Bas-Rhin, and the Moselle. From the beginning of the invasion the Germans incorporated these departments in the Reich. This question will be presented subsequently by the French prosecutor when he discusses the question of Germanization from the point of view of economic spoliation. We must point out that the Germans sought to derive a maximum from these three departments. If they paid in marks for a certain number of products, they did not pay it anyway for the principal products, especially coal, iron, crude oil, potassium, industrial material, furniture and agricultural machinery. The information relating to this is given by the French administration in a chart which I shall summarize briefly, and which I submit as NO.
264. The value of the levies in the three French departments of the east, levies not paid by the Germans, reaches the sum of 27,000,350,000 francs. out to the Tribunal that my colleague will discuss the question of Germanization and will show how the firm Hermann Goering Werke, in which the accused Goering had considerable interest, expropriated equipment in mines of the large French company called the "Petits-Fils De F. De Wendel Et Cie".
I now come to the Eighth section, concerning diverse levies. First, spoliations in Tunisia. The Germans arrived in Tunisia the 10th of November 1942, and were driven out by the Allied Armies in May, 1943. During this period they took up divers -
THE PRESIDENT: Do you think that it is necessary to go into details of the seizures in this part of the country, if they are on the same sort of level as they were in other parts of the country.
M. GERTHOFER: Mr. President, these details which I wouldlike to show you, it seems to me that they would not be contested by anyone. conclude my summary, however, by pointing out to the Tribunal that the French economy lost enormously from the deportation of workers, a subject which was discussed by my colleagues. They have calculated that the losses in labor undergone by the French economy amounted to 12,555,000,000 work hours from the forced deportation of workers, a figure which does not include the number of workers who were more or less forced to work for the Germans in French industry in France. concerning France by giving you a general review of the situation in France. I shall cite once more that Hemmen, the economic dictator, ruined my country upon the orders of the defendants whom you have to judge. In the first five reports submitted, despite apparent technical quality, the author shows the assurance of a man who can permit himself anything. In the last, drawn up the 15th of December, 1944, at Salzburg, Hemmen sought visibly, while leaving a technical quality to his work, to plead the case of Germany, that of his Nazi masters and his own, but he succeeded only in doing it without wishing to bring out an implacable accusation against the nefarious work with which he was entrusted.
Here are some short extracts, gentlemen, of the final report. German leaders, and Goering particularly. He writes as follows:
"According to the directive lines formulated the 5th of July 1940 by the Reichsmarshal in charge of the Four-Year Plan, concerning the situation of the law in force, the Armistice Convention does not give us rights inthe economic domain in the part of France which is not occupied, even through an extensive interpretation." lines in these terms:
"The Petain Government manifested from the beginning a strong desire for the rapid reestablishment of the economy destroyed with German support on the one hand, and on the other hand, to find work for the French working population in order to avoid the unemployment which threatens, but before all the strong desire to see anew the two French zones joined together which were separated by this boundary line, to bring about an economic and administrative unity." to direct it under a French management according to the German economic system, to reorganize it completely according to the German model and even adds that because of important alleviations of the demarcation line, the Armistice Delegation has come to an agreement with the French Government to introduce German law in monetary matters into French legislation. Further on, on page 7 of the translation, he even wrote, "Because of the prices which automatically arose with an unhindered development of the black market, it was felt all the more strongly that salaries were maintained through force.
I now pass over the next passage. However, I should like to point out to the Tribunal that on page 1329 of the translation, Hemmen tries to show through financial evaluations and most questionable rationalizations that the cost of the war for each inhabitant was heavier for the Germans than for the French.
He himself destroys with one word his whole system of defense which he had built up by writing at the end of his bold calculations that from autumn 1940 to February 1944 the cost of living increased 166 per cent in France while in February it increased only 7 per cent. of living that you measure the impoverishment of a country. Report, he admits the German crime in these terms:
"Through the subtraction, during the course of years, of considerable quantities of property of every kind without economic compensating consideration there was brought about a perceptible decrease in substance which corresponded in turn, to a considerable monetary circulation which has led to phenomena of inflation and especially brought about a devaluation of money and a lowering of the purchasing power. These material losses, we may say, can be repaired. Through work and saving we can reestablish in the future, more or less distant, the economic situation of the country." results of privations upon the physical state of the populations. If the other German crimes, such as deportations, murders, massacres, make one shudder with horror, the crime which consisted of starving knowingly whole populations is no less odious. In the occupied countries, in France notably, many persons died solely because of under-nourishment and because of lack of heat. We estimate that people require 3,000 to 3,500 calories a day, and from 4,000 to 5,000 for manual laborers, but from the beginning of the rationing in September 1940, only 1,800 calories per day, per person, were distributed. Successively, the ration decreased to 1,700 calories in 1942, then to 1,500, an d finally fell to 1,200 and 900 calories a day for adults, to 1,300 for manual laborers. Old persons were given only 850 calories a day. through ration cards. In fact, frequently a certain number of coupons were not honored.
public health was concerned, since they estimated themselves in the course of the war of 1914-1918 that the distribution of 1,700 calories a day was a starvation regime, slow starvation, leading to death. were distributed. Milk, when there was any, was skimmed to the point that the percentage of fatty matter amounted to only 3 per cent. The small amount of meat given to the population was of bad quality. Fish had disappeared from the market. If we add to that an almost total lack of combustibles, clothing and shoes -- frequently neither schools nor hospitals were heated -- one may easily understand what the physical point of view of the population was. extend their ravages for many years. The increase among children and adolescents seriously affected the future of the race and is a cause for the greatest concern. duration.
THE PRESIDENT: Could you tell me what evidence you have for your figures of calories?
M. GERTHOFER: I am going to show you this at the end of my summary. It is a report of a professor at the Medical School of Paris who is especially delegated by the Dean of the University to make a report on the results of undernourishment. I am going to quote it at the end of my statement. I am almost there. length of time. The exhaustion is such that despite the generous aid brought by the United Nations, the situation of the occupied countries, taken as a whole, is still alarming. In fact, the complete absence of stocks, the insufficiency of the means of production and of transportation, the reduction of the livestock, the economic disorganization, do not permit allotting sufficient rations at this time. This poverty, which strikes all occupied countries, cannot disappear except gradually over a long period of time, the length of which no one can yet determine. If, in certain rich agricultures regions, the producers were able, during occupation, to have, and still have a privileged situation from the point of view of food supply, the same is not true in the poorer regions as well as in urban centers.
this report. I shall ask the Tribunal's permission to quote the conclusion, which I submit under the number 264-BIS.
I just received this recently, and I submit the entirety.
I haven't been and I submit those two copies.
Here are the conclusions of Dr. Laroche.
"We see how great were the misdeeds of the rationing imposed 1940 to 1944.
It is difficult to give in an exact fashion the number of human lives done away with by excessive rationing.
We "Nevertheless, without under-estimating, we may well believe, "We must add a great number of cases which were not fatal, of "We think that we can derive from this presentation, "First:
the German occupation authorities deliberately "Second:
everything happened as if they had wished to "Third:
suckling babies and young children kept a normal ration.
It is probable that this privileged situation is explained to convince adolescents and adults."
you will find at the end of the document book. I permit myself to the martyrs of concentration camps or reprisal camps.
They are nourishment.
If these men had had the regime of the asylum prior any such degree of starvation.
I would reply to them that in the first place, it is not correct.
For four years the German was not cold, he was not under-nourished; but, on the contrary, he was well for the existence of the populations of these countries.
Remember, gentlemen, the words of Goering when he said, "If famine is to reign it will never happen in Germany."
carry out their enterprise of world domination. If today they are they seem to have no right to present the famous sentence, "I did not will that."
I have concluded my explanatory remarks. If you will permit did not exist.
In fact, the expenditures, private or public, of this country surpassed its means.
Saving was insufficient. The without counting.
Finding it impossible to keep its agreements, it found no one who was willing to loan, and after Hitler's accession to power, his policy became more definite.
It is isolated It is the application of the theories formulated in "Mein Kampf" which had for a corrolary the enslavement and then the Mr. President, I should like to add that the French Prosecution responsibility of the Defendants.
In order not to prolong the
CAPTAIN SPRECHER: May it please the Tribunal, I notice that Dr. Fritz, the Defendant's attorney, is not here, and in view of the
THE PRESIDENT: It is five o'clock now, so we shall adjourn (Whereupon the Tribunal adjourned at 17.
00 hours, to reconvene at 10.
00 hours, 23 January, 1946.)
Military Tribunal, in the matter of: The
CAPTAIN SPRECHER: May It please the Tribunal, it is my responsibility and my privilege to present today the case on the individual responsibility of the Defendant Hans Fritsche for crimes against the peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity as they relate directly to the common plan or conspiracy. ation in three principal divisions: Fritsche in the Nazi State.
Second, a discussion of Fritsche's conspiratorial activities within the Propaganda Ministry from 1933 through the attack on the Soviet Union.
Third, a discussion of Fritsche's connection, as a Nazi propagandist, to the atrocities and the ruthless occupation policy which formed a part of the common plan and conspiracy.
In listing Fritsche's positions, it is not intended at first to describe the functions of these positions. Later on, in describing some of Fritsche's conspiratorial acts, I shall take up the discussion of some of these positions which he held.
Fritsche's party membership and his various positions in the propaganda apparatus of the Nazi State are shown by two affidavits by Fritsche himself, Document No.2976-PS, which is already in evidence as US Exhibit 20; and Document No.3469-PS, which I offer in evidence as US Exhibit 721. Both of these affidavits have been put into the four working languages of this Tribunal. he continued to be a member until the collapse in 1945. Fritsche began his services with the staff of the Reich Ministry for People's Enlightenment and Propaganda -- hereinafter referred to as the Propaganda Ministry -- on the 1st of May, 1933, and he remained within the Propaganda Ministry until the Nazi downfall.
September 1932, Fritsche was head of the Wireless News Service, Drahtloser Dienst, an agency of the Reich Government at that time under the government of the Defendant von Papen. After the Wireless News Service was incorporated into the Propaganda Ministry of Dr. Goebbels in May 1933, Fritsche continued as its head until the year 1938. Upon entering the Propaganda Ministry in May 1933, Fritsche also became head of the news section of the Press Division of the Propaganda Ministry. He continued in this position until 1937. In the summer of 1938, Fritsche was appointed deputy to one Alfred Ingemar Berndt, who was then head of the German Press Division. Division. Since "German Press Division" seems to be a more literal translation, we have called it the German Press Division throughout this presentation. It is sometimes otherwise known as the Domestic Press Division. Press Division of the Reich Cabinet. German Press Division. Between 1938 and November 1942, Fritsche was promoted three times. He advanced in title from Superior Government Counsel to Ministerial Counsel, then to Ministerialdirigent, and finally to Ministerialdirektor. the German Press Division by Dr. Goebbels, and accepted, from Dr. Goebbels, a newly created position in the Propaganda Ministry, that of Plenipotentiary for the Political Organization of the Greater German Radio. At the same time he also became head of the Radio Division of the Propaganda Ministry. He held both these positions in radio until the Nazi downfall.
There are two allegations of the Indictment concerning Fritsche's position for which we are unable to offer proof. These allegations appear at page 34 of the English translation.
The first unsupported allegation states that Fritsche was "Editor-inChief of the official German News Agency, Deutsche Nachrichten Buero."
The second unsupported allegation states that Fritsche was "head of the Radio Division of the Propaganda Department of the Nazi Party." and therefore these two allegations must fall for want of proof. state my appreciation for the assistance of Mr. Norbert Halpern, Mr. Alfred Booth, and Lieutenant Niebergall, who sits at my right, for their assistance in research, analysis, and translation. It has been marked as Document Book MM. It contains only 32 pages, which have been numbered consecutively, I believe, in red pencil for your convenience. The shortness of the documentation on this particular case is possible only because of a long affidavit made by the Defendent Fritsche, which was signed by him on the 7th of January 1946. proceeding. It is before Your Honors as Document No.3469-PS, beginning at Document Book, page 19. this proceeding. interrogations of Fritsche, and many materials which Fritsche volunteered to give himself, upon request made by me, through his defense counsel, Dr. Fritz. Some of the portions of the final affidavit were originally typed or handwritten by the Defendant Fritsche himself during this trial or during the holiday recess. All these materials were finally incorporated into one single affidavit.
Now, this affidavit contains Fritsche's account of the events which led to his entering the Propaganda Ministry and his account of his later connections with that Ministry. Before Fritsche made some of the statements in the affidavit concerning the role of propaganda in relation to important foreign political events, he was shown illustrative headlines and articles from the German press at that time, so that he could refresh his recollection and make more accurate statements.
of this affidavit, independent of this presentation, along with the proof on the conspirators' use of propaganda as a principal weapon in the conspiracy. Some of this proof, you will recall, was submitted by Major Wallis in the first days of this trial in connection with Brief E, entitled "Propaganda, Censorship and Supervision of the Cultural Activities", and the corresponding document book, to which I call the Tribunal's attention. I would say were in the nature of self-serving declarations. With respect to these, the Prosecution requests only that the Tribunal consider them in the light of the whole conspiracy and the indisputable facts which appear throughout the record. The Prosecution did not feel, either as a matter of expediency or of fairness, that it should request Fritsche, through his defense lawyer, Dr. Fritz, to remove some of these self-serving declarations at this time and submit them later in connection with his defense. presentation, perhaps the members of the Tribunal will wish to place a special marker in their document book. note that Fritsche first became a successful journalist in the service of the Hugenberg Press, the most important chain of newspaper enterprises in pre-Nazi Germany.
The Hugenberg concern owned papers of its own, but primarily it was important because it served newspapers which principally supported the so-called "national" parties of the Reich, including the NSDAP. 1932, when the Defendant von Papen was Reich Chancellor, he was made head of the Wireless News Service, replacing someone who was politically unbearable to the Papen regime. The Wireless News Service, I might say, was a government agency for spreading news by radio. great success, a success which Goebbels recognized and was later to exploit very efficiently on behalf of these Nazi conspirators.
Now, the Nazis seized power on the 30th of January 1933. From paragraph 10 of the Fritsche affidavit we find that that very evening, the 30th of January 1933, two emissaries from Goebbels visited Fritsche. One of them was Dressler-Andrees, head of the Radio Division of the NSDAP; the other was an assistant of Dressler-Andees named Sadila-Mantau. These two emissaries notified Fritsche that although Goebbels was angry with Fritsche for writing a critical article concerning Hitler, still Goebbels recognized Fritsche's public success on the radio since the previous fall. They stated further that Goebbels desired to retain Fritsche as head of the Wireless News Service on certain conditions: (1) That Fritsche discharge all Jews; (2) that he discharge all other personnel who would not join the NSDAP; (3) that he employ with the Wireless News Service the second Goebbel's emissary, Sadila-Mantau. Mantau. This was one of the first ostensible comrpomises after the seizure of power which Fritsche made on his road to the Nazi camp. he supported the national National Socialist coalition government then still existing. Service and Fritsche prevented them, with some difficulty, from making news broadcasts.
audience. At paragraph 9 of his affidavit, Document No. 3469-PS, Fritsche has volunteered the following concerning his prior relationships with Dr. Goebbels:
"I was acquainted with Dr. Goebbels since 1928. Apparently he had taken a liking to me, besides the fact that in my press activities I had always treated the National Socialists in a friendly way until 1931. Already before 1933, Goebbels, who was the editor of the 'Attack' -- Der Angriff -- a Nazi newspaper, had frequently made flattering remarks about the form and content of my work, which I did as contributor of many 'National' newspapers and periodicals, among which were also reactionary papers and periodicals." informed Fritsche of his decision to place the Wireless News Service within the Propaganda Ministry as of 1 May 1933. He suggested that Fritsche make certain re-arrangements in the personnel which would remove Jews and other persons who did not support the NSDAP. Fritsche debated with Goebbels concerning some of these steps. It must be said that during this period Fritsche made some effort to place Jews in other jobs. informed Goebbels about the steps he had taken in reorganizing the Wireless News Service. Goebbels thereupon informed Fritsche that he would like to have him reorganize and modernize the entire news services of Germany within the controls of the Propaganda Ministry. approximately two months before this time, the Propaganda Ministry had been formed by decree -- 1933 Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, page 104; our document *---* 2029-PS.
Fritsche was intrigued by the Goebbels offer. He proceeded to conclude the Goebbels-inspired reorganization of the Wireless News Service and, on the 1st of May, 1933, together with the remaining members of his staff, he joined the Propaganda Ministry. On this same day he joined the NSDAP and took the customary oath of unconditional loyalty to the Fuehrer. From this time on, whatever reservations Fritsche may have had, either then or later, to the course of events under the Nazis, Fritsche was completely within the Nazi camp.
For the next 13 years he assisted in creating and in using the propaganda devices which the conspirators employed with such telling effect in each of the principal phases of this conspiracy. German Press Division. For four years, indeed, he headed this Division, during those crucial years 1938 to 1942. That covers the period when the Nazis undertook actual military invasions of neighboring countries. It is, therefore, believed appropriate to spell out in some detail, before this Tribunal, the functions of this German Press Division. These functions will show the important and, indeed, unique position of the German Press Division as an instrument of the Nazi conspirators not only in dominating the minds and the psychology of Germans through the German Press Division and through the radio, but also as an instrument of foreign policy and psychological warfare against other nations. by a Hitler decree of the 30th of June, 1933, found in 1933 Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, page 449. From that decree I wish to quote only one sentence. It is found in Document 2030-PS, your Document Book page 3:
"The Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda has jurisdiction over the whole field of spiritual indoctrination of the nation, of propagandizing the State, of cultural and economic propaganda, of enlightenment of the public at home and abroad. Furthermore, he is in charge of the administration of all institutions serving those purposes." "enlightenment at home and abroad." Division of the Propaganda Ministry, the Tribunal is referred to Document No. 2434-PS, Document Book page 5. It is offered in evidence as USA Exhibit 722. This document is an appropriate excerpt from a book by George Wilhelm Mueller, a Ministerial Director in the Propaganda Ministry, of which the Tribunal is asked to take judicial notices.
Fritsche's affidavit, paragraphs 14, 15 and 16, beginning at page 22 of your Document Book, contains an exposition of the functions of the German Press Division, a description which confirms and adds to the exposition in Mueller's book.
Concerning the German Press Division, Fritzsche's affidavit states:
"During the whole period from 1933 to 1945 it was the task of the German Press Division to supervise the entire domestic press and to provide it with directives by which this division became an efficient instrument in the hands of the German State leadership. More than 2300 German dialy newspapers were subject to this control. The aim of this supervision and control, in the first years following 1933, was to change basically the conditions existing in the press before the seizure of power. That meant the coordination into the New Order of these newspapers and periodicals which were in the service of capitalistic special interests or party politics. While the administrative functions wherever possible were exercised by the professional associations and theReich Press Chamber, the political leadership of the German press was entrusted to the German Press Division. The head of the German Press Division held daily press conferences in the Ministry for the representatives of all German newspapers. Hereby all instructions were given to the representatives of the Press. These instructions were transmitted daily, almost without exception, and mostly by telephone, from headquarters by Dr. Otto Dietrich, Reich Press Chief, in a fixed statement, the so-called "Daily Parole of the Reich Press Chief." Before the statement was fixed the head of the German Press Division submitted to him -- Dietrich -- the current press wishes expressed by Dr. Goebbels and by other Ministries. This was the case especially with the wishes of the Foreign Office about which Dr. Dietrich always wanted to make decisions personally or through his representatives at the headquarters, Helmut Suendermann and chief editor Lorenz. The practical use of the general directions in detail was thus left entirely to the individual work of the individual editor. Therefore, it is by no means true that the newspapers and periodicals were a monopoly of the German Press Division or that essays and leading articles through it had to be submitted to the Ministry. Even in war times this happened in exceptional cases only. The less important newspapers and periodicals which were not represented at the daily press conferences received their information in a different way -- by providing them either with ready-made articles and reports, or with a confidential printed instruction. The publications of all other official agencies were directed and coordinated likewise by the German Press Division.
To enable the periodicals to get acquainted with the daily political problems of newspapers and to discuss these problems in greater detail, the "Informationskorrespondenz" was issued especially for periodicals.
Later on it was taken over by the Periodical Press Division. The German Press Division likewise was in charge of pictorial reporting insofar as it directed the employment of pictorial reporters at important events. In this way, and conditioned by the current political situation, the entire German Press was made a permanent instrument of the Propaganda Ministry by the German Press Division. Thereby, the entire German Press was subordinate to the political aims of the Government. This was exemplified by the timely measuring and the emphatic presentation of such press polemics as appeared to be most useful, as shown for instance in the following themes: the class struggle of the system era; the leadership principle and the authoritarian state; the party and interest politics of the system era; the Jewish problem; the conspiracy of World Jewry; the Bolshevistic danger; the plutocratic Democracy abroad; the race problem generally; the church; the economic misery abraod; the foreign policy; and living space -- lebensraum." own words,-indeed -- that the German Press Division was the instrument for subordinating the entire German press to the political aims of the Government.
We now pass to Fritzsche's first activities on behalf of the conspirators within the German Press Division. It is appropriate to read again from his affidavit -- paragraph 17, your document page 23. Fritzsche is describing a conference with Goebbels:
"At this time Dr. Goebbels suggested to me, as a specialist on news technique, the establishment and direction of a section "News", within the Press Division of his Ministry, in order to organize fully and to modernize the German news agencies. In executing this assignment given to me by Dr. Goebbels I took for my field the entire news field for the German Press and the radio in accordance with the directions given by the Propaganda Ministry, at first with the exception of the D.N.B., German News Agency."