SS-Oberabschnitt Südost
Encyclopedia
SS-Oberabschnitt Südost was a division command of the Allgemeine-SS which encompassed SS activities in southeastern Germany
. The command was first formed in 1932 under the command of Udo von Woyrsch
. The first headquarters of the Oberabschnitt was in the city of Brieg
. In 1935, the headquarters was transferred to Breslau.
In 1941, parts of western Poland
were absorbed into the state of Upper Silesia
, which then fell under the authority of SS-Oberabschnitt Südost. The most significant aspect of this territorial transfer was that the Auschwitz Concentration Camp
was now geographically subordinate to an Allgemeine-SS command (although the camp was still under its own direct chain of command
). The primary General-SS regiment, which existed as a counterpart to the Waffen-SS personnel in the region (which included the Auschwitz camp staff) was the 23rd SS-Standarte
.
The territory of SS-Oberabschnitt Südost was overrun in 1945 by the advancing Red Army
, although was maintained with a posted commander until the fall of Nazi Germany
in May of 1945.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The command was first formed in 1932 under the command of Udo von Woyrsch
Udo von Woyrsch
Udo Gustav Wilhelm Egon von Woyrsch was a high ranking Nazi, who rose to the rank of SS Obergruppenführer and was responsible for numerous murders during The Holocaust.- Early life :...
. The first headquarters of the Oberabschnitt was in the city of Brieg
Brzeg
Brzeg is a town in southwestern Poland with 38,496 inhabitants , situated in Silesia in the Opole Voivodeship on the left bank of the Oder...
. In 1935, the headquarters was transferred to Breslau.
In 1941, parts of western 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...
were absorbed into the state of Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. Since the 9th century, Upper Silesia has been part of Greater Moravia, the Duchy of Bohemia, the Piast Kingdom of Poland, again of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as of...
, which then fell under the authority of SS-Oberabschnitt Südost. The most significant aspect of this territorial transfer was that the Auschwitz Concentration Camp
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
was now geographically subordinate to an Allgemeine-SS command (although the camp was still under its own direct chain of command
SS command of Auschwitz concentration camp
The SS command of Auschwitz concentration camp refers to those units, commands, and agencies of the German SS which operated and administered the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II; it is not a list of all personnel who served at Auschwitz, but does include those in command positions...
). The primary General-SS regiment, which existed as a counterpart to the Waffen-SS personnel in the region (which included the Auschwitz camp staff) was the 23rd SS-Standarte
23rd SS-Standarte
The 23rd SS-Standarte was a regimental formation of the Allgemeine-SS located in the region of Silesia. Due to its geographical location, the 23rd SS-Standarte is best known for existing as an General-SS counterpart command for Waffen-SS and SS-TV personnel assigned to Auschwitz Concentration...
.
The territory of SS-Oberabschnitt Südost was overrun in 1945 by the advancing 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...
, although was maintained with a posted commander until the fall of 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...
in May of 1945.
Oberabschnitt Commanders
- SS-GruppenführerGruppenführerGruppenführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party, first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA.-SS rank:...
Udo von Woyrsch (March 15, 1932 - January 1, 1935) - SS-BrigadeführerBrigadeführerSS-Brigadeführer was an SS rank that was used in Nazi Germany between the years of 1932 and 1945. Brigadeführer was also an SA rank....
Wilhelm RediessWilhelm RediessWilhelm Rediess was the SS and Police Leader during the German occupation of Norway in the Second World War. He was also the commanding General of all SS troops stationed in occupied Norway, assuming command on 22 June 1940 until his death in 1945.- Early life :Rediess was born in Heinsberg,...
(January 1, 1935 - February 15, 1936) - SS-Gruppenführer Erich von dem BachErich von dem BachErich Julius Eberhard von Zelewski or Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski , was a Nazi official and a member of the SS, in which he reached the rank of SS-Obergruppenführer .- Slavic origin :...
(February 15, 1936 - June 26, 1941) - SS-ObergruppenführerObergruppenführerObergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest SS rank inferior only to Reichsführer-SS...
Heinrich Schmauser (June 26, 1941 - February 23, 1945) - SS-Brigadeführer Walter Bierkamp (February 23, 1945 - March 17, 1945)
- SS-Obergruppenführer Richard HildebrandtRichard HildebrandtRichard Hermann Hildebrandt was a politician in Nazi Germany and member of the Reichstag, and an SS-Obergruppenführer. From 1943 until his capture in 1945, he led the SS-Rasse und Siedlungshauptamt , the Office of Race and Settlement of the SS...
(February 23, 1945 - May 8, 1945)
Reference
- Yerger, Mark C. Allgemeine-SS: The Commands, Units, and Leaders of the General SS, Schiffer Publishing (1997). ISBN 0-7643-0145-4