11. The Nikolaus von Halem assassination conspiracy
Nikolaus von Halem was a German lawyer who originally joined with the Nazis, participating in the Beer Hall Putsch and Nazi marches and demonstrations in the 1920s. He later renounced Nazism and Hitler, eventually resigning his position as a legal intern when it became a requirement for those holding such positions to take an oath of loyalty to Hitler. During the Anschluss, Halem conspired with – or at the very least was aware of – plotters who were planning the assassination of Hitler when he arrived in Austria. Halem was also involved with plots from surviving SA members who attempted to find ways to kill Hitler following the Night of the Long Knives, but none of the plans came to fruition. One of the conspirators, Josef Romer, was arrested and sent to Dachau for several years. He was released in late 1939 after no concrete evidence was found against him, even during Gestapo interrogation.
Upon his release, Romer was approached by Halem and given money with which the former was to hire a sniper to assassinate the Chancellor. After the passage of several months, Halem again contacted Romer, who agreed to continue with the plot, but wanted to wait several more weeks because the Gestapo was keeping him under close surveillance. Halem agreed and discontinued contacting Romer to avoid suspicion. Early in 1942, Romer was again arrested by the Gestapo, and at that time the interrogation techniques proved more effective. Under torture, Romer revealed the details of the assassination plans. Halem was arrested in February and was likewise tortured at Sachsenhausen, but he did not provide the Gestapo with any information regarding the German resistance (Halem had also been aware of the Oster plot). Halem was executed in the fall of 1944, by guillotine, at Brandenburg-Gordon prison after a trial before the People’s Court.