Hitler's Bandit Hunters (75 page)

1
. Bellamy,
The Evolution of Land Warfare
, 18–20.

2
. Simpson, “The German Experience of Rear Area Security on the Eastern Front,” 43.

3
. The 1944 regulations, sections 72–79.

4
. PRO, HW 16/98, History of the German Police W/T Network, July 1945, 2.

5
. NARA, T353, roll 650, Kräftebereicht Stand vom June 1, 1943, HSSPF, June 3, 1943.

6
. BA-MA, RS4/1066, Auszug aus einem Bericht Ia der Kampfgruppe “Hannibal”: Major Friedrich Neumann, Ludwigshafen, April 1956.

7
. NARA, RG242, T-354, roll 650, Bataillons-Befehl für das Unternehmen “Hornung,” February 7, 1943.

8
. NARA, RG242, T175/81/2601501, Abschrift von SSPF Shitomir, Bandenbekämpfung, January 27, 1943.

9
. Ibid.

10
. Ruth Bettina Birn, “‘Zaunkoenig’ an ‘Uhrmacher.’ Grosse Partisanenaktionen 1942/ 43 am Beispiel des ‘Unternehmens Winterzauber,’” in
Militaergeschichtliche Zeitschrift
60 (2001), Heft 1, 99–118.

11
. Heer und Naumann et al,
Vernichtungskrieg, Verbrechen der Wehrmacht 1941 bis 1944
, 104–38.

12
. Gerlach,
Kalkulierte Morde
, 859–1055.

13
. NARA, RG242, T175/81/2601529, Meldung 2, August 24, 1942.

14
. USHMM, RS22.007M (State Archive of the Russian Federation Trophy Documents), Gefechtsbericht für des Unternehmen Zauberflöte, April 24, 1943. I would like to thank Nick Terry for providing a copy of this final report.

15
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 649, Unternehmen Zauberflöte, April 17–22, 1943.

16
. Richard Evans,
Rethinking German History: Nineteenth Century Germany and the Origins of the Third Reich
(London: Allen & Unwin, 1987), 248-90.

17
. Bessel, “Policing, Professionalization and Politics,” 201.

18
. Ibid.

19
. TVDB, 74.

20
. TVDB, 75. USHMM, RS22.007M, Gefechtsbericht für des Unternehmen Zauberflöte, April 24, 1943.

21
. TVDB, 76.

22
. BA-MA, RL20/302, Unternehmen Nasses Dreieck, May 5–16, 1943.

23
. Ibid.

24
. Ibid.

25
. Ibid.

26
. Ibid

27
. Ibid.

28
. Ibid.

29
. Ibid.

30
. TVDB, 76–7.

31
. Sidor A. Kovpak,
Our Partisan Course
(London: Hutchinson, 1947). The German after action files have survived and can be found in NARA, RG242, T175/222/2759715-865, Abschlussbericht über die Bekämpfung der Kolpak-Bände, September 2, 1943. Krüger to the army commander in the General-Government Hereinafter referred to as Krüger’s report to the army. Also BA-MA RL20/284, SS report to Luftwaffe commander in Lemberg.

32
. Armstrong (ed.),
Soviet Partisans
, 11; and O. A. Zarubinsky, “The ‘Red’ Partisan Movement in Ukraine During World War II: A Contemporary Assessment,”
The Journal of Slavic Military Studies
9 (June 1996), 399–416.

33
. Kovpak,
Our Partisan Course
, 115.

34
. BA-MA RL20/284, the SS report as administered by the Luftwaffe commander in Lemberg.

35
. Cajus Bekker, trans. Frank Ziegler,
The Luftwaffe War Diaries
(London: Stackpole Military History, 1972), 379–81.

36
. The Germans recorded Kovpak’s name as Kolpak. There was an Oberst Kolpak who commanded a German Freikorps Battalion in the Baltic, in 1919, Oertzen,
Freikorps
, 28.

37
. PRO, HW16/6, MSGP 49, September 9, 1942.

38
. Kovpak,
Our Partisan Course
, 115.

39
. Peter J. Potichnyj, “Pacification of Ukraine: Soviet Counterinsurgency, 1944–1956,” Conference paper, Russian Experience with counterinsurgency, University of New Brunswick, Center for Conflict Studies, October 1987.

40
. BZ-IMT, testimony, October 24, 1945.

41
. Birn, “Zaunkoenig”, 111.

42
. Ibid.

43
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 648, Kampfgruppe Kutschera, operational order for Unternehmen Franz, January 4, 1943.

44
. BA-MA, RL 20 302—Kriegstagebuch 3 Kdr. Fl. Bau 4/XIII—Commander Oberst Altermann 1943, documents, 63–4.

45
. Ibid.

46
. TVDB, 53. Walter Schellenberg confirmed this incident, explaining that Himmler’s long-serving Bavarian pilot had been warned not to go into a Russian village. He ignored the warnings and was, according to Schellenberg, killed by partisans in what was obviously a cruel manner.

47
. PRO, HW16/6, MSGP 36, July 17, 1942.

48
. PRO, HW35/42, German Police, July 24, 1942.

49
. MacLean,
The Cruel Hunters
, 61–2. Their corpses were cut up, mixed with horse meat, and boiled into soap.

50
. PRO, HS8-882, Vera Atkins. The women had been captured in Paris between June and November 1943 and sent to Natzweiler in May 1944.

51
. NARA, RG242, T175, roll 81, Übersicht über bisherige Anordnungen und Anregungen betr. Banenkinderunterbringung, July 13, 1943.

52
. NARA, RG242, T-354, roll 650, Bataillons-Befehl für das Unternehmen “Hornung,” February 7, 1943.

53
. IMT, R-135, letter from Reich Commissar for the Eastland to Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territory, June 18, 1943.

54
. Ibid.

55
. NARA, RG242, BDC, A3345-DS-J007, Himmler to Chef der Bandenkampfverbände, HSSPF Ukraine and HSSPF Russland-Mitte, July 10, 1943.

56
. NARA, RG242, T175, roll 21, Himmler to Kaltenbrunner, Chief of RSHA July 28, 1943.

57
. Ibid.

58
. Jürgen Förster, “The Relation between Barbarossa as an Ideological War of Extermination and the Final Solution,” in David Cesarani,
The Final Solution, Origins and Implementation
(London: Routledge, 1994), 97–8.

59
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 648, central document for the listing of casualties and results, 1943.

60
. Ibid., Tactics against Bandits, unnamed company commander, Dirlewanger Brigade, September 5, 1943.

61
. NARA, RG242, T175/70/2547404-750, Gefangenen-und Beutezahlen im
Unternehmen Sternlauf
, February 13, 1943.

62
. NARA, RG242, T175/70/2547404-750, Korpstagesbefehl, January 3-February 12, 1943.

63
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 649, Unternehmen Draufänger II, reports, May 1943.

64
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 649, Gefechtsbericht der Einsatzgruppe Dirlewanger fuer die zeit vom May 20-June 2, 1943 (June 25, 1943).

65
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 648, Monatliche Zusammenstellung der Verluste (feindliche und eigene) und Beute, July 12, 1943, HSSPF Russland-Mitte, Operations Officer.

66
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 648, HSSPF Russland-Mitte, Monatliche Zusammenstellung der Verluste (feindliche und eigene) und Beute, July 12, 1943.

67
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 649, Unternehmen Hermann reports.

68
. NARA, RG242, T175/81/2601501-2034, Letter from General Schmundt OKW to Himmler, March 15, 1943.

69
. NARA, RG242, T175/3/2503430-2, Dienstbesprechung der Befehlshaber und Inspekteure der Ordnungspolizei im Januar 1943 in Berlin.

70
. Absolon,
Die Wehrmacht
, VI, 489, and 789.

71
. Eric Lefebre and Jean de Lagarde, “Das Bandenkampfabzeichen 1944–1945,”
Internationales Militaria
, January 1999, 36–41.

72
. TVDB, 104.

73
. NARA, RG242, BDC A3343-SSO-24A, Curt von Gottberg.

74
. TVDB, 75.

75
. NCA, document, R-135, Results of police operation Cottbus, June 22-July 3, and June 5, 1943, 206–7.

76
. Ibid, letter from Hinrich Lohse to Alfred Rosenberg, June 18, 1943, 205.

77
. Ibid, Diary no. 3628/43, letter from Reichs Commissar for the Eastland, to Personal-Staff RFSS, June 18, 1943.

78
. IWM, USMT-11, Berger’s testimony, 6121.

79
. Ibid, Berger’s defence evidence, 6133–412.

80
. NARA, RG242, BDC, A3345-OSS-202A, Ernst Korn. NARA, RG242/18/2521387, Korn’s request was acknowledged by Himmler, June 1, 1943.

81
. NARA, RG242, BDC, A3345-OSS-202A, Generalmajor Klinger, Kommandeur der Schutzpolizei, Hauptamt Ordnungspolizei, May 17, 1943.

82
. NARA, RG238, M1019, roll 37. Korn remained in this position until September 14, 1943, when replaced by his assistant Leutnant Steudle.

83
. PRO, HW16/6, MSGP 55, April 13, 1944. Korn sent a signal that was intercepted by the British on March 10, 1944, when he was chief of staff of the
Bandenstab Croatia
.

84
. TVDB, 80.

85
. NARA, RG242, BDC, A3345-OSS-202A Gerrett Korsemann. PRO, HW16/6, MSGP 40, October 1–31, 1942, one of the many personal messages from Korsemann to Himmler, this time wishing him a happy birthday, November 9, 1942.

86
. NARA, RG238, M1270/26/798, Ernst Rode interrogation report, October 22, 1945, Annex II Rode’s relationship with Himmler.

87
. PRO, HW16/100, Waffen SS decode reports, November 1, 1943. Also refer to TVDB, 91.

88
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 649, Unternehmen Zauberflöte, April 17–22, 1943.

89
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 649, Erfahrungsbericht “Unternehmen Günther,” July 14, 1943.

90
. TVDB, 79–80; and BA-KA, the photographic collection, Koblenz.

91
. PRO, HW16/6, MSGP 33, March 17, 1942.

92
. Broszat and Krausnick,
Anatomy of the SS State
, 346–7: A copy of the original can be found on NARA, RG242, T175, roll 38, with the subsequent correspondence.

93
. NARA, RG242, T175/38/2548284, Letter Herf to Herff, July 21, 1943. Herff continued, “The success now is that I can request everyone to report, no matter if Bach-Zelewski is about or not. This changes the position 380 degrees. I am free again from this business of fraud.”

94
. NARA, RG242, T175/38/2548288, letter, Herf to Herff, July 29, 1943.

95
. Herff left office, believing his honor remained intact.

96
. TVDB, 81.

97
. Ibid, 82.

98
. Manfred Messerschmidt, “Der Minsker Process 1946,” in Heer and Naumann (eds.),
Vernichtungskrieg
, 551–68; Alexander Victor Prusin, “‘Fascist Criminals to the Gallows!’: The Holocaust and Soviet War Crimes Trials, December 1945–February 1946,”
Holocaust and Genocide Studies
17 (2003), 1–30; and Eric Haberer, “The German Police and Genocide in Belorussia, 1941–1944,”
Journal of Genocide Research
3 (2001), 23–24.

99
. NARA, RG242, T354, roll 648, HSSPF Russland-Mitte, Monatliche Zusammenstellung der Verluste (feindliche und eigene) und Beute, July 12, 1943.

100
. Gerald Reitlinger,
The Final Solution: The Attempt to Exterminate the Jews of Europe
(New York: Perpetua Edition, 1961), 287-90. See also PRO, WO208-4295, Report on German atrocities in Eastern Europe, M.I.9, July 6, 1944.

101
. BA-MA RW41/4 letter from Kluge to Schenckendorff’s wife.

102
. NARA, BDC, A3343-SS0-24A, Curt von Gottberg.