Postenpflicht
Encyclopedia
The Postenpflicht was part of a written order for SS
guards in Nazi concentration camps regarding the use of firearms. It required SS guards to shoot prisoners who tried to escape or engage in resistance and to do so without verbal warning or a warning shot. The order stated that failure to shoot would result in the dismissal or arrest of the guard. Issued on October 1, 1933 as an order for Dachau, the order was later extended to other camps.
The Postenpflicht was often used to explain the high number of deaths from other than natural causes that occurred at concentration camps. Guards insisted they hadn't "killed", but rather had been attacked and had fired in self defense or that they were simply "following orders" and had shot prisoners trying to escape.
policemen as guards, within weeks, they were replaced by the SS and on April 13, 1933, Hilmar Wäckerle
, an SS-Standartenführer
, became the first commandant. He was instructed by Heinrich Himmler
, Munich chief of police and Obergruppenführer
of the SS, to draw up a set of regulations for discipline in the camp. The rules were extremely harsh and several prisoners died as a direct result of their punishment.
The Munich prosecutor's office, not yet fully in line with National Socialist policy, in May 1933, began investigating the murder of several prisoners at Dachau concentration camp, prompted by the formal complaint of Sophie Handschuh, who wanted to know the true cause of her son's death at Dachau. Rumors were already widespread about harsh treatment of those under detention and Himmler was forced to refute those claims, even while announcing the opening of Dachau. Charges of murder were filed against Wäckerle and Himmler was forced to remove Wäckerle. The murder charges were later dropped after the chief prosecutor and his assistant were each transferred to other offices. Himmler continued his efforts to establish summary execution
, then in practice only at Dachau, as a legitimate form of punishment.
was commissioned to develop a new camp order and a new regulations handbook.Disciplinary procedures were added later to the regulations called the "Inspection of the concentration camps". He wrote the postenpflicht with instructions to fire on prisoners immediately and "without warning". Refusal to obey this order would bring serious consequences for camp personnel: summary dismissal and even arrest.
The "Regulations for Prisoner Escorts and Guards" (Dienstvorschrift für die Begleitpersonen und Gefangenenbewachung) were dated and went into effect on October 1, 1933 The infamous Lagerordnung
, the "Disciplinary and Penal Code for the Prison Camp" were issued on the same date. Also known as the Strafkatalog ("Penalty Catalogue"), this list of rules, infractions and punishments went into effect immediately, as well and both sets of regulations were made effective at all the SS concentration camps a few months later, on January 1, 1934. Together, the regulations allowed guards to mete out harsh punishments for even minor infractions and gave them wide latitude to execute prisoners and over time, devolved into a general system of terror punishment.
The perimeter of the detention camp grounds was marked by electrified fences and walls. Alongside the wall was a moat and next to that was an area called the "neutral zone". Dubbed the "death strip" by prisoners, it was a forbidden area. A prisoner who even went near this area risked being shot by a guard invoking the postenpflicht. Guards who shot a prisoner received a bounty and three days off. Guards, for their amusement and profit, would throw a prisoner's cap into the "death zone" and order the prisoner to get it "on the double" and then shoot the prisoner. They sometimes did this in pairs because they received a bounty
for shooting a prisoner, so they would take turns in order to both get the bounty. Witnesses and former prisoners have also reported cases where prisoners intentionally walked into the forbidden zone, to escape the camp through death.
Prisoner work details outside a concentration camp were called Außenkommandos ("outside commandos") by the SS. The SS guards would form a postenkette, a cordon
of guards to surround the work site and maintain watch. The imaginary boundary formed by the cordon was not to be crossed by a prisoner. Stepping outside the boundary was treated as an escape attempt and the guards, adhering to the postenpflicht, were to fire without warning. If a prisoner did manage to escape, the SS guard was charged with "negligent release of a prisoner".
The postenpflicht was also valid for the SS-Totenkopfverbände
that came to the concentration camps to serve as guards and auxiliary police.Not just the SS-Death's Head Units, but also other SS men were employed as concentration camp guards, especially around the end of the war. During the war years, female guards
were also employed at concentration camps. As overseers, they were also ordered to use their firearms in the case of physical attack by a prisoner or an escape attempt.
Reich Minister of Justice Franz Gurtner
was in contact with Reichsführer-SS
Himmler to mitigate the postenpflicht a bit, but he was unable to accomplish anything.
Camp commandants were also held accountable to the postenpflicht. Karl Otto Koch
was commandant at Majdanek concentration camp and on July 14, 1942, during his tenure, 200 Soviet prisoners of war
escaped. Only half were later recaptured. In August 1942, Koch was charged with "negligent release of a prisoner" and was reprimanded with a disciplinary transfer to the lesser job of Postschutz in Eger
.
Headquarters, Oct. 1, 1933
Regulations for Prisoner Escorts and Guards
6. Postenpflicht
Whoever allows a prisoner to escape will be arrested and charged with Negligent Prisoner Release and handed over to the Bavarian Political Police.
If a prisoner attempts to escape, he is to be shot, without warning. A guard who shoots an escaping prisoner in the course of carrying out his duty, will not be reprimanded.
Where a guard is physically attacked by a prisoner, the attack is to be repelled with use of a firearm, not return physical violence. A guard who does not comply with this order should expect his immediate dismissal. Besides, he who "keeps his back free" The original German is an idiom. To "keep one's back free" (den Rücken freihalten) means to get the grunt work out of the way so one is freed up for more important things. will rarely be attacked.
In the event of a revolt or organized prisoner resistance, every guard supervising is to fire upon them. Warning shots are strictly prohibited.
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
guards in Nazi concentration camps regarding the use of firearms. It required SS guards to shoot prisoners who tried to escape or engage in resistance and to do so without verbal warning or a warning shot. The order stated that failure to shoot would result in the dismissal or arrest of the guard. Issued on October 1, 1933 as an order for Dachau, the order was later extended to other camps.
The Postenpflicht was often used to explain the high number of deaths from other than natural causes that occurred at concentration camps. Guards insisted they hadn't "killed", but rather had been attacked and had fired in self defense or that they were simply "following orders" and had shot prisoners trying to escape.
Background
Dachau concentration camp opened on March 22, 1933. Though initially using local MunichMunich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
policemen as guards, within weeks, they were replaced by the SS and on April 13, 1933, Hilmar Wäckerle
Hilmar Wäckerle
Hilmar Wäckerle was a German soldier in both the German Imperial Army and the Waffen-SS and the first commandant of Dachau concentration camp.-War service:...
, an SS-Standartenführer
Standartenführer
Standartenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in the so-called Nazi combat-organisations: SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK...
, became the first commandant. He was instructed by Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
, Munich chief of police and Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest SS rank inferior only to Reichsführer-SS...
of the SS, to draw up a set of regulations for discipline in the camp. The rules were extremely harsh and several prisoners died as a direct result of their punishment.
The Munich prosecutor's office, not yet fully in line with National Socialist policy, in May 1933, began investigating the murder of several prisoners at Dachau concentration camp, prompted by the formal complaint of Sophie Handschuh, who wanted to know the true cause of her son's death at Dachau. Rumors were already widespread about harsh treatment of those under detention and Himmler was forced to refute those claims, even while announcing the opening of Dachau. Charges of murder were filed against Wäckerle and Himmler was forced to remove Wäckerle. The murder charges were later dropped after the chief prosecutor and his assistant were each transferred to other offices. Himmler continued his efforts to establish summary execution
Summary execution
A summary execution is a variety of execution in which a person is killed on the spot without trial or after a show trial. Summary executions have been practiced by the police, military, and paramilitary organizations and are associated with guerrilla warfare, counter-insurgency, terrorism, and...
, then in practice only at Dachau, as a legitimate form of punishment.
New camp order
Theodor EickeTheodor Eicke
Theodor Eicke was a SS Obergruppenführer , commander of the SS-Division Totenkopf of the Waffen-SS and one of the key figures in the establishment of concentration camps in Nazi Germany. His Nazi Party number was 114,901 and his SS number was 2,921...
was commissioned to develop a new camp order and a new regulations handbook.Disciplinary procedures were added later to the regulations called the "Inspection of the concentration camps". He wrote the postenpflicht with instructions to fire on prisoners immediately and "without warning". Refusal to obey this order would bring serious consequences for camp personnel: summary dismissal and even arrest.
The "Regulations for Prisoner Escorts and Guards" (Dienstvorschrift für die Begleitpersonen und Gefangenenbewachung) were dated and went into effect on October 1, 1933 The infamous Lagerordnung
Lagerordnung
The Lagerordnung was the "Disciplinary and Penal Code", first written for Dachau concentration camp, which became the uniform code at all SS concentration camps in the Third Reich on January 1, 1934. Also known as the Strafkatalog , it detailed the regulations for prisoners...
, the "Disciplinary and Penal Code for the Prison Camp" were issued on the same date. Also known as the Strafkatalog ("Penalty Catalogue"), this list of rules, infractions and punishments went into effect immediately, as well and both sets of regulations were made effective at all the SS concentration camps a few months later, on January 1, 1934. Together, the regulations allowed guards to mete out harsh punishments for even minor infractions and gave them wide latitude to execute prisoners and over time, devolved into a general system of terror punishment.
The perimeter of the detention camp grounds was marked by electrified fences and walls. Alongside the wall was a moat and next to that was an area called the "neutral zone". Dubbed the "death strip" by prisoners, it was a forbidden area. A prisoner who even went near this area risked being shot by a guard invoking the postenpflicht. Guards who shot a prisoner received a bounty and three days off. Guards, for their amusement and profit, would throw a prisoner's cap into the "death zone" and order the prisoner to get it "on the double" and then shoot the prisoner. They sometimes did this in pairs because they received a bounty
Bounty (reward)
A bounty is a payment or reward often offered by a group as an incentive for the accomplishment of a task by someone usually not associated with the group. Bounties are most commonly issued for the capture or retrieval of a person or object. They are typically in the form of money...
for shooting a prisoner, so they would take turns in order to both get the bounty. Witnesses and former prisoners have also reported cases where prisoners intentionally walked into the forbidden zone, to escape the camp through death.
Prisoner work details outside a concentration camp were called Außenkommandos ("outside commandos") by the SS. The SS guards would form a postenkette, a cordon
Kettling
Kettling is a police tactic for controlling large crowds during demonstrations or protests. It involves the formation of large cordons of police officers who then move to contain a crowd within a limited area. Protesters are left only one choice of exit, determined by the police, or are completely...
of guards to surround the work site and maintain watch. The imaginary boundary formed by the cordon was not to be crossed by a prisoner. Stepping outside the boundary was treated as an escape attempt and the guards, adhering to the postenpflicht, were to fire without warning. If a prisoner did manage to escape, the SS guard was charged with "negligent release of a prisoner".
The postenpflicht was also valid for the SS-Totenkopfverbände
SS-Totenkopfverbände
SS-Totenkopfverbände , meaning "Death's-Head Units", was the SS organization responsible for administering the Nazi concentration camps for the Third Reich....
that came to the concentration camps to serve as guards and auxiliary police.Not just the SS-Death's Head Units, but also other SS men were employed as concentration camp guards, especially around the end of the war. During the war years, female guards
Female guards in Nazi concentration camps
Of the 55,000 guards who served in Nazi concentration camps, about 3,700 were women. In 1942, the first female guards arrived at Auschwitz and Majdanek from Ravensbrück...
were also employed at concentration camps. As overseers, they were also ordered to use their firearms in the case of physical attack by a prisoner or an escape attempt.
Reich Minister of Justice Franz Gurtner
Franz Gürtner
Franz Gürtner was a German Minister of Justice in Adolf Hitler's cabinet, responsible for coordinating jurisprudence in the Third Reich. Detesting the cruel ways of the Gestapo and SA in dealing with prisoners of war, he protested unsuccessfully to Hitler, nevertheless staying on in the cabinet,...
was in contact with Reichsführer-SS
Reichsführer-SS
was a special SS rank that existed between the years of 1925 and 1945. Reichsführer-SS was a title from 1925 to 1933 and, after 1934, the highest rank of the German Schutzstaffel .-Definition:...
Himmler to mitigate the postenpflicht a bit, but he was unable to accomplish anything.
Camp commandants were also held accountable to the postenpflicht. Karl Otto Koch
Karl Otto Koch
Karl-Otto Koch , a Standartenführer in the German Schutzstaffel , was the first commandant of the Nazi concentration camps at Buchenwald and Sachsenhausen, and later also served as a commander at the Majdanek concentration camp.-Early life:Koch was born in Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse on...
was commandant at Majdanek concentration camp and on July 14, 1942, during his tenure, 200 Soviet prisoners of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
escaped. Only half were later recaptured. In August 1942, Koch was charged with "negligent release of a prisoner" and was reprimanded with a disciplinary transfer to the lesser job of Postschutz in Eger
Eger
Eger is the second largest city in Northern Hungary, the county seat of Heves, east of the Mátra Mountains. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, historic buildings , and red and white wines.- Name :...
.
The "Postenpflicht" order
Dachau concentration campHeadquarters, Oct. 1, 1933
Regulations for Prisoner Escorts and Guards
6. Postenpflicht
Whoever allows a prisoner to escape will be arrested and charged with Negligent Prisoner Release and handed over to the Bavarian Political Police.
If a prisoner attempts to escape, he is to be shot, without warning. A guard who shoots an escaping prisoner in the course of carrying out his duty, will not be reprimanded.
Where a guard is physically attacked by a prisoner, the attack is to be repelled with use of a firearm, not return physical violence. A guard who does not comply with this order should expect his immediate dismissal. Besides, he who "keeps his back free" The original German is an idiom. To "keep one's back free" (den Rücken freihalten) means to get the grunt work out of the way so one is freed up for more important things. will rarely be attacked.
In the event of a revolt or organized prisoner resistance, every guard supervising is to fire upon them. Warning shots are strictly prohibited.
See also
- NegligenceNegligenceNegligence is a failure to exercise the care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in like circumstances. The area of tort law known as negligence involves harm caused by carelessness, not intentional harm.According to Jay M...
- Kangaroo courtKangaroo courtA kangaroo court is "a mock court in which the principles of law and justice are disregarded or perverted".The outcome of a trial by kangaroo court is essentially determined in advance, usually for the purpose of ensuring conviction, either by going through the motions of manipulated procedure or...
- Concentration Camps InspectorateConcentration Camps InspectorateThe Concentration Camps Inspectorate was the central SS administrative and managerial authority for the concentration camps of the Third Reich. Created by Theodor Eicke, it was originally known as the "General Inspection of the Enhanced SS-Totenkopfstandarten, after Eicke's position in the SS...
- Treblinka resistance, August 1943
- Sobibór rebellion, October 1943
- Mühlviertler HasenjagdMühlviertler HasenjagdThe Mühlviertler Hasenjagd was a Nazi war crime that took place near Linz in the Mühlviertel, a region in Upper Austria. In February 1945, around 500 Soviet prisoners escaped from Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp in the Mühlviertel. Local civilians, soldiers and local Nazi organizations hunted...
, February 1945 - Celler HasenjagdCeller HasenjagdThe Celler Hasenjagd was a massacre of concentration camp inmates that took place in Celle, Prussian Hanover, in the last weeks of the Second World War...
, April 1945 - German war crimesGerman war crimesThe government of Germany ordered, organized and condoned several war crimes in both World War I and World War II. The most notable of these is the Holocaust in which millions of people were murdered or died from abuse and neglect, 60% of them Jews...
- Prisons in GermanyPrisons in GermanyThe prisons in Germany are run solely by the federal states, although governed by a federal law. The aim of prison confinement in Germany is twofold: emphasis is placed on enabling prisoners to lead a life of "social responsibility free of crime" upon release, but society is also to be protected...
(about German prisons today)
Sources
- Lothar Gruchmann, Justiz im Dritten Reich 1933 - 1940 About the Franz GürtnerFranz GürtnerFranz Gürtner was a German Minister of Justice in Adolf Hitler's cabinet, responsible for coordinating jurisprudence in the Third Reich. Detesting the cruel ways of the Gestapo and SA in dealing with prisoners of war, he protested unsuccessfully to Hitler, nevertheless staying on in the cabinet,...
era of adapting and submitting to Nazism.