Archive/File: imt/tgmwc/tgmwc-03/tgmwc-03-24-01
Last-Modified: 1999/07/28

                      TWENTY-FOURTH DAY
                THURSDAY, 20th DECEMBER, 1945

MAJOR  FARR:  May  it  please the Tribunal,  when  the  Tribunal  rose
yesterday,  we  were  discussing the number of persons  who  might  be
involved in the concentration camp programme' with which the S.S.  was
concerned nothing better illustrates the integrated character  of  the
whole organisation than that programme.

W.V.H.A.,  one of the departments of the Supreme Command, handled  the
administration and control of that camp programme and dealt  with  the
victims  once they were in the camp. They were assisted by  the  Death
Head  Units,  who  furnished the guard personnel for  the  camps,  and
subsequently  by the " Allgemeine S.S.," which took over guard  duties
during the war.

R.S.H.A.  --  the  police arm of the S.S. --  played  a  part  in  the
concentration  camp  programme, because through it  the  victims  were
apprehended  and  taken to the camps. Thus the  S.D.  appears  in  the
picture,  the  personal  staff, the first department  of  the  Supreme
Command,  the  top  office so to speak of the whole organisation,  and
naturally had much to do with the work of all subordinate departments.

Thus when the question is asked how many persons in the S.S. had
something to do with the concentration camp programme, it is a
question which I think it is impossible to answer. You might point out
how many persons were involved in the Death Head Units, who originally
furnished the guard details. You might estimate how many persons were
in the " Allgemeine S. S.," but to say just what percentage of the
whole organisation was involved in that programme is something which I
find myself unable to do.

I had just pointed out --

THE  PRESIDENT:Can  you  say that one or  other  branch  of  the  S.S.
provided the whole of the staff of the concentration camps ?

MAJOR FARR: By the staff, I take it, you mean guards at the camp, the
guard personnel. You cannot do that. For example, the Death Head Units
originally started off as being the units which furnished all the
guard personnel. Subsequently, their task was taken over by members of
the "Allgemeine S.S."

THE PRESIDENT: Those are both branches of the S.S. ?

MAJOR  FARR:  Both  are branches, yes. Now with respect  to  the  camp
commandants, for instance, normally all high ranking officers  in  the
S.S.  were  members  of  the  " Allgemeine S.S.,"  so  doubtless  such
personnel  would  be  drawn  from that branch.  It  is  certainly  not
impossible  that  some members of the " Waffen  S.S."  may  have  been
called  on to act as guards in certain camps. I do not think  you  can
say that there is no component of the S.S. which may not have had some
of its personnel involved in the programme.

THE  PRESIDENT: That was not exactly what I meant. What I  meant  was:
could  you  say  that one or other branches of the S.S. furnished  the
whole staff of the concentration camps ?

                                                            [Page 154]

MAJOR FARR: I do not think I can say that. I think I could say this --

THE PRESIDENT: What other organisation was it that furnished a part of
the staff of the concentration camps ?

MAJOR FARR: You mean an organisation other than the S.S.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes.

MAJOR FARR: I know of none.

THE PRESIDENT: Then the answer would be "Yes"?

MAJOR FARR: 1 thought your Honour was referring to any one branch of
the S.S., which was concerned alone with that. The S.S., so far as 1
know, is the only organisation which played a part in the
concentration camp picture, except at the very end of the war when I
think, as Colonel Storey said yesterday, some members of the S.A. were
also involved as guard personnel of concentration camps.

THE TRIBUNAL (MR. BIDDLE): Do you know the total personnel at the end
of the war ?

MAJOR FARR: Of the entire S.S.

THE TRIBUNAL (MR. BIDDLE): Yes.

M A J 0 R F A R R: That is something you would have to estimate. 1
quoted to the Tribunal yesterday the figures that d'Alquen gave as the
strength of the " Allgemeine S.S." in 1939. He said then that there
were about 240,000 meninthel,AllgemeineS.S." There were, at that time,
about four regiments of Death Head Units, several other regiments of
the " Verfilgungstruppe," a few thousand personnel involved in the
S.D., so that 1 should say in 1939 you had about 250,000 to 300,000
members of the S.S. With the outbreak of the war, the " Waffen S.S."
was built up from a few regiments of the Verfflgungstruppe to about 31
divisions at the end of the war, which probably would mean that the "
Waffen S.S." by 1941, had had some 400,000 to 500,000 persons
involved. I take it that 400,000 to 500,000 members of the " Waffen
S.S." would be in addition to personnel of the "Allgemeine S.S.," who
were subject to compulsory military service in the Welirmacht. So
that, if 1 had to estimate, 1 would say that probably some 750,000
persons would be the top figure of personnel who had been involved in
the S.S. from the beginning, but that is only an estimate.

THE TRIBUNAL (MR. BIDDLE): Then you have no break down to show how
many of those were civilians, clerks, stenographers, soldiers and so
on ?

MAJOR FARR: No. When we are talking about S.S. members, we are not
talking about stenographers who worked in the office, who were not
members of the S.S. By S.S. members, we mean personnel who took the
oath and appeared on the membership list, either as a member of the "
Allgemeine S.S.," the Death Head Units, or the " Waffen S.S." I would
think that my figure Of 750,000 was a figure including members of the
S.S., " Allgemeine S.S.," the " TotenkopfverbAnde," and the " Waffen
S.S."

I was pointing out the shift of control of concentration camps to
W.V.H.A. in 1942, which was coincident with the shift in the basic
purpose of the camps, which heretofore had been concerned with custody
of individuals for political and security reasons. The basic purpose
of the camps was to furnish manpower, and 1 now want to point out to
the Court the agencies of the S.S. which were involved in that
manpower drive.

The Tribunal has already received evidence of an order, which was
issued in 1942, shortly after the transfer to W.V.H.A. of
concentration camp control, directing Security Police to furnish at
once 35,000 prisoners qualified

                                                            [Page 155]

for work in the camps. That order is our Document 1063-PS, and was
received in evidence as Exhibit USA 219.

35,000 prisoners were, of course, merely the beginning. The S.S.
dragnet was capable of catching many more slaves. I offer in evidence
a carbon typewritten copy of a directive to all the departments of the
S.S. Supreme Command, issued from Himmler's field headquarters on the
5th and 6th August, 1943. It is Document 744-PS. I offer it as Exhibit
USA 455. That directive appears on Page 2 of the translation. It
implements an order signed by the defendant Keitel, directing the use
of all males, captured in guerilla fighting in the East, for forced
labour. The Keitel directive appears on Page 1 of the translation.

I shall read only the Himmler directive appearing on Page 2 of the
translation. The Tribunal will note that it is addressed to every main
office of the S.S. Supreme Command. I read that list of addresses of
the directive:

     1. Chief of the personnel staff of Reichsfuehrer S.S.
     2. S.S. Main Office.
     3. Reich Security Main Office (R.S.H.A.).
     4. Race and Resettlement Main Office S.S.
     5. Main Office, Ordinary Police.
     6. S.S. Economic Administrative Main Office.
     7. S.S. Personnel Main Office.
     8. Main Office S.S. Court.
     9. S.S. Supreme Command -- Headquarters of the 'Waffen S.S.'
     10. Staff Headquarters of the Reich Commissar for the
     Consolidation of Germanism.
     11. Main Office Centre for Racial Germans.
     12. Office of S.S. Obergruppenfuehrer Heissmeyer.
     13. Chief of the Guerilla-fighting Units."

I point out to the Court that every one of the main offices appearing
on the chart is a recipient of that directive. The next addresses are
the Higher S.S. and Police Leaders in the various regions. .

I continue to quote the body of the directive

     " To figure 4 of the above-mentioned order I direct, that all
     young female prisoners capable of work are to be sent to Germany,
     through the agency of Reich Commissioner Sauckel.
     
     Children, old women and men are to be collected and employed in
     the women's and children's camps, established by me on estates as
     well as on the border of the evacuated area."

In April 1944 the S.S. was called on to produce even more
labourersthis time ioo,ooo Jews from Hungary. The Tribunal will recall
the minutes of the defendant Speer's discussion with Hitler on the 6th
and 7th of April, 1944, which were found in our Document R-124 at page
36, and were read to the Court, in evidence as Exhibit USA 179,
minutes in which Speer referred to Hitler's statement that he would
call on the Reichsfuehrer S.S. to produce ioo,ooo Jews from Hungary.

The last source of man-power had not been tapped. To Jews, deportees,
women and children, there was added the productive power of prisoners
of war. It was through the S.S. that the conspirators squeezed the
last drop of labour from such prisoners.

                                                            [Page 156]

I  refer  to  statement by the defendant Speer, which appears  in  our
Document  R-124  at  Page 13 of the translation, the  document  itself
having  already been introduced in evidence as Exhibit  USA  179.  The
statement is found at Page 7, last paragraph of the original, Page  13
of the Document R-i24, the next to the last paragraph on Page 13. That
appears in volume 2 of the document book. I quote:

     "Speer:  We have to come to an arrangement with the Reichsfuehrer
     S.S.  as  soon as possible so that P.W.'s he picks  up  are  made
     available  for  our purposes. The Reichsfuehrer  S.S.  gets  from
     thirty to forty thousand men per month."

In  order to insure S.S. control over the labour of prisoners of  war,
the  Reichsfuehrer S.S. was finally appointed as head of all prisoner-
of-war  camps on 25th September, 1944. I offer in evidence the  letter
referring to his appointment. It is our Document 058-PS. It is Exhibit
USA  456.  It  will  be found in Volume 1 of the document  book.  That
letter   is  a  circular  letter  from  the  Director  of  the   Party
Chancellery,  dated  the  30th  of September,  1944,  and  signed  "M.
Bormann." I quote, beginning with the first paragraph:

     "1. The Fuehrer has ordered under the date 25 September, 1944:
     
     The custody of all prisoners of war and interned persons, as well
     as prisoner-of-war camps and institutions with guards, are
     transferred to the Commander of the Reserve Army from October 1,
     1944."

Passing to paragraph 2 of the letter, I shall read sub-paragraphs (a)
and (c), I quote:

     2. The Reichsfuehrer S.S. has commanded:
     
     (a) In my capacity as Commander of the Reserve Army, I transfer
     the affairs of prisoners of war to Gottlieb Berger S.S.-Lieut-
     General Chief of Staff of the Volksturrn."

Passing now to sub paragraph (c):

     "(c)  The mobilisation of labour of the prisoners of war will  be
     organised  with the present labour mobilisation office  in  joint
     action  between  S.  S. -Lieut.-General Berger  and  S.S.-Lieut.-
     General Pohl.
     
     The  strengthening of security in the field of prisoners  of  war
     affairs is to be accomplished between S.S.-Lieut.-General  Berger
     and  the  Chief  of  the  Security Police,  S.S.-Lieut.-Gen.  Dr.
     Kalteribrunner."

Thus  the  S.S finally took over direction and control of prisoner-of-
war camps.

So  impressive were the results obtained from S.S. concentration  camp
labour, that in 1944 the defendant Goering called on Himmler for  more
inmates for use in the aircraft industry. The Tribunal will recall his
teletype to Himmler, our Document 1584-PS, Part 1, which was  read  in
evidence  by  Mr. Dodd, as Exhibit USA 221. Let me now read  Himmler's
reply  to that teletype. It is our Document 1584-PS, Part 3, and  will
be  found  on  Page 2 of Part 3 Of 1584-PS. I offer it in evidence  as
Exhibit USA 457. 1 quote the beginning of that letter:

     "Most Honoured Reiclismarshal:
     
     Following  my  teletype  letter of 18 February  1944  1  herewith
     transmit  a survey on the employment of prisoners in the aviation
     industry.

                                                            [Page 157]

     This  survey  indicates  that at the present  time  about  36,000
     prisoners  are  employed for the purposes of the  Air  Force.  An
     increase to a total of 90,000 prisoners is contemplated.
     
     The  production  is  being  discussed, established  and  executed
     between  the  Reich  Ministry of Aviation and  the  Chief  of  my
     Economic Administrative Main Office, S.S. Obergruppenfuehrer  and
     General of the Waffen S.S. Pohl respectively:
     
     We assist with all the forces at our disposal.
     
     The  task of my Economic Administrative Main Office, however,  is
     not  completely fulfilled with the delivery of the  prisoners  to
     the  aviation industry, as S.S.-Obergruppenfuehrer Pohl  and  his
     assistants  take  care  of  the required  working  speed  through
     constant  control and supervision of the work-groups  (Kommandos)
     and therefore have some influence on the resulting production. In
     this  respect  I may suggest consideration of the  fact  that  in
     enlarging  our responsibility through a speeding-up of the  total
     work, better results can definitely be expected."

I  pass  now to the last two paragraphs of the letter, which  will  be
found on the next page of the translation:

     "The movement of manufacturing plants of the aviation industry to
     subterranean  locations  requires  further  employment  of  about
     100,000 prisoners. The plans for this employment on the basis  of
     your letter Of 14 February 1944 are already unddr way.
     
     I shall keep you, most honoured Reichsmarshal, currently informed
     on this subject."

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