Some crimes are so heartbreaking or shocking, they change laws, change society, or even

earn the label, Crime of the Century. But the stories that made headlines and decades past

aren't necessarily remembered today. I'm Amber Hunt, a journalist

and author, and in each episode of this show, I'll examine a case that's maybe lesser known today,

but was huge when it happened. This is Crimes of the Centuries.

Thank you. This is Crimes of the history of the... that of a man I had never heard of, Horst Vessel. Now, maybe that makes me a bit less educated

about the history of the Second World War and then I thought, but I'm going to guess I wasn't

alone there. That's because Horst Vessel mattered deeply to those who believed in the National Socialist

Party, but is pretty well wiped off the German and world map today.

When Vessel's name came up after Kirk's death, I needed to understand why.

And look, I want to be clear here, I'm not likening the men as some folks did online.

That's not my comparison to make.

But when a Nazi martyr's name starts popping up in connection with modern

political violence, that's exactly the kind of rabbit hole I dive down. I don't like not

knowing things, especially when the thing I don't know involves one of history's darkest chapters.

So that's why writer Amy Wilson and I decided that we wanted to understand

who this guy was and why his story matters now. If you were like us, you might have looked

up, Vessel, after Kirk's death, and if so, one of the first things you likely encountered

was a song. Very soon after his death, the lyrics he wrote for a patriotic,

soul-stirring song about being ready to fight for the fatherland became required playless fodder

for any Nazi party gathering, any march, any propaganda film, and soon enough, any German

classroom or schoolyard, and any time

...