Field post letters by Karl Fischer
Transcript of a field post letter from Karl Fischer dated 11 January 1944
Karl Fischer was a member of the "Sonderkommando 1005-Mitte" and thus involved in the exhumation of mass graves in the Minsk area. He died already in 1944; but his field post letters provide an insight into the world of his ideas and narrative strategies of concealment.
The following information about Karl Fischer comes from his own statements and additions by third parties within his field post files, which served as evidence in the Hamburg trials. Today, Karl Fischer's file is in the possession of the State Archives in Hamburg.
In the Hamburg trial files, Karl Fischer is described as a Wachtmeister who belonged to "Sonderkommando 1005" and died in Klagenfurt on 15 November 1944. His exact marching route can be traced due to the place names found on his letters. His route led him from Hellerau to Dresden and from there to Hadersdorf and Warsaw. He reached those places by train. Already at the beginning of his field post it is noticeable that he does not choose a precise designation for his profession or his responsibilities. In the few passages in which he talks about his duties, he writes of himself as a "policeman".
"I can still sleep quite well."1
In Fischer's descriptions of his stay in Minsk, positive remarks are strikingly frequent, such as "The population seems to be reasonable, one sees few men". In Fischer's last letter of 14 November 1944, written in Keutschach (Austria) one day before his death, he even remarks in retrospect that he liked Russia more.
"...and guard civilian prisoners doing labor service."2
Over the course of several letters, Fischer describes his daily routine as always being the same. He says he spent the whole day in the forest with his comrades and did not return until dusk. This was his
"new workplace with shovels."3
For a long time, Fischer remained silent about his activities until he named Smoleviche as his new workplace in 1944. There he allegedly demolished, among other things, a
"barn in an almost uninhabited village"4.
He also reports of prisoners who were first captured and then interrogated.5 He also writes about "preliminary work" such as shoveling snow or building bunkers.6 From 12 May 1944 Fischer was stationed in Pinsk and describes himself as a "security policeman" who had to "tighten the reins" and was
"absolutely no angel"7
From May 1944, Fischer's whereabouts changed almost weekly. He describes this through the slogan
"Forward comrades, we’re going back!"8
He was transferred to Lomza via Angustovo, from there to Lodz, then to Salzburg and Keutschach, where he finally died.
Field post letters from Karl Fischer before and during his deployment in "Sonderkommando 1005-Mitte" in Maly Trascjanec:
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 20 October 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 22 October 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 30 October 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 2 November 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 9 November 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 17 November 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 28 November 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 6 December 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 14 December 1943
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 8 January 1944
Transcript of Karl Fischer's field post letter dated 15 January 1944
Responsible for content: Nils Kashubat
___________________
1 StAnw Hamburg 213-12 0597 Band 057, p. 94.
2 ibid., p. 188.
3 ibid., p. 131.
4 ibid., p. 134.
5 Cf ibid., p. 138
6 Cf ibid., p. 134.
7 ibid., p. 156.
8 ibid., p. 170.