Cambridge University Press Niemandsland: A History of Unoccupied Germany, Gareth Pritchard Frontmatter More information

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1 Niemandsland Niemandsland is the untold story of the largest and most enduring of the unoccupied enclaves that survived after Germany s invasion and occupation by Allied forces in Sandwiched between American and Red Army lines, the 500,000 inhabitants were cut off from the outside world and left to fend for themselves in the face of crippling shortages of food, fuel and housing. charts how groups of Communists, Socialists and antifascists came together to form antifascist committees which seized power and set about restoring order, ensuring the supply of food and essential services and hunting down, disarming and arresting fugitive Nazis. This is not only a fascinating history in its own right, but it also sheds important new light on the fate of Germany after Only in Niemandsland do we see what happened when the currents of post-nazi German politics were allowed to flow freely, unimpeded by Allied intervention. gareth pritchard is Lecturer in Modern History at the University of Adelaide. His previous publications include The Making of the GDR (2004) and, as co-editor, Power and the People: A Social History of Central European Politics, (2005).

3 Niemandsland: A History of Unoccupied Germany,

4 cambridge university press Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo, Delhi, Mexico City Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York Information on this title: / This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2012 Printed in the United Kingdom at the University Press, Cambridge A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data Pritchard, Gareth. Niemandsland : a history of unoccupied Germany, /. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN (hardback) 1. World War, Social aspects Germany. 2. Anti-fascist movements Erzgebirge (Czech Republic and Germany). 3. Vigilance committees Erzgebirge (Czech Republic and Germany). 4. Community policing Erzgebirge (Czech Republic and Germany). 5. Crime prevention Erzgebirge (Czech Republic and Germany). 6. Erzgebirge (Czech Republic and Germany) History 20th century. I. Title. D744.7.G3P ʹ5 dc ISBN Hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University

5 Contents List of maps and tables Notes concerning references to East German archives Abbreviations Dramatis personae page vi vii viii x Introduction 1 1 The antifascist committees 4 2 Conflict communities of the western Erzgebirge 30 3 Into the abyss: March April Taking power in Niemandsland 73 5 Surviving in Niemandsland 95 6 The politics of antifascist rule Antifascists and the wider population The politics of Soviet occupation Lessons of Niemandsland 213 Bibliography 230 Index 240 v

April 1945 52 4 Taking power in Niemandsland 73 5 Surviving in Niemandsland 95 6 The politics of antifascist rule 122 7

6 Maps and tables Map 1 Occupied Germany, June 1945 page xii Map 2 The western Erzgebirge xiii Table 2.1 Election results in Schwarzenberg and Germany, Table 4.1 Political composition of specific antifascist committees 88 Table 4.2 Age profile of antifa members 89 Table 8.1 Age profile of the KPD in specific localities 186 Table 8.2 KPD and SPD members in local government employment, March vi

1 Political composition of specific antifascist committees 88 Table 4.

7 Notes concerning references to East German archives The regulations of the East German archives stipulate that personal names that occur in archival documents should not be referred to in published texts with the exception of prominent individuals. In order to comply with this requirement, several personal names in this book have been rendered anonymous through the use of initials (S.K., A.D., H.M. etc.). These initials have been chosen at random and are used for convenience only; they do not necessarily bear any relation to the person s real initials. A further problem relating to the citation of archival material is that in many files the individual pages have not yet been assigned a Blatt (Bl.) number by the archivists. In such instances, the particular page of any document can only be located by finding first of all the document and then looking up the particular page within that document. Other files, however, have been worked through by the archivists, who have assigned each individual piece of paper in the files a Blatt number. In such instances, one does not need to know the title of a document in order to track down a reference; it is sufficient to know the file number and the Blatt number. In the interests of concision, the title of a document (and the page numbers within the document) is given only where there is no Blatt number. vii

, H.M. etc.). These initials have been chosen at random and are used for convenience only; they do not necessarily bear any relation to the person s real initials.

8 Abbreviations AAM AFO AfW BdM BPA CDU DAF DFW FAB FO GDR KdF KgF KPD KPO KrA LDPD NKFD NSDAP OMGUS PRO RdG RdS Antifaschistische Arbeitergruppe Mitteldeutschlands (Antifascist Workers Group of Central Germany) Antifaschistische Organisation (Antifascist Organisation) Ausschuss für Wiederaufbau (Committee for Reconstruction) Bund deutscher Mädel (League of German Girls) Bezirksparteiarchiv (District Party Archive) Christliche Demokratische Union (Christian Democratic Union) Deutsche Arbeitsfront (German Labour Front) Deutsches Frauenwerk (German Women s Enterprise) Freiheits-Aktion-Bayern (Freedom-Action-Bavaria) Foreign Office German Democratic Republic Kraft durch Freude (Strength through Joy) Kampfgemeinschaft gegen den Faschismus (Fighting Community against Fascism) Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands (Communist Party of Germany) Kommunistische Partei Opposition (Communist Party Opposition) Kreisarchiv (County Archive) Liberal-Demokratische Partei Deutschlands (Liberal Democratic Party of Germany) Nationalkomitee Freies Deutschland (National Committee Free Germany) Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (National Socialist German Workers Party) Office of Military Government, United States Public Record Office (National Archives) Rat der Gemeinde Rat der Stadt viii

(District Party Archive) Christliche Demokratische Union (Christian Democratic Union) Deutsche Arbeitsfront (German Labour Front) Deutsches Frauenwerk (German Women s Enterprise)

9 List of abbreviations ix SAP SAPMO SED SPD SStA StA ThHStA Sozialistische Arbeiterpartei (Socialist Workers Party) Stiftung Archiv der Parteien und Massenorganisationen der DDR (Archive Foundation for the Parties and Mass Organisations of the GDR) Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands (Socialist Unity Party of Germany) Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (Social Democratic Party of Germany) Sächsisches Staatsarchiv (Saxon State Archive) Stadtarchiv (Town Archive) Thüringisches Hauptstaatsarchiv

Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands (Socialist Unity Party of Germany) Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (Social

10 Dramatis personae OLD REGIME Georg Dude Ernst Rietszch Herr Friedrich Friedrich Hänichen Emil Krauss Martin Mutschmann Landrat in Stollberg to 12 May Mayor of Schwarzenberg to 11 May Mayor of Stollberg to 21 April Landrat in Schwarzenberg Owner of the Krausswerke in Schwarzenberg Nazi Gauleiter of Saxony COMMUNISTS Paul Bach Paul Günther Willy Irmisch Paul Korb Richard Lötzsch Ernst Scheffler Felix Unger Mayor of Raschau from 14 May Leader of the antifascist police in the county of Schwarzenberg Mayor of Schwarzenberg from 12 May Leader of the antifascist police in the town of Schwarzenberg Chair of the action committee in Beierfeld Co-chair of the Antifa-Bewegung in the county of Schwarzenberg Mayor of Eibenstock from 16 June SOCIAL DEMOCRATS Heinrich Bley Alfred Fellisch Oskar Schieck Landrat in Stollberg from 12 May Co-editor of Schwarzenberger Zeitung Chair of the District Action Committee and co-editor of Schwarzenberger Zeitung x

Scheffler Felix Unger Mayor of Raschau from 14 May Leader of the antifascist police in the county of Schwarzenberg Mayor of Schwarzenberg from 12 May Leader of the antifascist police in the town of

11 Dramatis personae xi OTHER ANTIFASCISTS Richard Altenhain Chair of the Industry Committee in Aue Walter Lehm Factory director and leading antifascist in Schneeberg Walter Röhner Hotelier and mayor of Stollberg from 12 May EYE-WITNESSES Edward Isbell Wolfgang Kiessling Klaus Richter American POW in Schwarzenberg Hitler Youth member in Beierfeld Teenage boy from Aue

Hotelier and mayor of Stollberg from 12 May EYE-WITNESSES Edward Isbell Wolfgang Kiessling

12 Hanover British zone Hamburg Bremen (US) Soviet zone Berlin Key Western zones of occupation Soviet zone of occupation Under temporary Soviet occupation to July 1945 Under temporary western occupation to July 1945 Niemandsland France Cologne French zone Leizpig Zwickau Frankfurt American zone Stuttgart Munich Dresden Chemnitz Niemandsland Czechoslovakia Austria Switzerland Map 1 Occupied Germany, June 1945

to July 1945 Niemandsland France Cologne French zone Leizpig Zwickau Frankfurt American zone

13 Wildenfels Hartenstein Stollberg Brünlos Thalheim Meinersdorf Thum Dorfchemnitz Ehrensfriedersdorf Auerbach Kirchberg Hundshübel Neustädtel Wolfsgrün Schönheide Schneeberg Zschorlau AUE Lauter Schwarzenberg Bermsgrün Bockau Sosa Eibenstock Breitenbrunn Lössnitz Beierfeld Zwönitz Grünhain Raschau Pöhla Rittersgrün Elterlein Geyer Annaberg- Buchholz Scheibenberg Carlsfeld Wildenthal Johanngeorgenstadt Tellerhäuser Oberwiesenthal Czechoslovakia 0 5 km 10 km 15 km Map 2 The western Erzgebirge

Breitenbrunn Lössnitz Beierfeld Zwönitz Grünhain Raschau Pöhla Rittersgrün Elterlein Geyer Annaberg- Buchholz Scheibenberg

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