03061cam a2200433 i 4500 1098234964 TxGeo 20231222120000.0 230907s2023||||||||||||||||||||||||eng|u 9780806542850 hbk. 0806542853 hbk. (OCoLC)1407797867 TxGeo rda Eischeid, Susan J, author. Mistress of life and death : the dark journey of Maria Mandl, head overseer of the women's camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau / Susan J. Eischeid. Dark journey of Maria Mandl, head overseer of the women's camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau. New York, NY : Citadel Press, 2023. xv, 448 pages : illustrations, map ; 24 cm. txt rdacontent n rdamedia nc rdacarrier sti rdacontent n rdamedia nc rdacarrier Includes bibliographical references. "The first-ever biography of SS Overseer Maria Mandl, the highest-ranked woman in the Nazi killing machine and one of the few female perpetrators of the Holocaust. With new details and previously unpublished photographs, this gripping, unflinching examination charts her transformation from engaging country girl to "The Beast" of Auschwitz. By the time of her execution at thirty-six, Maria Mandl had achieved the highest rank possible for a woman in the Third Reich. As Head Overseer of the women's camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau, she was personally responsible for the murders of thousands, and for the torture and suffering of countless more. In this riveting biography, Susan J. Eischeid explores how Maria Mandl, regarded locally as "a nice girl from a good family," came to embody the very worst of humanity. Born in 1912 in the scenic Austrian village of Münzkirchen, Maria enjoyed a happy childhood with loving parents--who later watched in anguish as their grown daughter rose through the Nazi system. Mandl's life mirrors the period in which she lived: turbulent, violent, and suffused with paradoxes. At Auschwitz-Birkenau, she founded the notable women's orchestra and "adopted" several children from the transports--only to lead them to the gas chambers when her interest waned. After the war, Maria was arrested for crimes against humanity. Following a public trial attended by the international press, she was hanged in 1948."-- Provided by publisher. 20240105. Mandl, Maria 1912-1948. Auschwitz (Concentration camp.) Mass murder Nazi persecution Biography. War crimes (International law) Biography. Nazi concentration camp guards Biography. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945.) Humanity Crimes against. World War, 1939-1945 Atrocities. Germany History 1933-1945. Biographies. QS5