serviceyears laterwork branch death_place birth_place allegiance awards rank image article_title name
1914-1916 '' 1982 -rrb- am kreuzweg der welten '' -lrb- berlin , german sanitary corps rome , italy elberfeld wuppertal , germany german empire iron cross second lieutenant file : armintwegner1890s.jpg armin t. wegner
 armin t. wegner
armin t. wegner

armin theophil wegner -lrb- october 16 , 1886 -- may 17 , 1978 -rrb- was a german soldier and medic in world war i , a prolific author , and a human rights activist .
stationed in the ottoman empire during world war i , wegner was a witness to the armenian genocide and the photographs he took documenting the plight of the armenians today `` comprises the core of witness images of the genocide . ''
in the years following the end of world war i , wegner also voiced his opposition , at great risk to his own life , against the anti-semitic policies of the nazis .
in 1933 , he authored an impassioned plea to adolf hitler on behalf of the jews of germany .
he suggested that the persecution of the jews was not just a question of `` the fate of our jewish brothers alone , also the fate of germany . ''
noting that he was writing the letter as a proud german who could himself trace his prussian familial roots back to the time of the crusades , wegner asked hitler what would become of germany if it continued its persecution of jews .
answering his own question , wegner declared , `` there is no fatherland without justice ! ''
he was persecuted by the nazis and , for his efforts , is recognized by yad vashem as righteous among the nations .
