17 Dec. 45
Afternoon Session
COL. STOREY: Your Honors will notice that we have
substituted an enlarged chart for the photostatic copy that was
introduced in evidence this morning. Another thing I would like to call
Your Honors' attention to is the fact that the other chart, the big one,
was dated 1945 and therefore did not show the Defendant Hess because of
his flight to England in 1941, and it will be recalled that the
Defendant Hess occupied the position before Bormann directly under the Führer
in the Party organization.
We now take up the Hoheitsträger. The Hoheitsträger.
diverting from the text, is shown on this chart very well; and all of
those shown in black blocks constitute the Hoheitsträger. beginning
with the Führer and going down the vertical column clear down to
the Blockleiter.
Within the Leadership Corps of the Nazi Party certain of the political
leaders possessed a higher degree of responsibility than others, were
vested with special prerogatives, and constituted a distinctive and
elite group within the Party hierarchy. Those were the so-called
Hoheitsträger. or bearers of sovereignty, who represented the Party
within the area of jurisdiction, which is a section of Germany, the
so-called "Hoheitsgebiet." I now quote from Page 9 of the
English translation of Document 1893-PS:
"Among the political leaders, the
Hoheitsträger assume a special position. Contrary to the other
political leaders who have departmental missions ... the Hoheitsträger.
themselves are in charge of a geographical sector known as the
Hoheitsgebiet" — sectors of sovereignty.
"The Hoheitsträger are:
"The Führer the Gauleiter, the Kreisleiter, the
Ortsgruppenleiter, the Zellenleiter, and the Blockleiter.
"Hoheitsgebiete are:
"The Reich, the Gau, the Kreis, the Ortsgruppe, the Zelle, the
Block.
"Within their sector of sovereignty the Hoheitsträger. have
sovereign political rights. They represent the Party within their
sector. The Hoheitsträger. supervise all Party offices within
their jurisdiction and are responsible for the maintenance of
discipline."
If Your Honors
please, that is Page 9 of the English translation, if you find it, of
1893.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes.
COL. STOREY: "The directors of offices, et cetera, and of
the affiliated organizations are responsible to their respective