Albert Forster
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Albert Forster (German:Albert Förster) (born July 26, 1902) was a German politician.
Forster attended the Humanistische Gymnasium in Fürth from 1912 to 1920. He became a member of the SA in Fürth in 1923 and observed the high treason process against Ludendorff, Hitler and the further eight accused, which took place from 26 February to 1 April 1924 in the court of Munich.
He became Gauleiter (governor) of the province Danzig-West Prussia from 1939 to 1945. He pursued a policy of assimilation of the Poles in his area of responsibility, in which all Poles proficient in the German language were reclassified as Germans. This policy was in direct contrast to what was going on in the Warthegau by Gauliter Arthur Greiser. Greiser zealously pursued a policy of ethnic cleansing and had complained to SS Reichsführer Heinrich Himmler that Forster's assimilation policy was against Nazi racial theory. When Himmler threatened Forster over this issue, Forster simply ignored him, realizing that Hitler allowed each Gauleiter to run his area as he saw fit.
Despite his relatively mild administration of occupied Polish Territory, Forster was responsible for the expulsion of several hundred thousand Poles to the General Governement and Stutthof concentration camps. He was also one of those responsible for mass murder at Piaśnica, where approximately 60,000 Polish and Kashub inteligentsia were killed.
After the war, he was condemned by the Polish court for war crimes and crimes against humanity and was hanged in 1947.de:Albert Forster pl:Albert Forster sv:Albert Forster