TNA Ref: HW 16/10: WW2 Decrypts - Bletchley Park:

German Police Concentration Camp: GPCC Series

Periodic Summary Report: ZIP / OS4 / 27.11.42



ZIP/OS 4/27.11.42 (Page: 1)
                      M O S T    S E C R E T.
 
TO BE KEPT UNDER LOCK AND KEY: NEVER TO BE REMOVED FROM THE OFFICE.
 
THIS DOCUMENT IS TO RECEIVE CX/MSS SECURITY TREATMENT.
IF FUTURE CIRCULATION IS NECESSARY, IT MUST BE PARAPHRASED,
SO THAT NEITHER THE SOURCE OF THE INFORMATION NOR THE
MEANS BY WHICH IT HAS BEEN OBTAINED IS APPARENT.
      __________________________________________
 
GPDD No’s.:- 237a, 239b, 244a, 251a, 251b, 252a, 258b, 266a, 266b,
             268b, 269a, 269b, 271a, 272b, 273b, 274a, 274b, 274d, 272a,
             278a, 278b, 279a, 279b, 280d, 281a, 281b, 287b, 287a, 287b,
             290a, 290b, 290d, 296d, 298d, 301a, 301b, 302a, 302b,
             303a, 303b, 303d, 304a, 304b, 304d, 307a.
________________________________________________________________________

     Covering material received between 18th. October and 25th.
                        November 1942

                     S  U  M  M  A  R  Y

I.      Waffen SS.
II.     Concentration Camps.
III.    Medical.
IV.     Miscellaneous.
 
 
GENERAL:
 
          The SS.Div. Totenkopf has moved to the South of France
and is now known as a Panzergrenadier division; re-organisation and
re-equipment of the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler and SS. Div. das
Reich are proceeding.  Wiking has suffered heavy casualties in
South Russia.  Assault gun troops are being formed for Wiking and
Cav. Div. and an Assault gun battery for Reich.  Volksdeutsche are
being trained in concentration camps before being sent out on service.
There is abundant evidence of the use of concentration camp prisoners
in war industries,.
 
References are to G.P.D.D. Nos. unless otherwise stated.
-   - - - - - - - - - - -
 
DISTRIBUTION LIST:
 
1.  M.I.14(d)
2.  Major Leathem
3.  Squadron Leader Oeser.
4.  Wing Commander Jones.
5.  B.P.I.E.
6.  Lt.Col. Lithgow
7.  File.
8.  Col. Hatton Hall.

 
ZIP/OS 4/27.11.42 (Page: 4)

II.     CONCENTRATION CAMPS.
 
a) General.
 
      Camps not previously mentioned are HEGEWALD (281B 52), WEWELSBURG
(239b 29), ISCHL (272b 23), ZWRINGEN (273b 2), JAWICHOWICS (281b 34).
There is some evidence of Concentration Camp guards being posted to
SS. Divisions and one camp complains of great shortage of fit men
(271b 11,52;272b 22;266b 15;290b 7,14). A considerable number of
Volksdeutsche from BOSNIA are introduced in mid November apparently as
Concentration Camp guards and the utmost economy is to be observed in
arming them (302b 25, 42; 303b 39). AUSCHWITZ asks for 490 rifles for
the Bosnians; the figure tallies very closely with the figure of 489
Volksdeutsche from the South East given on 29 Oct. (281b 54 cf. 28,49,
50,51,60), and makes it probable that Volksdeutsche are trained as
Concentration Camp guards and are then dispatched to fighting units such
as the Prinz Eugen (see last summary); it is in any case certain that
39 of the 88 Hungarians in the AUSCHWITZ return are sent to the Supply
Centre, Russia South (268d 25 etc.) That the figures circulated as
G.P.C.C 5 were rightly interpreted as totals of Kommandanturstab and
Guards is borne out by a FLOSSENBURG return for Kommandanturstab and
Guard on 4 Nov. (287b 1) which agrees exactly with the G.P.C.C.5 figures.
These figures show no significant changes in the members of the
Kommandanturstab in the various camps but the figures for the Guards
show some variation between October 17th and Nov. 20th:
 
DACHAU:          Oct.20 - 549:  Nov. 13th – 526: Nov. 20th – 575.
MAUTHAUSEN:       “   “ – 549:   “   “   - 540:   “   “   - 601.
GUSEN:            “   “ – 577:   “   “   - 577:   “   “   - 566.
BUCHENWALD:  a)   “   “ – 499:   “   “   - 486:   “   “   - 639.
             b)   “   “ – 102:   “   “   -  87:   “   “   -  85.
FLOSSENBUERG:     “   “ – 357:   “   “   - 323:   “   “   - 319.
AUSCHWITZ:   a)   “   “ – 1244:  “   “   -1393:   “   “   -1359.
             b)   “   “ -        “   “   - 873:   “   “   - 575.
NIEDERHAGEN:      “   “ – 137:   “   “   - 132:   “   “   - 123.
LUBLIN:      a)   “   “ – 235:   “   “   - 440:   “   “   - 435.
             b)   “   “ – 359:   “   “   - 359:   “   “   - 310.
 
The causes of fluctuation may be the aforementioned movement of
Volksdeutsche (note that BUCHENWALD receives 100 on 17 Nov.-(302b 24)
and LUBLIN 200 after 20 Oct. (272b 7) and the transferment of Guards
particularly to AUSCHWITZ with prisoners for industrial war work
(273b 29): DEBICA supplies 89 SS. Men as Guards for this purpose on
26 Nov. (304a 32;307a 50).
 
      The use of prisoners for war industries on a large scale is
discussed below: it explains the drawing in of the Aussenkommandos
(258b 20) and was initiated by Himmler (258b 13) and discussed at
conferences between MAURER and POHL and between SOMMER and SPEER
(272b 10: 279b 31); the largest transference is the move of Jews to
AUSCHWITZ for the synthetic rubber works (281b 36 etc.) Another major
movement is the transference of sick prisoners (stationaerkranken and
bedingttauglichen) to DACHAU (281b 61; 279b 42). Meanwhile typhus
continues, particularly at AUSCHWITZ (see below under medical). A study
of the individual camps and their G.P.C.C figures follows.
 
b) DACHAU. The total sinks from 10133 on 17 Oct. to 9611 on Oct 28. And
rises to 10875 on 20 Nov.  Large departures on 27 Oct., 3 and 11 Nov.
account for the decrease, large arrivals on 31 Oct., 4,9,13,16,20 Nov.
account for the rise. Departures may be due to prisoners being sent on
war work to AUSCHWITZ and other places, which removes all but 9 of the
Jews and many Russian civilians (251b 2; 268b 23;271b 5,28; 273b 29);
arrivals are due both to transferences for war work and to the arrival
of sick prisoners (273b 32, 278b 42, 281b 3).
 
c) MAUTHAUSEN and GUSEN. There is evidence that RAVENSBRUECK as well as
GUSEN comes under the same administration as MAUTHAUSEN (281b 1, 10, 55).
The MAUTHAUSEN figures decrease from 6171 on 20 Oct. to 5256 on 9 Nov.
 
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and rise again to 5806 on 18 Nov.  There is a very large departure on
9 Nov., and large arrivals on 10 and 16 Nov. which cannot be identified.
The GUSEN figures sink xxxxx from 4730 on 22 Oct. to 3920 on Nov 20. A
departure of 200 between 31st Oct. and 1 Nov. is probably to be
identified with the 187 prisoners (excluding Red Spaniards, Belgians,
and prisoners of war) who are mentioned on 29 Oct. (281b 21,63).
GUSEN includes 115 young stonemasons who cannot be used at the moment
owing to lack of stone but are having their physical standard raised
(267b 39).
 
d) BUCHENWALD. The departure of 405 Jewish prisoners on Oct. 19th
mentioned in the last summary is now explained; they are sent to
AUSCHWITZ (269b 23). The departure of 400 on 9 Oct is to NEUENGAMME
for the Hermann Goering works (258b 17). On the same day 50 prisoners
and 11 Guards are sent to the Hermann Goering works at BRUNSWICK
(269b 19). 179 unfit prisoners (excluding 60 from the Protectorate) are
moved to DACHAU on 29 Oct.; they appear in the G.P.C.C figures and
comprise Russian civilians, politicals, and Poles.  During November the
total of prisoners rises from a minimum of 8693 to a maximum of 9090 on
the 20th.
 
e) FLOSSENBUERG. The total decreases from 3855 on 20 Oct. to 3428 on 20
Nov. On 15 Oct. 100 prisoners are sent from the Fluorspar quarries to
the SS. Pionier Ers. Bn. At DRESDEN (269b5); on 4 Nov. 70 men are moved
to NEUENGAMME for the Hermann Goering works (287b 12) and 18 Political
prisoners arrive from SACHSENHAUSEN xx xx xxx xxxxx xxx(287b 38); 100
prisoners arrived from SACHSENHAUSEN on 20 Oct. (273b 34). All these
changes are reflected in the G.P.C.C figures. 4 Polish prisoners are to
be executed on 7 Nov. (290b 20).
 
f) AUSCHWITZ. From the end of October the total continues to rise until
on 20 Nov. it reaches 21650, a figure comparable to the figures of early
September.  The very large arrivals are mostly Jews and the number of
Jews rises from 7500 in the middle of October to 1000 on 20 Nov. 2000
Jews (272b 10; 287b 17; 290b 16; 302b 5) are known to be employed on the
Buna Works.  278 prisoners from AUSCHWITZ are employed on the
HOLLESCHAU Portland cement works (274b 30).  There is ample evidence that
typhus is still rife (see under medical) and may account for many of
the departures. 200 Russian consumptives arrive from SACHSENHAUSEN on
27 October (279b 36) The xxx women’s camp remains stationary at about
6500 because arrivals balance departures. (G.P.D.C: F 3).
 
g) HINZERT. Nothing to note.
 
h) NIEDERHAGEN. This camp continues to receive a weekly batch of 20:
departures in the first three weeks of November exceed arrivals by 25.
On 21 Oct. the camp asked for a lorry to take corpses to BOCHUM as the
crematoria at BIELEFELD and DORTMUND were too hard pressed to take any
more (273b 28; 274b 33).
 
i. LUBLIN. The figures rise slightly to 9000 with an increase of Jews
which more than balances a slight decrease of Poles. The new camp at
LUBLIN rises from 932 on 20 Oct. to 2829 on 20 Nov.; there are still
only two classes of inmate (G.P.C.C: J 3). It is to be noted that a
Kriegsgefangenenlager at KOBIERSZYN near KRAKAU is apparently controlled
by LUBLIN (274a 8).
 
k) STUTTHOF. STUTTHOF figures show no important change.
 
l) DEBICA. A Polish compulsory labour camp contains about 1500 Poles;
A camp for French prisoners of war is building (266a 3,12,23,24,25,
26,41;272a 23).
 
III.                  MEDICAL
 
     Typhus and spotted fever in XX KL. AUSCHWITZ have spread from the
prisoners to the Guards.  On 6th October the camp reports 13 suspected
cases among SS. men, as well as one case of meningitis; among the
 
ZIP/OS 4/27.11.42 (Page: 6)
 

prisoners 128 suspected cases of spotted fever are reported, for the
period 28 Sept. to 6 Oct. 92 cases have been transferred to the
hospital, 85 have been cured and 45 deaths have occurred (2586/3). On
Oct. 16,4 cases xxxx xxxx xxx of Typhus abdominalis have been diagnosed
among SS Guards (286b 11); on Oct 21, 2 cases of typhus and 2 of spotted
fever (273b 11).  During a period of 10 days 13 suspected spotted fever
cases and 3 suspected cases have occurred among the Guards while
the number of suspected cases in the camp on Oct 22 amounts to 107
(273b 14); on the 27th the figure is 88 (2769b 1); 6 more men are sent to
the hospital on suspicion on Nov.4 (278n 3 and 6). Dr. Caesar is affected
with Paratyphus (266b 8) and on the same day news comes of the death of
his wife through Typhus abdominalis, and 3 cases are reported among
families of SS men (266b 9). At the Buna works the number of sick rises
from 35 on 4 Nov. to 100 on 21 Nov. (287b 17;304b 1). From KL. LUBLIN
one case of suspected spotted fever among the Guard is reported (279b 27).
Typhus graphs are required from the JAWICHOWICZ camp (281b 34); disin-
fection courses are given to SS. Guards (281b 38); HINZERT is told that
disinfection apparatus is to be procured from GESTAPO because the
Concentration camp apparatus is all being used (302b 35); vaccine is
sent to LUBLIN (303b 19); in AUSCHWITZ experiments are made with the
OBERMAYER Fleckfiebermittel (268b 31) and two officers from the Kanslei
des Fuehrers are to see the working of Roentgensterilisation (274b 41)
There is an outbreak of dysentery in the Polish workers camp at DEBICA;
60 acute cases and 60 milder cases are reported; the camp is in
quarantine and the commandant requires an epidemic specialist to take
measures to prevent spreading of the disease to the troops (266a 3, 12, 24,
40).
 
       An odd case has occurred in RIGA where 15 men after being
vaccinated by the Staff Medical Officer are taken ill with Gasbrand and
are operated on; their condition is said to be serious (303d 21,25).
 
       Vaccination of the Guard against scarlet fever has taken place at
FLOSSENBÜRG: xxx 437 SS. men have been vaccinated (290b 1).


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