Bezirk Bialystok
Encyclopedia
The Bezirk Bialystok also Belostok was an administrative unit that existed during the World War II
occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany
. It was located to the south-east of East Prussia
, in present-day northeastern Poland
as well as smaller sections of adjacent Belarus
and Lithuania
.
The territory lay to the east of the Molotov-Ribbentrop line
and was consequently occupied by the Soviet Union
and incorporated into the Belarussian Soviet Socialist Republic. In the aftermath of the German attack on the Soviet Union
in June 1941 this western portion of then-Belarus, which until 1939 belonged to the Polish state
was placed under German Civilian Administration (Zivilverwaltungsgebiet). As the Bezirk Bialystok, the area was under German rule from 1941 to 1944/45, without ever formally being incorporated into the German Reich.
The district was established because of its perceived military importance as a bridgehead
on the far bank of the Memel. Germany had desired to annex the area even during the First World War, based on the historical claim arising from the Third Partition of Poland
, which had delegated Bialystok to Prussia
from 1795 to 1806 (see New East Prussia
).
Contrary to most other territories
that lay east of the Molotov-Ribbentrop line and which were permanently annexed by the Soviet Union following the Second World War, most of the territory was later returned to Poland.
invading Wehrmacht soldiers mass murdered 379 people, pacified 30 villages, burned down 640 houses and 1385 industrial buildings
The first decree for the implementation of Civil Administration in these newly occupied eastern territories were issued on 17 July 1941. The borders for this area ran from the southeastern protrusion of East Prussia
(the Suwalki triangle) following the Neman river
up to Mosty
(excluding Grodno), including Volkovysk and Pruzhany
up to the Bug River
to the west of Brest-Litovsk and then following the border of the General Government
to East Prussia.
The establishment of the Bezirk Bialystok followed on 1 August 1941; it was simultaneously excluded from the operational zones of the German Army
in the Soviet Union. From then till 1944 Gestapo and SS engaged in exectutions in the area, for example in Nowosiółki forests near Choroszcze alone they executed 4,000 people. Other places of execution and atrocities existed like Osuszek forest near village of Piliki.
At the same time some small lands to the east of the 1939–1941 German-Soviet border were incorporated into the East Prussian district of Scharfenwiese. With this the city of Scharfenwiese henceforth held more hinterland to the east.
The center of administration for the eponymous Bezirk Bialystok was the city of Bialystok
. The East Prussian Higher President and Gauleiter
Erich Koch
from Königsberg
(modern-day Kaliningrad
) was appointed Civilian Commissioner for the area, later Chief of Civil Administration (Chef-der-Zivilverwaltung).
During first stage of Nazi repressions they concerned mostly the inhabitants of villages who were subject to collective punishment. Pacifications were enacted to crush any resistance movement, stop assistance to independence movement and escaped POWs and Jews. During pacification all or most buildings were destroyed, possessions were robbed, and the local population was either murdered or sent to labor camps or prisons.
On 1 November 1941 the city of Grodno including its surroundings was transferred from the Reichskommissariat Ostland
to the Bezirk Bialystok. It was later renamed to Garten (En
: "Garden") in 1942.
During the night of 15-16 of August 1943, the Białystok Ghetto Uprising was an insurrection in Poland
's Białystok Ghetto against Germany
by several hundred Polish Jews started an armed struggle against the troops carrying out liquidation of 15,000 people still living in the Ghetto to the Treblinka extermination camp
. It was organized and led by Antyfaszystowska Organizacja Bojowa
, a part of the Anti-Fascist Block, and was the second largest ghetto uprising
, after the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
, in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War II
.
On 20 October 1943 the southern border of the East Prussian district Sudauen (Suwalki
) in the Province of East Prussia with the Bezirk Bialystok was adjusted and moved back on the northern side of the Augustów Canal
.
In July and August 1944 the Bezirk Bialystok was occupied up to the Narew-Bobr line by the Red Army
. The government seat for the Chief of Civil Administration was then moved to Bartenstein.
In January 1945 the Red Army re-occupied the last areas of the Bezirk Bialystok, namely the remaining parts of the districts Łomża and Grajewo
, driving the Germans completely out of the territory.
Erich Koch
was appointed "civil commissioner" (Zivilkommissar) on August 1, 1941, and later appointed as Chief of Civil Administration (Chef der Zivilverwaltung) of the Bezirk Bialystok until 27 July 1944. During this period, he was Gauleiter
of East Prussia
and Reichskommissar in Reichskommissariat Ukraine
.
The day-to-day activities were handled by his permanent deputy head of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) in Konigsberg
, East Prussia , Waldemar Magunia from 15 August 1941 until 31 January 1942. He was replaced on 1 February 1942 until 27 July 1944 by Friedrich de Brix, Landrat (District Mayor) of Tilsit.
, 300.000 of White Ruthenian (Belarussian), 200.000 of Ukrainian
, 50.000 of Jewish and 2.000 of German
origin.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. It was located to the south-east of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
, in present-day northeastern Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
as well as smaller sections of adjacent Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
and Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
.
The territory lay to the east of the Molotov-Ribbentrop line
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, named after the Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and the German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, was an agreement officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union and signed in Moscow in the late hours of 23 August 1939...
and was consequently occupied by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and incorporated into the Belarussian Soviet Socialist Republic. In the aftermath of the German attack on the Soviet Union
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
in June 1941 this western portion of then-Belarus, which until 1939 belonged to the Polish state
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
was placed under German Civilian Administration (Zivilverwaltungsgebiet). As the Bezirk Bialystok, the area was under German rule from 1941 to 1944/45, without ever formally being incorporated into the German Reich.
The district was established because of its perceived military importance as a bridgehead
Bridgehead
A bridgehead is a High Middle Ages military term, which antedating the invention of cannons was in the original meaning expressly a referent term to the military fortification that protects the end of a bridge...
on the far bank of the Memel. Germany had desired to annex the area even during the First World War, based on the historical claim arising from the Third Partition of Poland
Third Partition of Poland
The Third Partition of Poland or Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in 1795 as the third and last of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.-Background:...
, which had delegated Bialystok to Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
from 1795 to 1806 (see New East Prussia
New East Prussia
New East Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1795 to 1807. It was created out of territory annexed in the Third Partition of Poland and included parts of Masovia and Podlaskie...
).
Contrary to most other territories
Kresy
The Polish term Kresy refers to a land considered by Poles as historical eastern provinces of their country. Today, it makes western Ukraine, western Belarus, as well as eastern Lithuania, with such major cities, as Lviv, Vilnius, and Hrodna. This territory belonged to the Polish-Lithuanian...
that lay east of the Molotov-Ribbentrop line and which were permanently annexed by the Soviet Union following the Second World War, most of the territory was later returned to Poland.
History
After the start of Operation BarbarossaOperation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
invading Wehrmacht soldiers mass murdered 379 people, pacified 30 villages, burned down 640 houses and 1385 industrial buildings
The first decree for the implementation of Civil Administration in these newly occupied eastern territories were issued on 17 July 1941. The borders for this area ran from the southeastern protrusion of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
(the Suwalki triangle) following the Neman river
Neman
Neman may refer to:*Neman River, a major river in Eastern Europe*FC Neman Grodno, a soccer club in Belarus*FC Neman Masty, a soccer club in Belarus*Neman Stadium, a stadium in Belarus*Neman R-10, a Soviet aircraft of the 1930s...
up to Mosty
Mosty
Mosty may refer to:* Dlouhé Mosty, part of Františkovy Lázně, Czech Republic* Mosty u Českého Těšína, village near Český Těšín, Czech Republic, now part of that town* Mosty u Jablunkova, village in Frýdek-Místek District, Czech Republic...
(excluding Grodno), including Volkovysk and Pruzhany
Pruzhany
Pruzhany is a town in Brest Voblast, Belarus. Pruzhany is the center of a district in Brest Region, Belarus. Its population is about 20.000 people. The town is located at the confluence of the Mukha River and the Vets Canal, which give the start to Mukhavets River.-History:Pruzhany has been known...
up to the Bug River
Bug River
The Bug River is a left tributary of the Narew river flows from central Ukraine to the west, passing along the Ukraine-Polish and Polish-Belarusian border and into Poland, where it empties into the Narew river near Serock. The part between the lake and the Vistula River is sometimes referred to as...
to the west of Brest-Litovsk and then following the border of the General Government
General Government
The General Government was an area of Second Republic of Poland under Nazi German rule during World War II; designated as a separate region of the Third Reich between 1939–1945...
to East Prussia.
The establishment of the Bezirk Bialystok followed on 1 August 1941; it was simultaneously excluded from the operational zones of the German Army
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
in the Soviet Union. From then till 1944 Gestapo and SS engaged in exectutions in the area, for example in Nowosiółki forests near Choroszcze alone they executed 4,000 people. Other places of execution and atrocities existed like Osuszek forest near village of Piliki.
At the same time some small lands to the east of the 1939–1941 German-Soviet border were incorporated into the East Prussian district of Scharfenwiese. With this the city of Scharfenwiese henceforth held more hinterland to the east.
The center of administration for the eponymous Bezirk Bialystok was the city of Bialystok
Bialystok
Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Located on the Podlaskie Plain on the banks of the Biała River, Białystok ranks second in terms of population density, eleventh in population, and thirteenth in area, of the cities of Poland...
. The East Prussian Higher President and Gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
Erich Koch
Erich Koch
Erich Koch was a Gauleiter of the Nazi Party in East Prussia from 1928 until 1945. Between 1941 and 1945 he was the Chief of Civil Administration of Bezirk Bialystok. During this period, he was also the Reichskommissar in Reichskommissariat Ukraine from 1941 until 1943...
from Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
(modern-day Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea...
) was appointed Civilian Commissioner for the area, later Chief of Civil Administration (Chef-der-Zivilverwaltung).
During first stage of Nazi repressions they concerned mostly the inhabitants of villages who were subject to collective punishment. Pacifications were enacted to crush any resistance movement, stop assistance to independence movement and escaped POWs and Jews. During pacification all or most buildings were destroyed, possessions were robbed, and the local population was either murdered or sent to labor camps or prisons.
On 1 November 1941 the city of Grodno including its surroundings was transferred from the Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland, literally "Reich Commissariat Eastland", was the civilian occupation regime established by Nazi Germany in the Baltic states and much of Belarus during World War II. It was also known as Reichskommissariat Baltenland initially...
to the Bezirk Bialystok. It was later renamed to Garten (En
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
: "Garden") in 1942.
During the night of 15-16 of August 1943, the Białystok Ghetto Uprising was an insurrection in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
's Białystok Ghetto against Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
by several hundred Polish Jews started an armed struggle against the troops carrying out liquidation of 15,000 people still living in the Ghetto to the Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka was a Nazi extermination camp in occupied Poland during World War II near the village of Treblinka in the modern-day Masovian Voivodeship of Poland. The camp, which was constructed as part of Operation Reinhard, operated between and ,. During this time, approximately 850,000 men, women...
. It was organized and led by Antyfaszystowska Organizacja Bojowa
Antyfaszystowska Organizacja Bojowa
Antyfaszystowska Organizacja Bojowa was an underground organization formed in 1942 in the Ghetto in Białystok by former officers of the Polish Land Forces...
, a part of the Anti-Fascist Block, and was the second largest ghetto uprising
Ghetto uprising
Ghetto uprisings were armed revolts by Jews and other groups incarcerated in ghettos in Nazi-occupied Europes during World War II against the plans to deport the inhabitants to concentration and extermination camps....
, after the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was the Jewish resistance that arose within the Warsaw Ghetto in German occupied Poland during World War II, and which opposed Nazi Germany's effort to transport the remaining ghetto population to Treblinka extermination camp....
, in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
On 20 October 1943 the southern border of the East Prussian district Sudauen (Suwalki
Suwalki
Suwałki is a town in northeastern Poland with 69,340 inhabitants . The Czarna Hańcza river flows through the town. It is the capital of Suwałki County and one of the most important centres of commerce in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Until 1999 the town was the capital of Suwałki Voivodeship...
) in the Province of East Prussia with the Bezirk Bialystok was adjusted and moved back on the northern side of the Augustów Canal
Augustów Canal
The Augustów Canal is a cross-border canal built in the 19th century in the present-day Podlaskie Voivodeship of northeastern Poland and the Hrodna Voblast of north-western Belarus...
.
In July and August 1944 the Bezirk Bialystok was occupied up to the Narew-Bobr line by the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. The government seat for the Chief of Civil Administration was then moved to Bartenstein.
In January 1945 the Red Army re-occupied the last areas of the Bezirk Bialystok, namely the remaining parts of the districts Łomża and Grajewo
Grajewo
Grajewo , is a town in north-eastern Poland with 23,302 inhabitants .It is situated in the Podlaskie Voivodeship ; previously, it was in Łomża Voivodeship...
, driving the Germans completely out of the territory.
Administrative structure
Bialystok District was divided into eight county-level administrative units, called district police stations . These were police stations Bialystok (Kreiskommissariat Nikolaus), Bielsk-Podlaski (Kreiskommissariat Tubenthal), Grajewski (Kreiskommissariat Piachor, then Knispel), Grodno (Kreiskommissariat Plötz), łomża (Kreiskommissariat Gräben), Sokolski (Kreiskommissariat Seiler), Volkovysk (Kreiskommissariat Pfeifer) and the city of Bialystok.Erich Koch
Erich Koch
Erich Koch was a Gauleiter of the Nazi Party in East Prussia from 1928 until 1945. Between 1941 and 1945 he was the Chief of Civil Administration of Bezirk Bialystok. During this period, he was also the Reichskommissar in Reichskommissariat Ukraine from 1941 until 1943...
was appointed "civil commissioner" (Zivilkommissar) on August 1, 1941, and later appointed as Chief of Civil Administration (Chef der Zivilverwaltung) of the Bezirk Bialystok until 27 July 1944. During this period, he was Gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
and Reichskommissar in Reichskommissariat Ukraine
Reichskommissariat Ukraine
Reichskommissariat Ukraine , literally "Reich Commissariat of Ukraine", was the civilian occupation regime of much of German-occupied Ukraine during World War II. Between September 1941 and March 1944, the Reichskommissariat was administered by Reichskommissar Erich Koch as a colony...
.
The day-to-day activities were handled by his permanent deputy head of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) in Konigsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
, East Prussia , Waldemar Magunia from 15 August 1941 until 31 January 1942. He was replaced on 1 February 1942 until 27 July 1944 by Friedrich de Brix, Landrat (District Mayor) of Tilsit.
Demographics
At the time of its establishment, the Bezirk Bialystok had a population consisting of 1.383.000 inhabitants. Of these 830.000 were of PolishPoles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
, 300.000 of White Ruthenian (Belarussian), 200.000 of Ukrainian
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
, 50.000 of Jewish and 2.000 of German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
origin.