Soviets Order Volga Population Exiled to Siberia

[Globalization41]

Moscow, Associated Press, The New York
Times, Monday, September 8, 1941: [Late
Sunday, U.S. time.] A mass movement into
exile in Siberia was ordered today for the
heavily German-derived population of the
Volga area because of its alleged readiness to
sabotage the Russian war effort. [Many of
Stalin's numerous slave/death camps were
located in Siberia.] ... The German Volga
territory is an autonomous Soviet Republic in
European Russia, north of the Caspian Sea. ...
Of its population of 571,089 in 1926 about 67
percent were Germans. The republic covers
some 10,329 square miles [101 x 101], about
three-fourths lying on the left bank of the
Volga River and the remainder of the right
bank. ... The German population grew from
27,000 colonists settled there in 1760-61 at the
invitation of Catherine the Great by special
manifesto when the population was so much
less than today that the government was
concerned about the development of the
uncultivated territory. ... ... Moscow,
Wireless to The New York Times, By Cyrus
L. Sulzberger, Monday, September 8, 1941:
[Late Sunday, U.S. time.] In a sweeping move
designed to obviate permanently any dangers of
a fifth-column movement in the Volga German
Republic, which has housed hundreds of
thousands of Germans since the latter part of
the 18th century, when Catherine the Great
invited in settlers from South Germany, the
Soviet Supreme Council has signed a decree
ordering the resettlement of that population in
Siberia. ... This predominantly farming folk
will be moved eastward as soon as possible. A
decree signed by President Mikhail I. Kalinin
on Aug. 28 indicates its obvious purpose by
stating: "According to reliable information
received by the military authorities, thousands
and tens of thousands of diversionists and spies
among the German population of the Volga are
prepared to cause explosions in these regions at
a signal from Germany." ... This Volga
settlement is the easternmost colony of
Germans. The accent of the Volga settlers,
however, is markedly different from that of the
inhabitants of the present Reich. ... When this
war started there was considerable speculation
as to how extensively the Nazis were seeking
secretly to organize dissent among the racial
element. President Kalinin's decree now
indicates that the government is taking no
chances. Russia watched with interest the uprisings
of German settlers in the Yugoslav Banat during
the Nazi invasion last April. Although the
German Army's drive toward the Volga is a
tremendous distance from its possible eventual
objectives, it is clear that steps toward
preventing present or future trouble are already
being taken. The decree, whose existence was
made public today, is based on the theory that
possible German efforts to muddy the waters in
the Volga Republic might necessitate a Soviet
action against the entire population in that
region and that therefore to avoid such a
predicament it is more advisable to resettle that
population on Siberian land. This area is not
only far from any danger of such interference
but needs development. ... It is stated that no
Germans from the Volga have reported the
existence of the purportedly large numbers of
dissidents who have been uncovered. ... "If
diversionist acts took place," the decree said,
"under orders from Germany by German
dissidents or spies in the Volga German
Republic or in neighboring regions, and
bloodshed resulted, the Soviet Government
would be forced under martial law to adopt
reprisal measures against the entire Volga
German population. In order to avoid such an
undesirable occurrence and to forestall serious
bloodshed, the President of the Supreme
Council of the U.S.S.R. has found it necessary
to resettle the entire German population of the
Volga regions to other districts under the
condition that the resettled peoples be allotted
land and given State aid to settle in the new
regions. The resettled Germans will be given
land in the Novosibirsk and Omsk districts, the
Altai region of the Kazakhstan Republic, and
neighboring localities rich in land. In
connection with this, the National Defense
Council is instructed to resettle as soon as
possible all Volga Germans who will be given
land estates in new regions." ... Nothing has
been said about whether the regions evacuated
by these Germans will be settled by new inhabitants,
but because of great industrial and agricultural
importance of the Volga settlement it is most
likely that this will take place. Hundreds of
thousands of persons have been removed
successfully from White Russia and the
Western Ukraine and it is not impossible that
some of them will be deposited in the Volga
strip.

[According to the Illustrated World War II
Encyclopedia, Great Britain, the United States,
and Canada during World War II supplied the
Soviets with 9,214 tanks, 12,230 aircraft,
434,000 trucks, 4,111 20mm and 40mm A.A.
guns with ammunition, 28,000 jeeps, 5,500
artillery tractors, 330,000 field telephones,
1,045 locomotives and 8,260 broad-gauge train
wagons, 2,670,000 tons of petroleum products,
5,500,000 pairs of boots, "generous deliveries
of flour and tinned food," 218,000 tons of
various explosives, 1,200,000 tons of steel,
170,000 tons of aluminum, 217,000 tons of
copper, 29,000 tons of tin, 6,500 tons of
nickel, 48,000 tons of lead, 42,000 tons of
zinc, 103,000 tons of jute, 26,000 machine
tools, 25,000,000 yards of cloth for uniforms,
and much more. ... Stalin sarcastically called
U.S.-supplied Spam "the second front."]

[Stay tuned for late breaking war bulletins.
... Globalization41]

[RedArmy]

Do you know something about US Japanees or French Germans, my friend?

Each country tried to protect itself from possible traitors...

[Oleg Grigoryev]

Do you know something about US Japanees or French Germans, my friend?

Each country tried to protect itself from possible traitors...

Although there was some kind of "third Column" among Russian Germans -that is hardly an excuse to expel the entire ethnic group - especially considering the fact that many fought bravely throughout the history ( since mid 18 century) to defend their new motherland. The fact that somebody else did does not make it right – although the reason for general paranoia is rather obvious.

[Globalization41]

Totally cool name, RedArmy. ... I don't
know much about the plight of the French
Germans. I've heard that French occupation
troops committed atrocities against Germans
after World War I. ... The exile of Japanese
Americans to Wyoming was wrong and
unnecessary, but I can't think of a better
place to be during World War II. ... The
prime mover behind exiling the Japanese
was Roosevelt, who psychologically projected
his own sneakiness to U.S. citizens of
Japanese descent ... ... From Stalin's point of
view, exiling the Volga Germans was
strategic. German armies were advancing
and appeared almost unstoppable. Stalin had
no need for duel loyalties at that critical time.

Globalization41

[Globalization41]

The New York Times, Sunday, December 7,
1941: The metropolitan district reacted swiftly
to the Japanese attack in the Pacific. One of
the first steps taken here Sunday night was a
round-up of Japanese nationals by special
agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation,
reinforced by squads of city detectives acting
under FBI supervision. More that 100 FBI
men, fully armed, were assigned to the detail.
[Coincident to this, "thought-control" police
were rounding-up American nationals in
Japan.] ... The prisoners were sent to Ellis
Island, where they will be held pending action
in Washington. It was indicated that hundreds
would be detained. ... Earlier Mayor La
Guardia had convened his Emergency Board
and directed that Japanese nationals be
confined to their homes pending decision as to
their status and had their clubs and other
meeting places closed and put under police
guard. ... A police sergeant and five
policemen immediately went to the Japanese
Consulate at 630 Fifth Avenue in Rockefeller
Center and posted guard there. The Counsel
General, Morito Morishima, and his staff were
escorted to their homes and were not allowed
to move about the city without police in
attendance. ... Commissioner Valentine's
men, at the request of Navy officials, checked
and found no Japanese shipping in the harbor.
... The Nippon Club at 161 West 93rd Street
was closed by police. Twelve Japanese who
were there when police came were escorted to
their homes. Silent crowds watched their
departure. There were no demonstrations. ...
On orders from the State Department, all
Japanese reservations on planes out of New
York were canceled. The police, on orders
from the State Department, stopped all sailings.
... New York City policemen extended their
visits to all Japanese restaurants in the five
boroughs. They permitted diners to finish their
meals, then escorted owners and their staffs to
their homes. ... Japanese nationals were
visited in their homes by FBI agents and
detectives, told to take along a suitcase with
traveling essentials, taken to a station house,
and booked as "prisoners of the Federal
authorities," then removed in groups in patrol
wagons and squad cars to the Federal Building
at Foley Square. Their case histories were
taken briefly, checked with official records,
and then, in small groups, they were taken to
the Barge Office at the Battery and to Ellis
Island by ferry. A score, however, underwent
extensive questioning. All the prisoners were
treated with every courtesy, although they were
well guarded. ... The first three Japanese to
arrive at the Barge Office came at 11:45 P.M.,
shortly before armed Coast Guardsmen, under
the command of Captain John Baylis, had
thrown a cordon about the building. ... Two
of the prisoners refused to talk to newspaper
men, but the third identified himself as Dr. S.
Emy, 50 years old, a physician, who said he
had been taken into custody at his home at
1035 Park Ave. at 8 o'clock Sunday. Dr. Emy,
who is married and has a daughter,
Josephine, said he had been in this country for
35 years and had graduated from New York
University in 1922. Remarking that he had not
seen Japan since 1917, he commented, "This is
an unfortunate situation." ... Later, newspaper
men were not permitted to talk to the
prisoners.

[Stay tuned for late breaking war bulletins.
... Globalization41.]

[Cantankerous]

More info on the forced deportation of Volga Germans to Siberia at this link:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volga_Ger ... ga_Germans

[Globalization41]

Stalin might have noticed the worldwide political backlash due to the Volga population having been resettled. Meanwhile, Hitler's elite S.S. executioners had just begun the top-secret Holocaust while Stalin was getting negative press. Therefore, possibly, Stalin did not afterward normally publicize forced ethnic relocations during WWII. … If all the forced resettlements during WWII were to be classified, the American-Japanese would have been rated as having gotten the best deal. They weren't enslaved in Siberia. They weren't slaughtered after forced relocation. … U.S. draftees were also resettled. … Wyoming would have been a nice place to spend WWII, especially for anyone not enthusiastic about charging MG nests. … … American-Japanese were even given reparations later. Sometimes you get lucky, but reparations for similar alleged misjustices throughout history would require infinite resources from those currently engaged in production and services. … With 2020 hindsight it would have been better to have left the hard-working American-Japanese in place for the purpose of revenue generation.

Globalization41.