Executed for falling in love in Freren. In search of Bolesław Wernicki (1914–1942)

Hagedorn the hangman, a resistance fighter and opponent of National Socialism
 

The “Main Denazification Committee for the Osnabrück Police Force” (Entnazifizierungs-Hauptausschuß für die Polizei Osnabrück) had an unusually thick file for prisoner Hermann Hagedorn. It comprised no fewer than 80 pages. Among these are 17 exoneration certificates. 

According to these documents, Hermann Hagedorn had prevented large numbers of people from being arrested for political reasons, had liberated others from prison and had provided yet more with various forms of assistance. A Jewish woman, who lost three sisters and several other relatives in the Holocaust, provided a witness statement in his favour:

“[...] The fact that I am one of the few survivors is largely thanks to Mr Hagedorn, who provided extremely valuable support to my family by giving us early warnings of forthcoming Gestapo activities.”[1]

The director of the city’s welfare and refugee bureau, who was also the head of the affiliated support centre for former victims of political persecution, also submitted a favourable report. He explained that he had been arrested in 1938, and that during the journey from the Gestapo headquarters to the police cells, Hagedorn said to him: 

“I am a Social Democrat just like you, I think like you, I hate the Nazis, and I want to help you.”[2]

The “Main Denazification Committee for the Osnabrück Police Force” also recorded the following on 17 February 1949:

“It is determined that the person under investigation [is] exonerated (Category V) [...]
According to the exonerating material contained in the files, the person in question has been proven to have acted as an opponent of National Socialism, and is therefore to be classified as Category V in accordance with §7 (1b) of the regulation pertaining to the legal bases for denazification in the federal state of Lower Saxony.”[3]

It therefore appears that there were two sides to Hermann Hagedorn: the one who wielded power in the National Socialist system, and the one who remained ambivalent about his loyalties... 

Bolesław Wernicki, a forgotten name and a story that has been kept hidden. The research into his story has brought other remarkable facts to light.

Anton Wiechmann, March 2025

Further reading:

Anton Wiechmann, Auf Befehl des Reichsführers SS erhängt: Bolesław Wernicki, Hamburg 2022