Paul Scharfe
| Paul Scharfe | |
|---|---|
| Born |
6 September 1876 Germany |
| Died |
29 July 1942 (aged 65) Nazi Germany |
| Allegiance |
 German Empire.svg.png){kind=small} Weimar Republic.svg.png){kind=small} Nazi Germany |
| Service/branch |
German Army Prussian Police  SS |
| Years of service | 1897–1918, 1921–31, 1931–42 |
| Rank |
 SS-Obergruppenführer |
| Commands held | Hauptamt SS-Gericht |
Paul Scharfe (6 September 1876 – 29 July 1942) was an SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS. He was the first director of the Hauptamt SS-Gericht (English: SS Court Main Office).
Life
Scharfe, son of a headmaster, was a lieutenant in the German Army by 1897 after graduating from Gymnasium and Kriegsschule. He was a comrade of Paul Hausser.
After marrying in 1903, Scharfe served in the Reserve of the police. In World War I, he fought briefly on the Polish front during 1914-15. From 1921 to 1931, he made a career in the Prussian police.
On 1 October 1931, he joined the Nazi Party (member no. 665,697) and the SS (member no. 14,220). On 20 April 1942, he was promoted to SS-Obergruppenführer. On 1 July 1939, he was appointed the first director of the newly formed Hauptamt SS-Gericht in Munich. The Hauptamt SS-Gericht was the legal department of the SS in Nazi Germany. It was responsible for formulating the laws and codes for the SS and various other groups of the police, conducting its own investigations and trials, as well as administering the SS and Police Courts and penal systems. This legal status meant all SS personnel were only accountable to the Hauptamt-SS Gericht. This effectively placed the SS above German law and able to live by its own rules and conventions.
Paul Scharfe died of natural causes in July 1942. His successor, from 15 August 1942, was Franz Breithaupt.
Awards
- Iron Cross Second Class (1914)
- War Merit Cross, 2nd and 1st Class with Swords
- SS-Ehrenring (SS Honour Ring)
- Sword of Honour of the Reichsführer-SS
References
- Ailsby, Christopher (1997). SS: Roll Of Infamy. Motorbooks International. p. 149. ISBN 0-7603-0409-2
- Klee, Ernst (2007). Das Personenlexikon zum Dritten Reich: Wer war was vor und nach 1945. Fischer-Taschenbuch-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. ISBN 978-3-596-16048-8
- Höhne, Heinz (1998). Der Orden unter dem Totenkopf - Die Geschichte der SS. Weltbild-Verlag, Augsburg. ISBN 3-89350-549-0.
- McNab, Chris (2009). The SS: 1923–1945. Amber Books Ltd. pp. 37, 41. ISBN 978-1-906626-49-5.