dtufail/nuremberg-trials-corpus huggingface dataset:
STATE COUNSELLOR OF JUSTICE OF THE SECOND CLASS M.Y. RAGINSKY (Assistant Prosecutor for the U.S.S.R.): I shall quote one more document which establishes that the destruction and pillage of cultural treasures, universally carried out by the Hitlerites in the territories occupied by them, was inspired and directed by the Hitlerite Government. I refer to the diary of the Defendant Frank, extracts of which have already been submitted to the Tribunal as Document Number USSR-223. In the first volume of Frank's diary, on Page 38 -- Page 169 in your document book -- there appears an entry dated 4 October 1939 which reads as follows: "Berlin. Conference with the Fuehrer. The Fuehrer discussed the general situation with the Governor General and approved the activity of the Governor General in Poland, particularly in the demolition of the Warsaw Palace, the non-restoration of this city, and the evacuation of the art treasures." I consider that the documents, now submitted and read into the record, are fully sufficient to enable us to draw the following conclusions: (a) The pillage and destruction of the cultural treasures of the peoples in the German occupied territories were carried out in accordance with previously elaborated and carefully prepared plans. (b) The fascist Government and German High Command directed the pillage and destruction of cultural treasures. (c) The most active role in the organization of the pillage and destruction of cultural treasures was taken by the participants in the conspiracy, the Defendants Rosenberg, Ribbentrop, Frank, and Goering. I pass on to the next section of my presentation, entitled, "Destruction and Pillage of Cultural Treasures in Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Yugoslavia." I reported to the Tribunal on the general plans of the Hitlerite conspirators for strangling national cultural life in the countries occupied by them. I now pass on to report on the actual materialization of the criminal plans of the Hitlerite conspirators in Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Yugoslavia.
STATE COUNSELLOR OF JUSTICE OF THE SECOND CLASS M.Y. RAGINSKY (Assistant Prosecutor for the U.S.S.R.): I shall refer only to such irrefutable proofs as the official reports of the Governments of Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Yugoslavia, already submitted to the Tribunal by the Soviet Prosecution. I shall read into the record a few parts of the relevant sections of these reports directly concerning the theme expounded by me, which have not been quoted by my colleagues. I begin by quoting extracts from the Czechoslovak Government reports. These excerpts, Your Honors, are to be found in your document book, on Pages 81 to 88. I quote from Page 81: "K. H. Frank, who was appointed Secretary of State and Deputy to Reich Protector Von Neurath in March 1939 and in August 1943 became Minister of State and head of the German Executive in the Protectorate, said, 'The Czechs are fit to be used only as workers or farm laborers.' "K. H. Frank replied to a Czech delegation which, in 1942, requested the Czech universities and colleges to be reopened, 'If the war is won by England, you will open your schools yourselves; if Germany wins, an elementary school with five grades will be enough for you.' " The Germans seized all colleges and hostels for students. I pass to a quotation on Page 83 of the report: "They immediately seized the most valuable apparatus, instruments, and scientific equipment in many of the occupied institutions. The scientific libraries were systematically and methodically damaged. Scientific books and films were separated and taken away, the archives of the Academy Senate (the highest university authority) were torn up or burned, the card indexes destroyed and scattered. "Suppression of Czech schools.. "K. H. Frank, in November 1939, personally ordered the closing of all Czech higher educational institutions. "Such university students as were still at liberty were forbidden to exercise any intellectual profession and were invited to find manual occupation within 48 hours, failing which they would be sent to labor camps in Germany.
STATE COUNSELLOR OF JUSTICE OF THE SECOND CLASS M.Y. RAGINSKY (Assistant Prosecutor for the U.S.S.R.): "The closing of the universities was aggravated by the closing of the great scientific libraries and of all institutions capable of offering intellectual sustenance to the students expelled from the universities. The library of the University of Prague was henceforth accessible to Germans only. "Suppression of all scientific activities: "The closing down of Czech universities and colleges was merely a preliminary step towards the complete suppression of the entire Czech scientific life. The buildings of scientific institutions were converted either into German universities and colleges or placed at the disposal of the German military and civil authorities. The Germans removed all scientific instruments and books and even complete laboratories to Germany, on the pretext that the Czechs would no longer need them. The number of works of art, pictures, statues, and rare manuscripts stolen from the library of the University of Prague and from private collections cannot be calculated, nor can their value be estimated. Scientific collections were also given to German schools, provided they had not been stolen piecemeal." I pass on to the excerpts on Page 86 of the Czechoslovakian report: "Hundreds of Czech elementary and secondary schools were closed in 1939, and so rapid was the systematic closing of Czech schools during the first year of the war that, by the end of 1940, 6,000 of the 20,000 Czech teachers were unemployed. "By September 1942 some 60 percent of the Czech elementary schools had been closed by the Germans. "All Czech books published during the republican regime have been confiscated, and the glorification of Greater Germany and its Fuehrer became the basis of all teaching at Czech elementary schools. In 1939 the number of pupils permitted to enter Czech secondary schools had diminished by 50 percent as compared with 1938. About 70 percent of the Czech secondary schools had been closed by the end of 1942. Girls have been entirely excluded from the secondary schools.
STATE COUNSELLOR OF JUSTICE OF THE SECOND CLASS M.Y. RAGINSKY (Assistant Prosecutor for the U.S.S.R.): "Nursery schools for children between 3 and 6 were completely germanized and employed only German teachers. "Other crimes in cultural spheres. "Monuments: "In many towns the 'Masaryk Houses,' which for the most part contain libraries, halls for the showing of educational films, and for the performance of plays and concerts, have been confiscated and transformed into barracks or offices for the Gestapo. The statues they contained, sometimes of great artistic value, were spoiled and broken.... A number of monuments in Prague, among them Bilek's 'Moses' and Mardjatka's 'Memorial to the Fallen Legionaries,' have been melted down.... "A decree of the autumn of 1942 ordered all university libraries to hand over all early printed Czech works and first editions to the Germans. The collections in the National Museum were pillaged; and the Modern Art Gallery, containing a unique collection of Czech art of the 19th and 20th centuries with some precious specimens of foreign (mainly French) art, was closed. "The crown jewels of the ancient Czech kings had to be handed over to Heydrich. "Literature: "Translations of works by English, French, and Russian authors, both classic and modern, were withdrawn from circulation. The severest censorship was applied to the works of modern Czech authors. The Germans liquidated many leading publishing firms."
THE PRESIDENT: This is a good opportunity to adjourn. [A recess was taken.]
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: "The entire political literature of the free republic, as well as the works of the participants in the Czech revival of the 18th and 19th centuries, were withdrawn. The books of Jewish authors were prohibited, as well as those of politically unreliable writers. The Germans withdrew the Czech classics, as well as the works of the 15th century reformer John Hus, of Alois Erassek, the author of historical novels, the poet Victor Dieck, and others." Thus the Hitlerites destroyed the national culture of the peoples of Czechoslovakia, plundered and pillaged works of art, literature, and science. In Poland, as in Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, the German fascist invaders carried out a large-scale liquidation of national culture with exceptional cruelty. The Hitlerite conspirators destroyed the Polish intelligentsia, closed educational establishments, prohibited the publication of Polish books, looted works of art, blew up and burned national monuments. I am reading into the record relevant extracts from the Polish Government report, which was submitted to the Tribunal as Exhibit Number USSR-93 (Document Number USSR-93). These excerpts, Your Honors, are on Pages 197-200 of the document book: "Annihilation of the Polish intelligentsia: "In the incorporated regions the intelligentsia were deprived of all means of livelihood. Many of them, professors, teachers, lawyers, and judges, were interned in concentration camps or murdered. "In the Government General about 80 percent of the intelligentsia were deprived of all means of subsistence. Owing to the liquidation of the press, journalists and writers were unable to earn a living. The publication of new books was prohibited. "Four universities and twelve schools of the university type ceased to exist. Their average attendance before September 1939 reached 45,000. "Secondary schools: "There were about 550 secondary schools in the German occupied territory. Their closing was ordered. In the incorporated territories they were completely closed down.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: In the Government General they were allowed to continue their activity, but in November 1939 an order was issued to cease teaching. The only schools which were allowed to continue work were commercial or trade schools. Educated Poles were not needed; the Poles were to become artisans and workmen. Such was the official line of policy. "Elementary schools: "In the incorporated territories Polish schools were completely abolished. They were replaced by German schools. Polish children were educated in the German tongue and German spirit. "On the eve of war there were about 2,000 periodicals published in Poland, among them 170 newspapers. By order of the Germans the press was almost entirely eradicated. "The publication, printing, and distributing of Polish books was prohibited as early as October 1939. "On 5 November 1940 the German Verordnungsblatt published the following decree: " 'Until further notice, the publication, without exception, of all books, pamphlets, periodicals, journals, calendars, and music is prohibited, unless published by the authority of the Government General.' "Theaters, music, and radio: "The principles of German policy in Poland were outlined in a circular of a special branch of national education and propaganda in the German Government General. It read as follows: " 'It is understood that not a single German official will assist in the development of Polish cultural life in any way whatsoever.' "The sole purpose which was to be followed, in the words of the circular, was to 'satisfy the primitive demands for entertainment and amusement, all the more as this was a question of diverting as far as possible the attention of the intellectual circles from conspiracy or political debates which encouraged the development of an anti-German feeling.' " I skip the last paragraph and pass on to the next page: "Looting, spoliation, and carrying away of works of art, libraries, and collections from Poland." The excerpts are on Pages 207 and 208 of the document book.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: "On 13 December 1939 the Gauleiter of the Warthegau issued an order that all public and private libraries and collections in the incorporated territories were to be registered. Upon completion of registration, libraries and book collections were confiscated and transported to the 'Buchsammelstelle.' There special experts carried out a selection. The final destination was either Berlin or the newly constituted State Library (Staatsbibliothek) in Posen. Books which were considered unsuitable were sold, destroyed, or thrown away as waste paper. "The best and largest libraries of the country were victims of the organized looting in the Government General. Among them were the university libraries in Krakow and Warsaw. One of the best, though not the largest, was the library of the Polish Parliament. It consisted of about 38,000 volumes and 3,500 periodical publications. On 15 and 16 November 1939 the main part of this library was transported to Berlin and Breslau. Ancient documents, such as, for instance, a collection of parchments -- the property of the central archives -- were also seized. "The Diocesan Archives in Pelilin, containing 12th century documents, were burned in the furnaces of a sugar refinery. "The first art treasure removed from Poland was the well-known altar of Veit Stoss from the Krakow Cathedral. It was taken to Germany on 16 December 1939. The Defendant Frank issued a decree concerning the confiscation of works of art." I skip a few paragraphs and pass on to the last paragraph on Page 221: "Three valuable pictures were removed from the galleries of the Czartoryski in Sieniawa. Frank seized and kept them until 17 January 1945, and then transferred them to Silesia, and thence, as his personal property, to Bavaria." National monuments: "In the process of destroying everything that was connected with Polish history and culture, many monuments and works of art were destroyed and demolished.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: "The monument of the eminent Polish King, Boleslaw, the Valiant, in Gniezno, was first wound round with ropes and chains with a view to throwing it off its pedestal. After an unsuccessful attempt, acetylene was used: the head was cut off and the pedestal broken in pieces. The same fate befell the monument of the Sacred Heart in Posen, the monuments to Chopin, the poet Slowacki, the composer Moniuszko, the Polish national hero Kosciuszko, President Wilson, the greatest Polish poet Mickiewiecz, and many others." To the report of the Polish Government is attached a list of public libraries, museums, books and other collections sacrificed to plunder and looting. These lists of objects are available on Pages 254 and 255 of the document book. In the first list we find the names of 30 libraries and in the second 21 museums and collections of works of art which were plundered and destroyed. I shall not read these lists in full, but shall mention only some of the museums and collections which were a subject of national pride and constituted the treasure of the Polish State. The following objects became the booty of the fascist vandals: The treasure house of the Wawelski Cathedral in Krakow, the Potocki Collection in Jablonna, the Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, the National Museum in Krakow, the Museum of Religious Art in Warsaw, the State Numismatic Collections in Warsaw, the Palace of King Stanislaw-August in the Lazienkowski Park, the Palace of King Jan Sobieski in Willanow, the collection of Count Tarnowski in Sukhaya, the Religious Museum in Posen, and many others. The Hitlerite invaders also plundered monasteries, churches, and cathedrals. On Page 43 of the report of the Polish Government, corresponding to Page 223 of the document book, there are final notes by the Polish Primate, Cardinal Hlond. They concern a written communication from Cardinal Hlond to Pope Pius XII. I shall read into the record only two paragraphs of these concluding notes.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: I quote: "Monasteries have been methodically suppressed, as well as their flourishing institutions for education, press, social welfare, charity, and care of the sick. Their houses and institutions have been seized by the army of the Nazi Party. "Then the invaders confiscated or sequestrated the patrimony of the Church, considering themselves the owners of this property. The cathedrals, the episcopal palaces, the seminaries, the canons' residence, the revenues and endowments of episcopates and chapters, the funds of the seminaries, all were pillaged by the invaders." I omit the end of Page 29 and pass on to Page 30: Yugoslavia. The destruction of the national culture of the peoples of Yugoslavia was carried out by the Hitlerites by various means and. methods. I shall not, Your Honors, enumerate them in detail. These means and methods are already known. In Yugoslavia the same thing occurred as in Poland and Czechoslovakia. We need only stress that, in the destruction of the culture of the peoples of Yugoslavia, the German fascist occupants showed great ingenuity and utilized the vast experiences acquired in other countries occupied by them. The system of destruction of the national culture of the peoples of Yugoslavia starts with attack and pillage and ends with mass murder, camps, and the ovens of the crematories. In the report of the Jugoslav Government, presented to the Tribunal as Document Number USSR-36, there are quoted a large number of facts and documents which establish, without any possibility of doubt, the criminal deeds of the defendants. But even these numerous facts quoted in the report do not exhaust all the crimes committed by the Hitlerites. The report of the Yugoslav Government quotes only typical cases as examples. I shall cite a few excerpts from this report. These excerpts, Your Honors, are on Page 303 of the document book.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: I quote: "Immediately after the invasion of Slovenia, the Germans started to fulfill their plans, thought out long beforehand, to germanize the 'annexed' territories of Slovenia." And further, on Page 307: "The occupiers closed all the schools in Slovenia, exiled all the Slovene teachers, destroyed all Slovene libraries and books, and forbade the use of the Slovene language, which was considered as an act of sabotage." The German barbarians destroyed and plundered not only schools and libraries, they also destroyed universities and broadcasting stations, cultural establishments, and sanatoria. On Page 23 of the report, corresponding to Page 278 of the document book, we find, for instance, the following facts concerning Belgrade. I quote: "Without any military need, the Germans premeditatively destroyed and burned a great number of public buildings and cultural institutions, such as the New University, the People's University 'Koloraz,' the first high school for boys, the second high school for girls, the ancient royal palace, the broad casting station, the Russian Home of Culture, the sanatorium of Dr. Jivkovich, and so forth. In the university building valuable and highly important collections of scientific works and research matter were destroyed." As is established by the report of the Jugoslav State Commission which is Document Number J-39(a), and which I submit under Exhibit Number 364, Page 313(a) of our document book -- the Hitlerites razed to the ground the National Library in Belgrade and burned hundreds of thousands of books and manuscripts, which constituted the basic stock of Serbian culture. They completely destroyed 71 and partially destroyed 41 scientific institutes and laboratories of Belgrade University. They razed to the ground the State Academy of Art, and they burned and looted thousands of schools. I omit the end of Page 31 and pass on to Page 32. Your Honor will find this passage on Page 303 of the document book.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: During the 4 years of German domination, the people of Yugoslavia experienced great sufferings and sorrow. The Germans looted the economic wealth of the country and caused great material damage. But the damage they caused to the culture of the people of Yugoslavia was even greater. In concluding this chapter of my report, I consider it essential Your Honors, to quote yet another excerpt from the diary of the Defendant Frank. I have in mind the calico-bound volume of the diary entitled, "Conferences of the Leaders of Departments of 1939-1940," which contains an entry regarding the conference of the departmental leaders of 19 January 1940 in Krakow. This excerpt is on Page 169 of the document book. I read: "On 15 September 1939, I was entrusted with the administration of the conquered eastern territories, and received a special order pitilessly to devastate this district regarding it as a combat zone and a prize of war, and to reduce its economic, social, cultural, and political structure to a heap of ruins." To this statement of Frank's, we need only add that the Defendant Frank zealously performed this task in Poland and that the Reich Gau, and other leaders acted with equal zeal in the occupied territories of the U.S.S.R., Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. I am now going to present, Your Honors, proof of crimes committed by the defendants against the culture of the peoples of the Soviet Union. We have heard in this court what brutality was used and on how vast a scale the Hitlerites conducted the destruction and spoliation of the cultural wealth of the peoples of Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Yugoslavia. The crimes perpetrated by the Hitlerite conspirators in the occupied territories of the U.S.S.R. were graver still.
MR. COUNSELLOR RAGINSKY: The criminal organization, known as the Hitler Government, aimed not only at plundering the people of the Soviet Union, at destroying their towns and villages, and at extirpating the culture of the peoples of the U.S.S.R., but also at enslaving the people of the Soviet Union and of transforming our native country into a fascist colony of serfs. In the second part of my statement I have proved how the destruction of the cultural monuments of the peoples of the U.S.S.R. was planned and perpetrated. In the note of the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs V. M. Molotov, dated 27 April 1942, which was presented to the Tribunal as Exhibit Number USSR-51(3) (Document Number USSR-51(3)), documents and facts are quoted which establish beyond dispute that the destruction of historic and cultural monuments and the vile mockery of national feelings, beliefs, and convictions constituted a part of the monstrous plan evolved and put into practice by the Hitlerite Government, which strove to liquidate the national culture of the peoples of the U.S.S.R. Later I shall refer again to this document, but at present I wish, with your permission, to read into the record the following excerpt which is on Page 321 of your document book. I omit the first and quote the second paragraph: "The desecration and destruction of historical and cultural memorials in occupied Soviet territories, as well as the devastation of the numerous cultural establishments set up by the Soviet authorities, are a part of the monstrously senseless plan conceived and pursued by the Hitlerite Government which strives to liquidate Russian national culture and the national cultures of the peoples of the Soviet Union, forcibly to germanize the Russian, Ukrainian, Bielorussian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian and other peoples of the U.S.S.R.