Interpreting Concentration Camp Records?

[Thomasjohn]

Afternoon all.
I am after some specialist assistance with interpreting some of my G.Uncles (Mieczyslaus Leszczynski) concentration camp records.
I am researching my Great Uncle's movements before he met his sad end in Dachau Concentration camp on 5th October 1942 aged 23.
This is what I know:
Mieczyslaus Leszczynski.
Father Franciszek, mother Barbara (Zaszkiewicz) and sister (my Grandmother) Wladyslawa.
Born 30.8.1919 in Wojska, Poland and lived in Chelm, near Lublin, Lubolska 76.
Served in the Polish army from 1937 in the horse drawn artillery (no idea of unit but trying to identify).
I think that he may have failed to escape with other Polish units into Romania in 1939 and so attempted to blend back in as a civilian. He is listed as a 'gardener' and as a 'student' on his camp records so suspect he attempted to conceal the fact he was a soldier. He is listed as a 'schutzhaftling' - protective custody prisoner i.e. seen as a threat to the Germans.
From what I can make out from the attached (I think) this is his time line:
11.02.40 - Picked up in Sanoc, southern Poland by the Stapo (Police?).
10.8.40 - 19.11.40 - Sachsenhausen
19.11.40 - 30.5.41 - Neuengamme
30.5.41 - 5.7.41 - Dachau (number 25985)
5.7.41- 12.3.42 - Buchenwald
12.3.42 - 17.8.42 - Natzweiler
17.8.42 - 5.10.42 - Dachau (new number given - 34621)

I have attached the records I have been able to download from the Arolsen Archives. I am struggling to understand the German on these records so am after some help if possible?

Any help that can be given would be much appreciated.

Regards,

Anthony

[Karen McDonald]

Hi Anthony,

I'm afraid there is not much information in the images you have uploaded.

Your dates & places appear to be correct, but as far as I can tell the images only go up to March 1942.

I am not well informed on the Polish army from back then, but I would assume that most young men had to join the army, whether they wanted to or not - maybe he had been a gardener prior to conscription.

Stapo = probably Staatspolizei (state police).

The status of "protective custody prisoner" should actually mean that he was to be protected by attack from e.g. other prisoners, but may have been used as an excuse for e.g. solitary confinement or other actions. 

The first record shows, as I am sure you have already worked out, his personal details (name <his first name was subsequently amended>, date & place of birth, religion <k = katolisch = catholic>, marital status <l = ledig = single>, nationality <Polish>, next of kin <Aunt, Konstanza Meczynska>, last address <as above, i.e. his aunt's address>), when arrested and by whom, dates of various camps.

I don't know what the "Qu. Kte." stands for at the bottom next to Bemerkungen (comments). Maybe someone else here can help us.

The second document is simply a list of the things he had with him (and had to hand in) when he entered the Dachau camp in July 1941. It wasn't a lot.  1 cap, 1 p. shoes, 1 p. socks, etc., plus a wallet, cigarette case, etc. His aunt's address is given as his address.

The third scan is a list of documents. Effektenkarte is what you see in scan 2.
The others (Karte & Bogen = card & sheet/page) are official documents (possibly the other 2 scans).   

The final scan looks simply like a file card.

I'm afraid I can't see anything that you don't already know.

Best regards,
Karen

[Maid of Kent]

Re QU we think its the abbreviation for Quittung which means receipt and KTE is Wächter des Reiches, Guard

[Thomasjohn]

Karen,
thanks for you time in translating the detail on these documents; helps to add detail to Mieczyslaus' last movements.
His father (Franciszek) was killed by the Gestapo in 1940 and his mother (Barbara) and my Grandmother Wladyslawa (his sister) made it to Britain in 1944 after some terrible years of forced labour and forced marches at the hands of the Soviets but that's another story that I was able to first hand detail of from my Nan. My Nan met a Polish airman (my grandpa - Konrad Paszkiewicz) and the rest as they say is history.

Thanks again for your time and effort - it's appreciated.

Regards,

Anthony

[Karen McDonald]

You are most welcome, Anthony. I'm just sorry that there is nothing new or enlightening in there.

These stories are so sad. We can only hope that people have learned from what happened back then and will not allow such atrocities to happen again.

Karen

[davecapps]

[quote  QU we think its the abbreviation for Quittung which means receipt and KTE is Wächter des Reiches, Guard
[/quote]

I think it´s the abbrieviation:
Qu = Quittung
K.T.E = Karte

Quittungskarte: inmate's receipt card / sickness fund, insurance

[davecapps]

https://www.weitze.net/militaria/51/III_Reich_Arbeitsbuch_fuer_Auslaender__313151.html

[Thomasjohn]

Dave,
thanks for your reply. Much appreciated.
The link you sent seems to be a site selling WW2 artefacts?

Thanks again,


Anthony

[Karen McDonald]

Hello Anthony,

Sometimes these things continue to occupy my old brain cells  so I sent an E-Mail to Buchenwald.de, asking them to clarify the keine Qu. Kte. note. 

Today I received a very friendly and extremely informative answer.

As Dave has already said, Qu. Kte. stands for Quittungskarte. In this case, there was not one (keine Qu. Kte.).

As Dave has said, the Quittungskarte was a form of receipt regarding the prisoner's sickness fund/insurance.

This is what the kind lady from Buchenwald wrote to me, roughly translated:

In 1941 and 1942, the camp administration tried to ensure that the corresponding insurances (employee and disability insurances) were maintained for the prisoners. There was a separate insurance department in the administration which handled the respective correspondence. One task was to provide the corresponding receipt cards (Quittungskarten), since the camp paid half of the premiums for the period of imprisonment if the prisoner or his relatives were destitute. Which also had to be proven. A very large administrative burden that could not be continued later.

She also sent me a copy of such a Quittungskarte. I hope you don't mind my not uploading it here, but it is for a man who has nothing to do with the enquiries here. I can tell you, however, that it lists details for the man, including his last address, a list of the places he worked and the dates, which medical insurance company he was registered with, whether he had ever drawn unemployment benefit, if he had been in active service, if he had been to prison, all that kind of stuff.

So the bottom line is: Your relative had no card, as he/his family was not considered to be destitute.

I have certainly learned something today! I had no idea that this kind of thing went on. I thought the poor men landed in the camp and that was it - their families had to get by on their own. At least they received a little bit of help. In some cases.

Best regards,
Karen