Globocnik's Men in Italy, 1943-45: Abteilung R and the SS-Wachmannschaften of the Operationszone Adriatisches Kustenland

by Stefano Di Giusto, Tommaso Chiussi

Overview

When Odilo Globocnik, SS and police leader in Lublin, Poland, transferred to the Italian OZAK region in late 1943, he took with him a group of around 100 men who had run the notorious Aktion Reinhard extermination camps—Belzec, Treblinka, Sobibor—where 1.5 million people (mostly Jews) had been killed. This book describes the little-known activities of this group, known as Abteilung R (Reinhard), in the OZAK region from 1943 to 1945. Here they not only continued persecuting Jews, but also became involved in the fight against the armed resistance movement, participated in security tasks, anti-partisan operations, retaliation operations including arresting and killing of civilians, and ran the infamous Risiera di San Sabba police camp in Trieste. The book also covers the SS-Wachmannschaften (SS guards units) of the OZAK, military units that were formed locally and had links with Abteilung R. There are also chapters on uniforms and insignia, as well as photographs related to anti-partisan operations in the region.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780764352546
Publisher:	Schiffer Publishing, Ltd.
Publication date:	12/28/2016
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	811,020
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 10.00(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Stefano Di Giusto has an interest in armored warfare and military vehicles, and in Second World War events in the then-OZAK region. Tommaso Chiussi has an interest in military history and uniforms, and SS and Polizei units active in the OZAK region.

Table of Contents

Introduction 4

Chapter 1 Aktion T4 and Aktion Reinhard 6

Chapter 2 Operationszone Adriatisches Küstenland (OZAK) 9

Chapter 3 Abteilung R in the OZAK 15

3.1 Arrival in Trieste 15

3.2 Sections R I, R II, and R III 21

3.3 Personnel Evolution 25

3.4 Tasks of Abteilung R 28

3.4.1 Tracking and Arrest of the Jews, Identification and Seizure of Property 28

3.4.2 The Polizeihaftlager in the Risiera di San Sabba 31

3.4.3 Contribution to the Setting-Lip, Training, and Leading of Locally Formed Military Units (landeseigene Verbände) 36

3.4.4 Providing Security on the Karststrasse, Participation in Sweep Operations, and Anti-partisan Actions 40

3.4.4.1 Operation Unternehmen Braunschweig (Late April - Early May 1944) 55

3.4.4.2 The Lipa Massacre (April 30, 1944) 79

3.4.4.3 Structure of the Sicherungskommandant in the OZAk 90

3.4.5 Contribution to the Construction of Defensive Lines (Sonderauftrag Pöll) 95

3.4.5.1 The Höherer Sicherungsstab 101

3.5 Retreat to Austria, and the Breakup of Abteilung R 103

3.5.1 The Avasinis Massacre (May 2, 1945) 107

3.6 Epilogue 110

Chapter 4 The SS-Wachmannschaften of the OZAK 113

4.1 Formation and Development of the SS-Wachmannschafts-Bli. until Mid-1944 114

4.2 Personnel 119

4.3 Ethnic Composition 131

4.3.1 The Battaglione Patrioti Davide 132

4.4 Operational Employment 137

4.5 Further Evolution of the SS-Wachmannschafts-Btl./SS-Wachmannschaften (Autumn 1944-1945) 151

Appendices

Appendix 1 Uniforms and Personal Equipment of Abteilung R and the SS-Wachmannschaften of the OZAK 154

Part I Uniforms, Equipment, Individual and Group Weapons 154

Part II Personal Documents, Letterhead, Stamps, and Erkennungsmarke 173

Appendix 2 Uniforms and Insignia of the other landeseigene Selbsischutzverbände of the OZAK 176

Appendix 3 Uniforms and Insignia of the Oberkrain and Untersteiermark Militias 185

Appendix 4 Vehicles of Abteilung R; the SS-Wachmannschaften; and Unit Insignia 187

Appendix 5 List of Men Belonging to Abieilung R in the OZAK 199

Appendix 6 Comparative Rank Table 204

Appendix 7 Place Name Equivalents in Italian, Slovenian, and Croatian 206

Endnotes 209

Selected Bibliography 240