A Case-Study of the German Archaeologist Herbert Jankuhn (1905-1990)
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Science and Service in the National Socialist State: A Case-Study of the German Archaeologist Herbert Jankuhn (1905-1990) by Monika Elisabeth Steinel UCL This thesis is submitted for examination for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) January 2009 DECLARATION I, Monika Elisabeth Steinel, confirm that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. January 2009 2 ABSTRACT The thesis investigates the relationship between archaeology, politics and ideology through a case-study of the prominent German archaeologist Herbert Jankuhn (1905- 1990). It addresses the following questions: what role do archaeological scholars assume in a totalitarian state’s organisational structures, and what may motivate them to do so? To what extent and how are archaeologists and their scientific work influenced by the political and ideological context in which they perform, and do they play a role in generating and/or perpetuating ideologies? The thesis investigates the nature and extent of Jankuhn's practical involvement in National Socialist hierarchical structures, and offers a thematically structured analysis of Jankuhn's archaeological writings that juxtaposes the work produced during and after the National Socialist period. It investigates selected components of Herbert Jankuhn's research interests and methodological approaches, examines his representations of Germanic/German pre- and protohistory and explores his adapting interpretations of the early medieval site of Haithabu in northern Germany. The dissertation demonstrates that a scholar’s adaptation to political and ideological circumstances is not necessarily straightforward or absolute. As a member of the Schutzstaffel, Jankuhn actively advanced National Socialist ideological preconceptions and military aims. In addition, he made use of and strengthened ideologically expedient Germanic ideologies during the 1930s and 40s. However, his scientific work can by no means be cast as mere pre- and protohistoric propaganda. For one, the thesis emphasises the extreme polyvalence of National Socialist ideology. Jankuhn adhered to and promoted his own idiosyncratic selection of politico-ideological elements. The dissertation also underlines the impact of long- standing and far-reaching intellectual, political and ideological currents on archaeological research. During the National Socialist period, Jankuhn worked with concepts that had been in currency since the nineteenth century. After 1945, his archaeological work underwent methodological and analytical changes that were transpiring well beyond Germany’s borders. 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The research presented here has been financially supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council through the award of tuition fees. The fieldwork has been funded by the Institute of Archaeology (UCL) and the Arts and Humanities Research Council. I am indebted to the AHRC and to the Institute of Archaeology for providing this vital financial backing. Profound thanks are due to my primary supervisors Mr. Tim Schadla-Hall and Prof. Stephen Shennan and to my secondary supervisor Dr. Ulrike Sommer. Their enthusiasm, experience and expertise in supervision have been invaluable, and their criticism and suggestions have guided and improved my research. I am grateful to my examiners Prof. Peter Rowley-Conwy from the University of Durham and Mr. Neal Ascherson from the Institute of Archaeology (UCL) for showing interest in my work. I received archival and documentary assistance from a number of people, most notably at the Federal Archive and the archive of the Archaeological State Museum of Schleswig-Holstein. In particular, I would like to thank Dr. Volker Hilberg at the Archaeological State Museum in Schleswig for introducing me to Herbert Jankuhn’s bequest. I am also grateful to Antje Wendt at the University of Kiel, who unearthed a number of important articles for me. I am indebted to Dr. Michael Gebühr (Archaeological State Museum of Schleswig- Holstein and University of Hamburg) and Dr. Heinrich Härke (University of Reading) for taking the time to talk to me about their teacher and Doktorvater. I greatly appreciated these conversations, which provided me with individual perspectives on Herbert Jankuhn’s work and personality. Friendships with the doctoral students – the ‘real archaeologists’ – at the Institute of Archaeology (UCL) have meant a lot to me. In particular, I would like to thank Jennifer Wexler, Meredith Wiggins, Claudia Zehrt, Gabe Moshenska, Dr. Claudia Glatz and Dr. Sarah Byrne. My past and present co-researchers in G7B have all been fantastic colleagues. 4 In addition, I am grateful to Dr. Paul Stock for helping me to brave a number of doctoral crises. Special thanks are due to my friend and flatmate Nick Johnstone, who has put up with me over the past few years. Dr. Alisa Miller and Dr. Anna Steinel kindly agreed to proofread my dissertation, for which I cannot thank them enough. Special thanks are also due to my godfather Dr. Günter Grosche, who has backed my research both morally and practically. I am immensely grateful to Malte. His affection, support and patience were and are priceless. Finally, I would like to thank my parents Barbara and Helmut Steinel. Without their belief in the value of research and education, this thesis would not have been written. 5 CONTENTS DECLARATION 2 ABSTRACT 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 4 CONTENTS 6 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 11 CHAPTER I: Introduction 13 1 Research questions and aims 13 2 Herbert Jankuhn’s academic and political curriculum vitae 15 2.1 1905-1945 15 2.2 1945-1990 21 3 Structure, sources and context 23 3.1 Thesis structure and outlook 23 3.2 Primary source description and provenance 26 3.3 Context and limitations 28 CHAPTER II: Historiographical and theoretical considerations 30 1 Archaeology and nationalism 32 1.1 Nationalism. Some origins and basic concepts 32 1.2 Origins of the relationship between archaeology and nationalism 36 1.3 Central characteristics of the relationship 39 2 Archaeology and National Socialism 42 2.1 Origins of the relationship between archaeology and National Socialism 42 6 2.2 Manifestations of the relationship 43 2.3 Approaches to the study of archaeological research during the National Socialist period 47 2.4 Long-term effects of the relationship 50 CHAPTER III: Herbert Jankuhn in the Schutzstaffel. The political and institutional background during the National Socialist period 52 1 The process of Gleichschaltung 54 2 SS-Ahnenerbe vs. Amt Rosenberg. The institutional organisation of archaeological research in Nazi Germany 58 3 Jankuhn’s activities on the western front. Brittany and the Bayeux Tapestry 62 3.1 Brittany. Megalithic monuments 62 3.2 Normandy. The Bayeux Tapestry 65 4 The Sonderkommando Jankuhn. Safeguarding prehistory in the Ukraine and the Caucasus 70 4.1 Origins of a mission 70 4.2 ‘Heritage conservation’ on the front line 74 4.3 Plunder or protection? Assessing the Sonderkommando Jankuhn and its commander 80 5 The aftermath. Herbert Jankuhn’s Denazification case 90 5.1 Jankuhn’s Denazification questionnaire 90 5.2 Jankuhn’s Persilscheine or character references 97 5.3 The official verdict 105 6 Summary and conclusions 108 7 CHAPTER IV: From Kossinna’s to Jankuhn’s ‘settlement- archaeology’. Changing research interests and methodologies in Herbert Jankuhn’s work 115 1 Gustaf Kossinna and the ‘settlement-archaeological’ method 116 2 Research interests and methods during the National Socialist period 121 2.1 The aims of pre- and protohistoric research and its relationship with history 121 2.2 The potential of pre- and protohistory. Jankuhn’s principal research questions in the 1930s and 40s 126 2.3 Basic parameters of pre- and protohistoric research in the 1930s and 40s 128 2.4 Jankuhn and Kossinna’s ‘settlement-archaeology’. An uneasy relationship 130 3 Research interests and methods in the post-war period 136 3.1 The aims of pre- and protohistoric research and its relationship with history 136 3.2 Post-war critique of Kossinna 139 3.3 The new ‘settlement-archaeology’ 142 4 Summary and conclusions 145 CHAPTER V: From Indogermanen to Vikings. Changing representations of German pre- and protohistory in Herbert Jankuhn’s work 151 1 Germanic ideologies in history 153 2 Important elements of Germanic imagery 157 3 One people? Indogermanen, Germanen, Vikings and Germans 164 3.1 The birth of the Germanen 164 3.2 Germanic culture and society in the Bronze and Iron Ages 172 8 3.3 Germanic political and territorial developments in the first millennium after Christ 185 4 Accounts of Germanic prehistory after National Socialism 195 4.1 Abandoning historical synthesis? 195 4.2 Post-war accounts of the Germanic ethnogenesis 198 4.3 Post-war depictions of the Bronze and Iron Ages in northern Europe 201 4.4 Post-war depictions of Roman-Germanic relations and the Viking Age 203 5 Summary and conclusions 208 CHAPTER VI: ‘Germanic town’ and ‘Viking Age trade centre’ Changing interpretations of Haithabu in Herbert Jankuhn’s work 216 1 A ‘Germanic town’. Depictions of Haithabu during National Socialism 218 1.1 Site location 218 1.2 Religious beliefs 220 1.3 Artistic traditions 229 1.4 The ethnic and racial character of Haithabu’s inhabitants 236 1.5 Haithabu’s standing in history 239 2 A ‘Viking Age trade centre’. Interpretations of Haithabu after 1945 245 2.1 Historical prerequisites for Haithabu’s development 245 2.2 Haithabu as an ‘intellectual mediator’ 247 2.3 Haithabu’s inhabitants 249 2.4 ‘Transformations of an historical image over half a century’ 252 3 Summary and conclusions 254 CHAPTER VII: Conclusion 259 9 BIBLIOGRAPHY 266 1 Unpublished material – Bundesarchiv, Berlin-Lichterfelde 266 2 Unpublished material – Archiv der Stiftung Schleswig- Holsteinische Landesmuseen, Schleswig 271 3 Unpublished material – Landesarchiv Schleswig-Holstein, Schleswig 274 4 Unpublished material – Universitätsarchiv der Humboldt- Universität zu Berlin, Berlin-Reinickendorf 275 5 Monographs and articles 276 6 Newspaper articles 302 APPENDIX I: German originals of indented quotes 303 APPENDIX II: Illustrations 314 10 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Ill.