Educational purpose only. This post documents historical events related to World War II and condemns the Nazi regime, war crimes, and all totalitarian ideologies. We do not glorify violence or hate.
Among the most feared figures in the Nazi concentration camp system were the female guards—known as Aufseherinnen. These women, often recruited from ordinary backgrounds, became notorious for their cruelty toward prisoners. When the war ended, several of them faced justice, and some were executed for their crimes.
This article examines the fates of the most infamous female Nazi guards who were tried and executed after World War II.
1. Irma Grese: The “Hyena of Auschwitz”
Irma Grese was perhaps the most infamous female guard of the Nazi camp system. Born in 1923, she joined the SS in 1942 and was assigned to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where she rose to the rank of senior guard (Oberaufseherin) at just 19 years old .
Survivors testified to her extreme cruelty. She was known for beating prisoners, setting her dogs on them, and participating in selections for the gas chambers. She later served at Bergen-Belsen.
After the war, Grese was tried at the Belsen Trial in 1945. She was convicted of war crimes and sentenced to death. On December 13, 1945, she was executed by hanging at Hamelin Prison at the age of 22. She was the youngest woman executed for Nazi war crimes.
2. Elisabeth Volkenrath: The Guard Who Showed No Mercy
Elisabeth Volkenrath was another senior female guard at Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. Like Grese, she was known for her brutality toward prisoners. She participated in selections and personally beat inmates.
She was tried alongside Grese at the Belsen Trial. Volkenrath was convicted and sentenced to death. On December 13, 1945, she was executed by hanging at Hamelin Prison.
3. Juana Bormann: The “Woman with the Dogs”
Juana Bormann was a female guard at Auschwitz who was known for using her trained dogs to attack prisoners. She was transferred to Bergen-Belsen in 1945.
After the war, Bormann was tried at the Belsen Trial. She was convicted and sentenced to death. Her execution was carried out on December 13, 1945, at Hamelin Prison.
4. Maria Mandl: The Commandant Who Controlled Thousands
Maria Mandl was the chief female guard (Oberaufseherin) at Auschwitz-Birkenau, commanding over 600 female guards and thousands of prisoners. She personally participated in selections and was responsible for the deaths of countless inmates. She later served at the Mühldorf subcamp.
Mandl was captured after the war and tried in the Auschwitz Trial in Kraków in 1947. She was convicted of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death. On January 24, 1948, she was executed by hanging.
5. Margarete Himmler: The Commandant’s Wife
Margarete Himmler was the wife of Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS. While she was not a guard, she was a willing participant in the Nazi regime and deeply complicit in its crimes. She lived a life of luxury while prisoners died in the camps her husband controlled.
She was arrested after the war but was never tried for war crimes. She was released in 1948 and died in 1967.
6. The Legacy of Female Nazi Perpetrators
The execution of these women marked a rare instance of justice for female perpetrators of Nazi atrocities. However, many others escaped trial or received only light sentences.
The cases of Grese, Volkenrath, and Mandl serve as a reminder that women were not merely passive bystanders in the Holocaust—they were active participants in the machinery of terror.
Primary Sources:
Belsen Trial records (Lüneburg, 1945)
Auschwitz Trial records (Kraków, 1947)
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum archives
Historical studies on female SS guards