His Own Men Feared Him: The Fall of Nazi Commandant of Belzec

This documentary examines the life and career of Gottlieb Hering, the German police officer who became commandant of the Belzec extermination camp during one of the most destructive phases of Operation Reinhard. His story is marked by an extraordinary political transformation. During the Weimar Republic, Hering had opposed the Nazi movement so actively that he became known as the “Nazi eater”. Yet within months of Adolf Hitler coming to power, he joined the Nazi Party and later became deeply involved in the regime’s system of persecution and mass murder. The film traces Hering’s path from the German police to Aktion T4, where he worked within a programme that concealed the deaths of people with mental and physical disabilities through false documentation. In August 1942, he succeeded Christian Wirth as commandant of Belzec in German-occupied Poland. During Hering’s tenure, at least 320,000 Jews lost their lives at the camp. Survivor testimony describes a commandant who exercised authority not only over prisoners but also through intimidation of guards and members of his own German staff. As Bełżec ceased operations, Hering supervised efforts to remove evidence of what had occurred there. He later commanded the Poniatowa labour camp and served in German-occupied northern Italy at Risiera di San Sabba. His wartime career therefore connected several important institutions of Nazi persecution, from Aktion T4 to Operation Reinhard and the concentration camp system. Drawing on survivor accounts and the history of the camps in which he served, this documentary explores how a policeman once known for opposing the Nazis became an important participant in the Holocaust, and examines his role in the history of Bełżec. Join World History channel and get access to benefits: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKKy_pNKZBX4KcCct8505HA/join Disclaimer: All opinions and comments below are from members of the public and do not reflect the views of the World History channel. We do not