Archives of the Department for Economic Recovery and legal predecessor

Collection description

Collection

Country:: Belgium

Holding institution:: National Archives of Belgium 2 – Joseph Cuvelier Repository

Holding institution (official language):: Archives Générales du Royaume 2 – Dépôt Joseph Cuvelier

Postal address:: Hopstraat 26-28 / Rue du Houblon 26-28, 1000 Bruxelles

Phone number:: +32 (0)2 274 15 00

Web address:: http://www.arch.be/

Email:: agr_ar_2@arch.be

Reference number:: NAB2-Brussels-545-244

Title:: Archives of the Department for Economic Recovery and legal predecessor

Title (official language):: Archief van de Dienst voor Economische Recuperatie en rechtsvoorganger

Creator/accumulator:: Dienst voor Economische Recuperatie; Office de Récupération Économique

Date(s):: 1940/1968

Language:: French; Dutch; Flemish; English; German

Extent:: 24 linear metres (general archives); 120 linear metres (individual files)

Scope and content:: The archives of the Department for Economic Recovery (DER) consist of two parts: a general section and a considerable series of individual files. From the general part of the archives, we firstly note various series with material of a general nature – such as series of the minutes of the meetings of the board of directors of the DER (and its predecessor). We also note the series of activity reports (1940-1967), interesting as summaries of the policy of the department. For this guide, however, the material produced by the Directie Restituties in the context of the recovery of looted art are of particular interest. We note general files on the identification and recovery of looted art, but, for example, also a study file on the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (no. 364). Relevant are also the documents produced as a result of the missions and contacts abroad (Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia). Nos. 366-369 contain for example subject files, lists, reports, correspondence and identification forms ordered by family name related to recovered cultural goods and restitution claims by Belgians (years 1946-1951). Apart from looted art of (i.a. Jewish) individuals, we also find material related to books stolen from the library collections of Jewish individuals including Léon Kubowitzki, Jacques Errera, Alfred Errera, Ernest Mandel and Émile Bernheim. These files occasionally contain reports of interrogations of former staff of German services (including the ERR). Concerning the actual recovery and restitution, we note i.a. files concerning the public sale of recovered art in Brussels, artworks donated to Belgian museums, documents about private collections etc. We also point out the series of declaration forms (1945-1948) of looted art – see files nos. 410-412. These forms contain i.a. the title of the artwork, name of the artist and former owner, and the circumstances in which the artwork was stolen. Lastly, the fonds includes two files concerning the processing of requests for compensation related to the spoliation of the diamond industry, for which the DER cooperated with the Federatie van Belgische Diamantbeurzen. They consist of correspondence, notes and lists, in which possible admissible requests (to the DER and the Bestuur der Oorlogsschade aan Private Goederen) are summarised. They contain interesting information on the situation of the Belgian diamond sector and the policy concerning compensation for diamond stolen during the Occupation. The second large subdivision of this fonds is formed by the series of individual files. These individual files concern the processing of requests related to goods and possessions (raw materials, commercial goods, merchandise, but also personal belongings, vehicles, books etc.) damaged, destroyed, looted or lost during the Second World War. They generally consist of various forms, correspondence, supporting documents and administrative documents. Note that if, after research by the DER, a request for compensation was addressed to the Administratie voor Oorlogsschade aan Private Goederen, the file from this series was moved to a newly opened ‘war damage file’.

Administrative/biographical history:: The Dienst voor Economische Recuperatie - Office de Récupération Économique (DER)(Department for Economic Recovery) was created in November 1944 as the successor of the Dienst voor de Identificering en Vereffening van Verdwenen en Onbeheerde Belgische Goederen Toebehorende aan Belgische Natuurlijk of Rechtspersonen (1940-1944). Initially, the service was mainly charged with the tracing, restitution and liquidation of moveable property that had disappeared from Belgian private or public possession during the war. The strictly economic competences of the DER were, however, gradually expanded – in 1945 the service was made responsible for the tracing of enemy military equipment, and it also played a role in the processing of war reparations in kind and in supporting the Belgian coal and textile industry. A section of the DER was in charge of identification and restitution of cultural goods stolen by the occupier – primarily works of art but also archives, books, maps and plans. The DER was abolished in 1967. Its duties were taken over by the Belgische Dienst voor Bedrijfsleven en Landbouw. (F. Strubbe, Inventaris van het archief van de Dienst voor Economische Recuperatie en rechtsvoorganger 1940-1968 (1997), I 20 (Algemeen Rijksarchief 2 Depot Joseph Cuvelier), Brussel, ARA-AGR, 2012; J.-M. Yante & P.-A. Tallier (dir.), F. Plisnier, S. Carnel, G. Coppieters & V. Pirlot, Gids van de instellingen van openbaar nut in België. Deel II. Band 2. Notities van de parastatalen onderworpen aan de wet van 16 maart 1954 en van diegene die daarvoor afgeschaft werden (notities 160 à 290), Guides/Gidsen no. 70, Brussel, ARA-AGR, 2008, pp. 968-974.)

Access points: locations:: Austria; Belgium; Czechoslovakia; Germany

Access points: persons/families:: Bernheim, Émile; Errera, Alfred; Errera, Jacques; Kubowitzki, Léon; Mandel, Ernest

Subject terms:: Art; Libraries; Museums; Plunder; Plunder--Looted art; Professions; Professions--Jewellers and goldsmiths; Restitution and compensation; Trade and commerce; Vital records; World War II

Access, restrictions:: Files 366-369, 603-630 and 1131-1132 can only be consulted in digital form – see the search engine on http://search.arch.be/

Finding aids:: For the general section of the fonds, see the inventory: F. Strubbe, Inventaris van het archief van de Dienst voor Economische Recuperatie en rechtsvoorganger 1940-1968 (1997), I 20 (Algemeen Rijksarchief 2 Depot Joseph Cuvelier), Brussel, ARA-AGR, 2012. This inventory is also available in English: F. Strubbe, Inventory of the archive of the Department for Economic Recovery and Legal Predecessor 1940-1968 (1997), I 21 (Algemeen Rijksarchief 2 Depot Joseph Cuvelier), Brussels, ARA-AGR, 2013. The series of individual files are made accessible by a card index, ordered by family name, in which the right individual file number can be found. Users should then consult Ministère des Affaires Économiques. Archives de l’Office de Récupération Économique (ORE). Dossiers individuels., I 400, Brussel, ARA-AGR, 2007 to request the right inventory number.

Yerusha Network member:: State Archives of Belgium

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