Karl Plagge

Karl Plagge, originally an engineer was a German Army officer, who rescued Jews during the Holocaust in Lithuania by issuing work permits to non-essential workers. A partially disabled veteran of World War I, Plagge studied engineering and joined the Nazi Party in 1931 in hopes of helping Germany rebuild from the economic collapse caused by the draconian terms of the Treaty of Versailles. After being dismissed from the position of lecturer for being unwilling to teach racism, and his opposition to Nazi racist policies, he stopped participating in party activities in 1935 and left the party when the war broke out.