World War II Figure. Felix Kersten was perhaps one of the most unsung heroes of World War II. He was a physical therapist in The Hague, Netherlands, who ministered to many European notables during the 1920s and 1930s. In 1939 he treated Heinrich Himmler, the head of the German SS. This relationship lasted until the end of the war. Working with Himmler in those years, Kersten was instrumental in saving the lives of millions of Dutch and Flemish citizens from forced detention and re-settlement. His finest hour came when he convinced Himmler to disobey Hitler's order to kill 60,000 Jewish prisoners as the Allied forces were about to overtake the concentration camps, in which they were held. After the war, he was lauded for his humanitarian efforts but because of his liaison with Himmler, his exploits remained the subject of conjecture. His personal memoirs were published in 1957. The 2002 "The Devil's Doctor" gives in details his efforts in the face of great personal danger to hasten the defeat of Nazi German Adolph Hitler's Reich thereby savings thousands, perhaps millions of innocent civilians. Kersten's story is truly an inspiring story of one man's humanity over the depraved brutality of history's worst criminals. In the spring of 1960 while traveling to France to be awarded the French Legion of Honor from President Charles DeGaulle, he died suddenly of a heart attack.
World War II Figure. Felix Kersten was perhaps one of the most unsung heroes of World War II. He was a physical therapist in The Hague, Netherlands, who ministered to many European notables during the 1920s and 1930s. In 1939 he treated Heinrich Himmler, the head of the German SS. This relationship lasted until the end of the war. Working with Himmler in those years, Kersten was instrumental in saving the lives of millions of Dutch and Flemish citizens from forced detention and re-settlement. His finest hour came when he convinced Himmler to disobey Hitler's order to kill 60,000 Jewish prisoners as the Allied forces were about to overtake the concentration camps, in which they were held. After the war, he was lauded for his humanitarian efforts but because of his liaison with Himmler, his exploits remained the subject of conjecture. His personal memoirs were published in 1957. The 2002 "The Devil's Doctor" gives in details his efforts in the face of great personal danger to hasten the defeat of Nazi German Adolph Hitler's Reich thereby savings thousands, perhaps millions of innocent civilians. Kersten's story is truly an inspiring story of one man's humanity over the depraved brutality of history's worst criminals. In the spring of 1960 while traveling to France to be awarded the French Legion of Honor from President Charles DeGaulle, he died suddenly of a heart attack.
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