Latvian Auxiliary Police
Encyclopedia
Latvian Auxiliary Police was a paramilitary
force created from Latvian
volunteers by the Nazi German
authorities who occupied the country
in June 1941. Composed of local fascists
, rightist
members of the former military and police, and nationalist
students, the organization participated in the Holocaust
, looting and killing the local Jewish population. One of its units, the Arajs Kommando, was notorious for killing 26,000 civilians during the war, mostly Jews, but also Communists
and Romas.
tasked Lt. Colonel Voldemars Veiss
with organising a police force to operate under the command of the SS.
The first Latvian Schutzmannschaft
(Police) Battalions were formed, most to serve as combat units, some to carry out raids against partisans and to discharge ghetto
guard duties. One of the earliest units formed was in Daugavpils
, which German forces reached on June 28, 1941, six days after launching Operation Barbarossa
. Roberts Bluzmanis was appointed chief of the Latvian Auxiliary Police in Nazi-occupied Daugavpils. An auxiliary police force was in Riga
under Nazi ausipces on July 3, 1941, headed by Latvian captain, Petersons.
), the auxiliary police force consisted of 240 men and had been strictly organized. New men were currently being enlisted. They helped the EK as auxiliary police and were on duty in the 6 police district
s established so far. Some members had been assigned to Kriminalpolizei
and Sicherheitspolizei
work. By July 7 the Latvians arrested 1125 Jews, 32 political prisoners, 85 Russian workers, and 2 women criminals, the greater part during the last days. This is due to the EK backing the Latvians. Actions against the Jews were going on in an ever-increasing number. Conforming to a suggestion of the EK, the Jews were being evacuated by the auxiliary police force from all houses still standing. The apartments were being allocated to non-Jewish inhabitants. The food supply was inadequate as nearly all stock
s were destroyed by fire. The arrested Jewish men were shot without ceremony and interred in previously prepared mass grave
s. 400 Jews were killed during pogrom
s in Riga, since the arrival of EK 2; 300 by the Latvian auxiliary police. By 1944, the occupation power, with the collaboration of the Self-Administration, had formed a total of 33 auxiliary police battalions.
The Arajs Kommando (also: Sonderkommando Arajs), led by SS-Sturmbannführer
Viktors Arājs
, was a unit of Latvian Auxiliary Police subordinated to the SD
. It is one of the more well-known and notorious killing units during the Holocaust
. The central part of Andrew Ezergailis
' work details the activities of the Arajs Kommando, the Latvian unit that Brigadeführer
Franz Walter Stahlecker
organized for the killing of the Jews of Latvia
. Numerous Latvian auxiliary police units played a major role in the murdering the Jews.
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
force created from Latvian
Latvians
Latvians or Letts are the indigenous Baltic people of Latvia.-History:Latvians occasionally refer to themselves by the ancient name of Latvji, which may have originated from the word Latve which is a name of the river that presumably flowed through what is now eastern Latvia...
volunteers by the Nazi German
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...
authorities who occupied the country
Occupation of Latvia by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Latvia by Nazi Germany was completed on July 10, 1941 by Germany's armed forces. Latvia became a part of Nazi Germany's Reichskommissariat Ostland — the Province General of Latvia...
in June 1941. Composed of local fascists
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
, rightist
Right-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
members of the former military and police, and nationalist
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
students, the organization participated in the Holocaust
Holocaust in Latvia
The Holocaust in Latvia refers to the Nazi crimes during the occupation of Latvia by Nazi Germany.- German occupation :The German army crossed the Soviet frontier early in the morning on Sunday, June 22, 1941, on a broad front from the Baltic Sea to Hungary. The German army advanced quickly...
, looting and killing the local Jewish population. One of its units, the Arajs Kommando, was notorious for killing 26,000 civilians during the war, mostly Jews, but also Communists
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and Romas.
Formation of units
The auxiliary police force consisted primarily individuals of police, army, and militia organizations which had been disbanded upon the prior Soviet occupation. Within the first week of the German occupation, the leader of Einsatzgruppe A Franz Walter StahleckerFranz Walter Stahlecker
Franz Walter Stahlecker was Commander of the Sicherheitspolizei and the Sicherheitsdienst for the Reichskommissariat Ostland in 1941/42...
tasked Lt. Colonel Voldemars Veiss
Voldemars Veiss
Voldemārs Veiss, was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Latvian Army and a prominent Nazi collaborator, Standartenführer in the German Waffen-SS....
with organising a police force to operate under the command of the SS.
The first Latvian Schutzmannschaft
Schutzmannschaft
Schutzmannschaft or Hilfspolizei were the collaborationist auxiliary police battalions of native policemen in occupied countries in East, which were created to fight the resistance during World War II mostly in the Eastern European countries occupied by Nazi Germany. Hilfspolizei refers also to...
(Police) Battalions were formed, most to serve as combat units, some to carry out raids against partisans and to discharge ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
guard duties. One of the earliest units formed was in Daugavpils
Daugavpils
Daugavpils is a city in southeastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. Daugavpils literally means "Daugava Castle". With a population of over 100,000, it is the second largest city in the country after the capital Riga, which is located some...
, which German forces reached on June 28, 1941, six days after launching Operation Barbarossa
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...
. Roberts Bluzmanis was appointed chief of the Latvian Auxiliary Police in Nazi-occupied Daugavpils. An auxiliary police force was in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
under Nazi ausipces on July 3, 1941, headed by Latvian captain, Petersons.
Organization
Owing to the initiative of the EK (EinsatzkommandoEinsatzkommando
During World War II, the Nazi German Einsatzkommandos were a sub-group of five Einsatzgruppen mobile killing squads—up to 3,000 men each—usually composed of 500-1,000 functionaries of the SS and Gestapo, whose mission was to kill Jews, Romani, communists and the NKVD collaborators in the captured...
), the auxiliary police force consisted of 240 men and had been strictly organized. New men were currently being enlisted. They helped the EK as auxiliary police and were on duty in the 6 police district
Police district
Police district is a form of division of a geographical area patrolled by a police force.Police forces using this format include:* York Regional Police* Halton Regional Police Service* Baltimore Police Department* Baton Rouge Police Department...
s established so far. Some members had been assigned to Kriminalpolizei
Kriminalpolizei
is the standard term for the criminal investigation agency within the police forces of Germany, Austria and the German-speaking cantons of Switzerland. In Nazi Germany during 1936, the Kripo became the Criminal Police Department for the entire Reich...
and Sicherheitspolizei
Sicherheitspolizei
The Sicherheitspolizei , often abbreviated as SiPo, was a term used in Nazi Germany to describe the state political and criminal investigation security agencies. It was made up by the combined forces of the Gestapo and the Kripo between 1936 and 1939...
work. By July 7 the Latvians arrested 1125 Jews, 32 political prisoners, 85 Russian workers, and 2 women criminals, the greater part during the last days. This is due to the EK backing the Latvians. Actions against the Jews were going on in an ever-increasing number. Conforming to a suggestion of the EK, the Jews were being evacuated by the auxiliary police force from all houses still standing. The apartments were being allocated to non-Jewish inhabitants. The food supply was inadequate as nearly all stock
Stock
The capital stock of a business entity represents the original capital paid into or invested in the business by its founders. It serves as a security for the creditors of a business since it cannot be withdrawn to the detriment of the creditors...
s were destroyed by fire. The arrested Jewish men were shot without ceremony and interred in previously prepared mass grave
Mass grave
A mass grave is a grave containing multiple number of human corpses, which may or may not be identified prior to burial. There is no strict definition of the minimum number of bodies required to constitute a mass grave, although the United Nations defines a mass grave as a burial site which...
s. 400 Jews were killed during pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
s in Riga, since the arrival of EK 2; 300 by the Latvian auxiliary police. By 1944, the occupation power, with the collaboration of the Self-Administration, had formed a total of 33 auxiliary police battalions.
Sturmbannführer
Sturmbannführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party equivalent to major, used both in the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel...
Viktors Arājs
Viktors Arājs
Viktors Arājs was a Latvian collaborator and Nazi SS officer, who took part in the Holocaust during the German occupation of Latvia and Belarus as the leader of the Arājs Kommando...
, was a unit of Latvian Auxiliary Police subordinated to the SD
Sicherheitsdienst
Sicherheitsdienst , full title Sicherheitsdienst des Reichsführers-SS, or SD, was the intelligence agency of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. The organization was the first Nazi Party intelligence organization to be established and was often considered a "sister organization" with the...
. It is one of the more well-known and notorious killing units during the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
. The central part of Andrew Ezergailis
Andrew Ezergailis
Andrew Ezergailis is a retired Professor of History, Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York, USA, known for his research into the 20th-century history of Latvia, particularly of the 1917 Revolution and the Holocaust in Latvia....
' work details the activities of the Arajs Kommando, the Latvian unit that Brigadeführer
Brigadeführer
SS-Brigadeführer was an SS rank that was used in Nazi Germany between the years of 1932 and 1945. Brigadeführer was also an SA rank....
Franz Walter Stahlecker
Franz Walter Stahlecker
Franz Walter Stahlecker was Commander of the Sicherheitspolizei and the Sicherheitsdienst for the Reichskommissariat Ostland in 1941/42...
organized for the killing of the Jews of Latvia
History of the Jews in Latvia
The History of the Jews in Latvia dates back to the first Jewish colony established in Piltene in 1571. Jews contributed to Latvia's development until the Northern War , which decimated Latvia's population...
. Numerous Latvian auxiliary police units played a major role in the murdering the Jews.
Police Battalions and Regiments
- Polizei z. b. V. Bataillon 1 Meiers, October 1944
- Polizei z. b. V. Bataillon 2, October 1944
- Schutzmannschaft Front Bataillon 16 Zemgale, 22 October 1941 - 8 February 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 16, 21 March 1942 - 18 May 1942
- Schutzmannschaft Front Bataillon 17 Vidzeme, 21 December 1941 - May 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 17 Rezekne, 18 March 1942 - 18 May 1942
- Schutzmannschaft Front Bataillon 18 Kurzeme, 13 January 1942 - May 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 18 Ergli, 18 March 1942 - 18 May 1942
- Schutzmannschaft Front Bataillon 19 Latgale, 16 December 1941 - 30 January 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 19, 18 March 1942 - 18 May 1942
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Wacht Bataillon 20 Riga, April 1942 - January 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 20 Abrene, 9 May 1942 - 18 May 1942
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 21 Liepaja, 25 February 1942 - 30 January 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 22 Daugava, 25 February 1942 - 7 February 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 23 Gauja, 25 February 1942 - 8 May 1945
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 24 Talsi, 1 March 1942 - 18 April 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 24 Venta, June 1942 - 1942
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 25 Abava, 6 March 1942 - 7 February 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 25, June 1942 - July 1942
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 26 Tukums, 6 March 1942 - 23 April 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 27 Burtnieki, 14 March 1942 - April 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 28 Barta, 9 March 1942 - 13 July 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 266, 18 May 1942 - November 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 267 Rezekne, 18 May 1942 - 1 June 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Ost Bataillon 268 Ergli, 18 May 1942 - 3 February 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Wacht Bataillon 269, 18 May 1942 - June 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 270, 18 May 1942 - 18 February 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 271 Valmiera, 15 January 1943 - October 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 272 Daugavgriva, 1 July 1942 - April 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 273 Ludza, 1 July 1942 - 15 July 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 274, 1 October 1942 - 30 September 1944
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 275, 16 October 1942 - June 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 276 Kuldiga, 17 December 1942 - 11 August 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 277 Sigulda, 17 December 1942 - 11 August 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 278 Dobele, 17 December 1942 - 11 August 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 279 Cesu, 4 January 1943 - 15 July 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 280 Bolderaja, 23 January 1943 - 9 April 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 281 Abrene, 23 January 1943 - 9 April 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 282 Venta, 1942 - 15 July 1943
- Schutzmannschaft/Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 283, July 1942 - May 1944
- Lettische Polizei Bataillon 283, May 1944 - December 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 311 Valmiera, 12 May 1943 - 2 July 1943
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 312, 15 May 1943 - 11 August 1943
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 313, 2 August 1943 - 7 February 1944
- Lettische Polizei Bataillon 314, May 1944 - July 1944
- Lettische Polizei Bataillon 315, January 1944 - April 1945
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 316, 2 August 1943 - 7 February 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 317, 18 October 1943 - 14 February 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 318, 25 October 1943 - 14 February 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 319, 25 October 1943 - 8 May 1945
- Lettische Polizei Wacht Bataillon 320, 21 December 1943 - 20 September 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 321, 22 December 1943 - 14 February 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 322, 23 July 1944 - 8 May 1945
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 325, March 1944 - December 1944
- Lettische Polizei Front Bataillon 326, March 1944 - May 1944
- Lettische Polizei Bataillon 327, March 1944 - April 1944
- Lettische Polizei Bataillon 328, March 1944 - July 1944
- Lettisches Freiwilligen Polizei Regiment 1 Riga, 1 August 1943 - 19 November 1944
- Lettisches Freiwilligen Polizei Regiment 2 Liepaja, February 1944 - 26 October 1944
- Lettisches Freiwilligen Polizei Regiment 3 Cesis , February 1944 - August 1944
- Lettisches Grenzschutz Regiment 1 Riga, February 1944 - March 1944
- Lettisches Grenzschutz Regiment 2 Riga, February 1944 - October 1944
- Lettisches Grenzschutz Regiment 3 Riga, February 1944 - July 1944
- Lettisches Grenzschutz Regiment 4 Tukums, February 1944 - August 1944
- Lettisches Grenzschutz Regiment 5 Aizpute, February 1944 - October 1944
- Lettisches Grenzschutz Regiment 6 Kuldiga, February 1944 - August 1944
See also
- Estonian Auxiliary PoliceEstonian Auxiliary PoliceEstonian Auxiliary Police were Estonian units that fought in World War II under command of Germany. Estonian regular units allied with Nazi Germany began to be established on 25 August 1941, when under the order of Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb, commander of the Army Group North,...
- Lithuanian Auxiliary PoliceTautinio Darbo Apsaugos BatalionasTautinio Darbo Apsaugos Batalionas was organized by the Provisional Government of Lithuania in 1941 as basis for future independent Lithuanian Army, but Nazi authorities soon reorganized the battalion into auxiliary police...
- SchutzmannschaftSchutzmannschaftSchutzmannschaft or Hilfspolizei were the collaborationist auxiliary police battalions of native policemen in occupied countries in East, which were created to fight the resistance during World War II mostly in the Eastern European countries occupied by Nazi Germany. Hilfspolizei refers also to...