(1) - The information quoted does not relate directly to the handling of prisoners of war. My concern about rights comes from the followingDavid Thompson wrote:You are mistaken in claiming that "they had no rights." You've overlooked or ignored the customs and usages of war regarding the treatment of prisoners, which predate both the Hague and Geneva conventions and were/ are binding on all civilized nations. From the 1940 US manual FM 27-10 Rules of Land Warfare, pp. 1-2:
HISTORY OF PRISONER OF WAR UTILIZATION by the UNITED STATES ARMY 1776-1945 (237)
The capitulation of Germany on 8 May 1945 placed the surrendered German forces at the disposal of the Allies.9 5 SHAEF designated these units as "Disarmed German Forces," according to the Instrument of Unconditional Surrender for Germany which stated: ". . . there is no obligation on any of the three Allied Powers to declare all or any part of the personnel of the German armed forces prisoners of war. . . . Such a decision may or may- not be taken depending on the discretion of the respective commander in chief.
The German troops thus held were organizationally intact and were kept under army group control for labor. They were not transferred to the control of the Communications Zone. Meanwhile, the Allies were absolved of the responsibility of providing rations, accommodations, and medical care which were accorded to enemy prisoners of war. SHAEF left the disarmed enemy units under army group control to provide labor where it was badly needed, and to permit the Germans to sustain themselves from their own resources as far as possible. It also lessened transportation problems since it was easier to move the reduced scale of necessary maintenance forward than to move the surrendered forces to the rear. Also, the presence of these forces in the Allied rear areas was undesirable, as there were no labor needs and the surrendered forces would have had to be supported entirely from Allied resources.
Documents on the US Occupation of Germany 1945
131. The Status of "Disarmed Enemy Forces." (http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=69515)
Consequently, the War Department approved treating all members of the German armed forces captured after the declaration of ECLIPSE conditions, or the cessation of hostilities, and all prisoners of war not evacuated from Germany immediately after the conclusion of hostilities, as "disarmed enemy forces," and specified that such captives would be responsible for feeding and maintaining themselves. This ruling did not apply to war criminals, wanted individuals, and security suspects, who were to be imprisoned, fed, and controlled by Allied forces. The War Department further directed that there be no public declaration made on the status of the German armed forces.(307)
(2) Agreed the report does not mention DEFs. This led me to the follwoing analysis:David Thompson wrote:The quote from The Quartermaster Corps; Operations in the war against Germany (2004), which appears on p. 532, refers to POWs. There's not a word about disarmed enemy forces in the whole paragraph.
1. Number of prisoners (German military personnel) reported in Us Zone by THE U.S. ARMY IN THE OCCUPATION OF GERMANY 1944-1946 7.7 Million
2. Number of German prisoners after VE Day Documents on the US Occupation of Germany 1945
6,155,468 (2,657,138 were prisoners of war and 4,098,330 were disarmed enemy forces)
3. Number of German prisoners (Prisoners of War) being fed by Quartermaster Corps; Operations in the war against Germany (2004)
2,884,762 (227,624 more than listed in the US Occupation of Germany 1945)
Therefore from the stats:
There are roughly 1,55 Million missing prisoners between the reports (7.7 Million - 6.15 Million prisoners)
The total number of revised prisoners numbers (DEFs) not recieving US rations, accommodations, and medical care 4,098,330
THE U.S. ARMY IN THE OCCUPATION OF GERMANY 1944-1946
CHAPTER XVI - Germany in Defeat (Page 291 ref 60)
60 Reports of the Military Governor, U.S. Zone, give a total of 7.7 million German military personnel disposed of by U.S. forces between 8 May 1945 and 15 July 1945, including Volkssturm and other paramilitary groups, camp followers, and prisoners returned from Norway, Italy, and camps in the United States and England. (1) Memo, ACofS G-1 for Staff, sub: Disbandment Directive No. 5, 14 Jun 45, in SHAEF G-1, 383.6. (2) OMGUS, Demilitarization Cumulative Review, in Monthly Report of the Military Governor, U.S. Zone, 20 Aug 46. (http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/Occ-
GY/en/en16.60.htm)
Documents on the US Occupation of Germany 1945
132. Statistical Analysis.(http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=69515)
In September 1944, German prisoners of war who had been captured by the Allied expeditionary Force numbered 545,756.(308) Each day thereafter a few more thousand prisoners were apprehended, and when the year ended 811,796 had been recorded.(309) The one-millionth was captured on 8 March 1945(310), the two-millionth on 16 April (331), and the three-millionth on 1 May.(312) Supreme Headquarters authorized army group commanders on 4 May, to consider the great masses of German troops then surrendering, not as prisoners of war entitled to the privileges prescribed in the Geneva Convention, but as disarmed enemy forces. The captured troops were disarmed, retained in their own organizations, and
moved into concentration areas to be disbanded as soon as practicable.(313) When hostilities ceased, 4,005,732 prisoners of war had been captured.(314) Additional. prisoners continued to be reported after V-E E Day, and revised statistics show that the total number captured was 6,155,468.(315) Of this total 2,657,138 were prisoners of war and 4,098,330 were disarmed enemy forces.(316)
(3) From the information provided, we have to assume the prisoners were from the 2 Million officially classed as POWsDavid Thompson wrote:See item 2(a) of the transfer agreement between the US and France, from http://home.arcor.de/kriegsgefangene/usa/france/01.html:
David -- I am unable to get access to any of the Monthly Report of the Military Governor, U.S. Zone online. I am sure that these documents could shed further light on this topic.