Capt Victor Cross, a former British soldier, played a crucial role in capturing Rudolf Höss, the commander of Auschwitz concentration camp, at the end of World War Two. This important piece of history was unknown to his children until after his death. Capt Cross, who worked in the family leather business in Northampton before the war, joined the British Army Intelligence Corps when World War Two broke out. Fluent in German, he was sent to Germany to capture escaped Nazis. After five months of investigations, Capt Cross and his team finally arrested Höss, who had been living under an alias. Höss admitted his true identity and provided information about his role in the genocide of millions of Jewish people. Capt Cross described him as one of the major war criminals responsible for exterminating Jews. Höss was later sentenced to death and hanged in April 1947. Capt Cross never spoke to his children about his wartime experiences, but after his death, they discovered the significant role he played in capturing Höss. His son, William, now 71, recalls finding memorabilia and a Swastika flag among his father’s belongings. Capt Cross donated the handcuffs he used in the arrest to the Military Intelligence Museum. His children were unaware of their father’s involvement until they went through his belongings after his death. The story of Capt Victor Cross’s role in capturing Rudolf Höss can be seen in the BBC documentary “Rise of the Nazis: The Manhunt.”
Heroic Northampton Shoemaker Exposes Auschwitz Commander’s Crimes
