World War II
At the onset of World War II, Rediess was an SS officer in Prussia, having previously served as the Division Commander of SS-Oberabschnitt Südost. In March 1941, citing reports of large numbers of Norwegian women impregnated by German soldiers, Rediess implemented the German Lebensborn program in Norway. This program encouraged the production of "racially pure" Aryan children, usually sired by SS troops. Ultimately, 8,000 children were born under the auspices of this program, making Norway second only to Germany in registered Aryan births during World War II.
Rediess committed suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot wound upon the collapse of the Third Reich in Norway on 8 May 1945. His remains were destroyed when Reichskommissar Josef Terboven detonated fifty kilograms of dynamite in a bunker on the Skaugum compound the same day.
|
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Rediess, Wilhelm |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | German general |
| Date of birth | 10 October 1900 |
| Place of birth | Heinsberg, Rhine Province, German Empire |
| Date of death | 8 May 1945 |
| Place of death | Oslo, Norway |
Read more about this topic: Wilhelm Rediess
Famous quotes containing the words world and/or war:
“There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“[John] Brough’s majority is “glorious to behold.” It is worth a big victory in the field. It is decisive as to the disposition of the people to prosecute the war to the end. My regiment and brigade were both unanimous for Brough [the Union party candidate for governor of Ohio].”
—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)