Zoom Image
Burnt-out plenary chamber
Photo: AP
In the grave of Marinus van der Lubbe in the Leipzig South Cemetery there are indeed his mortal remains. This was announced by the city of Leipzig on Wednesday, citing the result of a DNA comparison; the forensic examination creates certainty in this matter. Van der Lubbe had been executed in 1934 as the alleged cause of the Berlin Reichstag fire, just under a year earlier, shortly after the Nazis came to power.
The impetus for the analysis was provided by the city of Leipzig and the local Paul Bennhof Society, which is dedicated to the preservation and care of historical graves. Specialists had opened the almost 90-year-old tomb attributed to van der Lubbe in January and taken samples. The DNA profile of the body was compared with that of a grandson of van der Lubbe's brother, and there was a complete match.
No evidence of drugs
The experts found no evidence for the thesis, which was repeatedly discussed by contemporary witnesses and later scholars, as to whether van der Lubbe had been drugged during the trial, which ended with the death sentence. To observers, he seemed conspicuously apathetic in court. Contemporary newspaper articles mentioned scopolamine as a possible active ingredient, which was used as a "truth serum" at the time. In the samples, however, toxicological tests found no evidence of drug residues, according to the Leipzig city administration.
Zoom Image
Marinus van der Lubbe (undated photo)
Photo: AP
However, this result does not preclude the administration of medication or drugs because, according to the final opinion, scientific proof can hardly be provided due to the long period of time since van der Lubbe's death. Decomposition processes are "highly likely" and prevent the question from being clearly answered in the affirmative or negative.
The burning of the Berlin Reichstag on 27 February 1933 and the fate of the alleged arsonist van der Lubbe are of historical significance because the events played an important role in the establishment of the National Socialist dictatorship. At the time, van der Lubbe, a Dutchman, was active in left-wing groups against the Nazis. On the evening of the fire, he was arrested in the building.
Executed for treason
The Reichstag fire was a decisive event in German history. Adolf Hitler had been appointed Reich Chancellor a few weeks earlier. Now Nazi propaganda spread that an alleged group of communist conspirators had set fire to the plenary hall.
Immediately on the day after the fire, the notorious "Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of the People and the State" came into force. From then on, anyone could be arrested without charge, apartments could be searched and newspapers could be censored. The SA and SS imprisoned tens of thousands of political opponents in makeshift concentration camps, mistreated many, murdered some. This state terror made a decisive contribution to the fact that Hitler and the NSDAP were able to secure their power in the long term.
More on the subject
Reichstag fire 1933: Forensic scientists examine the body of Marinus van der Lubbe
State terror of the Nazis: In the beginning there was violenceBy Martin Pfaffenzeller
Contemporary History:Flaming BeaconBy Klaus Wiegrefe
Van der Lubbe was later tried before the Leipzig Reich Court and sentenced to death in December 1933 for treason and arson. He was executed by guillotine on 10 January 1934 and then buried anonymously in a grave at Leipzig's South Cemetery. The death sentence against him was overturned in 2008 by the West German judiciary "ex officio" because it was a decision based on National Socialist injustice.
To this day, there are conflicting theories surrounding the Reichstag fire. One in particular has been put forward again and again for decades: Lubbe was not a lone perpetrator, the National Socialists had set the fire themselves a few days before the Reichstag elections on March 5, 1933. However, there is no convincing evidence for this. A number of renowned researchers reject this thesis.
mpz/AFP