[MARCH 16, 1911–1979]

Notorious Nazi war criminal known as the "Angel of Death."

Born March 16, 1911, to Karl and Walburga Mengele, Josef Mengele grew up in Gunzburg Germany. His father, an engineer, owned a foundry and manufactured farm equipment for milling, wood sawing, and straw cutting. These enterprises formed the base of the Mengele family fortune that ultimately supported Mengele when he became a fugitive. Josef was raised in a devout Catholic home, passed his high school exams in April 1930 and by October had enrolled at Munich University as a student of philosophy and medicine, with a focus in anthropology and human genetics.

In Munich, Mengele became enamored with the Nazi Party and joined the military. At the rank of Unstersturmfuhrer (sub lieutenant), he was first posted to the Ukraine. His next military assignment was to the Geological Section of the Race and Resettlement Office. This was a...