The Ahnenerbe: The Nazi Branch That Searched for Atlantis and Found Nothing
Have you ever thought about what the Nazis were up to apart from invading countries, discriminating against certain groups, and starting wars? Well, some of them were bizarrely obsessed with finding the mythical lost city of Atlantis, as mentioned by Plato. But why were they so hung up on a place that might not exist? And did they find anything?
It all boils down to the Nazis’ twisted belief in racial superiority. They claimed that a pure and superior race called the Aryans once lived in Atlantis. According to them, these Aryans spread their culture worldwide before the island sank. The Nazis believed these Aryans were the ancestors of the Germanic people and felt they had a divine mission to restore their glory.
Despite no evidence backing these ideas, the Nazis went ahead. They even cooked up some fake scholarship and propaganda to support their claims. Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS and a close buddy of Hitler, played a significant role in pushing this fantasy. Himmler set up a particular branch called the Ahnenerbe to dig into the origins and history of the Aryan race.
The Ahnenerbe spent lots of money on expeditions worldwide, searching for clues and artifacts about the Aryans and Atlantis. They explored Tibet, India, Scandinavia, Iceland, and Antarctica. On top of that, they dabbled in ancient texts, symbols, and relics like runes, swastikas, and the Holy Grail, all hoping to find proof that the Aryans once ruled these lands and left behind some secrets the Nazis could use.
One expedition to Tibet in 1938–1939 led by zoologist Ernst Schäfer was particularly wild. While officially claiming to study the region’s plants and animals, the real goal was to find traces of the Aryan civilization and its connection to Atlantis. Although they found nothing, the expedition was a big propaganda win, making Tibet a mystical land. The Nazis spun the material to make themselves look like heirs to ancient wisdom, trying to justify their expansionist and racist moves.
Himmler’s obsession with Atlantis reached tiny Heligoland, a North Sea island. He believed it was an “Aryan Atlantis” and dreamed of snatching it back from the British, turning it into a holy spot for the SS. But Hitler shut that plan down in 1940, saying it wasn’t a top priority. Himmler kept chasing Atlantis until the war’s end when the Allies caught up with him.
Himmler went on a wild goose chase for Atlantis but came up empty-handed. His obsession led to a waste of resources, exploitation, and harm to those caught up in it. The takeaway here? Stay skeptical of folks who mess with history to fit their agendas, embrace the diversity of cultures, and remember that if Atlantis did exist, it wasn’t a paradise but more of a cautionary tale. As Plato wrote,
But afterward, there occurred violent earthquakes and floods, and in a single day and night of misfortune, all your warlike men in a body sank into the earth, and the island of Atlantis, in like manner, disappeared in the depths of the sea.
