| Arthur Liebehenschel (1901 - 1948) was the
commandant of Auschwitz and Majdanek death camps during World War II. Liebehenschel was
born in Posen (now Poznan) and studied economics and public administration. He
became a sergant major after theWorld War I.
In 1932, he joined the Nazi party and in 1934, the SS,
where he served in the totenkopfverbande. Liebehenschel then held a series of ranks in the adminstration of concentration
camps. These ranks include serving as an adjutant in the Columbia Haus and Lichtenburg camps, Inspectorate
of Concentration Camps and as a senior director in the SS
Economics Department.
On November 10, 1943, Libenhenschel
was appointed commandant of Auschwitz extermination camp and on
May 19, 1944, the commandant of Majdanek extermination camp. When the camp was evacuated with the tide of the war turning
against Nazi Germany, he was given a senior post in the SS Manpower
Office.
After the war, Liebenhenschel was arrested by the American Army and was extradited to Poland. He was put on trial in Krakow and was executed on January 24, 1948.
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