Comrie to Featherstone: A Surprising Route to Denazification

"We have never seen or learnt anything else; show us a new way." This statement, made by a young Nazi at Comrie POW Camp, heralded a revolution in the process of de-Nazification. The story of the treatment of German POWs, beyond simply their incarceration, begins with the murder of Feldwebel Wolfgang Rostberg, who was suspected of lack of fervour for Hitler's cause, in a Camp poisonous with hatred, bitterness and frustration. The idea of turning dyed in the wool Nazis was a major problem. Government proposals were at best half-hearted, and its approach was all the more surprising as it was initiated by Jewish officers. Initially trialled at Comrie and latterly at Featherstone Camp in Northumberland, it would latterly be described as a seed bed of British German reconciliation because of its unusual success in the denazification of its inmates, overseen principally by Capt. Herbert Sulzbach and Capt. Walter Merkel.

Robert Bieber is a visiting research fellow in the Department of War Studies at King’s College London. A retired Solicitor and charity law specialist, since retirement he has been studying the treatment of military mental health in historical and contemporary settings. He has been Deputy Chairman as is currently a Vice President of the veterans’ metal health charity Combat Stress. He graduated from the MA War and Psychiatry at King’s College London in 2010.

Please note that registration for this seminar will close a few days in advance. Details about how to join the seminar will be circulated via email to registered attendees 24 hours in advance.