Belarusian Self-Protection Corps
The Belarusian Self-Protection Corps ( Belarusian Беларускі корпус самааховы ) was a military unit of Belarusian Nazi collaborators.
history
In the spring of 1942, leading representatives of the Belarusian national movement turned to the Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories, Alfred Rosenberg, with a memorandum , demanding, among other things, the formation of their own military forces. It is unclear whether the memorandum had an effect on Rosenberg, or whether his relenting was due to the growing insecurity in the German hinterland. In any case, a few months later his subordinate General Commissioner Wilhelm Kube gave permission to set up the Freikorps des Selbstschutz, later called the White Ruthenian Self-Protection. It was a popular militia organized in battalions and used to fight partisans . On July 1, 1942, Iwan Yermatschenka Franzischak Kuschal gave the order to set up the White Ruthenian Self-Protection Corps. Three days later, SS Brigade Leader Carl Zenner approved these plans and ordered the formation of three divisions, which should be stationed in Minsk , Vilejka and Baranavichy . The Baranavichy Division was also supposed to control the Nawahrudak and Slonim area commissions . In contrast to the protection teams , the Belarusian Self- Protection Corps was largely the responsibility of the local officials. The supply of weapons and ammunition, as well as the authority to command during operations, lay with the SS . The units established in the various rajons were under the command of the respective head of the Belarusian Self-Help Organization (WSW). However, SS-Brigadführer Zenner was soon replaced by Walter Schimana , who withdrew command from the WSW and instead handed it over to the regulatory police. As a result, the White Ruthenian Self-Protection Corps lost its status as an independent military formation. 20 battalions and some smaller formations were set up nationwide. However, the Belarusian Self-Protection Corps lacked German support because the SS and the police were afraid of armed local units. The Wehrmacht refused to give the Ordnungspolizei weapons to pass on to the Self-Protection Corps, which is why the majority of the members of the unit remained unarmed. For this reason, most of the members of the White Ruthenian Self-Protection Corps deserted and hid in the woods or joined the partisans. In the spring of 1943 the organization was dissolved. In some areas, such as Baranavichy, the units continued to exist for a year until they joined the Belarusian Home Guard in March 1944 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Alexander Brakel: Under Red Star and Swastika. Baranowicze 1939 to 1944. Western Belarus under Soviet and German occupation . (= Age of World Wars. Volume 5). Ferdinand Schöningh Verlag, Paderborn et al. 2009, ISBN 978-3-506-76784-4 , pp. 210-212.