The Nazi Fascination with the Occult: The Paranormal Side of the Third Reich

The Nazi regime was known for its unspeakable atrocities during World War II, but few people know about their secret experiments with the occult. The Nazi leadership believed in the power of the supernatural and was obsessed with finding ways to harness it for their benefit.

They conducted horrific experiments on prisoners, seeking to unlock the paranormal secrets. Today on Morbid Kuriosity, we will delve into the world of the Nazi occult and uncover the horrors of their secret experiments. Warning: The content of this article can be disturbing, but I believe that history should be preserved so that many of the darkest chapters in our history would never be repeated.

Nonetheless, reader discretion is advised.

The Ahnenerbe Society

The Ahnenerbe Society was a research organization established by the Nazi regime in 1935. Its mission was to study the archaeological, anthropological, and cultural history of the Aryan race. However, it soon became a front for the regime’s interest in the occult. The society believed in a mystical energy field called the Vril.

They thought that by harnessing this energy, they could create superhuman soldiers and powerful weapons. The Ahnenerbe Society was responsible for numerous occult experiments, including the use of psychics and mediums to communicate with the dead. Take this incident, for example:

40,000 tonnes of ammunition were discovered on April 28, 1945, in a munitions factory stockpile in Bernterode, Thuringia, Germany. US investigators discovered what seemed to be a brick wall inside the mine that had been painted over to match the mineshaft’s color. The wall was 5 feet thick, with the mortar between the bricks still soft.

With the help of pickaxes and hammers, the officers were able to gain access to several vaults that contained a wealth of Nazi memorabilia, including a long hall covered in Nazi flags and uniforms, as well as hundreds of stolen works of art, including tapestries, books, paintings, and decorative arts—the majority of which were taken from the nearby Hohenzollern Museum.

However, they also discovered a macabre sight in a different room: four enormous coffins containing the remains of Field Marshall von Hindenburg and his wife, and Frederick the Great, the Prussian king of the 17th century.

The Ahnenerbe Society was a research organization established by the Nazi regime in 1935

The Nazis had taken the remains of dead Teutonic warlords as well. The name of its intended inhabitant, Adolf Hitler, was inscribed on a plate attached to the fourth coffin, but it was lying empty.

According to “Monuments Man” Captain Everett P. Lesley, Jr., the military operation that brought these bodies back to their rightful graves was known as “Operation Bodysnatch.”

Although it was never apparent what the Nazis intended to do with these disinterred bodies, conspiracy theorists had plenty of ideas. The corpses, according to a 1950 Life magazine article, “were to be concealed until some future movement, when their reappearance could be timed by rising Nazis to fuel another German generation to rise and conquer anew.”

The phrase “rise and conquer again” used in this article, which was read by hundreds of thousands when it first appeared, could be taken literally or metaphorically. Perhaps because of this, the theory that the Nazis hid the bodies to revive their murdered warlords came to be.

This makes the “Nazi zombie” notion more comprehensible, especially when combined with the graphic experiments that some Ahnenerbe researchers participated in.

Director of Ahnenerbe and the Institute for Military Scientific Research Interrogation in Nuremberg in 1943, Wolfram Sievers, oversaw a horrifying medical testing program on prisoners of concentration camps, some of which were similar to the idea of raising the dead.

The Experiments at Dachau

The atrocities committed at the Dachau concentration camp are a harrowing reminder of the depths of human depravity. The experiments conducted by Dr. Sigmund Rascher stand out as particularly sinister and inhumane. His fascination with high-altitude pressure chambers and their effects on the human body led him to commit unspeakable acts.

Rascher’s experiments exposed prisoners to conditions that no human should ever endure. He placed them in high-altitude pressure chambers and subjected them to extreme pressures and lack of oxygen, simulating conditions experienced during high-altitude flight.

The prisoners were stripped of their humanity and treated as lab rats in Rascher’s twisted quest for knowledge.

The Bodies From an Undisclosed Concentration Camp — 1945. Original image can be found here.

Many prisoners who underwent these experiments suffered greatly, their bodies unable to cope with the extreme conditions. Some died within minutes, gasping for air as their lungs collapsed under the pressure. Others suffered for longer, enduring excruciating pain and agony as their bodies slowly shut down.

Rascher’s experiments were not only cruel but also completely unnecessary. They provided no meaningful scientific insights and only satisfied Rascher’s morbid curiosity.

The legacy of Rascher and the Dachau experiments is a stark reminder of the danger of unchecked scientific curiosity. It is a warning about the potential for science to be used as a tool of oppression and cruelty.

It reminds us of the importance of ethical considerations in scientific research and the need for oversight to prevent such atrocities from happening again.

The Bell (Die Glocke)

The Bell (also known as die glocke) is a haunting reminder of the Nazi regime’s obsession with power and the occult. This mysterious device, shrouded in secrecy and myth, has captivated the imagination of historians and conspiracy theorists alike.

The Bell was said to be a technological marvel capable of creating a powerful electromagnetic field that could be harnessed as a weapon. But some reports suggest the Bell’s true purpose was much darker.

Some sources claim that the Bell was part of the Nazi’s extensive occult research. They believed that the device could be used to create a portal to another dimension, allowing them to communicate with otherworldly beings and harness their power.

An artist’s rendering of die glocke

It is unclear if the Bell was ever used for this purpose, but the mere possibility is enough to send chills down one’s spine. The thought of the Nazis dabbling in the supernatural, summoning otherworldly entities and attempting to control them for their gain, is terrifying.

The Spear of Destiny

The Spear of Destiny is a relic steeped in myth and legend, with a history that spans millennia. According to Christian tradition, the spear was used to pierce the side of Jesus Christ during his crucifixion. Over the centuries, the spear has been associated with many miraculous events and is believed to possess great power.

The Nazi regime was no stranger to the allure of mystical artifacts, and the Spear of Destiny was no exception. They believed whoever possessed the spear would hold the key to ultimate power and control. In 1938, the Nazis acquired the spear, and it quickly became a central focus of their occult practices.

The spear of destiny, also called the Holy Lance, rests in the Hofburg Treasure House today

Hitler was said to be obsessed with the spear, and many high-ranking officials believed it was the key to their success. Some even believed that the spear could protect Germany from defeat in battle. Thankfully, that wasn’t to be.

The Wewelsburg Castle

The Wewelsburg Castle has a history that dates back to the Middle Ages, but during the Nazi regime, the castle gained its reputation as a center of the occult. Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, was a man who believed sincerely in the power of the mystical and saw the castle as a site of ancient Germanic power.

Himmler’s fascination with the occult was driven by his belief that the Germans were descended from an ancient Aryan race with mystical powers. He saw the castle as a crucial site for worshipping ancient Germanic gods and performing mystical rituals.

Wewelsburg Castle, today

The castle was the site of numerous occult practices, including the initiation of new SS members. The initiates were subjected to a series of rituals that included the recitation of oaths, the reading of ancient texts, and the performance of mystical rites.

The goal was to imbue the new members with the mystical power of the ancient Germanic gods.

The Black Sun

The Black Sun was a mysterious symbol of immense significance in Nazi occult practices. The Nazi regime believed that the symbol represented the concept of an ancient Aryan civilization that was thought to be the origin of the human race. They saw the symbol as a source of mystical energy that could be harnessed to create a new world order.

The symbol was often associated with the Thule Society, an occult group that had significant influence in the early days of the Nazi regime. According to some beliefs, the Thule Society believed that the Black Sun was a source of energy that could be used to achieve superhuman abilities. The Nazis saw the symbol as a powerful tool to help them achieve their goals, and it became a central part of their occult practices.

The black sun painted at the Wewelsburg castle. The intended significance of the image remains unknown.

They believed that by harnessing the power of the Black Sun, they could create a new era of human civilization under their control. The Black Sun remains a powerful symbol that represents the dark and sinister nature of the Nazi regime and its obsession with the occult.

The Lebensborn Program

The Lebensborn Program was a twisted initiative that sought to propagate Nazi propaganda by promoting the breeding of an Aryan race. SS officers were encouraged to have sexual relations with “genetically suitable” Aryan women to create children who were considered racially superior.

The children born out of these relationships were taken away from their mothers and raised in special schools, subjected to intense indoctrination to align with Nazi beliefs.

The Lebensborn Program did not only focus on the breeding of the perfect Aryan race but was also used as a means to experiment with genetic engineering. The SS attempted to create a “master race” through selective breeding, creating a generation of people with superior abilities and traits.

The Lebensborn children

The program’s origins can be traced back to 1935 when Heinrich Himmler founded the Lebensborn Society to help increase the population of pure-blooded Aryan children in Germany. By 1942, the program had been extended to Norway, where the Nazis abducted children considered to be of Aryan descent from their families and brought them to Lebensborn homes in Germany.

Lebensborn homes were established across Germany and provided a nurturing environment for Aryan children. But in reality, these homes were a front for the Nazi regime’s twisted plan to create a master race. Children were selected based on their Aryan features and taken from their mothers at birth, leaving them no connection to their biological families.

The children were taught to adhere to Nazi ideology and encouraged to join the SS, further strengthening the regime’s power. But the program’s dark legacy extended beyond the war, and many children born through Lebensborn faced discrimination and ostracization in post-war Germany.

The Search for the Holy Grail

The Holy Grail, a sacred relic shrouded in mystery, has fascinated people for centuries. It is believed to be the cup that Jesus Christ used at the Last Supper and has been the subject of numerous legends, myths, and quests. But for the Nazis, the Holy Grail was more than just a myth; it was a powerful weapon that could give them the edge in the war.

The Nazi’s search for the Holy Grail began in the early days of the regime, and Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, led it. Himmler firmly believed in the occult and saw the Grail as a source of supernatural power. He was convinced that whoever possessed the Grail could use its power to create a new world order.

The search for the Grail was a massive undertaking, with teams of archaeologists, historians, and occultists scouring Europe for clues. Himmler believed the Grail was hidden in the Montserrat Monastery in Spain and dispatched an expedition to search for it.

The Nazi’s search for the Holy Grail began in the early days of the regime, and Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, led it.

The expedition, led by Otto Rahn, a renowned historian, and occultist, scoured the monastery for months but came up empty-handed.

Despite their best efforts, the Nazis could not locate the Holy Grail. Some speculate that it was hidden away in a secret location, while others believe that it never existed in the first place.

Nevertheless, the search for the Holy Grail remains a testament to the Nazi’s obsession with the occult and their belief in the power of supernatural artifacts.

The Houska Castle

One of the most intriguing and eerie stories about the Nazis and the occult revolves around the mysterious Houska Castle in the Czech Republic. This castle has long been associated with the supernatural, with legends stating that it was built over a bottomless pit that leads straight to hell.

During World War II, the Nazis took an interest in the castle and its supernatural legends. They believed the pit beneath the castle was a gateway to the underworld and held the key to unleashing unimaginable power.

In 1941, the Nazis sent a team of researchers and scientists to the castle to investigate the supernatural properties of the pit. They set up a secret laboratory within the castle’s walls, where they conducted a series of bizarre and gruesome experiments.

However, despite their efforts, the Nazis could never unlock the secrets of the pit. They abandoned the castle in 1944, which was abandoned for decades.

During World War II, the Nazis took an interest in the Houska castle and its supernatural legends

Today, the castle is a popular tourist destination, with visitors flocking to see the mysterious pit and the castle’s eerie architecture. Some even claim to have seen ghostly apparitions and heard strange sounds within the castle’s walls.

The story of the Nazis and Houska Castle is a chilling reminder of the dangers of extremism and the horrific lengths people will go to in their search for power. It is a cautionary tale about the dangers of dabbling in the unknown and the importance of respecting the forces of nature and the supernatural.

In conclusion, the Nazi regime’s experiments with the occult were a dark and twisted chapter in human history. The regime’s obsession with the supernatural led to horrific experiments on prisoners and innocent people, ultimately leading to the deaths of millions during the Holocaust.

The horrors of the Nazi regime serve as a reminder of the dangers of extremism and the importance of standing up to hate. We must never forget the lessons of the past and must work towards a future free from hatred and violence.

RIP Victims

Next, read about Julia, The Mysterious Sound Recorded in The Sea, and then, about the Horrifying Story of The New Jersey Devil.