1947-07-19, #8: Doctors' Trial (Kurt Blome's personal statement)

THE PRESIDENT: Defendant Blome.

DEFENDANT BLOME: I have testified quite openly before this high tribunal that, particularly up to the outbreak of war, I was a confirmed National Socialist and follower. I have also stated why I became a party member in 1931, because political conditions in Germany at the time were moving with giant strides towards a final conflict between Communism and National Socialism, as a result of the economic chaos and the impotence of the German governments after 1919. I have said that I joined the National Socialist Party because I rejected the dictatorial form of the Communist system. In my book "The Doctor in the Struggle", which was put to me by the Prosecution here in cross-examination, I also explained why I went over to National Socialism. This book, however, which was published in 1941, at the time of Germany's greatest victories, clearly shows my repudiation of the Second World War, to which I do not refer with a single word, not even a hint, although my experience in the First World War take up considerable space in that book.

After the First World War Germany was in great difficulties. The situation became progressively worse and more unbearable, when at the turn of the thirties the economic crisis spread throughout the world and even seized hold of the United States. At that time I realized that in such hard times a nation which is drifting toward despair seeks a leader and follows him in blind confidence as soon as he can show big successes.

That is the case of Hitler these were only sham successes or temporary successes the German people realized only gradually, only step by step, and only at a time when it was too late to shake off the dictatorship again by their own strength. For years the German people were deceived by the leaders as to the true situation. In deliberately lying propaganda Hitler's governmental system until the last moment kept proclaiming final victory to the German people, even in the winter of 1944, and even in the spring of 1945, when the Reich cabinet and the Party Leaders long knew what a terrible collapse was imminent.

This governmental system thus irresponsibly imposed on the exhausted body of the German nation still further useless losses of life and property.

Since the collapse, particularly since the International War Crimes Trial at Nurnberg, we see clearly that this frivolous method of betrayal of their own people was an appropriate part of the systematical murder of foreign peoples and races by the millions.

I believe that there is no example in history of the boundless confidence of a people in their leader being so boundlessly misused and disappointed.

The German people were blinded in their faith in their Fuehrer, in a leader who constantly pretended to them and the world a love of peace, a humane character, a selfless care for the people. Thus the German people became the victim of a political gambler. His unrestrained supreme power apparently knew only the choice between ruling and destroying. Hitler's ambition, as I know and judge it today, had only one aim: At any price to go down in history as a great man. Hitler achieved this goal 100 percent: He went down in history as one of the greatest tyrants of all time, tremendous in his mania for ruling, tremendous in his brutality in the achievement of his ends, not hesitating even at the murder of his best friends, his oldest followers, if they were in his way.

Relying upon the blind confidence of his deceived people, Hitler created a system in which all individualism, all sentiment of freedom, all personal opinion of the citizens was nipped in the bud and turned into slavery.

He succeeded in this with the aid of a very small circle of closest associates, who had fallen under his hypnotic influence, in part perhaps deceived themselves by this man, but who became willing tools in his hand for the enslavement of the German people and the decimation of whole nations.

Under the fatal influence of a clever, deliberately lying propaganda, against which even other countries were as good as powerless, the German people and the German doctor, too, believed that they were following an honorable leader and serving a good cause; they all considered it the highest moral duty not to desert the Fatherland in times of emergency and particularly in wartime, especially since this was their duty to the very extreme, since in this war the life or death of the nation was at issue.

During the times of total warfare, the times of air raids, hunger, and the danger of epidemics, working conditions for the German doctor were terribly hard; so difficult that today one can hardly imagine now what German doctors accomplished in those days for friend and foe alike. Whether we twenty doctors here in this dock are accused justly or unjustly, it is a great injustice in any case to defame German doctors in general in public, as is constantly being done. As former Deputy Reich Physicians' Leader I know conditions in the German medical profession during the Hitler period, and I must say even today: In its totality the German medical profession was efficient, decent, industrious, and humane. Their willingness to work under the most difficult conditions that one can imagine, their unselfishness to the utmost, their courage and their helpfulness were exemplary. Beyond all praise were in particular the numerous old doctors who were already living in retirement and who, in spite of their great age, returned to the service of the sick, and those innumerable women doctors who, married and often the mothers of many children, exchanged their household duties for the difficult work of medical practice during wartime.

The whole German people know this, in whose midst and under whose eyes the German medical professions spent the years of distress and fright, and who, therefore, will continue to place unlimited confidence in German doctors.

Of myself I can say: I have always, particularly during the Hitler period, devoted all my efforts to keeping the medical profession at a high scientific and ethical level and to developing it.

And I found in this effort the full support of all German doctors, including the most famous scientists and chief physicians of medical institutions. Well-known scholars throughout the world supported this work, which was above parties and enjoyed an international reputation.

But in the course of this trial it has become clearer to me day by day just how criminal the Hitler system was, to which I sacrificed in good faith many years of my life, and I am deeply moved inside me that I must confess to myself: For years I held a responsible position in a system which to say I must curse just as much as curse all those who forced upon the German people such a tyranny of crime and debasement of man.

It was my mistake that I stayed in the post where fate had placed me and in which I had hoped to be able to do good for our people and my profession. It would often have been simpler to give up this post, when I began to realize, step by step, the depravity of the Third Reich. If I did not do so, but stayed at my post until the bitter end, I did this because I considered it my duty, especially in the hard times of total war, and because again and again I succeeded either in protecting the medical profession from harm or in preventing crimes against humanity. Even today I would have to consider it cowardice if I had left my post in 1941 or '42 only to put myself in safety or to evade threatened responsibility.

I feel myself free of the guilt of ever having committed or furthered crimes against humanity.