Nazi plunder

The term Nazi plunder refers to the enormous quantity of art and other cultural treasures that Nazi forces stole from countries across Europe during World War II. German dictator Adolph Hitler masterminded this brazen undertaking for the duel purposes of amassing an expansive collection of classical art to be displayed in a proposed German super-museum and facilitating the destruction of "degenerate" modern art. Over the course of the war, the Nazis looted approximately 650,000 pieces of art. Many of these pieces were seized from private Jewish owners who were later sent to concentration camps. In response to this looting, Allied forces formed a special unit of art experts called the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Section, or the Monuments Men, in 1943. As the Nazi regime crumbled in the war's waning years, the Monuments Men successfully recovered thousands of pieces of looted art and made a concerted effort to return them to their rightful owners.

Background

The Nazi effort to seize Europe's great works of art was likely tied directly to Hitler's own artistic ambitions. As a young man, Hitler was keenly interested in art and dreamed of becoming a painter. Although he tried to make his dream a reality, the young Hitler was not a talented artist. On two separate occasions, he failed the entrance exam for the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, Austria, and he soon realized that his pursuit of a career as a painter would be for naught. Hitler later turned much of his attention to politics, but he was driven by his passion for the arts for the rest of his life.

Upon rising to power in 1933, Hitler quickly made art a key element of his plan to elevate Germanic culture. His first endeavor to this end was to wage an aggressive campaign against modern art styles like cubism, Dadaism, and futurism. Favoring the works of northern European old masters like Jan van Eyck and Albrecht Dürer, Hitler saw modern art as a "degenerate" representation of twentieth-century decadence. To ensure that such works would not undermine the cultural foundation of his ideal Germanic society, Hitler had all the modern paintings housed in Germany's state museums destroyed or sold.

Hitler's ultimate goal in regards to art and culture, however, was to make Germany the artistic capital of Europe and perhaps the world. To achieve this lofty goal, he planned to transform his boyhood hometown of Linz, Austria, into a massive, citywide super-museum that would feature the world's greatest artwork. He also planned for this museum, which was typically referred to as the Führermuseum, to include a special wing that would house "degenerate" works of modern art as examples of the cultural perversion against which the Nazis successfully fought. To realize his vision for the Führermuseum, Hitler first had to acquire the great works of European art that were not yet in Germany's possession. Thus, the Nazi regime embarked upon one of the greatest and most devious art heists in world history.

Overview

Although the Third Reich began acquiring art around 1933 from Jewish dealers who were forced to sell their valuables before they fled to safety, the Nazi art theft operation truly began with the establishment of the Einsatzstab Reichsleiters Rosenberg (ERR) following the occupation of Paris in 1940. The ERR was an official confiscation service headed by Nazi Party member Alfred Rosenberg and likely overseen by German military leader Hermann Goering. Initially, the ERR targeted Jewish-owned art galleries and private art collections. Nazi forces also frequently looted artwork left behind by people who were evicted from their homes and sent to concentration camps. Much of the ERR's success in confiscating valuable works of art was the result of espionage that was carefully planned and executed by the German secret police.

The bulk of the Nazi art confiscation scheme played out between March of 1941 and July of 1944. During that time, thousands of pieces of art were seized from various sources and sent to Germany for eventual inclusion in the Führermuseum or in private collections. Most were stored in secret locations where they would be safe until after the war. About 100,000 works were stolen from France alone. Overall, approximately 650,000 pieces were plundered from across Europe.

From the early stages of World War II, European art experts and museum curators were aware of the threat of Nazi looting and reached out to the Allies for help. In 1943, the Allies responded to these requests by forming the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Section, a special group of experts otherwise referred to as the Monuments Men. A largely volunteer band of almost 350 art scholars, artists, museum curators, and art historians, the Monuments Men primarily aided soldiers in preventing damage to museums, churches, and important cultural artifacts during battle. When German forces began retreating, however, the Monuments Men increasingly shifted their focus toward finding and recovering Nazi-looted artwork.

At the war's end in 1945, the Monuments Men entered their most productive period. In the weeks and months after the German surrender, the Monuments Men started finding hidden Nazi plunder in various locations across Europe. One of their biggest finds came at the Altaussee salt mine in Austria. There, they successfully recovered more than 6,000 paintings, including such significant works as Jan van Eyck's Ghent Altarpiece, which Hitler intended to use as the centerpiece of the Führermuseum, and Michelangelo's Madonna of Bruges. As they uncovered more stolen art, the Monuments Men also undertook the arduous task of trying to return as many pieces to their original owners as possible. That task continues in the twenty-first century, as more hidden Nazi art stashes are discovered. For example, in 2012, Bavarian tax authorities investigated the financial affairs of then 82-year-old Cornelius Gurlitt—the son of former Nazi art dealer Hildebrand Gurlitt—discovered nearly 1,300 works of art that he inherited from his father and had been hidden away in his Munich apartment.

Bibliography

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