CHAIN OF COMMAND

REINHARD HEYDRICH

Reinhard Heydrich was a leading SS and police official in Nazi Germany, who became one of the chief architects of the Holocaust. He had formed earlier Einsatzgruppen operating in Poland in 1939. These units arrested and executed individuals deemed a threat to the German occupation, including members of the Polish nobility and intelligentsia, nationalists, members of the Catholic clergy, and Jews. Under Heydrich’s direction, the Einsatzgruppen murdered 50,000 Poles, including 7,000 Polish Jews.

In 1941 Heydrich was again directed by Himmler to organise Einsatzgruppen