The activity of police formations in the village during the Nazi occupation of Dnipropetrovsk (1941-1943).

Abstract

With the capture of the partial territory of the Soviet Union by the troops of the Third Reich, and with the movement of the front line to the East, management in the new territories passed into the hands of civil authorities. Since 01. 09. 1941, in accordance with the order of A. Hitler «On the introduction of civil administration in the occupied Eastern territories», a territorial-administrative area Reichscommissariat «Ukraine» was created. Local authorities were inferior ingredients in the administration of that zone. After the occupation of the city of Dnepropetrovsk in August 1941, the local police appeared in the city. It was created by the actions of nationalist forces, marching groups of the OUN. But when the Nazi civil authority was established in the city in the fall, the police structure was incorporated into the occupying structure and reformed it. After that, were created local police schools, units, new police districts. Local police were created throughout Ukraine, including in the Dnipropetrovsk district. It existed in the countryside. The district was divided into districts, in each of which there were local police units led by Nazi organs. The structure of the local police included several components, so the tasks of the policemen were not the same. Depending on the region, location and composition of units, they could perform different tasks and have different powers. Often, the Nazi leadership adapted to local conditions, with consequences for the local population and the Nazi employees. The article analyses the creation of police structure of Dnipropetrovsk region in rural area and also its functions and the nature of the activity during the Nazi occupation (1941-1943). The article examines the reasons for, conditions and results of attraction of Ukrainians to formation of German police in Reichskommissariat Ukraine, their institutional forms, material basis and everyday conditions of work. The author analyses efficiency of the system of additional police, its role in occupation regime functioning, the organization and composition of the local police, examples of assistance to the police in the crimes of the Nazis. The motivation and reasons for the cooperation of the local population with the Nazis are also considered.