Hans Rehberg, who started his career as a playwright at the age of twenty-nine, was productive for more than three decades. After 1945 Rehberg's dramatic works were linked to National Socialist (Nazi) ideology. The Nazis, however, had registered the prolific dramatist early on as a controversial figure; when critics prevented Rehberg from rebuilding his career after World War II neither the misgivings of the Nazi regime about him nor Rehberg's theatrical achievements were taken into proper consideration.

Rehberg was born on 25 December 1901 in Posen, the capital of the West Prussian province of the same name (it is now in Poland). Rehberg married Maria Ohly; the couple had six children: Maria, Katharina, Nikolaus, Till, Friedrich, and Hans-Michael. Hans-Michael became a successful stage actor during the 1970s and 1980s. In 1930 Rehberg became a member of the Nazi party.

Rehberg's first play, Cecil Rhodes premiered in Bochum on 8 March 1930. It focuses on...