Hermann Göring’s second wife, Emmy Göring (born Emma Sonnemann), survived the war and lived until 1973; she was not executed or killed but went from being one of the most privileged women in Nazi Germany to a poor, disgraced widow under denazification restrictions.

Who was “Hermann Göring’s wife”?

There are two main women people mean when they ask what happened to “Hermann Göring’s wife”:

  • His first wife , Carin von Kantzow (Carin Göring), who died in 1931, before the Nazi regime came to power.
  • His second wife , the actress Emmy Sonnemann , who became Emmy Göring after their 1935 marriage and effectively acted as a regime “First Lady” in propaganda.

Most modern discussions and “what happened to…” pieces are about Emmy, because she lived through the collapse of the Third Reich and its aftermath.

What happened to Emmy Göring after 1945?

After Germany’s defeat, Emmy’s glamorous life collapsed almost overnight.

  • In the last days of the war, she and her young daughter Edda were with Göring at Obersalzberg, then fell into American custody and were interned in an officers’ camp-hotel used for high-ranking prisoners and families.
  • While Hermann Göring was tried at Nuremberg, Emmy remained intensely loyal, praised his courtroom performance, and defended both him and Hitler even after their deaths.
  • After Göring’s conviction and suicide in 1946, she became officially the “widow of a war criminal” and was targeted by denazification courts in postwar Germany.

Denazification and legal penalties

Emmy was arrested more than once and examined by denazification tribunals:

  • She was interned, questioned, and later tried as a prominent Nazi supporter rather than a passive spouse.
  • Courts confiscated a substantial part of her remaining property (including claims on looted art and luxury goods originally acquired through Nazi plunder).
  • She received a ban on public work, especially on the stage and in cultural life, and faced strict limits on media appearances and public roles.

One contemporary press report in 1947 already described “Goering’s widow” being arrested and processed in the denazification system, reflecting how prominently she was viewed as part of the former regime.

Her later life and death

Once the legal process and bans had run their course, Emmy lived quietly and in much reduced circumstances:

  • She lost Carinhall and other estates, along with most of the wealth and artwork that had surrounded her during the Third Reich.
  • She eventually settled in a modest flat in Munich, living with chronic health problems and little money, far removed from her former status as “First Lady” of the regime.
  • Despite this, accounts note that she remained unrepentant, nostalgic for the Nazi era, and unwavering in her admiration for her husband.

Emmy Göring died in 1973, having spent roughly three postwar decades as a marginal, stigmatized figure rather than a public personality.

What about his first wife, Carin?

If you were thinking of his first wife, Carin Göring :

  • She died in 1931 (before Hitler took power), reportedly from heart disease and complications related to long-term illness.
  • Hermann Göring turned her memory into a kind of personal cult; he built the Carinhall estate and a mausoleum for her remains.
  • At the end of the war, Carinhall was blown up on Göring’s orders; her grave was disturbed, and her remains were moved multiple times, with later investigations using DNA to confirm remains associated with her in Sweden.

So, in summary: his first wife died before the Nazi regime, and his second wife, Emmy, survived the war but lived the rest of her life as a punished, impoverished, and still-ideological widow of a major war criminal.

Mini FAQ: “What happened to Hermann Göring’s wife?” (SEO-style)

  • Did Hermann Göring’s wife survive the war?
    Yes. Emmy Göring survived World War II, was arrested and denazified, and died in 1973.
  • Was she imprisoned as a Nazi?
    She was interned and processed by denazification courts, receiving property confiscation and professional bans rather than a long prison sentence.
  • Did she lose her wealth and status?
    Most of the vast wealth and luxury she enjoyed during the Third Reich was confiscated or lost; she ended life in relative poverty in a small Munich apartment.
  • Was she remorseful?
    Sources describe her as loyal and nostalgic, continuing to defend Hermann Göring and the Nazi leadership rather than expressing genuine remorse.

TL;DR: If you’re searching “what happened to Hermann Goering’s wife” or looking for the latest forum and documentary discussions, the core answer is that Emmy Göring went from being a richly pampered Nazi “First Lady” to a denazified, largely penniless and socially shunned widow who lived quietly until her death in 1973, never really renouncing her support for her husband or the regime.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.