As the leader of the SS, Heinrich Himmler was involved in numerous war crimes. The murder of Jews, Roma and Sinti, and political opponents took place under his responsibility.
In April 1945, when the war was almost over, Himmler tried to escape punishment by negotiating with the Allies. In exchange for the German surrender, he demanded immunity. The Allies refused and put him on the list of wanted war criminals.
Himmler then assumed a false identity. On 22 May 1945, British soldiers arrested him at a border check. His brand-new passport and nervous behaviour gave him away. Himmler was sent to a prison camp for questioning. The next day, he announced his identity. During a medical check-up, he suddenly bit through a cyanide capsule that had been hidden in his mouth. Fifteen minutes later, the poison had killed him. His body was buried in an anonymous grave on the Lüneburger Heath.