Among the papers of Rudolf Tomaschek (1895-1966) I discovered a 30-page typescript from 1944 by his then assistant Hugo Watzlawek (1912-1995) entitled "Interatomare Energie". Nowadays one would rather say 'inneratomic energy' or 'nuclear energy' since the typescript treats issues of nuclear engineering including its potential military uses. It presents an unfiltered, surprisingly informed view into the technocratic mindset, state of knowledge and application horizon of a "technical nuclear physicist" in the Third Reich. Watzlawek in 1944 urgently petitions for more funding for research in nuclear physics and technology, citing analogous research underway in America. The present paper places the typescript within its historical and technical context. My succinctly annotated transcription of the original text-also made freely available online-provides full accessibility to this document.
Keywords: Herbert Wagner; Hugo Watzlawek; National Socialism; Nuclear weapons development; Rudolf Tomaschek; Technical nuclear physics and its military applications.