Q: Alsace-Lorrainers conscripted in the Wehrmacht

[Gray]

I have been reading what I can about this but I am confused about some of the military conscription details.

I know that in ’42 the military age Alsatians and Lorrainers (that didn’t volunteer) were being force conscripted in the Wehrmacht, but what I don’t understand is was that a precondition for staying in Alsace-Lorraine (whether you wanted that or not). I mean, from what I understand, in 1940 the Nazis said to everyone who didn’t flee or get thrown out, Alsace-Lorraine is part of the Reich now and you are German citizens, so did the Alsace-Lorrainers expect to be conscripted at some point before ’42 since they were now German? Were they told before ’42 that as a condition of staying that would be expected of them?

Also from ’42 on when the Alsatians and Lorrainers were being conscripted, did an orange card appear in their mailboxes or did soldiers show up at their doors and say something like you have 3 minutes to pack your things and come with us?

[PIERRE.H]

I’ll try to explain to you what happened, but sorry for my english…<O></O>
<O> </O>
1940 : <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:country-region><ST1lFrance</ST1l</st1:country-region> is occupied by <st1:country-region><ST1Germany</ST1</st1:country-region>. <st1:State><ST1Alsace </ST1</st1:State>and <ST1Moselle</ST1l are annexed to the Reich, and, once again, the inhabitants of these areas become german. For example, it was strictly forbidden to speak French, and <st1:State><ST1Alsace </ST1</st1:State>and <st1:State><ST1Lorraine </ST1</st1:State>were at the time “Elsass und Lothringen”. Untill 1942, some nazis’s organisations ( Labour service, hitlerjungend, Daf, etc…)were created here, and young people were obliged to belong to these. But nobody was obliged to be incorporated in german army. Between October and November 1940, only 31 men were volunteer to fight with the german soldiers, and only 2100 before june 1942.<O></O>
1942 :The Reich and its conquests need more and more soldiers; soon, on <st1:date Month="6" Day="25" Year="1942">august 25<SUP>th</SUP> 1942</st1:date>, Gauleiter Wagner said that the young Alsacians and Mosellans are enlisted by force in the Wehrmacht, and are forced the wear the feldgrau uniform. All men who were born in 1922,1923 and 1924 were incorporated. .Majority of these young people were on the eastern front, in <st1:country-region><ST1Russia</ST1l</st1:country-region>. During 1943, 1944, some of them where incorporated by force in the waffen SS, they were born in 1925,1926, and the younger (1929) were incorporated as Flak Helfer for example.They will be over 130.000, most of them being sent to the eastfront. 20.000 of them will be killed in action, 20.000 more will be reported as missing in action. From 1942 to 1945, 40.000 of them will be captured and sent to POW camps all over <st1:country-region><ST1lRussia</ST1l</st1:country-region>. The last ones will not return home until 1955.<O></O>
As you said, they received in their mailboxes an orange card. If they refused, their families were deported, or killed.<O></O>
Hope that help<O></O>
Best regards<O></O>
<st1:City><ST1Pierre</ST1</st1:City><O</O

[PIERRE.H]

decret

pic1

[PIERRE.H]

pic2

[PIERRE.H]

orange card for the waffen SS ( january 1945 ! )

[Gray]

Hi Pierre-

That helps tremendously, and your english was very good. Thanks a ton! I have not been able to answer that question for a long time. Thanks for the image posts! Outstanding! So the first one is the conscription card. The second image, I guess is an announcement posted for the public about the conscription and the third image is a similar announcement in the newspaper?

Do you happen to know if German soldiers had to make “housecalls” to enforce delinquent conscripts to report?

If the conscripts were late to report, were they sent to a prisoner battalion – or did they have to do something more serious like try and escape?

20th century Alsatian history is really interesting to me, although I haven’t been able to read that much of it. Speaking and reading only English doesn’t help.

Thanks again.

[SvenWittnebel]

...
20th century Alsatian history is really interesting to me, although I haven’t been able to read that much of it. Speaking and reading only English doesn’t help.

Thanks again.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alsace-Lorraine

[PIERRE.H]

Hi gray,
<O
Thanks with my english ! In fact, the first image is a page from a local newspaper ( Town of <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:City><ST1Colmar</ST1</st1:City>, <ST1Kolmar</ST1 in german during this period ) and the conscription card is the third image.<O
Yes, of course, german soldiers came at home to pick up a delinquent conscript. But as I said, it was a very hard choice for these young people, because they all knew that their families would have big troubles if they refused to be incorporated. <O</O
During years 1943,1944, and early 1945, many of them were incorporated in the waffen SS, (and in the whermacht too), they were always mixed with german soldiers, not in a particular division, and it was difficult for them to escape. If they did, they surrended to Russian troops, but you know what happened for them later in the prisonner’s camps, especialy for those with SS uniforms.<O</O
Some of them choose to escape during a vacation or where hidden by population in the small villages, with all the risks <O</O
And after the war, it was another fight for all of them, because they had to fight with an enemy army, and it took many years for french government to admit they were veterans, and were considerated like others French ex soldiers.<O</O
Best regards<O</O
<st1:City><ST1Pierre</ST1</st1:City><O</O

[Gray]

Hi Pierre-

Thanks again. Your anwers helped immensely.

[Michael Miller]

Here's some additional information concerning Robert Wagner's conscription campaign (initiated in his capacity as "Chef der Zivilverwaltung in Elsass"):

25.08.1942 Ordered the conscription of all military service-aged males into the Wehrmacht. A total of 130,000 men from Alsace and Lorraine were ultimately drafted for military service, and 40,000 of these were killed. In a speech delivered in Colmar on 20.06.1943 (printed in the “M******252;hlh******228;user Tageblatt” of 21.06.1943 under the title “Alsace will not Stand Aloof”), he stated:


"The decisive event for Alsace in 1942 was thus the introduction of compulsory military service. It cannot be my intention to justify from the juridical point of view, a measure which strikes so deeply at the life of Alsace. There is no need for such a justification. Every decision which here touches the Greater German Reich has a motive and cannot be attacked as to its juridical and its defacto form."


The following is excerpted from a teletype message sent by Wagner from Strassburg to the
Chief of the Appeals Court in Karlsruhe in 06.1944:

"It is particularly necessary in Alsace that the penalties pronounced against those who refuse to do military service shall produce the effect of intimidation, but the effect of intimidation upon those who are recalcitrant through the fear of personal danger can only be achieved by the death penalty. All the more so, as an Alsatian who emigrates with the intention of escaping military service generally counts on an early coming victory for the enemy powers and, in the case of conviction and consequent loss of freedom, on the very early cancellation of the penalty. Consequently, in the case of all attempts at illegal emigration to escape military service after 6 June 1944, apart from any other judicial proceeding in force in the old Reich, the death penalty must be applied as the only penalty provided."


Best wishes,
~ Mike Miller

[BergführerKiser]

Gr******252;******223; Gott Kameraden,

Thank you Pierre and Mike for shedding some light on this matter which involves some of my family. My mother is originally from Metz. My great grandfather, Gustav Schmeisser, was born in Metz in 1886 as a German. He served in the German army during the First World War. My grandfather, Walter Schmeisser, was born in Metz in 1911 as a German. After World War I, he and the rest of the family became French. My grandfather served in the French Army at the beginning of World War II. He was in an anti-aircraft battery, 402. Rgt. de D.C.A., from August 1939 to August 1940. In 1943, he was conscripted into the German Red Cross until March of 1945.




Pierre...the sub-headline of the Kolmar Kurier is also of great interest for me, since it announces the planting of the flag on Mount Elbrus by Hochgebirgskompanie Groth!

[Gray]

I was also wondering, if anyone knows, how severe of a crime did a conscript have to commit to be sent to a penal battalion?

Let’s say I am an Alsatian who received my conscription card in ’42 and I am late to report for duty – would that be a serious enough offence to be sent to a penal battalion, or would just come and collect me and send me to where I was originally assigned? Did the Germans even have penal battalions then?

Wow, BergführerKiser – your family was right in the middle of this. Great photos.

Thanks for the additional info Mike, I wonder if there were a lot of Alsatians escaping successfully, from ’42 on, for the punishment to be moved up to the death penalty?