Metadata: Individual files. SDR-DDO
Collection
- Country:
- Belgium
- Holding institution:
- Directorate-General War Victims, Archives and Documentation Department
- Holding institution (official language):
- Direction Générale Victimes de la Guerre, Service Archives et Documentation
- Postal address:
- Luchtvaartsquare 31 / Square de l’Aviation 31, 1070 Brussel (Anderlecht)
- Phone number:
- +32 (0)2 528 91 57
- Web address:
- http://warvictims.fgov.be/
- Email:
- archidoc@minsoc.fed.be
- Reference number:
- DirGenWarVic-Brussels-
- Title:
- Individual files. SDR-DDO
- Title (official language):
- Dossiers Individuels. SDR-DDO
- Creator/accumulator:
- Directie-Generaal Oorlogsslachtoffers; Direction Générale Victimes de la Guerre
- Date(s):
- 1940/2016
- Date note:
- Material continues to be added to this collection.
- Language:
- French
- Dutch; Flemish
- German
- Extent:
- ca. 690,000 files
- Scope and content:
- This fonds is of great interest. It contains individual files concerning victims constituted by the War Victims administration (DG Victimes de la Guerre). There are three series of files. The first series is arranged alphabetically, by family name. These files are incomplete, notably missing the decision on presumption of death (présomption de décès). They are currently being inventoried. The second series is formed by files arranged by file number (composed of six digits); they are generally complete. The DGVG has reorganised these individual files and has tried to complete them by collecting as much information as possible for each individual. These files contain documents relating to the concerned individual such as copies of passports, census records, correspondence, death certificates, attestations of deportation, certificates related to forced labour, SHAEF repatriation cards etc. These documents mention the name, first name, address, nationality, place and date of birth (and sometimes of death), profession, family composition, transport number (if the person was deported), as well as copies of information from the Registre des Juifs. The third and last series is formed by alphabetically ordered files, called “documentation”. They are progressively being merged with the individual (SDR) files. There are approximately 300,000 files that are ordered alphabetically and 390,000 that are ordered by number.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The early predecessor of today’s Directie-Generaal Oorlogsslachtoffers / Direction Générale Victimes de la Guerre (DGVG)(Directorate-General War Victims) was the Belgisch Commissariaat voor de Repatriëring, created in late June 1944 with the aim of repatriating the many Belgian prisoners, forced labourers and refugees. In August 1945 the Commissariat (which was being liquidated) was integrated in the Ministry for War Victims, created in February of the same year. This ministry was charged with immediate assistance to Belgian war victims, but it was also responsible for their pensions, medical treatment etc. A number of new services – including a service for medical and pharmaceutical care and the Nationaal Werk voor Oud-Strijders – were added to the ministry in 1945. In April 1946, the duties and services of the Ministry for War Victims and the Ministry for War Damages were transferred to the newly created Ministry of Reconstruction. The Bestuur der Schade aan Personen (‘administration for damage to individuals’) of this ministry took over the competences related to war victims. The evaluation and granting of the status of ‘political prisoner’ was added to its duties. Its division into three main sections (statuses, pensions for civilian victims of the war, documentation) dates back to 1949. From 1946 until 1952 the Bestuur der Schade aan Personen almost continuously formed part of the Ministry of Reconstruction. Afterwards the Bestuursafdeling voor Oorlogsslachtoffers successively became a part of the Ministry of Public Health (1952-1995) and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Public Health and Environment (1995-2001). Since the division of this last ministry (2002), the Directorate-General War Victims belongs to the Federal Public Service (FPS) Social Security. Today, the DGVG has a dual mission. On the one hand, the execution of the law regarding civilian war victims, notably the granting of the various statuses of national recognition (e.g. political prisoner, hidden Jewish child, defaulter (werkweigeraar), fisherman in wartime) and processing of related pension applications. On the other hand, the DGVG manages its archives and documentation service. This voluminous body of documents is mainly the result of the field work of the Service de recherches en Belgique in the immediate post-war period – in particular the work carried out by its liaison officers and missions abroad. The personnel of the service often collaborated with a number of Jewish organisations, including Aide aux Israélites Victimes de la Guerre. (http://warvictims.fgov.be/nl/about/origine.htm; P. Nefors, Inventaris van het Archief van de Dienst voor de Oorlogsslachtoffers – Inventaire des Archives du Service des Victimes de la Guerre, Brussel, 1997.)
- Access points: locations:
- Belgium
- Subject terms:
- Holocaust
- Holocaust--Survivors
- Restitution and compensation
- Vital records
- Access, restrictions:
- The files can be consulted by the concerned individuals and their descendants. Consultation for research purposes is authorised on the basis of a research declaration. Files related to hidden children can only be consulted on authorisation of the concerned individual.
- Finding aids:
- There is a card index, arranged by name. Searches are carried out by the personnel of the DGOS-DGVG.
- Yerusha Network member:
- State Archives of Belgium
