Schutzmannschaft Battalion 202 was a failedcollaborationistauxiliary policebattalion in theGeneral Government during World War II. It consisted of 360 conscripts under German leadership.[1] The unit was created inKraków on 27 March 1942, with recruitment beginning in May of that year. Only two Polish men volunteered.[2] Consequently, the Germans resorted to conscripting members from the regular Polish city police, known asEinheimische Polizei.
Initially stationed inŁuck inVolhynia, the battalion later operated aroundKostopol. In this area, about half of its members deserted to join the Polish resistance, specifically the27th Home Army Infantry Division,[3] which defended the ethnic Polish population againstthe UPA massacres.[1] However, the battalion also committed several crimes against civilians, including participating in the pacification of Ukrainian villages.[4]
In response to the mutiny, the Nazis rounded up and executed an additional 60 Polish members of the battalion.[5]
During its formation, the battalion was stationed in Kraków on Michałowskiego Street (renamed Luxemburgstrasse under German occupation). Basic training took place inDębica, and its first commandant was Captain Tschnadel. The members were equipped with green uniforms of theOrdnungspolizei (Orpo) and issuedMauser 98 rifles before being transferred tooccupied Eastern Poland. Their primary role was to combat Soviet partisans behind the frontlines ofOperation Barbarossa.[3]
AllSchutzmannschaften auxiliary police battalions were formed by the Germans from the inhabitants of occupied territories, such as theGeneral Government, to support theGermanSicherheitspolizei (security police), which was critically understaffed. At one point, the conscripted auxiliary police in occupied Eastern Poland included 5,000–12,000 Ukrainians and 2,000–2,200 Poles, who were often forced into opposition against each other.[1]
Identified byGrzegorz Motyka as thePolnisches Schutzmannschaftsbataillon 202,[6] the unit, upon transfer toVolhynia andPodolia, became subordinate to the GermanSchutzpolizei. The volunteer recruitment in Kraków yielded only two men. As a result, the Germans resorted to forcibly drafting professional members of theBlue Police from the city, which severely depleted the force crucial for combating property crimes and common banditry that had escalated following the 1939 invasion of Poland.[1] Some individuals evaded the draft, prompting the Germans to use false advertisements offering paid work in the "Polish [not German] Police" as another method of recruitment.
German Major Walery Sauermann was appointed as the commander of the unit in the field, with all officers being German. In November 1943, more than half of the battaliondeserted. Including all VolhynianSchutzmannschaften (not just Battalion 202), at least 700 Poles trained by the Germans joined the 27th Volhynian Division of theArmia Krajowa. Additionally, 60 Poles were executed for mutiny in Jarmolińce. One of the most widely quoted reasons among the Poles for joining the unit was the desire to protect civilians from the wave ofmassacres of Poles in Volhynia.[5] In fact, this particular unit was the only German-trained Polish group involved in operations against theOUN-UPA.
The battalion was practically destroyed in combat with theRed Army in early 1944.[6] The remaining members were transferred toLwów (Lviv). Officially, the battalion was disbanded on 8 May 1944. The battalion was armed withMauser Mk 98k rifles, as well asMP38 andMP41submachine guns. It is believed that some of its former members later joined theBlue Police in theGeneral Government.[citation needed]
Reprint:Zbrodnia w Malinie (cz.1) Głos Kresowian, nr 20.
{{cite web}}:External link in|quote=First published inPrzegląd Policyjny nr 1-2, 1996. Wydawnictwo Wyższej Szkoły Policji w Szczytnie.Niemieckie władze policyjne nie dowierzały Policji Polskiej. Niezależnie od oficjalnych upomnień, nakazów i gróźb (por. aresztowania w maju 1940 roku) oraz rozciągnięcia nad Policją Polską sądownictwaSS i policji od wiosny 1943 rozpoczęło się poufne sprawdzanie jej przydatności (Überprüfung der nichtdeutschen Polizei), jak też opiniowanie jej poszczególnych funkcjonariuszy.
See also:Critical review by Andrzej Solak.
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