Karl Von Eberstein - Nuremberg Testimony

Nuremberg Testimony

Eberstein was a witness at the Nuremberg Trials. He was interviewed by Horst Pelckmann, counsel for the SS, and Major F Elwyn Jones, junior counsel for the United Kingdom. In his testimony, Eberstein gave organizational and historical information about the SS, the SA, their relationship with the German nobility, the Nazi Party, the SD (Security Service) and the Gestapo (Secret State Police). Eberstein also claimed that the SS was not in the view of his peers, a criminal organization, it was not created for purposes of violence, did not participate in the invasion of Austria, that he knew nothing of SS participation in the invasions of France, Belgium, Russia, Poland, etc. Also that "my men" in the Allgemeine-SS (general SS) did not mention atrocities when home from "front leave".

As for his personal place in the chain of command, Eberstein stated that as a Police President, he had control over 1700 men, in the Schutzpolizei (Protection Police), Ordnungspolizei (Order Police), and Kriminalpolizei (Criminal Police). He claimed the "chiefs of police had nothing to do with the political police or the security service" (meaning the Gestapo, and the SD). It is unclear from this translation if he mentioned the Sicherheitspolizei (Security Police) or SiPo.

Eberstein also discussed his perspective on the Night of the Long Knives and Kristallnacht. In the latter, he claimed that he ordered his police to protect Jewish businesses, claiming, "We in the SS considered this action downright indecent", and blamed the events on a speech by Joseph Goebbels. However, given the telegrams Eberstein sent on that night, his claims cannot be seen as carrying any weight. He also briefly discussed the treatment of downed enemy pilots, per the Geneva Convention and Hague Rules on Land Warfare.