Reichsvereinigung der Juden in Deutschland: deportation order

Identifier
WL852
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 70763
Dates
1 Jan 1945 - 31 Jan 1945
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Creator(s)

Biographical History

Reichsvereinigung der Juden in Deutschland, the only organisation representative of Jewish interests in Germany, was radically re-structured. Instead of a network of branches spread throughout the whole country, the organisation relied on individual representatives who were subject to instructions from the head office based in the Jewish hospital, Berlin. Most of those working for the organisation were partners in mixed marriages. The extent to which the organisation was truly representative of the interests of Germany's Jewish community or an organ of the Nazi's machinery of persecution has been a matter of some heated debate.

Archival History

Provenance unknown

Scope and Content

This order from the Reichsvereinigung der Juden in Deutschland to Frau D. S. Allfeld, partner in a mixed marriage, to go on a work detail out of the city (Frankfurt a. M.) is evidence of the continuation of this organisation's activities (albeit in changed and much reduced form).
After June 1943, when most of Germany's Jews had been deported to concentration/ death camps. The following features are of particular interest. The date, 8 February 1945, seems very late and suggests that the Nazis must have been desperate to recruit workers at this time. The document appears to be a contemporary copy: The author's title, Vertrauensmann der Reichsvereinigung der Juden in Deutschland immediately precedes the words 'signature (illegible)'. Finally, in an apparent attempt to put the recipient of the order at ease (having already threatened 'the severest of police measures' for non-compliance), the author writes that 'this order is not to be regarded as one of the typical evacuations from before [eine der früher üblichen Evakuierungen]. This tacit recognition of the Nazi policy towards the Jews by the Reichsvereinigung der Juden in Deutschland, coupled with their continued service for the Nazi war machine is arguably the clearest evidence for the extent to which the organisation had changed.

Conditions Governing Access

Open

Subjects

Places

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.