Walther Funk was a German economist and National Socialist (Nazi) Party member who served Adolph Hitler as his economics minister and head of the German state bank. Funk is credited with paving the way for Hitler's ascension to power by reassuring German industrialists that Hitler would be good for Germany and for their business enterprises. After the defeat of Germany in World War II, Funk was indicted on war crimes charges by the International Military Tribunal (IMT) and tried with other leading Nazi officials at Nuremberg.
Funk was born on August 18, 1890, in Trakehen, Germany. Raised in a wealthy merchant family, Funk studied political science, literature, and music at the University of Berlin. He began a journalism career in 1912 but enlisted in the army during World War I. He was discharged in 1916 as unfit for service and returned to his journalism career. In 1922, he became the editor of a leading German business periodical, which gave him knowledge of economics and a wide range of contacts in the business and financial communities.
Soon after becoming editor, Funk joined the Nazi Party, which espoused German nationalism, anti-Semitism, and a rejection of the terms of the Treaty of Versailles that the Allies imposed on Germany after World War I. Funk left his editorship in 1931 to become a freelance commentator on economic and political news. Through his contacts with Hitler, he gained the leader's trust. Hitler also knew he needed a respectable spokesman to reassure the German business community. After Hitler became German chancellor in 1932, he appointed Funk his press chief. This post lasted just a few weeks until Joseph Goebbels became the propaganda minister.
Funk was made state secretary for the propaganda minister and confined himself to administrative tasks. In 1928, Hitler appointed Funk the minister of economics, and, the following year, he named Funk president of the Reichsbank, the German national bank. Funk held these positions until the end of World War II. Though on the surface Funk appeared to have great powers, in fact he operated under the supervision of Hermann Goering.
Despite Funk's lack of authority, he did participate in the planning of the attack on the Soviet Union and furthered the discrimination against Jews. After Funk was captured by American troops in May of 1945, he was indicted as a war criminal by the IMT. He was charged with promoting and preparing for wars of aggression and authorizing, directing, and participating in war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the economic exploitation of persons and property in occupied territories.
Funk put on a vigorous defense at the Nuremberg proceedings that began in the fall of 1945. He convincingly established the limits of his authority from 1938 to 1945. However, he admitted to involvement in preparations for aggressive wars, including the 1939 attack on Poland and the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. Funk also was forced to acknowledge that he participated in the decisions to impose large financial penalties on Jews and to exclude them from economic life. The tribunal found Funk guilty of the charges and sentenced him to life imprisonment. He was released from prison in May 1957. He died on May 31, 1960, in Dusseldorf.
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