One prison for seven guys

Long Knives and Short Memories by Jack Fishman (364.138 FIS) is about the Spandau prison in Berlin and its seven infamous residents. After their convictions, seven of the top Nazi leaders were sent to prison at Spandau gaol. In a prison that was originally designed to hold six hundred inmates, it now only held these seven people:

Rudolph Hess

Walther Funk
Albert Speer

Baldur von Schirach
Konstantin von Neurath
Karl Doenitz
Erich Raeder

The prison was three stories high. The wall surrounding it rose to thirty feet. There was a 10 feet high barbed wire fence encircling the prison as well. If that wasn't enough of a deterrent to prevent anyone from escaping, it was also constructed with 6 foot high electrified barrier, with a 4,000 volt charge. Built into the wall, 9 machine gun posts.

Considering the number of inmates, the staffing was enormous: 2 officers, 2 sergeants, 6 corporals, and 44 privates. The responsibilities of manning the prison fell on the four superpowers: the United States, Great Britain, U.S.S.R., and France. Coming to a consensus on what the punishment for their crimes should be and how long they should be incarcerated and to what degree was a delicate matter. Some political leaders favored the death penalty, but ultimately, life sentences were decreed.

Reading about the lives of each of the residents is amazing, since some admitted no guilt, and one had such false hopes of reclaiming the German power.

c Waterloo Public Library 2007