31st October 1941 Ergänzungsstelle der Waffen-SS

Accompanying letter

The letter reads,

'My dear, sweet Béla!

Today at noon I found two lovely letters from you, one from the 26th and one from the 27th. I really must write to you today, because I was so upset that I didn't get any mail from you the day before yesterday or yesterday.

Yesterday was very nice, there's a lot of work in the office, but the people are all so nice and have such a nice attitude that I'm happy to do it, the working hours are so full, we have so much to write that you don't get to do anything for yourself, but the time passes very quickly, In no time at all it's 12 o'clock and we can go out for lunch, I can stay out for two hours at lunch so that I come in rested in the afternoon and we don't need to work overtime either, it will only be bad if we have to stay here from next week until half past seven, that really bothers me.

But first we'll let it get to us, and then when it has settled in for two weeks and the control has been there, then we will - we hope - be able to leave earlier from time to time. Have you ever heard of a good decree coming from Berlin? Not me! After the office yesterday, Herma Skoda picked me up and we went together to Christl's, who was very pleased. It was very nice and funny again, because another classmate (Gerta Piech) got apple strudel and liqueur and it was very funny. I'm glad to say that Christl is looking much better and sends you her best regards.

On the way home, I went to Gretl's place in Zahlstock and gave her "I'm not an intellectual", which made her burst out laughing. She was very happy about it. She's feeling much better, she's not in any pain any more and hopes to be able to go home at the end of the week. I don't know if Papa Rittmann is of the same opinion. By the way, Mrs. Hitzenberger sent us a rabbit yesterday, which will be eaten on Sunday evening. What a pity that you can't be there, my darling, because of the whole rabbit I only like the cranberry jam anyway. Well, maybe I'll taste it this time after all, and if it doesn't turn out bad, then maybe I'll even be converted.

Traudi Hermann picked me up at half past nine, we spent two hours in Café München and had a good chat with some nice music and Malaga. She was very sweet and cordial, asked me exactly what you do and where you have been and then she told me where, when and how she met her future husband, in short the whole story. It was very nice and cosy. She is getting married on 8 Nov. Mother and I are going to the registry

office.

Interior of 'Cafe München', Innsbruck, as depicted on a contemporary postcard written 04.02.1942. Ref: 31.10.1941 -14/39

At the end of November or beginning of December, she might come to visit her parents-in-law in Königsberg - very likely, her father-in-law is an internist and runs the polyclinic in Königsberg. She asked me for your address, write me the street where you live privately, I told her only in the villa district in the house of a Frabrik director. So write me the name of the street, the number and the whole district. In any case, she will call you right away at the office and ask if you are still there. I thought to myself, you always liked her and you'll be glad to see her again. I hope I have no reason to be jealous.

Today after the office I'll pick up Herta Winkler and then we'll go to Kati's together. I have to make good use of the last week. Tomorrow after the office I want to run some errands with my mother. I've already got your clothing card, darling, but they've cut away a lot of points, they're doing that now to all enlisted men, officers or higher, so that there are only 82 points on your new clothing card, I'm furious, but it's no use. Reason: The soldiers are in uniform all the time, they don't need civilian clothes. Stupid!

One more thing, darling, I'm already buying all the books for Christmas, because after 1 December you won't get any more, everything is out of stock, so I should reserve a few for you for gift-giving purposes, e.g. one of your books for Burschi, one for Pista. I suggest the following: Perhaps for Burschi "The Doctor and his Mission", and for Father and for Pista Tsusima, if these books are not too expensive. So please write to me about it. I give a lot of people the Feuerzangenbowle and "I am not an intellectual" which is not so well known yet. Fantilein, I have to go, we still have a lot to do. Write well!

1,000 heartfelt kisses and tender embraces, always your faithful [Ilse]'

Notes:

'I am not an intellectual' - song performed by Ferdl Weiss. Link to song on You Tube.

'Malaga' - a strong, sweet, desert wine.

'Villa district' - Amalienau, Königsberg. Link to Wikipedia page.

'Feuerzangenbowle' - Rum-soaked sugarloaf, set alight, which drips into mulled wine.

'Fantilein' - No German translation. Possibly a pet-name deriving from 'Fanti' - Itlaian form Infantryman, coupled with 'lein' (used as a suffix) to create a diminutive form. Therefore 'Fantilein' could be affectionally construed as 'Little Soldier'.

Ergänzungsstelle (Supplementary Offices)

Taken from Forum der Wehrmacht (On-line):

The High Command of the Wehrmacht, Az.12 a AHA/ ag./ E (Id), No. 11447/39 announced on November 30, 1939 regarding “Reorganization of the supplementary system of the SS and police”: “With effect from December 1, 1939, a reorganization of the supplementary system of personnel of the SS and police will come into force (see the order of the Reichsfuhrers SS and Chiefs of the German Police from November 22, 1939). With this, the entire supplementary system is united in the hands of the chief of the supplementary office of the Waffen-SS. From this point in time, there will be no more personnel from other SS and police departments. Based on the attached service instructions, supplementary offices are set up at the locations of the military district commands, which receive the numbers of the military district commands concerned (eg supplementary office Southwest (V). The leaders of the supplementary offices (see Annex 2) are instructed to report to the commander in the military district, to the chief of staff of the military district command, to the Ib of the military district command and to the military district inspectors of the military district concerned and to ask for support to ask them to solve the tasks assigned to them. The filling of the posts for the heads of the supplementary positions is not final. Later heads of the SS are intended who are no longer fully suitable for military service as a result of war service impairments.All personnel matters relating to the SS and the police (SS disposal troops, SS Totenkopf units, general SS, SS police reinforcements and protection police) are to be settled first with the heads of the SS supplementary offices. In cases of doubt, they are to be submitted to OKW/AHA/Ag./E, which decides in agreement with the head of the Waffen-SS supplementary system. Offices of the Supplementary Office of the Waffen-SS: Berlin SO 36,Kottbusserstr. 1 long-distance call: Berlin 689151(Hausser, Soldiers Like Others, p. 267)

Attachment 1 of this letter reads:

The Reichsfuhrer SS 22.11.1939and Chief of the German Police

1.) These service instructions (for the supplementary system of the Waffen-SS (armed units of the SS) and its district offices” of October 29, 1939) come into force with effect from December 1, 1939. This completes the reorganization of the SS supplementary system for the time being .2.) With effect from the same day, I transfer the entire SS and police supplement to the supplementary office, which will in future be called the "Supplementary Office of the Weapons SS" (SS Supplementary Office). The head of this office calls himself "Chief of the Supplementary Office of the Waffen-SS" (armed units of the SS).The supplementary office set up in each SS upper section bears the designation "Supplementary Office of the Waffen-SS, supplementary body ..." (eg supplementary body SS Upper Section Southwest: "Supplementary Office of the Waffen-SS, supplementary body Southwest (V)")3.) Up to November 15, 1939, processes that are to be processed by the SS Supplementary Office in accordance with § 1 No. 2) of these (service) instructions are to be processed by the previously responsible offices, SS substitute offices, etc., or, if necessary, handed over to the SS Supplementary Office for further processing.4.) On April 1, 1940, the chief of the SS Supplementary Office presented me with a report on the experience of the SS Supplementary Service concerning these instructions.Signed H. Himmler (Hausser, Soldiers like others, p. 268)

THE SUPPLEMENTARY OFFICES OF THE WAFFEN-SS 1942

Wehrkreis Responsible Supplementary Office

I Northeast (I) Königsherg i. Pr., Kastanienallee 26/28 Tel. 2 00 28 and 2 16 30

II Ostsee (II) Szczecin, Friedrich-Karl.Str. 3Tel. 2 84 01 and 2 84 13

III Spree (III) Berlin NW 40, Wilsnacker Str. 3 Tel. 35 61 36

IV Elbe (IV) Dresden A 20, Tiergartenstr. 46 Tel. 4 07 96 and 483 34

V Southwest (V) Stuttgart O, Gerokstr. 7 Tel. 9 10 71

VI West (VI) Düsseldorf, Graf-Recke-Str. 72 Tel. 6 14 57 and 614 58

VII Süd (VII) Munich 27, Pienzenauer Str. 15 Tel. 48 05 21 and 48 05 29

VIII Southeast (VM) Breslau 18, Eichenallee 5 Tel. 8 53 56 and 8 53 57

IX Fulda-Werra (IX) Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, Löwenburgstr. 10 Tel. 3 66 83 and 3 44 41

X Nordsee (X) Hamburg 13, Mittelweg 38 Tel. 44 58 82 and 44 58 83

XI Mitte (XI) Braunschweig, Wolfenhüttler Str. 13 Tel. 72 17 and 21 24

XII Rhein (XII) Wiesbaden, Bahnhofstr. 46 Tel. 2 17 47 and 2 17 48

XIII Main (XIII) Nuremberg 23, Wielandstr. 6 Tel. 2 77 55

XVII Donau (XVII) Vienna IX/66, Liechtensteinstr. 49 Tel. A 1 74 99, A 1 80 33 and A 1 82 01

Branch Office Bohemia and Moravia Prague IV, Czerninpalais Tel. 6 01 41 / 31 18 20

XVIII Alpenland (XVIII) Salzburg-Aigen-Glas, Gylenstormstr. 8th Tel. 44 10

XX Vistula (XX) Gotenhafen, Adolf-Hitler-Platz 10-12 Tel. 24 18 / 19

XXI Warthe (XXI) Posen, Königsring 22 and Gen.-Gouv. Tel. 20 25 and 30 25

The supplementary positions served, to register the volunteers, and also carried out the examinations and reported those who were fit to the main office in Berlin, which then arranged for the conscription.

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