Reinhard Heydrich, if he survived could he flee Germany and survive?

  • Thread starter Deleted member 1487
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Deleted member 1487

As we all know Reinhard Heydrich, the architect of the Holocaust, was assassinated in 1942 in Prague. He very easily could have survived given the circumstances, so let's say the attempt was botched, he lives and survives to the end of the war. What then for him? He would be one of the very top Nazis wanted by the Allies for war crimes, would he just commit suicide or try and fleet the country? Could he flee the country and if so could he really survive on the run? He'd be wanted a lot of people, so living out in the open wouldn't be possible in places like Argentina or Spain. He'd have to pull a Mengele and live under an assumed identity. But with having survived Israel would want to grab him badly, much more so than even Eichmann, and would probably want him alive rather than assassinated due to the huge publicity capturing someone beyond even Eichmann's position in organizing the Holocaust. In fact he'd probably be second to only Hitler on their wanted list. Would he even have a chance to survive on the run then, especially once Israel gets involved in Nazi hunting?
 

shiftygiant

Gone Fishin'
If he lives, assuming he can make an escape to South America (undoubtedly Reinhard will be a high priority target and the net will be a lot tighter to catch him), he'll probobly end up an Adolf Eichmann at best (for him).
 

Deleted member 1487

If he lives, assuming he can make an escape to South America (undoubtedly Reinhard will be a high priority target and the net will be a lot tighter to catch him), he'll probobly end up an Adolf Eichmann at best (for him).
That's what I was thinking, which I why I was wondering if he would just commit suicide at the end of the war or if caught like Himmler. What do you think the trial would look like then?
 
I certainly find it possible that he could flee in the immediate aftermath and chaos at the end of the war as many others did. Remaining on the run permanently is harder due to his prominence. On the other hand, he'd certainly have access in his capacity as head of the SD to the ability to forge high quality identity papers.
 

Deleted member 1487

I certainly find it possible that he could flee in the immediate aftermath and chaos at the end of the war as many others did. Remaining on the run permanently is harder due to his prominence. On the other hand, he'd certainly have access in his capacity as head of the SD to the ability to forge high quality identity papers.
And probably a lot of forged currency among other things. But who would really be interested in hosting/tolerating him if they knew he was in the country?

If nothing else the Mossad will find him, by the early 60's certainly, probably sooner.
I'm wondering about that given how they were hunting Mengele pretty hard, but he managed to survive into the 1970s.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_Mengele#Efforts_by_the_Mossad
 

shiftygiant

Gone Fishin'
That's what I was thinking, which I why I was wondering if he would just commit suicide at the end of the war or if caught like Himmler. What do you think the trial would look like then?
Undoubtedly he'll be sentenced to death for his activities as Gestapo Deputy and his role as Deputy Protector of Bohemia, and the Holocaust will only be atop this.

The other option is that he's shot dead in the street by a Mossad Agent.
And probably a lot of forged currency among other things. But who would really be interested in hosting/tolerating him if they knew he was in the country?


I'm wondering about that given how they were hunting Mengele pretty hard, but he managed to survive into the 1970s.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_Mengele#Efforts_by_the_Mossad
The issue is that, unlike Mengele, Heydrich will be the highest on the list to find, and like Eichmann, he's more likely to be found.
 
Heydrich could have survived for many years after WW2 because of a large escape network and connections between retired Nazis.
A retired Canadian sailor told me that he used to work for a Greek shipping magnate just after WW2. His ship laid in Northern Italian harbours for months at a time. Then a family would sneak on board at night and they would immediately sail to South America. The family hid in thier cabin for the entire voyage. The ship returned to Italy only carrying ballast.

CIA accounts tell of corrupt governments throughout Latin America during the 1940s, 1950s, and later. Latin police could easily be paid to look the other way. A few South American gov'ts even hired retired Nazi partisan-hunters to train thier secret police.

Meanwhile, retired Nazis - like Otto Skorzeny - helped each other. They had stolen billions of dollars worth of gold and knew where the bodies were hidden.
Furthermore, both the USA and USSR spirited away the best and brightest Nazi engineers.
As long as retired Nazis were bright enough to maintain a low profile, it would take Israeli detectives decades - or forever - to track them down.

So, yes. Heydrick had a good chance of enjoying his retirement in South America.
 

Deleted member 1487

Meanwhile, retired Nazis - like Otto Skorzeny - helped each other. They had stolen billions of dollars worth of gold and knew where the bodies were hidden.
Furthermore, both the USA and USSR spirited away the best and brightest Nazi engineers.
As long as retired Nazis were bright enough to maintain a low profile, it would take Israeli detectives decades - or forever - to track them down.
Funny you should mention Skorzeny, he ended up assassinating a German scientist for Israel.
http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.711115
 

Deleted member 1487

Let's say that Heydrich is captured along with Eichmann in the 1960s and tried by Israel. Would it make any more difference than the Eichmann trial? How about if he was captured in 1945 and was a defendant at the Nuremburg trials?
 
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