Biography of Dr. Curt Ludwig Ehrenreich von Burgsdorff

Dr. Curt Ludwig Ehrenreich von Burgsdorff (1886-1962), a high-level government official in Saxony, occupied top political positions in the civil administration of annexed Austria (1938), in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (1939) and in the General Government for the occupied Polish territories (1944-45). In these functions – as previously in Saxony – he exhibited extensive political adaptability and unrestricted loyalty in the discharge of his duties. The planned biography aims at closing a gap in research, as the analysis focuses on the extent to which civil servants transferred (and modified, if necessary) previously acquired experience and knowledge to the annexed and occupied territories where they served. The biography will also raise questions about personal actions performed in government offices in the field of conflict between adaptability and complicity as well as re-assess cases of the ensuing consequences in post-war Germany.