Metadata: Commander of Security Police and Security Service
Collection
- Country:
- Serbia
- Holding institution:
- Historical Archives of Belgrade
- Holding institution (official language):
- Историјски архив Београда (Istorijski arhiv Beograda)
- Postal address:
- Palmira Toljatija 1, 11070 Belgrade; PAK 190446
- Phone number:
- (+381) 11 2606-336
- Web address:
- https://www.arhiv-beograda.org
- Email:
- office@arhiv-beograda.org
- Reference number:
- IAB-1177
- Title:
- Commander of Security Police and Security Service
- Title (official language):
- Befehlshaber der Sicherheitspolizei und des Sicherheitsdienst - BdS - Заповедник Полиције безбедности и Службе безбедности
- Creator/accumulator:
- Commander of Security Police and Security Service
- Date(s):
- 1941/1944
- Language:
- German
- Serbian
- Extent:
- 33.5 linear metres (10 volumes, 5,611 files)
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- Good
- Scope and content:
-
This collection comprises the records of the “Befehlshaber der Sicherheitspolizei und des Sicherheitsdienst” (Commander of Security Police and Security Service) in the period between 1941 and 1944. It consists of 9 office registers of the Extraordinary Commissioner of personal affairs, a political position created during the process of elimination of “nationally unreliable” employees in public offices, as well as 5,611 files of people who had been suspected or arrested by the German occupation authorities (around 128,000 pages, the majority of them translated from German). In addition the collection includes the card register that was used by the German authorities to monitor movements of the citizens according to the Regulation on the elimination of nationally unreliable employees in public offices, whether military officials, civilians in government offices or officials from legal institutions. This position was entrusted to Tanasije Dinić.
Documentation which was created after the war includes: excerpts from the records of people mentioned in the BdS archives compiled for the needs of OZNA and UDBA (Yugoslav post-war intelligence agencies); card register of BdS agents; card register of BdS officials; card register of codes; card register of collaborators who received Albanian and Bulgarian identity cards and passports; card register of civilian supporting staff.
The most significant documentation regarding the life and suffering of the Jewish community in the period 1941-1944 included:
files of people who had been arrested by occupation authorities, each record contained personal data (name and surname, date and place of birth, nationality, profession, address, date and cause of arrest, minutes from the hearing, concentration camp to which the arrested person was sent); original documents were often accompanied by their translations and a register of names (for example: Jozef Davičo was denounced on 26 April 1941 as an “enemy of Germany”, together with other family members, by Volksdeutscher Hajnrih Mornau. The Davičo family was arrested and then released due to lack of evidence; Geza Bradijer, an engineer, was accused of activities against the occupying authorities, possessing a fake ID and two photographs preserved in his file; the file of Oto Bihalji gives information on his arrest and his transportation to a camp in Germany, on his family and his publishing company “Nolit”; Vida Gutman provided information regarding the investigation of Gutman for communism);
card register used by German authorities to monitor movements of Jewish citizens, which contained various information: name and surname, profession, address and observations/remarks;
excerpts from the records created after the war for individuals mentioned in the BdS archives, with information on first and last name, source used from the BdS archives, date of birth, address, profession, short description of arrest and hearing.
The collection also contains details of people who were part of the authorities and were involved in looting Jewish property; on a department in charge for mobile property of arrested people. The inventory of Jewish property was kept separately and was registered as “Judenvermögen”.
- Archival history:
- The Secretariat of the Internal Affairs of the Socialist Republic of Serbia, National Security Service handed over the documentation to the Historical Archives of Belgrade on 12 August 1982.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- Befehlshaber der Sicherheitspolizei und des Sicherheitsdienst (BdS; Commander of Security Police and Security Service) was founded in January 1942 by the initiative of the Reich Main Security Office in Berlin to reorganise German services in Serbia. The decision was made by Himmler at previous suggestion made by RSHA chief Reinhardt Heidrich. In compliance with that decision the regular police system as existed in the Third Reich was implemented in occupied Serbia. This change significantly reinforced security and intelligence services with many branches throughout Serbia. The internal organisation of BdS was similar to the organisation of the RSHA: it consisted of 6 departments; with the fourth department in charge of Jews, while the third department was in charge of gathering information.
- Access points: persons/families:
- Bihalji, Oto
- Bradijer, Geza
- Davičo, Jozef
- Gutman, Vida
- System of arrangement:
- Files and card registers are arranged alphabetically.
- Access, restrictions:
- The archive material of the fonds is available according to the regulations of the Historical Archives of Belgrade.
- Finding aids:
- A card register and inventory of files are available.
- Yerusha Network member:
- Historical Archives of Belgrade
- Author of the description:
- Dragana Mitrašinović; Historical Archives of Belgrade; 2019
