Marinus van der Lubbe

Employed in his youth as a bricklayer in the Netherlands, van der Lubbe suffered a debilitating accident in 1926, leaving him unemployed. He soon joined the Dutch Communist Party and planned to emigrate to the Soviet Union, but lacked the funds to do so. Instead, he went to Germany, where he was active in the local communists battles with the Nazis.

Van der Lubbe was beheaded after his arrest and trial on January 10, 1934, just three days before his twenty-fifth birthday. For details, refer to the Reichstag fire page.