The Breda Four (Dutch: Vier van Breda), later known as The Breda Three (Dutch: Drie van Breda) and subsequently The Breda Two (Dutch: Twee van Breda), were the last four imprisoned German war criminals in the Netherlands following the Second World War. The group consisted of Willy Lages, Joseph Kotalla, Ferdinand aus der Fünten, and Franz Fischer. They were incarcerated in the Koepelgevangenis in Breda, which inspired their collective name. From the 1960s onward, calls for their release—supported in part by the West German government—were made, and multiple Dutch ministers considered granting clemency. However, these attempts consistently triggered social unrest and political opposition.

Lages was released in 1966, and died in 1971. Kotalla died in prison in 1979. Aus der Fünten and Fischer were released in 1989 and both died the same year.^[1]

Willy Lages was head of the Central Agency for Jewish Emigration in Amsterdam and therefore responsible for the deportation of Jews to Poland and Germany. He also responsible for the execution of resistance fighters.^[2]

Ferdinand aus der Fünten also worked at the Central Agency for Jewish Emigration in Amsterdam and was in charge of daily management, similarly responsible for the deportation.^[2]

Franz Fischer led the deportations in The Hague and was responsible for finding Jews in hiding.^[2]

Joseph Kotalla was head of administration and camp guard at Kamp Amersfoort. He was nicknamed the Executioner of Amersfoort for the many cruelties he committed.^[2]

The four were among the 241 Germans tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Netherlands after the Second World War. Six were sentenced to life imprisonment, while eighteen received the death penalty, of whom five were executed. Four individuals were convicted in absentia and never apprehended. The sentences of the remaining nine were commuted.^[3]

The Breda Four were among the nine prisoners on death row whose sentences were commuted to life imprisonment. In the case of Kotalla, the commutation was based on grounds of diminished responsibility. The other three had submitted clemency requests, which Queen Juliana of the Netherlands refused to deny, as she opposed the death penalty. Faced with no other option, Minister of Justice Teun Struycken commuted the sentences of Kotalla, Aus der Fünten, and Fischer to life imprisonment, while postponing the execution of Lages. Struycken anticipated that the prisoners would serve a maximum of 20 years in prison. His successor, Leen Donker, similarly commuted Lages' sentence in 1952.^[1] This decision sparked social unrest, with a protest in Amsterdam involving 15,000 to 20,000 demonstrators opposing the commutation.^[2] The remaining prisoners initially sentenced to death were released in 1959 and 1960.^[3]

In 1963, two progressive criminal law experts pleaded for the release of the four prisoners.^[3] Minister of Justice Albert Beerman (CHU) attempted to put release on the parliamentary agenda in the beginning of 1963, but failed.^[4]

In May 1966,^[2] Willy Lages was diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and doctors did not expect him to survive surgery.^[4] Minister of Justice Ivo Samkalden of the PvdA granted him a three-month suspension of his sentence to receive treatment in Germany. He was transferred to a hospital in Braunlage on 9 June. This decision came at a time when there was increased attention on wartime events, particularly regarding the Holocaust.^[5] Samkalden's decision sparked protests, especially in Amsterdam. His own party was particularly divided, with some Jewish members of the PvdA expressing disbelief that the Jewish Samkalden had made this decision. Despite the unrest, the decision was accepted by the coalition parties.^[6]

Less than a month later, Samkalden was informed that Lages did not have colorectal cancer, but another disease which was life threatening, but not acutely fatal. He was however not able to imprison Lages again, because of Lages' medical condition and the fact that the West-German constitution did not allow extradition. Another protest was held in Amsterdam and a debate in the House of Representatives, where he kept the support of the coalition parties and the CHU.^[7] Lages was released from the hospital in November 1966, but stayed in Braunlage, where he died in 1971.^[8] His release contributed to the rejection of a legislative amendment which would have made it possible for those imprisoned for life to be release on parole.^[3]

At the end of the 1960s, the three remaining prisoners again request clemency. Minister of Justice Carel Polak was planning to, but abandoned this after the Supreme Court of the Netherlands advised against.^[1]

Polak's successor, Dries van Agt sent a letter to the House of Representatives, in which he indicated his intention to release the three prisoners. By sending the letter beforehand, he wanted to avoid presenting the House with a fait accompli and furthermore asked for advice. At first, a majority of the House indicated that they would support his decision. Before the debate, a hearing was held on 24 February 1972, in which resistance members and victims spoke out about a possible release. A majority of the speakers opposed release and a majority of the House was swayed.^[9] A thirteen-hour debate was held on 29 February 1972.^[3] A motion by Joop Voogd (PvdA), which said the cabinet should not execute their plan to release the prisoners, passed after the debate with 85 votes in favour and 61 against.^[1]

In 1977, German war criminal Herbert Kappler escaped prison and died a year later, making The Breda Three the last imprisoned Germans for crimes in the Second World War in West-Europe.^[10] Kotalla died in 1979.

Minister of Justice Frits Korthals Altes and his party, the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, had always opposed clemency. However around 1988 he changed his mind, arguing that it might be better for the victims if they were released, so the publicity would not resurface every time clemency was discussed. Korthals Altes would later also say that the decisive reason was that the intensive individual medical care they received, did not belong in a prison. To find a reason for clemency, he requested medical examination, which however provided no reason.^[2]

Around the same time, 5 July 1988, Korthals Altes and Prime Minister Ruud Lubbers received a letter pleading for the release of the two. It was signed by nineteen (prominent) Dutch people, including resistance member Bib van Lanschot and former minister Samkalden.^[a] During a debate in January 1989 about the proposed release, Korthals Altes referred to the letter.^[2] The House of Representatives supported the release.^[3] On 27 January 1989, Fischer and Aus der Fünten were released and dropped by an ambulance across the border near Venlo as unwanted aliens.^[2][3]

The Breda Four received support from the West German government starting in the 1960s. They were provided with legal assistance from three lawyers, allowances, and magazine subscriptions. The German government raised the issue of their release in bilateral meetings. Public support also grew in Germany, with leaflets distributed at the border and hundreds of thousands of signatures collected in petitions calling for their release.^[12]

• Bijzonder Gerechtshof

• Van Kessel, Alexander; Adriaanse, Mirjam; Leenders, Marij; Verberne, Teun (2010). "Immateriële zaken: Bijlmer - Numerus clausus - Oorlogsdossiers". In Van der Heiden, Peter; Van Kessel, Alexander (eds.). Rondom de Nacht van Schmelzer: De kabinetten-Marijnen, -Cals en -Zijlstra 1963-1967 (in Dutch). Boom. ISBN 978-94-6105-362-6.

• Bohr, Felix (2018). Die Kriegsverbrecherlobby : bundesdeutsche Hilfe für im Ausland inhaftierte NS-Täter (in German). Suhrkamp Verlag. ISBN 978-3-518-42840-5.
• Hinke, Piersma (2005). De Drie Van Breda : Duitse oorlogsmisdadigers in Nederlandse gevangenschap, 1945-1989 (in Dutch). Balans. ISBN 978-90-5018-661-2.