Adolf Hitler's bodyguard
When Hitler returned to Munich from military service in 1918, he became a member of the Nazi Party, an extremist far-right political party in Bavaria. In 1921, he was elected leader of the party. As his speeches promoted violence and racism, Hitler needed permanent security.
Ernst Schmidt
Schmidt was an eager member of Hitlerjugend and served as a soldier on the easternt front during the Second World War. After being taken prisoner of war, he attended a Comintern indoctrination school in the Soviet Union and became a fanatical stalinist prior to his return to Germany. After the war, he joined the Communist Party of Germany, which was banned by the West German government in 1956. In the 1950s, Schmidt was one of the publishers of the newspaper "Der Ruhrbote", which supported the then-banned Communist Party. For this reason he was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment for anti-constitutional activities. He served six months and was released on parole. In 1968 he joined the German Communist Party.