppressing the communist uprising in the Ruhr region. In the same year, he enrolled at the University of Munich to study medicine.

Involvement with National Socialism

In 1923, Gebhardt became an activist for the Freikorps "Oberland," a voluntary association with political views similar to the Nazi movement. He actively participated in the Beer Hall Putsch of 1923. After completing his medical studies, he worked as an assistant physician in the orthopedic surgery department at the University of Berlin. On May 1, 1933, Gebhardt became a member of the Nazi Party (membership number 1723317). In 1934, he joined the SS and became a close associate of his longtime friend Heinrich Himmler.

Medical Career and SS Ranks

In 1933, Gebhardt became the chief physician at the orthopedic hospital he established in Goggingen, which was originally a clinic for tuberculosis patients. Later, during the Second World War, the hospital was converted into a military hospital for SS troops. Gebhardt's career within the Nazi Party and the SS continued to progress. In April 1935, he attained the rank of SS officer, becoming a Sturmbannführer. In 1937, he received his surgeon's license and professorship. In 1938, Himmler, who had complete trust in Gebhardt, appointed him as his personal physician, providing him with patronage in all his endeavors. Gebhardt also served as the head of the medical department at the Imperial Academy of Physical Training and, from 1939, as a special medical advisor to the SS troops. From 1943, he held the position of Chief Military Clinical Physician under the Imperial SS Physician.

Medical Experiments and Controversies

During his tenure, Gebhardt conducted medical experiments in Ravensbrück and Auschwitz, investigating the effects of streptomycin on wound infections and the possibilities of bone tissue transplantation and the restoration of bones, muscles, and nerves. These experiments involved inflicting wounds, implanting foreign objects, and infecting prisoners with bacteria such as gas gangrene and tetanus. Many of the participants in these experiments died or suffered permanent disabilities. Despite being one of the main organizers and participants in these medical experiments, Gebhardt served as the president of the German Red Cross in 1945.

Arrest and Execution

Gebhardt was arrested alongside Himmler after the war. At the Nuremberg Trials, he was convicted of war crimes as a physician and sentenced to death. On June 2, 1948, he was hanged in the Landsberg Prison in Bavaria.