Dutch SS Kontroll Kommando (KK) photo

[NickG]

An interesting image surfaced of the obscure Dutch SS affiliated Guard unit called "Kontroll Kommando".

These men were recruited in 1941 as prison guards serving in the transit camps containing rounded up jews, captured black marketeers and men who refused to work in Germany for compulsory labor service. All being forcefully removed from Holland during the occupation, many never to return again...

Many guards were later recruited into the W-SS and "Nord-West Guard" battalion, another SS backed security force which absorbed these "K K" guards.

[NickG]

Close up!

Of interest:
Dutch uniforms with German collars added (replacing the stand-up collar),
Dutch Steyr Hembrug rifles, Dutch cartridge pouches with SS belt/buckle.
Dutch side cap with German SS skull added and the incredibly rare "KK" Waffen SS style collar patches being worn.
(SS rank pips on the other side I assume)

Littlejohn talks about this unit (300 men max) in his Foreign Legions Book (Vol.2)
and now we have an image!

Anymore images or artifacts of this obscure SS unit out there?

[Kurt Meyer]

Wow what a great info Nick thank you very much for sharing.
Really interested to see how he combined the German insigna on the Dutch uniform!

[kapitein]

Great pic!

Verstuurd vanaf mijn SM-G920F met Tapatalk

[octavian]

That was a great learning experience! I had no idea of an SS (KK) tab out there. If only 300 members, then what would a KK tab be worth. Lets say if the RZM allowed 1000 to be made, then the price on a real KK tab would have to be astronomical!

[NickG]

That was a great learning experience! I had no idea of an SS (KK) tab out there.
If only 300 members, then what would a KK tab be worth.
Lets say if the RZM allowed 1000 to be made, then the price on a real KK tab would have to be astronomical!

Yes astronomical!
Member Winkelman posted this image in another thread... An officers pattern!!! vertical design?? Note: the set slopes in the other direction!
How many officers (Untersturmfuhrer) were in such a small unit?
Makes me wonder!

[NickG]

Guard and staff members....(Penal Camp-Ommen)
Note converted uniforms!
The cap devise is certainly not SS...Wreath + cockade?
Images from GotoWar.nl


another example...

https://www.lakesidetrader.com/item.php?ID=13687

and here: (Dutch made collar tabs)

http://www.hiscoll.com/viewitem.php?id=10472

[NickG]

Enlisted guard with (Dutch) rifle: note same cap as post # 2

Photo credit : GotoWar.nl

[FrenchVolunteer]

Hi,

the KK unit seemed to be linked with the Ommen camp (only it seemed) :

http://www.jewishgen.org/ForgottenCa.../OmmenEng.html

https://www.kamparchieven.nl/en/camp...herlands/ommen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamp_Erika

http://en.tracesofwar.com/article/77...rika-Ommen.htm

The camp, located around 100 km to the East of Amsterdam, opened under German hands in June 1941. Before the war, in 1924, Camp Erika started off as the home of the religious/philosophical Krishnamurti-movement. It was the headquarters until 1939 of the Order of the Star. As part of the Nazi-regulations that were issued after May 10 1940 all religious movements were dissolved and their assets became Nazi property. In this way the camp came into Nazi hands, but it lasted until June 1941 that they put it to use as a prison-camp.

It was a camp for black market arrested people, and resistance members. Almost no Jews were prisoners there.
After the war the camp was used for the arrested members of the collaborationnist parties.

Karel Lodewijk Diepgrond was the Dutch commander of the camp, which was known before 1941 as "Camp Ommen", and after his arrival as "Arbeitslager Erika".
48 Dutch nationals were the first guard unit.

What is important is that the guards were Dutch volonteers, coming mostly from... the NSB. It was a way to avoid to be sent in the Waffen-SS in the various units with Dutch soldiers ("Westland" Regiment of the "Wiking" division, "Nordland" Regiment of the "Wiking" that will become in 1943 the "Nordland" division core, "Legion Niederlande" who will become the "Nederland" division). In all the Germanic countries, the young members of the collaborationnist parties + local Allgemeine-SS were usually "sucked" in the Waffen-SS, to the "horror" of local collaborationnist leaders.
The KK unit, and especially the "SS-Wachbataillon Nordwest" which was created on January 1st, 1942, were a way to keep collaborationnists in the country for Mussert and the NSB.

The "Nordwest" unit (different from the dissolved Standarte "Nordwest" from Summer 1941) will be drafted into the "Landstorm Nederland" division (which was mainly taken from the "Landwacht Nederland" / "SS-Grenadier-Regiment I Landstorm Nederland", an auxilliary police unit here in the Netherlands. Again, with Dutch nationals in it.

A new monument is planned to be built to commemorate the « Lager Erika » (the current one is a bit ridiculous this is true).
http://www.oudommen.nl/nieuw-monument-kamp-erika/

See You

Vince

PS : two pictures of the entrance of the camp, one recently restored.

[NickG]

Yeah Erica was a Dutch Labor camp/prison camp associated with the NAD (Nederlandse Arbeids Dienst) = RAD...The guards depicted are actually Dutch Labor troops,
in dark uniforms (moss green), so not KK prison guards.and penal prisoners were also sent there to do work I believe...
Not a transit camp for convicts but instead considered a penal/disciplinary camp! "Arbeitslager" (labor camp)

Camp Ommen on the other hand served as a transit camp for the collection and deportation point of undesirables to the German prison system and KZ camps...
Certainly most of these men serving in the KK guard unit, became "NordWest Guard" (Nord West Wach Batallion) members (not to be confused with W-SS Regiment "Nord West" different unit!! which was Gerardus Mooyman's first unit!) and many/most of these men indeed ended up serving as foreign volunteers once war with Russia was declared...
(and finding a home in the Dutch Legion which was later formed to fight communism)

[FrenchVolunteer]

Hi,

There was only one camp : "Camp Ommen" (before 1940) which took the name of "Camp Erika" starting from 1941.
"Camp Erika" was never a transit camp (it was in the forest actually without railways around).
"Gevangenenkamp Erica" in Dutch = "Detention camp Erica".

The camp was used until 1943 for prisoners who did black market, and also members of the resistance. Starting from 1943, it included Dutch nationals who escaped the NAD/RAD and were sent to the camp.
Family visits were possible.

I didn't found any proof that the KK unit was taken over by the "SS-Wachbataillon Nordwest" unit. It is confirmed that in late 1944 the camp was taken over by the Orpo with German uniforms. Before that the camp had Dutch nationals with Dutch uniforms.

See You

Vince

[NickG]

Ok understood so in fact the same institution with a name change. Got it! That threw me off!
On a Holocaust site it was also described as (also) a holding camp for jews....

"Alhoewel kamp Ommen oorspronkelijk was opgezet om onderduikers en zwarthandelaren te 'rehabiliteren,' werden ook verscheidene Joden
en gevangen genomen ondergrondse strijders in Ommen ondergebracht" en werden blootgesteld aan het brute gezag van de KK.

Translation: "Although camp Ommen was originally set up to incarcerate people who were caught hiding "underground" (to avoid compulsory labor service)
and traffickers to 'rehabilitate them,' also Jews and captured underground resistance fighters were held in Ommen and exposed to the brutal authority of the KK".

So I assumed also functioning as a jewish prisoners collection point, but indeed very few ended up there! Yes main purpose was a detention camp "justizlager"
also referred to as labor camp, "Arbeits einsatz lager" housing black marketeers, illegal butchers, sex offenders, burglars and resistance people.
Again the guards in the dark uniforms are NAD personnel, not related to KK so they also had a presence there...(overseeing forced labor projects?)

Here's the Dutch manufactured "KK" collar tab in the early SS style....

[RJS72]

extra Link: http://www.go2war2.nl/artikel/4116/C...ika.htm?page=1

They also had a cufftitle, picture is from a other forum (don`t know which one sorry)



Robert

[willysproject]

Hi,

This was my KK tab I once had, in the bullion I've seen on other Dutch made tabs. Another forum member had/has one quite identical to this one.

Edit: another pic of a Dutch made tab in similar bullion.

Kind regards,
Gerd V

[willysproject]

Here's another Dutch tab set I once owned. I used it to restore a Dutch made tunic.


Again, the same 'thicker' bullion is used.