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Lithuanian Auxiliary Police

December 15, 2023

The Lithuanian Auxiliary Police was a Schutzmannschaft formation formed during the German occupation of Lithuania between 1941 and 1944, with the first battalions originating from the most reliable freedom fighters that were disbanded following the anti-Soviet Lithuanian June Uprising in 1941.[3] Lithuanian activists hoped that these units would be the basis of the reestablished Lithuanian Army and commanded by the Lithuanian Provisional Government.[4] Instead, these units were placed under the orders of the SS- und Polizeiführer in Lithuania.[5]

Lithuanian Auxiliary Police
Litauische Hilfspolizei
ActiveJuly 9, 1941 (1941-07-09) - May 1945 (1945-05)
Country Nazi Germany
AgencyOrdnungspolizei
TypeSchutzmannschaft
Operations jurisdictionGerman-occupied Europe including Lithuania, Belarus, northern Russia, Ukraine, and Poland[1]
Commanders
Notable
commanders

Lithuanian auxiliary policemen were divided into four types, first three were: regular law enforcement policemen, firefighting policemen, and auxiliary units grouped into platoons and companies that assisted the local police when needed.[2] The last were Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalions, which were closed formations, organized into battalions, companies, platoons and groups.[2]

The battalions were charged with internal security duties and engaged in anti-partisan operations in the Wehrmacht's rear areas, e.g. Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Northwest Russia.[6] Some battalions partook in the Holocaust, most notably the 12th and the 13th battalions, which started as the Lithuanian TDA Battalions. These two battalions are estimated to have been responsible for an estimated 78,000 Jewish deaths in Lithuania and Belarus.[citation needed] While the battalions were often deployed outside Lithuania, they generally did not participate in combat. In total, 26 battalions were formed and approximately 20thousand[7] men served in them.[8] In July–September, 1944, the remaining units were combined into two Lithuanian Volunteer Infantry Regiments.[9]

Terminology edit

The units are known under a number of different names. German documents referred to them as Ordnungsdienst (order service), Selbstschutz (self-defense), Hilfspolizei (auxiliary police).[10] From September 1941, they became known as Schutzmannschaft-Bataillonen (abbreviated Schuma). In Lithuanian, the police battalions were known as savisaugos batalionai (self-defense battalions), apsaugos dalys (security units), Lietuvos apsaugos dalys (LAD, security units of Lithuania).[10]

Sources and historiography edit

The topic of Lithuanian Police Battalions is very controversial and poorly researched.[citation needed] The main obstacle is the lack of reliable and objective data. During the war, journal Karys published frequent stories about the battalions, but to protect military secrets the articles were heavily censored to remove names, dates, and locations. During the Soviet period, when Soviet propaganda exploited tales of war crimes and actively persecuted former members of the battalions, objective research was impossible. Several members of the battalions managed to escape to the West and publish memoirs, but they gloss over the controversial aspects of the battalions and often deny Lithuanian involvement in the Holocaust.[11] Foreign researchers were hampered by lack of archival data.

When Lithuania declared independence, the archives became accessible to scholars. However, many of the documents are scattered in various archives in Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Germany, Russia. In addition, due to the chaotic nature of the war, recordkeeping was poor, particularly towards the end of the war. The units were subject to frequent reorganizations and restructurings; sometimes the units were confused themselves of their proper name or numbering. In the post-war years, KGB produced interrogation protocols of former members of the battalions, but these are not considered reliable as confessions were often obtained through torture or outright fabricated. Nevertheless, Lithuanian scholars, primarily Arūnas Bubnys, published several articles analyzing structure and activities of individual battalions.[11]

Background edit

 
Lithuanian soldier escorting a group of Lithuanian Jews in Vilnius in July 1941

In June 1940, Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union. The Soviets introduced harsh sovietization policies, including nationalization of larger enterprises, landholdings, and real estate.[12] Opponents of communism and the new regime were persecuted: an estimated 6,600 were imprisoned as "enemies of the people"[13] and another 17,600 deported to Siberia.[14] The Lithuanian Army was reorganized into the 29th Rifle Corps (179th Rifle and 184th Rifle Divisions) of the Red Army. More than 500 of Lithuanian officers were retired and 87 were imprisoned.[15]

A Lithuanian Activist Front was formed in Berlin, led by Kazys Škirpa, formerly a Lithuanian envoy in Germany. The goal of the LAF was to organize an anti-Soviet uprising in the event of a German-Soviet war.[16] When Nazi Germany invaded Soviet Union on June 22, 1941, Lithuanians greeted the Germans as liberators from the repressive Soviet rule.[17] They spontaneously joined the anti-Soviet June Uprising, formed the Provisional Government of Lithuania, and declared restoration of independence. Lithuanians began forming their own military and police units in hopes to recreate the Lithuanian Army.[18] The territory of Lithuania was invaded by and divided between two German Army Groups: Army Group North, which took over western and northern Lithuania, and Army Group Centre, which took over most of the Vilnius Region.[19] Therefore, developments in Kaunas and Vilnius were parallel but separate. The Germans had no intention of giving the Lithuanians independence, so the provisional government was dissolved on August 5, 1941 and partisan units disarmed. On September 26, the LAF was also dissolved and Lithuania was incorporated into the German civil administration.[20]

Formation edit

In the short period when the Lithuanians hoped to rebuild the state with the help of the Germans, they spontaneously reconstituted part of the pre-war police, reaching about 40% (3,000 men) of the pre-war number, and began to recreate the army.[21] On July 5, however, the German authorities forbade the reconstitution of the Lithuanian army, and only allowed the existence of self-defense units, which soon began to transform into auxiliary police units.[22] In November, all auxiliary policemen in the eastern territories, including Lithuania, were to be regarded as Schutzmannschaften.[21]

Schutzmannschaften were divided into four types. The first was a regular police force of an orderly nature, stationed in posts in cities and provinces. The second were closed formations, organized into battalions, companies, platoons and groups. The third type were units performing firefighting functions. The fourth were auxiliary units grouped into platoons and companies that assisted the regular police when needed.[2]

The first battalion, known as the Tautinio darbo apsaugos batalionas (TDA), was formed by the Provisional Government of Lithuania in Kaunas on June 28.[18] The Provisional Government dissolved itself on August 5, 1941. The battalion was not dissolved and German Major Franz Lechthaler [de] took over its command.[18] On August 7, when TDA had 703 members, Lechthaler ordered the battalion to be reorganized into two battalions of auxiliary police (German: Polizeihilfsdienst bataillone; Lithuanian: Pagalbinės policijos tarnyba or PPT). During August three more battalions of PPT were formed. In October, these five battalions were renamed to security battalions (Lithuanian: apsaugos batalionas). In December, the five battalions were reorganized again into battalions of Schutzmannschaft.

Lithuanian men massively deserted from the Soviet 29th Rifle Corps and gathered in Vilnius. They organized Lithuanian Self-defense Units (Lithuanian: Lietuvių savisaugos dalys or LSD), stationed in Vilnius, Pabradė, Trakai, and Varėna.[23] On July 21, 1941, LSD was reorganized into Vilnius Reconstruction Service (Lithuanian: Vilniaus atstatymo tarnyba or VAT) that had three units (Work, Order, and Security). On August 1, VAT and its three units were reorganized into three battalions of Schutzmannschaft.[24] Two more battalions were organized before October 1941.

Atrocities edit

Some Lithuanian auxiliary police battalions took an active part in extermination of Jewish people in territory of Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and Poland and committed crimes against Polish and Belarusian populations. One such action of Lithuanian policemen was liquidation of Jews in Kaunas in October 1941 by 12th Police Battalion under command of Antanas Impulevičius. Later the same month 12th battalion murdered the entire Jewish population of Slutsk in Belarus. 2nd Police Battalion served as guards in Majdanek death camp in occupied Poland. 10 out of 26 Lithuanian Auxiliary Police Battalions were directly involved in destruction of Jewish people in Eastern Europe.[25] According to German reports[specify], Lithuanians committed 47,000 killings of Jews in Lithuania out of all 85,000 committed by Einsatzkommando there. They also killed 50,000 Belarusian Jews during the war.[26] Largest crime against non-Jewish civilian population of Lithuanian policemen was killing of about 400 Polish people in the villages Švenčionėliai and Švenčionys and their surroundings.[27]

List of Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft battalions edit

BN#[n 1] Formed from Formation began Formed in First commander[n 2] Holocaust
[n 3][28]		 Location on
1942-08-26[29]		 Location on
1944-03-17[10]		 Date disbanded Further fate
1st VAT Security Unit (former LSD)[24] July 14, 1941[30] Vilnius Col Lt Jonas Juknevičius[24] Yes Vilnius Vilnius Fall 1944[31] To anti-aircraft units or Germany[31]
2nd VAT Order Unit (former LSD)[24] July 14, 1941[30] Vilnius Col Lt Petras Vertelis[30] Yes Lublin Adutiškis August 1944[30] To various German units[30]
3rd VAT Work unit (former LSD)[24] July 14, 1941[30] Vilnius Capt Pranas Ambraziūnas[32] Yes Near Minsk Near Minsk July 1944[33] To anti-aircraft units or Dresden[33]
4th 4th battalion of PPT August 30, 1941[18] Kaunas Capt Viktoras Klimavičius[18] No Stalino disbanded February 1944[34] Kovel Pocket: Soviet captivity[34]
5th 5th battalion of PPT August 28, 1941[35] Kaunas Capt Juozas Kriščiūnas[18] No[35] Dedovichi Švenčionėliai December 1944[35] To the 256th and 13th battalions[35]
6th Railway Protection Battalion[36] July 1941[36] Vilnius Capt Vincentas Ruseckas No Vilnius Vilnius August 1944[37] To anti-aircraft units or Germany[37]
7th Kaunas Capt Klimavičius Viktoras Yes Lityn disbanded January 1944[38] To the 13th[28] and 257th battalions[39]
8th Kaunas Maj Juozas Jurkūnas No Kirovohrad disbanded Nov. 20, 1943[28]
9th Kaunas Capt Mykolas Slyvėnas No Kaunas Kaunas July 1944[40] To the 1st Lithuanian Police Regiment[40]
10th - August 1941[41] Panevėžys Capt Bronius Kairiūnas[42] Yes[43] Panevėžys disbanded January 21, 1943[44] To the 14th battalion[44]
11th 3rd battalion of PPT August 15, 1941[18] Kaunas Capt Antanas Švilpa[10] Yes Korosten disbanded Late 1943[45]
12th 2nd battalion of PPT (former TDA) August 9, 1941[46] Kaunas Maj Antanas Impulevičius[18] Extensively Minsk disbanded February 1944[47] To the 15th battalion[47]
13th 1st battalion of PPT (former TDA) June 28, 1941[18] Kaunas Maj Kazys Šimkus[18] Extensively[48] Dedovichi Opochka May 1945[49] Courland Pocket: Soviet captivity[49]
14th - August 1941[50] Šiauliai Capt Stanislovas Lipčius[51] Yes[52] Šiauliai Šiauliai Summer 1944[41] To Gdańsk and Dresden[41]
15th VAT Hrodna battalion[53] July 1941[53] Vilnius Maj Albinas Levickis[54] No Baranovichi Near Minsk July 26, 1944[55] To Szczecin and Gdańsk[55]
250th - 1941 autumn Kaunas No Pskov Daugavpils
251st - Summer 1942[56] Kaunas No Kaunas disbanded February 1943[56] To the 2nd battalion[56]
252nd - May 25, 1942[30] Kaunas Maj Bronius Bajerčius[30] Yes Kaunas Lublin November 1944[30] To northern Yugoslavia[57]
253rd - May 1943[40] Kaunas Capt Vladas Aižinas[40] No n/a Lublin August 1944[40] To aviation units and Dresden[40]
254th - Spring 1942[58] Vilnius Capt Povilas Bareišis[59] No Vilnius disbanded April 1944[60] To the 258th or 259th battalions[60]
255th - July 21, 1942[61] Kaunas No Kaunas Slutsk August 1944[62] To Dresden[62]
256th - March 1943[49] Kaunas Capt Jonas Matulis[49] No n/a Panemunė May 1945[49] Courland Pocket: Soviet captivity[49]
257th 4 representative police companies[63] October 24, 1943[64] Capt V. Miliauskas[65] No n/a Svir [lt] October 1944[66] To Gdańsk[66]
258th Training units[67] April 27, 1944[67] No n/a n/a Late 1944[62] To Germany near Belgian border[62]
259th - April 1944[68] Prienai[68] No n/a n/a
Lietuva Lithuanians in Reichsarbeitsdienst[69] Koszalin[69] No n/a n/a
Notes:
  1. ^ Battalion number. Numbers 301 through 310 were assigned to the Lithuanian Territorial Defense Force.
  2. ^ Only the first commander is listed. Some of them were acting commanders, holding the post for a few weeks.
  3. ^ Indicates whether the unit participated in the Holocaust. The conclusion is based on the research by Arūnas Bubnys.

References edit

  1. ^ Bubnys 2017, p. 151-152.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Bubnys 2017, p. 152.
  3. ^ Mollo 1992, p. 26.
  4. ^ Caballero 2002, p. 35.
  5. ^ Arad 1990, p. 1176.
  6. ^ Caballero 2002, pp. 35–37.
  7. ^ "policijos batalionai". www.vle.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 2023-09-03.
  8. ^ Anušauskas, et al. (2005), p. 232
  9. ^ Stoliarovas (2008a), p. 16
  10. ^ a b c d Bubnys (1998a)
  11. ^ a b Stoliarovas (2008a), p. 8
  12. ^ Anušauskas, et al. (2005), pp. 116–119
  13. ^ Anušauskas, et al. (2005), p. 137
  14. ^ Anušauskas, et al. (2005), p. 140
  15. ^ Anušauskas, et al. (2005), p. 112
  16. ^ Bubnys 2017, p. 149.
  17. ^ Suziedelis (2011), p. 252
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Knezys (2000)
  19. ^ Anušauskas, et al. (2005), p. 161
  20. ^ Bubnys 2017, p. 149-150.
  21. ^ a b Bubnys 2017, p. 150.
  22. ^ Bubnys 2017, p. 151.
  23. ^ Bubnys (2008b), p. 36
  24. ^ a b c d e Bubnys (2008b), p. 37
  25. ^ Statiev 2010, p. 69
  26. ^ Statiev 2010, p. 70
  27. ^ Wnuk 2018, p. 94
  28. ^ a b c Čekutis & Žygelis (2010-04-14)
  29. ^ Bubnys (1998c), p. 120
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i Bubnys (2000)
  31. ^ a b Bubnys (2008b), p. 42
  32. ^ Bubnys (2008b), p. 43
  33. ^ a b Bubnys (2008b), p. 48
  34. ^ a b Bubnys (2008b), p. 51
  35. ^ a b c d Bubnys (2001a)
  36. ^ a b Breslavskienė (September 2010c)
  37. ^ a b Stankeras (2008), p. 566
  38. ^ Stankeras (2008), p. 567
  39. ^ Stankeras (2008), p. 534
  40. ^ a b c d e f Bubnys (1998b)
  41. ^ a b c Bubnys (2010), p. 84
  42. ^ Bubnys (2010), p. 85
  43. ^ Bubnys (2010), p. 85–86
  44. ^ a b Bubnys (2010), p. 87
  45. ^ Bubnys (2008a), p. 52
  46. ^ Stoliarovas (2008a), p. 21
  47. ^ a b Stoliarovas (2008a), p. 36
  48. ^ Bubnys (2006), pp. 48–49
  49. ^ a b c d e f Bubnys (2001b)
  50. ^ Bubnys (2010), p. 81
  51. ^ Bubnys (2010), p. 82
  52. ^ Bubnys (2010), pp. 82–83
  53. ^ a b Bubnys (2007), p. 70
  54. ^ Bubnys (2007), p. 69
  55. ^ a b Bubnys (2007), p. 76
  56. ^ a b c Bubnys (2001c)
  57. ^ Stoliarovas (2008b), p. 292
  58. ^ Bubnys (2008b), p. 52
  59. ^ Bubnys (2008b), p. 53
  60. ^ a b Bubnys (2008b), p. 54
  61. ^ Breslavskienė (August 2010b)
  62. ^ a b c d Bubnys (2009-10-17)
  63. ^ Stankeras (2008), p. 533–534
  64. ^ Breslavskienė (September 2010b)
  65. ^ Stankeras (2008), p. 533
  66. ^ a b Stankeras (2008), p. 538
  67. ^ a b Breslavskienė (September 2010a)
  68. ^ a b Breslavskienė (August 2010a)
  69. ^ a b Stoliarovas (2008a), p. 15

Bibliography edit

Lithuanian-language sources edit

  • Anušauskas, Arvydas; Bubnys, Arūnas; Kuodytė, Dialia; Jakubčionis, Algirdas; Titinis, Vytautas; Truska, Liudas, eds. (2005). Lietuva, 1940–1990 (in Lithuanian). Vilnius: Lietuvos gyventojų genocido ir rezistencijos tyrimo centras. ISBN 9986-757-65-7.
  • Čekutis, Ričardas; Žygelis, Dalius (2010-04-14), Laisvės kyžkelės. Lietuvių policijos batalionai Antrojo pasaulinio karo metais (in Lithuanian), Bernardinai.lt, retrieved 2015-04-18
  • Knezys, Stasys (2000). "Kauno karo komendantūros Tautinio darbo batalionas 1941 m." Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 7. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Rukšėnas, Alfredas (2007). "Kauno 2-asis pagalbinės policijos tarnybos batalionas ir gyventojų žudynės Baltarusijoje 1941–1943 m." Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 22. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Stankeras, Petras (2008). Lietuvių policija Antrajame pasauliniame kare (in Lithuanian). Mintis. ISBN 978-5-417-00958-7.
  • Stoliarovas, Andriejus (2008a). Lietuvių pagalbinės policijos (apsaugos) 12-asis batalionas (Thesis) (in Lithuanian). Vytautas Magnus University.
  • Stoliarovas, Andriejus (2008b). "Lietuvių pagalbinės policijos (apsaugos) 252-asis (Kauno) batalionas. Nežinomas bataliono istorijos fragmentas". Kauno istorijos metraštis. 9. ISSN 1822-2617.
  • Zizas, Rimantas (2004). "Lietuvių savisaugos (apsaugos) bataliono karių nuostoliai Vokietijos-SSRS karo metu (1941-1945)". Karo Archyvas (in Lithuanian). 19. ISSN 1392-6489.

Laimutė Breslavskienė edit

  • Breslavskienė, Laimutė (August 2010a). (in Lithuanian). Lietuvos centrinis valstybės archyvas. Archived from the original on 2015-04-19. Retrieved 2015-04-18.
  • Breslavskienė, Laimutė (August 2010b). (in Lithuanian). Lietuvos centrinis valstybės archyvas. Archived from the original on 2015-04-19. Retrieved 2015-04-18.
  • Breslavskienė, Laimutė (September 2010a). (in Lithuanian). Lietuvos centrinis valstybės archyvas. Archived from the original on 2015-04-19. Retrieved 2015-04-18.
  • Breslavskienė, Laimutė (September 2010b). (in Lithuanian). Lietuvos centrinis valstybės archyvas. Archived from the original on 2015-04-19. Retrieved 2015-04-18.
  • Breslavskienė, Laimutė (September 2010c). (in Lithuanian). Lietuvos centrinis valstybės archyvas. Archived from the original on 2015-04-19. Retrieved 2015-04-18.

Arūnas Bubnys edit

  • Bubnys, Arūnas (1998a). "Lietuvių viešoji policija ir policijos batalionai (1941–1944)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 3. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (1998b). "253-iasis lietuvių policijos batalionas (1943–1944)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 4. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (1998c). Vokiečių okupuota Lietuva (1941–1944) (in Lithuanian). Vilnius: Lietuvos gyventojų genocido ir rezistencijos tyrimo centras. ISBN 9986-757-12-6.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2000). "Lietuvių policijos 2-asis (Vilniaus) ir 252-asis batalionai (1941–1944)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 8. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2001a). "Penktasis lietuvių policijos batalionas (1941–1944)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 9. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2001b). "Lietuvių policijos batalionai Pskovo srityje ir Kurše: 13-asis ir 10(256)-asis batalionai (1942–1945)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 10. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2001c). "Atsakymas ponui H. Kudreikiui". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 10. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2006). "Lietuvių policijos 1 (13)-asis batalionas ir žydų žudynės 1941 m." Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 20. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2007). "Lietuvių policijos 15-asis batalionas. (1941-1944 m.)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 21. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2008a). "Lietuvių policijos 3(11)-iasis batalionas". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 23. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2008b). "Lietuvių savisaugos dalinių Vilniaus apygardos batalionai (1941-1944 m.)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 24. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2009-10-17). "Lietuvių policijos batalionų nuginklavimas ir išformavimas Rytprūsiuose 1944 metais" (PDF). Voruta. 20 (686): 6, 8. ISSN 2029-3534.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2010). "Lietuvių policijos Šiaulių (14-asis) ir Panevėžio (10-asis) batalionai (1941-1944)". Genocidas Ir Rezistencija (in Lithuanian). 27. ISSN 1392-3463.
  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2013). "Lietuvių policijos Vilniaus 4-asis batalionas (1941-1944)". Voruta (in Lithuanian). 17–18 (781–782). ISSN 1392-0677.

English-language sources edit

  • Bubnys, Arūnas (2017). "The Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalions". In Böhler, Jochen; Gerwarth, Robert (eds.). The Waffen-SS. A European History. Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-879055-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Caballero, Jurado (2002). Windrow, Martin (ed.). Germany's Eastern Front Allies (2). Men-at-Arms. Great Britain: Osprey Publishing.
  • Yitzhak Arad (1990). The Encyclopedia of the Holocaust. New York City: Macmillan Publishers. ISBN 9780028960906.
  • Mollo, Andrew (1992). Uniforms of the SS. Vol. 5 - Sicherheitsdienst und Sicherheitspolizei 1931-1945. Great Britain: Windrow & Greene. ISBN 1-872004-62-8.
  • Statiev, Alexander (2010). The Soviet Counterinsurgency in the Western Borderlands. Cambridge: 978-0-521-76833-7.
  • Suziedelis, Saulius A. (2011). Historical Dictionary of Lithuania. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810875364.

December 15, 2023
lithuanian, auxiliary, police, schutzmannschaft, formation, formed, during, german, occupation, lithuania, between, 1941, 1944, with, first, battalions, originating, from, most, reliable, freedom, fighters, that, were, disbanded, following, anti, soviet, lithu. The Lithuanian Auxiliary Police was a Schutzmannschaft formation formed during the German occupation of Lithuania between 1941 and 1944 with the first battalions originating from the most reliable freedom fighters that were disbanded following the anti Soviet Lithuanian June Uprising in 1941 3 Lithuanian activists hoped that these units would be the basis of the reestablished Lithuanian Army and commanded by the Lithuanian Provisional Government 4 Instead these units were placed under the orders of the SS und Polizeifuhrer in Lithuania 5 Lithuanian Auxiliary PoliceLitauische HilfspolizeiActiveJuly 9 1941 1941 07 09 May 1945 1945 05 Country Nazi GermanyAgencyOrdnungspolizeiTypeSchutzmannschaftOperations jurisdictionGerman occupied Europe including Lithuania Belarus northern Russia Ukraine and Poland 1 CommandersNotablecommandersLucian Wysocki SSPF in Generalbezirk Litauen 2 A Engel KdO 2 Antanas Spokevicius inspector of the Lithuanian police battalions 2 Antanas Reklaitis head of the staff 2 Lithuanian auxiliary policemen were divided into four types first three were regular law enforcement policemen firefighting policemen and auxiliary units grouped into platoons and companies that assisted the local police when needed 2 The last were Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalions which were closed formations organized into battalions companies platoons and groups 2 The battalions were charged with internal security duties and engaged in anti partisan operations in the Wehrmacht s rear areas e g Ukraine Belarus Poland and Northwest Russia 6 Some battalions partook in the Holocaust most notably the 12th and the 13th battalions which started as the Lithuanian TDA Battalions These two battalions are estimated to have been responsible for an estimated 78 000 Jewish deaths in Lithuania and Belarus citation needed While the battalions were often deployed outside Lithuania they generally did not participate in combat In total 26 battalions were formed and approximately 20thousand 7 men served in them 8 In July September 1944 the remaining units were combined into two Lithuanian Volunteer Infantry Regiments 9 Contents 1 Terminology 2 Sources and historiography 3 Background 4 Formation 5 Atrocities 6 List of Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft battalions 7 References 8 Bibliography 8 1 Lithuanian language sources 8 1 1 Laimute Breslavskiene 8 1 2 Arunas Bubnys 8 2 English language sourcesTerminology editThe units are known under a number of different names German documents referred to them as Ordnungsdienst order service Selbstschutz self defense Hilfspolizei auxiliary police 10 From September 1941 they became known as Schutzmannschaft Bataillonen abbreviated Schuma In Lithuanian the police battalions were known as savisaugos batalionai self defense battalions apsaugos dalys security units Lietuvos apsaugos dalys LAD security units of Lithuania 10 Sources and historiography editThe topic of Lithuanian Police Battalions is very controversial and poorly researched citation needed The main obstacle is the lack of reliable and objective data During the war journal Karys published frequent stories about the battalions but to protect military secrets the articles were heavily censored to remove names dates and locations During the Soviet period when Soviet propaganda exploited tales of war crimes and actively persecuted former members of the battalions objective research was impossible Several members of the battalions managed to escape to the West and publish memoirs but they gloss over the controversial aspects of the battalions and often deny Lithuanian involvement in the Holocaust 11 Foreign researchers were hampered by lack of archival data When Lithuania declared independence the archives became accessible to scholars However many of the documents are scattered in various archives in Lithuania Belarus Ukraine Germany Russia In addition due to the chaotic nature of the war recordkeeping was poor particularly towards the end of the war The units were subject to frequent reorganizations and restructurings sometimes the units were confused themselves of their proper name or numbering In the post war years KGB produced interrogation protocols of former members of the battalions but these are not considered reliable as confessions were often obtained through torture or outright fabricated Nevertheless Lithuanian scholars primarily Arunas Bubnys published several articles analyzing structure and activities of individual battalions 11 Background edit nbsp Lithuanian soldier escorting a group of Lithuanian Jews in Vilnius in July 1941In June 1940 Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union The Soviets introduced harsh sovietization policies including nationalization of larger enterprises landholdings and real estate 12 Opponents of communism and the new regime were persecuted an estimated 6 600 were imprisoned as enemies of the people 13 and another 17 600 deported to Siberia 14 The Lithuanian Army was reorganized into the 29th Rifle Corps 179th Rifle and 184th Rifle Divisions of the Red Army More than 500 of Lithuanian officers were retired and 87 were imprisoned 15 A Lithuanian Activist Front was formed in Berlin led by Kazys Skirpa formerly a Lithuanian envoy in Germany The goal of the LAF was to organize an anti Soviet uprising in the event of a German Soviet war 16 When Nazi Germany invaded Soviet Union on June 22 1941 Lithuanians greeted the Germans as liberators from the repressive Soviet rule 17 They spontaneously joined the anti Soviet June Uprising formed the Provisional Government of Lithuania and declared restoration of independence Lithuanians began forming their own military and police units in hopes to recreate the Lithuanian Army 18 The territory of Lithuania was invaded by and divided between two German Army Groups Army Group North which took over western and northern Lithuania and Army Group Centre which took over most of the Vilnius Region 19 Therefore developments in Kaunas and Vilnius were parallel but separate The Germans had no intention of giving the Lithuanians independence so the provisional government was dissolved on August 5 1941 and partisan units disarmed On September 26 the LAF was also dissolved and Lithuania was incorporated into the German civil administration 20 Formation editIn the short period when the Lithuanians hoped to rebuild the state with the help of the Germans they spontaneously reconstituted part of the pre war police reaching about 40 3 000 men of the pre war number and began to recreate the army 21 On July 5 however the German authorities forbade the reconstitution of the Lithuanian army and only allowed the existence of self defense units which soon began to transform into auxiliary police units 22 In November all auxiliary policemen in the eastern territories including Lithuania were to be regarded as Schutzmannschaften 21 Schutzmannschaften were divided into four types The first was a regular police force of an orderly nature stationed in posts in cities and provinces The second were closed formations organized into battalions companies platoons and groups The third type were units performing firefighting functions The fourth were auxiliary units grouped into platoons and companies that assisted the regular police when needed 2 The first battalion known as the Tautinio darbo apsaugos batalionas TDA was formed by the Provisional Government of Lithuania in Kaunas on June 28 18 The Provisional Government dissolved itself on August 5 1941 The battalion was not dissolved and German Major Franz Lechthaler de took over its command 18 On August 7 when TDA had 703 members Lechthaler ordered the battalion to be reorganized into two battalions of auxiliary police German Polizeihilfsdienst bataillone Lithuanian Pagalbines policijos tarnyba or PPT During August three more battalions of PPT were formed In October these five battalions were renamed to security battalions Lithuanian apsaugos batalionas In December the five battalions were reorganized again into battalions of Schutzmannschaft Lithuanian men massively deserted from the Soviet 29th Rifle Corps and gathered in Vilnius They organized Lithuanian Self defense Units Lithuanian Lietuviu savisaugos dalys or LSD stationed in Vilnius Pabrade Trakai and Varena 23 On July 21 1941 LSD was reorganized into Vilnius Reconstruction Service Lithuanian Vilniaus atstatymo tarnyba or VAT that had three units Work Order and Security On August 1 VAT and its three units were reorganized into three battalions of Schutzmannschaft 24 Two more battalions were organized before October 1941 Atrocities editSome Lithuanian auxiliary police battalions took an active part in extermination of Jewish people in territory of Lithuania Belarus Ukraine Russia and Poland and committed crimes against Polish and Belarusian populations One such action of Lithuanian policemen was liquidation of Jews in Kaunas in October 1941 by 12th Police Battalion under command of Antanas Impulevicius Later the same month 12th battalion murdered the entire Jewish population of Slutsk in Belarus 2nd Police Battalion served as guards in Majdanek death camp in occupied Poland 10 out of 26 Lithuanian Auxiliary Police Battalions were directly involved in destruction of Jewish people in Eastern Europe 25 According to German reports specify Lithuanians committed 47 000 killings of Jews in Lithuania out of all 85 000 committed by Einsatzkommando there They also killed 50 000 Belarusian Jews during the war 26 Largest crime against non Jewish civilian population of Lithuanian policemen was killing of about 400 Polish people in the villages Svencioneliai and Svencionys and their surroundings 27 List of Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft battalions editBN n 1 Formed from Formation began Formed in First commander n 2 Holocaust n 3 28 Location on1942 08 26 29 Location on 1944 03 17 10 Date disbanded Further fate1st VAT Security Unit former LSD 24 July 14 1941 30 Vilnius Col Lt Jonas Juknevicius 24 Yes Vilnius Vilnius Fall 1944 31 To anti aircraft units or Germany 31 2nd VAT Order Unit former LSD 24 July 14 1941 30 Vilnius Col Lt Petras Vertelis 30 Yes Lublin Adutiskis August 1944 30 To various German units 30 3rd VAT Work unit former LSD 24 July 14 1941 30 Vilnius Capt Pranas Ambraziunas 32 Yes Near Minsk Near Minsk July 1944 33 To anti aircraft units or Dresden 33 4th 4th battalion of PPT August 30 1941 18 Kaunas Capt Viktoras Klimavicius 18 No Stalino disbanded February 1944 34 Kovel Pocket Soviet captivity 34 5th 5th battalion of PPT August 28 1941 35 Kaunas Capt Juozas Krisciunas 18 No 35 Dedovichi Svencioneliai December 1944 35 To the 256th and 13th battalions 35 6th Railway Protection Battalion 36 July 1941 36 Vilnius Capt Vincentas Ruseckas No Vilnius Vilnius August 1944 37 To anti aircraft units or Germany 37 7th Kaunas Capt Klimavicius Viktoras Yes Lityn disbanded January 1944 38 To the 13th 28 and 257th battalions 39 8th Kaunas Maj Juozas Jurkunas No Kirovohrad disbanded Nov 20 1943 28 9th Kaunas Capt Mykolas Slyvenas No Kaunas Kaunas July 1944 40 To the 1st Lithuanian Police Regiment 40 10th August 1941 41 Panevezys Capt Bronius Kairiunas 42 Yes 43 Panevezys disbanded January 21 1943 44 To the 14th battalion 44 11th 3rd battalion of PPT August 15 1941 18 Kaunas Capt Antanas Svilpa 10 Yes Korosten disbanded Late 1943 45 12th 2nd battalion of PPT former TDA August 9 1941 46 Kaunas Maj Antanas Impulevicius 18 Extensively Minsk disbanded February 1944 47 To the 15th battalion 47 13th 1st battalion of PPT former TDA June 28 1941 18 Kaunas Maj Kazys Simkus 18 Extensively 48 Dedovichi Opochka May 1945 49 Courland Pocket Soviet captivity 49 14th August 1941 50 Siauliai Capt Stanislovas Lipcius 51 Yes 52 Siauliai Siauliai Summer 1944 41 To Gdansk and Dresden 41 15th VAT Hrodna battalion 53 July 1941 53 Vilnius Maj Albinas Levickis 54 No Baranovichi Near Minsk July 26 1944 55 To Szczecin and Gdansk 55 250th 1941 autumn Kaunas No Pskov Daugavpils251st Summer 1942 56 Kaunas No Kaunas disbanded February 1943 56 To the 2nd battalion 56 252nd May 25 1942 30 Kaunas Maj Bronius Bajercius 30 Yes Kaunas Lublin November 1944 30 To northern Yugoslavia 57 253rd May 1943 40 Kaunas Capt Vladas Aizinas 40 No n a Lublin August 1944 40 To aviation units and Dresden 40 254th Spring 1942 58 Vilnius Capt Povilas Bareisis 59 No Vilnius disbanded April 1944 60 To the 258th or 259th battalions 60 255th July 21 1942 61 Kaunas No Kaunas Slutsk August 1944 62 To Dresden 62 256th March 1943 49 Kaunas Capt Jonas Matulis 49 No n a Panemune May 1945 49 Courland Pocket Soviet captivity 49 257th 4 representative police companies 63 October 24 1943 64 Capt V Miliauskas 65 No n a Svir lt October 1944 66 To Gdansk 66 258th Training units 67 April 27 1944 67 No n a n a Late 1944 62 To Germany near Belgian border 62 259th April 1944 68 Prienai 68 No n a n aLietuva Lithuanians in Reichsarbeitsdienst 69 Koszalin 69 No n a n aNotes Battalion number Numbers 301 through 310 were assigned to the Lithuanian Territorial Defense Force Only the first commander is listed Some of them were acting commanders holding the post for a few weeks Indicates whether the unit participated in the Holocaust The conclusion is based on the research by Arunas Bubnys References edit Bubnys 2017 p 151 152 a b c d e f g Bubnys 2017 p 152 Mollo 1992 p 26 Caballero 2002 p 35 Arad 1990 p 1176 Caballero 2002 pp 35 37 policijos batalionai www vle lt in Lithuanian Retrieved 2023 09 03 Anusauskas et al 2005 p 232 Stoliarovas 2008a p 16 a b c d Bubnys 1998a a b Stoliarovas 2008a p 8 Anusauskas et al 2005 pp 116 119 Anusauskas et al 2005 p 137 Anusauskas et al 2005 p 140 Anusauskas et al 2005 p 112 Bubnys 2017 p 149 Suziedelis 2011 p 252 a b c d e f g h i j Knezys 2000 Anusauskas et al 2005 p 161 Bubnys 2017 p 149 150 a b Bubnys 2017 p 150 Bubnys 2017 p 151 Bubnys 2008b p 36 a b c d e Bubnys 2008b p 37 Statiev 2010 p 69 Statiev 2010 p 70 Wnuk 2018 p 94 a b c Cekutis amp Zygelis 2010 04 14 Bubnys 1998c p 120 a b c d e f g h i Bubnys 2000 a b Bubnys 2008b p 42 Bubnys 2008b p 43 a b Bubnys 2008b p 48 a b Bubnys 2008b p 51 a b c d Bubnys 2001a a b Breslavskiene September 2010c a b Stankeras 2008 p 566 Stankeras 2008 p 567 Stankeras 2008 p 534 a b c d e f Bubnys 1998b a b c Bubnys 2010 p 84 Bubnys 2010 p 85 Bubnys 2010 p 85 86 a b Bubnys 2010 p 87 Bubnys 2008a p 52 Stoliarovas 2008a p 21 a b Stoliarovas 2008a p 36 Bubnys 2006 pp 48 49 a b c d e f Bubnys 2001b Bubnys 2010 p 81 Bubnys 2010 p 82 Bubnys 2010 pp 82 83 a b Bubnys 2007 p 70 Bubnys 2007 p 69 a b Bubnys 2007 p 76 a b c Bubnys 2001c Stoliarovas 2008b p 292 Bubnys 2008b p 52 Bubnys 2008b p 53 a b Bubnys 2008b p 54 Breslavskiene August 2010b a b c d Bubnys 2009 10 17 Stankeras 2008 p 533 534 Breslavskiene September 2010b Stankeras 2008 p 533 a b Stankeras 2008 p 538 a b Breslavskiene September 2010a a b Breslavskiene August 2010a a b Stoliarovas 2008a p 15Bibliography editLithuanian language sources edit Anusauskas Arvydas Bubnys Arunas Kuodyte Dialia Jakubcionis Algirdas Titinis Vytautas Truska Liudas eds 2005 Lietuva 1940 1990 in Lithuanian Vilnius Lietuvos gyventoju genocido ir rezistencijos tyrimo centras ISBN 9986 757 65 7 Cekutis Ricardas Zygelis Dalius 2010 04 14 Laisves kyzkeles Lietuviu policijos batalionai Antrojo pasaulinio karo metais in Lithuanian Bernardinai lt retrieved 2015 04 18 Knezys Stasys 2000 Kauno karo komendanturos Tautinio darbo batalionas 1941 m Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 7 ISSN 1392 3463 Ruksenas Alfredas 2007 Kauno 2 asis pagalbines policijos tarnybos batalionas ir gyventoju zudynes Baltarusijoje 1941 1943 m Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 22 ISSN 1392 3463 Stankeras Petras 2008 Lietuviu policija Antrajame pasauliniame kare in Lithuanian Mintis ISBN 978 5 417 00958 7 Stoliarovas Andriejus 2008a Lietuviu pagalbines policijos apsaugos 12 asis batalionas Thesis in Lithuanian Vytautas Magnus University Stoliarovas Andriejus 2008b Lietuviu pagalbines policijos apsaugos 252 asis Kauno batalionas Nezinomas bataliono istorijos fragmentas Kauno istorijos metrastis 9 ISSN 1822 2617 Zizas Rimantas 2004 Lietuviu savisaugos apsaugos bataliono kariu nuostoliai Vokietijos SSRS karo metu 1941 1945 Karo Archyvas in Lithuanian 19 ISSN 1392 6489 Laimute Breslavskiene edit Breslavskiene Laimute August 2010a Pazyma apie 259 ojo lietuviu policijos mokomojo bataliono fonda Nr R 670 in Lithuanian Lietuvos centrinis valstybes archyvas Archived from the original on 2015 04 19 Retrieved 2015 04 18 Breslavskiene Laimute August 2010b Pazyma apie 255 ojo lietuviu policijos bataliono fonda Nr R 677 in Lithuanian Lietuvos centrinis valstybes archyvas Archived from the original on 2015 04 19 Retrieved 2015 04 18 Breslavskiene Laimute September 2010a Pazyma apie 258 ojo lietuviu policijos bataliono fonda Nr R 669 in Lithuanian Lietuvos centrinis valstybes archyvas Archived from the original on 2015 04 19 Retrieved 2015 04 18 Breslavskiene Laimute September 2010b Pazyma apie 257 ojo lietuviu policijos bataliono fonda Nr R 668 in Lithuanian Lietuvos centrinis valstybes archyvas Archived from the original on 2015 04 19 Retrieved 2015 04 18 Breslavskiene Laimute September 2010c Pazyma apie 6 ojo lietuviu policijos bataliono fonda Nr R 664 in Lithuanian Lietuvos centrinis valstybes archyvas Archived from the original on 2015 04 19 Retrieved 2015 04 18 Arunas Bubnys edit Bubnys Arunas 1998a Lietuviu viesoji policija ir policijos batalionai 1941 1944 Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 3 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 1998b 253 iasis lietuviu policijos batalionas 1943 1944 Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 4 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 1998c Vokieciu okupuota Lietuva 1941 1944 in Lithuanian Vilnius Lietuvos gyventoju genocido ir rezistencijos tyrimo centras ISBN 9986 757 12 6 Bubnys Arunas 2000 Lietuviu policijos 2 asis Vilniaus ir 252 asis batalionai 1941 1944 Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 8 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2001a Penktasis lietuviu policijos batalionas 1941 1944 Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 9 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2001b Lietuviu policijos batalionai Pskovo srityje ir Kurse 13 asis ir 10 256 asis batalionai 1942 1945 Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 10 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2001c Atsakymas ponui H Kudreikiui Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 10 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2006 Lietuviu policijos 1 13 asis batalionas ir zydu zudynes 1941 m Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 20 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2007 Lietuviu policijos 15 asis batalionas 1941 1944 m Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 21 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2008a Lietuviu policijos 3 11 iasis batalionas Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 23 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2008b Lietuviu savisaugos daliniu Vilniaus apygardos batalionai 1941 1944 m Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 24 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2009 10 17 Lietuviu policijos batalionu nuginklavimas ir isformavimas Rytprusiuose 1944 metais PDF Voruta 20 686 6 8 ISSN 2029 3534 Bubnys Arunas 2010 Lietuviu policijos Siauliu 14 asis ir Panevezio 10 asis batalionai 1941 1944 Genocidas Ir Rezistencija in Lithuanian 27 ISSN 1392 3463 Bubnys Arunas 2013 Lietuviu policijos Vilniaus 4 asis batalionas 1941 1944 Voruta in Lithuanian 17 18 781 782 ISSN 1392 0677 English language sources edit Bubnys Arunas 2017 The Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalions In Bohler Jochen Gerwarth Robert eds The Waffen SS A European History Oxford ISBN 978 0 19 879055 6 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Caballero Jurado 2002 Windrow Martin ed Germany s Eastern Front Allies 2 Men at Arms Great Britain Osprey Publishing Yitzhak Arad 1990 The Encyclopedia of the Holocaust New York City Macmillan Publishers ISBN 9780028960906 Mollo Andrew 1992 Uniforms of the SS Vol 5 Sicherheitsdienst und Sicherheitspolizei 1931 1945 Great Britain Windrow amp Greene ISBN 1 872004 62 8 Statiev Alexander 2010 The Soviet Counterinsurgency in the Western Borderlands Cambridge 978 0 521 76833 7 Suziedelis Saulius A 2011 Historical Dictionary of Lithuania Scarecrow Press ISBN 9780810875364 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Lithuanian Auxiliary Police amp oldid 1188695770, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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