ended in divorce in 1931, due to his infidelity. On 25 May 1936, Koch married Ilse Koch (née Margarete Ilse Köhler), with whom he had a son and two daughters. Ilse later became known as "The Witch of Buchenwald" (Die Hexe von Buchenwald), usually rendered in English as "The Bitch of Buchenwald." When Koch was transferred to Buchenwald, Ilse was appointed an Oberaufseherin (overseer) by the SS and thus had an active, official role in the atrocities committed there. She was known for extreme cruelty towards prisoners. See also Buchenwald Resistance Phil Lamason, Allied airman taken to Buchenwald Notes and references Benoît Cazenave, L’exemplarité du commandant SS Karl Otto Koch, Revue de la Fondation Auschwitz, Bruxelles, 2005. 1897 births 1945 deaths Military personnel from Darmstadt Holocaust perpetrators in Germany Holocaust perpetrators in Poland German prisoners of war in World War I World War I prisoners of war held by the United Kingdom Buchenwald concentration camp personnel People executed by Nazi Germany by firing squad People from the Grand Duchy of Hesse SS-Standartenführer Executed German people Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class Majdanek concentration camp personnel Sachsenhausen concentration camp personnel People from Hesse executed in Nazi concentration camps Nazis executed by Nazi Germany SS personnel German people who died in Buchenwald concentration camp Schutzhaftlagerführer Lichtenburg concentration camp personnel Nazis executed by firing squad Executed Nazi concentration camp commandants Nazis convicted of war crimes People executed for war crimes Executed mass murderers People convicted of embezzlement German Army personnel of World War I