Political party Nazi (1922–1942) Nationality German | Preceded by Office established Role Engineer Name Fritz Todt | |
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Education Technische Universitat Munchen Similar People Ernst Udet, Gerhard von Scharnhorst, Rudolf Berthold, Hans von Seeckt | ||
FRITZ TODT Memorial Highway Reichsautobahn
Fritz Todt (4 September 1891 – 8 February 1942) was a German construction engineer, senior Nazi figure, who rose from "Inspector General for German Roadways" where he oversaw the construction of German Autobahnen (Reichsautobahnen) to Reich Minister for Armaments and Ammunition where he led the entire war military economy. At the beginning of World War II he founded what Hitler named Organisation Todt a military engineering company which supplied industry with forced labor and administered all constructions of concentration camps in the late phase of the Third Reich. He died in a plane crash in 1942.
Contents
- FRITZ TODT Memorial Highway Reichsautobahn
- Early life and education
- Career
- Nazi Germany 1933 41
- Personal life
- Death 1942
- Major Awards
- Dr Fritz Todt Award
- References
Early life and education
Todt was born in Pforzheim in the Grand Duchy of Baden, today's Baden-Württemberg to Emil Todt (1861–1909) and his wife Elise née Unterecker (1869–1935). His father owned a small ring factory. In 1910, he volunteered for one-year military service. From 1911-1914 Todt studied engineering at Technische Hochschule München and at Technische Hochschule Karlsruhe, graduating with a Diplom degree in construction engineering from the latter.
During World War I, he initially served with the infantry and then as front line reconnaissance observer within the Luftstreitkräfte (the German Air Forces – DLSK), winning the Iron Cross. After the war in 1918, he resumed his studies, graduating in 1920.
Career
In 1921 he initially worked on waterpower stations for the"Grün & Bilfinger AG, Mannheim" company and, later in 1921, the civil engineering company Sager & Woerner and worked there until 1933.
On 5 January 1922, he joined the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP), or "Nazi Party". In 1931, he became an Oberführer (senior Colonel) in the Sturmabteilung (SA), which was then commanded by Ernst Röhm. In 1932, Todt completed his thesis at Technical University Munichon "Fehlerquellen beim Bau von Landstraßendecken aus Teer und Asphalt" – "Sources of defects in the construction of tarmac and asphalt road surfaces" and became a Dr.-Ing..
Nazi Germany, 1933-41
In July 1933, five months after Hitler became Reichskanzler, Todt was appointed "Inspector General for German Roadways" (Generalinspektor für das deutsche Straßenwesen). This top public authority (Oberste Reichsbehörde) was privileged to be outside the hierarchy of Reich Ministeries, and Todt was directly subordinated to Hitler. Alan S. Milward characterized this phase as follows: "His personal views on business questions and, what was more important, the success of the motorway project kept Todt in the inner circle of the Führer. At the same time, his deliberate pose as a technical expert, as a man without interest in internal power struggles, saved him from the adversaries of the more important party leaders for long time. " He was tasked to organize a new construction company for the motorways (Reichsautobahnen). He edited the journal "Die Strasse", which was a publication of his agency from 1934 - 1942. For his work on the autobahnen, Todt was recognized with the German National Prize for Art and Science by Hitler, next to Ernst Heinkel, Ferdinand Porsche und Willy Messerschmitt. Hitler donated the award in 1937, devised as a replacement for the Nobel Prize, which Hitler forbade Germans from accepting starting in 1936.
In 1938, he became Leiter des Hauptamts für Technik in der Reichsleitung der NSDAP ("Director of the Head Office for Engineering in the National Directorate of the NSDAP") and in December Generalbevollmächtigter für die Regelung der Bauwirtschaft ("General Commissioner for the Regulation of the Construction Industry") At the beginning of WWII he was also appointed to the rank of Generalmajor of the Luftwaffe.
In May 1938, he founded the Organisation Todt (OT), joining together government firms, private companies and the Reichsarbeitsdienst (Reich Labor Service). OT used up to 800,000 forced laborers (Zwangsarbeiter) from countries Germany occupied during World War II.
Todt was responsible for the construction of the "West Wall" (commonly called "Siegfried Line" in english speaking countries) to defend the Reich territory.
On 17 March 1940, Todt was appointed Reichsminister für Bewaffnung und Munition ("Minister for Armaments and Munitions") which meant he oversaw the entire military economy.
After the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, Todt was appointed to manage the restoration of the infrastructure there. At the end of July 1941 he was named Inspector General for water and energy. During that year, he became increasingly distant from the commanders of the Wehrmacht and in particular, from Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring, the Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaffe (Commander-in-chief of the Luftwaffe). While he remained close to Hitler at this time, after an inspection tour of the Eastern Front, Todt complained to him that without better equipment and supplies for the armed forces it would be better to end the war with the USSR. Hitler rejected such an assessment and carried on the offensive against the Soviets regardless.
Personal life
Todt was married and had 3 daughters and one son. On September 4, 1941, the occasion of his 50th birthday, he founded the Dr. Fritz Todt Foundation , which was to promote young talents of technicians, especially young people from poor families through a training subsidy.
Death, 1942
On 8 February 1942, shortly after takeoff from the Wolfsschanze ("Wolf's Lair") airfield near Rastenburg in East Prussia], Todt´s aircraft crashed. He was buried in the Invalids' Cemetery in the Scharnhorst-Strasse in Berlin. Posthumously he received the Deutscher Orden ("German Order") the most important award that the Nazi Party could bestow on an individual for "duties of the highest order to the state and party".
It has been suggested that Todt was the victim of an assassination plot, which has never been confirmed. Todt´s successor as Reichsminister was Albert Speer whom Hitler had awarded an Org.Todt ring in May 1943. Speer mentioned the Reich Air Ministry enquiry into the plane accident, which he said ended with the sentence: "The possibility of sabotage is ruled out. Further measures are therefore neither requisite nor intended". Speer, who had narrowly missed being on the same flight, thought this wording was "curious".
Major Awards
Dr.-Fritz-Todt-Award
On 8 Februar 1944, the second anniversary of Todts death, Hitler awarded the Dr.-Fritz-Todt-Preis as a Badge of Honor of the Nazi Party for "Innovative accomplishments, which are of great importance for the Volk community because of the improvement of their weapons, ammunition and military equipment, and the saving of labor, raw materials and energy". The Badge of Honor came with a material prize and a certificate, was awarded in gold, silver, or steel. The Golden Award of Honor was presented by Hitler in person upon proposal by the responsible Gauleiter, upon the joint proposal of Robert Ley, the head of the corresponding Deutsche Arbeitsfront and NSDAP leaders, and the head of the "Main office for Technology in the NSDAP", Albert Speer.