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D-IX

Methamphetamine-based drug used in Nazi Germany

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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 30, 2026
Entity authorityQ1151289
Source-derived summary

D-IX is a methamphetamine-based experimental performance enhancer developed by Nazi Germany in 1944 for military application. The researcher who rediscovered this project, Wolf Kemper, said, "the aim was to use D-IX to redefine the limits of human endurance." One dose contained 5 mg oxycodone (brand name Eukodal, an analgesic opioid), 5 mg cocaine, and 3 mg methamphetamine (brand name Pervitin).

German doctors were enthusiastic about the results, and planned to supply all German troops with the pills, but the war ended before D-IX could be put into mass production, though it did see limited use among a handful of Neger and Biber pilots.

History

Due to increased Allied pressure on the German war effort, Nazi Germany had grown desperate for more soldiers, and one way to mitigate the massive losses was to increase the combative power of existing Wehrmacht soldiers. Though simpler drugs, such as Pervitin and Isophan, helped to keep soldiers stimulated, in March 1944, Vice Admiral Hellmuth Heye requested a drug that could also give users superhuman strength and a boosted sense of self-esteem.

Pharmacologist Gerhard Orzechowski, and a group of other researchers, were commissioned to develop the drug in Kiel, and by later that year, had developed a formula that contained, in each tablet, 5 mg of oxycodone, 5 mg of cocaine, and 3 mg of methamphetamine.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “D-IX” as methamphetamine-based drug used in Nazi Germany. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around D-IX, Methamphetamine-based and drug.

Editorial reviewA dependable orientation record for establishing vocabulary, names and a first evidence trail. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1944—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1944. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with D-IX, Methamphetamine-based and drug providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “D-IX”, the useful work is to connect “methamphetamine-based drug used in Nazi Germany” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 30, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1151289. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1944.

Critical limits

A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from D-IX” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.