Stalag III-D was a World War II
German Army prisoner-of-war camp
A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured by a belligerent power in time of war.
There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, and military priso ...
located in
Berlin
Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...
.
Camp history
The camp was established on 14 August 1940 on the corner of Landweg and Osdorfer Straße in
Berlin-Lichterfelde
Lichterfelde () is a locality in the borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf in Berlin, Germany. Until 2001 it was part of the former borough of Steglitz, along with Steglitz and Lankwitz. Lichterfelde is home to institutions like the Berlin Botanical Ga ...
. The commandant and camp administration offices (''Kommandantur'') were later located at Belle-Alliance-Straße 106-107, in
Kreuzberg
Kreuzberg () is a district of Berlin, Germany. It is part of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Mitte. During the Cold War era, it was one of the poorest areas of West Berlin, but since German reunification in 1990 it ha ...
. With prisoners from
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
,
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...
,
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
,
USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
and
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
, the camp's maximum capacity was 58,000 men. Prisoners were mostly allocated to sub-camps (''Zweiglager'') and work details (''
Arbeitskommando
''Arbeitslager'' () is a German language word which means labor camp. Under Nazism, the German government (and its private-sector, Axis, and collaborator partners) used forced labor extensively, starting in the 1930s but most especially during ...
'') in and around the city. Their medical needs were provided by ''Reserve Lazarett'' ("Reserve Hospital") 119 at
Neukölln
Neukölln () is one of the twelve boroughs of Berlin. It is located in the southeastern part from the city centre towards Berlin Schönefeld Airport. It was part of the former American sector under the Four-Power occupation of the city. It fea ...
and RL 128 at Berlin-Biesdorf.
Sub-camps
Prisoners of Stalag III-D were also housed in a number of sub-camps (''Zweiglager''),
designated Stalag III-D/Z:
*
Falkensee
Falkensee is a town in the Havelland district, Brandenburg, Germany. It is the most populated municipality of its district and it is situated at the western border of Berlin.
History
The commune Falkensee was formed in 1923 by the merger of Falk ...
* Groß Schulzendorf,
Zossen
Zossen (; hsb, Sosny) is a German town in the district of Teltow-Fläming in Brandenburg, about south of Berlin, and next to the B96 highway. Zossen consists of several smaller municipalities, which were grouped together in 2003 to form the ci ...
* Wutzetz,
Friesack
Friesack (; also Friesack/Mark) is a town in the Havelland district, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated northeast of Rathenow, and southwest of Neuruppin
Neuruppin (; North Brandenburgisch: ''Reppin'') is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, ...
(closed late 1943)
* Damm I, Friesack
* Damm II, Friesack (closed late 1943)
*
Wustrau I,
Neuruppin
Neuruppin (; North Brandenburgisch: ''Reppin'') is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, the administrative seat of Ostprignitz-Ruppin district. It is the birthplace of the novelist Theodor Fontane (1819–1898) and therefore also referred to as ''Fon ...
(closed late 1943)
* Wustrau II, Neuruppin
* Zietenhorst, near Wustrau (closed late 1943)
* Kirchhain/
Niederlausitz
Lower Lusatia (; ; ; szl, Dolnŏ Łużyca; ; ) is a historical region in Central Europe, stretching from the southeast of the German state of Brandenburg to the southwest of Lubusz Voivodeship in Poland. Like adjacent Upper Lusatia in the sou ...
(transferred from
Stalag III-B
In Germany, stalag (; ) was a term used for prisoner-of-war camps. Stalag is a contraction of "Stammlager", itself short for ''Kriegsgefangenen-Mannschaftsstammlager'', a literal translation of which is "War-prisoner" (i.e. POW) "enlisted" "ma ...
late 1944)
Two further sub-camps; Stalag III-D/999 in
Zehlendorf West, Berlin, and Stalag III-D/517 at Genshagen,
Ludwigsfelde
Ludwigsfelde is a town in the north of the district Teltow-Fläming in Brandenburg.
Geography
Location
The town is located south of Berlin in the district Teltow-Fläming on the plateau of Teltow. In earlier times, it was part of the district ...
, were created in May–June 1943 as "Holiday Camps", offering better living conditions, and a steady diet of propaganda, in an attempt to persuade prisoners into joining the
British Free Corps
The British Free Corps (german: Britisches Freikorps; BFC) was a unit of the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II, made up of British and Dominion prisoners of war who had been recruited by Germany. The unit was originally known as the ...
. The Germans particularly sought out former members and sympathizers of the
British Union of Fascists
The British Union of Fascists (BUF) was a British fascist political party formed in 1932 by Oswald Mosley. Mosley changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists in 1936 and, in 1937, to the British Union. In 1939, ...
, but the attempt was largely a failure with the unit never numbering more than about 30 men at any time. A small number of men from these camps also joined the staff of the
Ministry of Propaganda, working for radio stations and magazines.
A similar camp at
Friesack
Friesack (; also Friesack/Mark) is a town in the Havelland district, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated northeast of Rathenow, and southwest of Neuruppin
Neuruppin (; North Brandenburgisch: ''Reppin'') is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, ...
, designated
Stalag XX-A (301), was established to recruit Irishmen serving in the British Army.
See also
*
List of prisoner-of-war camps in Germany For lists of German prisoner-of-war camps, see:
* German prisoner-of-war camps in World War I
During World War I, German prisoner-of-war camps were run by the 25 Army Corps Districts into which Germany was divided. Around 2.4 million men were W ...
References
{{reflist
1940s in Berlin
Military history of Berlin
Steglitz-Zehlendorf
World War II prisoner of war camps in Germany
1940 establishments in Germany
1945 disestablishments in Germany