Josef Mengele

Definition

Josef Mengele (1911-1979) was a Nazi doctor who performed horrific pseudo-scientific experiments on detainees in the Auschwitz concentration camp where he was a medical officer from 1943 to 1945. Thousands of Mengele's victims endured bizarre and unnecessary operations without anaesthetic, and the 'Angel of Death', as he was known, killed thousands more using lethal injections.

More about: Josef Mengele

Timeline

  • 1911 - 1979
    The life of the Nazi Auschwitz doctor Josef Mengele.
  • 16 Mar 1911
    Josef Mengele is born in Günzburg, Germany.
  • 1937
    Josef Mengele joins the German Nazi party.
  • 1939 - 1943
    Josef Mengele serves as a medical officer in the Waffen-SS.
  • 1943
    Josef Mengele joins the medical staff at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
  • 1943 - 1945
    Josef Mengele performs horrific medical experiments on the detainees at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
  • 1945 - 1949
    Josef Mengele escapes detection and works as a farmhand in Bavaria.
  • Aug 1949
    Josef Menegel, a wanted war criminal, escapes to Argentina.
  • 1959
    The fugitive war criminal Josef Mengele becomes a citizen of Paraguay, protecting him from extradition.
  • c. 1961
    Josef Mengele moves to Brazil.
  • 7 Feb 1979
    Josef Mengele drowns while swimming at Bertioga in Brazil.
  • 1985
    The remains of Josef Mengele are positively identified following scientific testing.
  • 1992
    The remains of Josef Mengele are subjected to DNA testing and his identity is reaffirmed.
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