Career Rudolf Mentzel

1 career

1.1 ministry of education
1.2 atomic bomb program
1.3 military service
1.4 after war

career

from 1934, mentzel adviser on science reichserziehungsministerium (rem, reich ministry of education). 1939, stepped position of ministerialdirektor (undersecretary) of amt für wissenschaft (office science) of rem; such headed w-ii, science office military research.

ministry of education

also in 1934, mentzel began role in academia, parallel role in rem, when appointed nichtplanmäßiger professor (supernumerary professor) @ technische hochschule berlin (today, technische universität berlin). in 1935, on instigation of reich minister of rem bernhard rust, mentzel became ordentlicher professor (ordinarius professor) of chemistry in defense technology department of technische hochschule berlin.

atomic bomb program

in 1935, peter adolf thiessen became director of kaiser-wilhelm institut für physikalische chemie und elektrochemie (kwipc, kaiser wilhelm institute physical chemistry , electrochemistry; today, fritz-haber-institut der max-planck-gesellschaft), in berlin-dahlem; kwipc in institute under umbrella organization kaiser-wilhelm gesellschaft (kwg, kaiser wilhelm society, today max-planck gesellschaft, under amt für wissenschaft of rem. same year, rust, support of thiessen, had mentzel appointed commissioner in managing committee of kwg. thiessen, director of kwipc, had flat on faradayweg in berlin-dahlem former director fritz haber used business purposes; mentzel shared flat thiessen.

mentzel rival johannes stark, , in 1936, mentzel succeeded stark president of notgemeinschaft der deutschen wissenschaft (ng, emergency association of german science). in 1937, ng renamed deutsche gemeinschaft zur erhaltung und förderrung der forschung (german association support , advancement of scientific research); in short, known deutsche forschungs-gemeinschaft (dfg, german research foundation). president of dfg, mentzel outlined science policy in article zwanzig jahre deutsche forschung. mentzel succeeded in 1939 abraham esau.

from 1937, mentzel on senat (senate) of kwg, , 1940 1944, second vice president of kwg.

military service

in 1937, reichsforschungsrat (rfr, reich research council) inaugurated under bernhard rust on initiative of erich schumann. coordinating agency of rem purpose of centralizing planning of basic , applied research, , expanding influence of military, exception of aeronautical research, kept under purview of hermann göring. in 1939, rfr started german nuclear energy project, known uranverein. in september 1939, heereswaffenamt (hwa, army ordnance office) squeezed out rfr , took control of project. when apparent nuclear energy project not make decisive contribution ending war effort in near term, control of project turned on rfr in 1942. however, on 9 june 1942, adolf hitler issued decree reorganization of rfr separate legal entity under reichsministerium für bewaffnung und munition (rmbm, reich ministry armament , ammunition, after autumn 1943 reich ministry armament , war production); decree appointed reich marshall hermann göring president. on life of uranverein, transfer of rfr göring’s purview, mentzel, ministerialdirektor of rem, able make inputs , exert influence on project.

in schutzstaffel (ss), mentzel attained rank of oberführer (senior colonel).

after war

after world war ii, mentzel interned american occupation forces 3 years. release was, in part, brought affidavit provided walther gerlach, @ mentzel’s request in letter dated december 6, 1948. these exoneration attestations accepted had been through denazification process in germany , had had no affiliation nsdap. mentzel, science policy maker, had sided pragmatists in promoting scientific efficiency, rather politically motivate party ideologues.