Dolibois, John Ernest (01018596)

John Ernest Dolibois
Personal details
Birth name	Jean Ernst Dolibois
Born	4 December 1918 Bonnevoie, Luxembourg
Died	2 May 2014 Cincinnati, Ohio
Nativity	Luxembourg
Religion	Catholic
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army
Arm / service	Cavalry
ASN	01018596
Rank	Second Lieutenant
Camp Ritchie	Class 18 (13 April – 10 June 1944)
Section	5D

Interview Watch John Ernest Dolibois on Public Library of Cincinnati.

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John Ernest Dolibois (born Jean Ernst Dolibois; 4 December 1918–2 May 2014) was a Luxembourg-born U.S. Army interrogator associated with Camp Ritchie. He trained with Class 18, taught interrogation there, and after the German surrender questioned high-ranking Nazi prisoners at Mondorf-les-Bains (Ashcan) for the Nuremberg trials. He later served as United States Ambassador to Luxembourg.

Biography

John Ernest Dolibois was born Jean Ernst Dolibois on 4 December 1918 in Bonnevoie, Luxembourg, shortly after the armistice. His mother died of the influenza pandemic soon after his birth. An older sister married an American soldier from the First World War occupation after a long correspondence and settled in Akron, Ohio. In 1931, at thirteen, Dolibois and his father followed her. He arrived speaking no English and was placed in kindergarten, then moved up quickly. He later credited the Boy Scouts with his Americanization, became an Eagle Scout, graduated from North High School in Akron, and in 1942 earned a bachelor's degree in psychology at Miami University, where he was a member of Beta Theta Pi.

The Army took him in 1942 but at first ignored his French and German. When he asked for military intelligence, a recruiter asked whether he had driven a truck, then a tank. He was sent to Fort Knox as a tank driver and then to cooks-and-bakers school. After about eighteen months the Army sent him to Officer Candidate School. He later said General George Patton presented his commission. Fluent in German, he was transferred to Camp Ritchie and trained with Class 18 (13 April – 10 June 1944). He stayed on as an instructor, teaching interrogation, German organization, and Nazi leadership to classes that ran about two months. He later specialized in strategic interrogation of high-ranking prisoners.

Dolibois shipped to Europe in early 1945, landing in Scotland, then Paris and Le Havre. In the Ardennes he did detailed interrogation, identifying prisoners worth sending to specialized intelligence centers. After Germany's surrender he was assigned to Mondorf-les-Bains, Luxembourg, the secret Allied detention center code-named Ashcan, in the country where he had been born. He was one of five military-intelligence officers who interrogated senior German military and political prisoners held there, including Hermann Göring and Julius Streicher, work used in preparing the Nuremberg prosecutions. He later recalled Göring as charismatic and unpredictable, with a small black joke book. At the Nuremberg trials Dolibois served as interpreter for the prison psychiatrist and worked with the Nazi prisoners. Rudolf Hess he met only there; Hess claimed total amnesia, even when placed in a room with Göring. Dolibois was promoted to captain in January 1946 and returned to the United States in May 1946.

After a brief career with Procter & Gamble, Dolibois returned to Miami University in 1947 as alumni secretary and rose to vice president, serving from 1967 until 1981. He was instrumental in establishing the university's campus in Luxembourg in 1968, renamed the Miami University Dolibois European Center in his honor in 1988, and he often spoke to students and other audiences about Nuremberg. President Ronald Reagan named him United States Ambassador to Luxembourg on 6 August 1981, and he served until 1985. Grand Duke Jean awarded him the Order of the Oak Crown in 1987. His autobiography, Pattern of Circles: An Ambassador's Story, was published by Kent State University Press in 1989. He died in Cincinnati, Ohio, on 2 May 2014.

Research notes

• OSS
• Ambassador

Gallery

• 
  Nazi leader Hermann Göring in the Nuremberg prison awaiting trial. Göring was interrogated by Ritchie Boy John E. Dolibois
• 
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Technical record

Field	Imported value
Approx Age at Death	96
Class_ASN	18596
Class_Name	DOLIBOIS, John E.
match_method	asn_partial_name_exact
row_source	both

Timeline

• 4 December 1918 — Born Jean Ernst Dolibois in Bonnevoie, Luxembourg.
• 1931 — Immigrated with his father to Akron, Ohio, following his sister.
• 1942 — Graduated from Miami University (psychology); entered the Army.
• 1942–1943 — Fort Knox (tank driver) and cooks-and-bakers school; languages initially unused.
• c. 1944 — Officer Candidate School; later said General Patton presented his commission.
• 13 April – 10 June 1944 — Camp Ritchie Class 18; then instructor in interrogation and German organization.
• Early 1945 — To Europe via Scotland, Paris, and Le Havre; detailed interrogation in the Ardennes.
• 1945–1946 — Nuremberg-related interrogation work, including a later meeting with Rudolf Hess.
• May 1945 — Assigned to Ashcan at Mondorf-les-Bains, Luxembourg; interrogated high-ranking prisoners including Hermann Göring.
• January 1946 — Promoted to captain.
• May 1946 — Returned to the United States.
• 1947 — Returned to Miami University as alumni secretary; vice president 1967–1981.
• 1968 — Helped establish Miami University's Luxembourg campus (renamed the Dolibois European Center in 1988).
• 1981–1985 — United States Ambassador to Luxembourg.
• 1987 — Order of the Oak Crown (Luxembourg).
• 1989 — Autobiography Pattern of Circles published.
• 2 May 2014 — Died in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Sources

• John E. Dolibois, Pattern of Circles: An Ambassador's Story (Kent State University Press, 1989)
• Public Library of Cincinnati interview (watchlist card)
• Public Library of Cincinnati interview with John Dolibois on YouTube
• Zekelman Holocaust Center oral-history index (lists John E. Dolibois — Library Archive holding; not an Oral History Department recording with public online player)
• The American Israelite, 16 November 1995 (RB Archive clippings)
• Miami University — John Dolibois / MUDEC history
• Wikipedia — John E. Dolibois
• Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data
• Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records
• NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
• 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)
• Ritchie Boys of WWII Facebook page, post dated 2019-08-02 (1 post)
• Ritchie Boys of WWII Facebook page, post dated 2021-06-03 (1 post)
• Ritchie Boys of WWII Facebook page, post dated 2023-01-15 (1 post)
• Dan Gross, Timeline of John E. Dolibois for Camp Ritchie (private research document; 1 source documents reviewed)
• Dan Gross, Timeline of Dolibois, John E. for Camp Ritchie (private research files; selected non-private narrative findings; 1 source files: JOHN E. DOLIBOIS.doc)