 |
[im…] perative that we
purchase in Paris more machines etc., for our workshops necessitating an outlay
of about 1.2 million RM. We request you to authorize the
amount.” |
| MACHINES AND MATERIALS REMOVED FROM HOLLAND |
| |
For several years prior to the outbreak of the war the Krupp firm
owned subsidiary Dutch companies, among them being the following: (1) Fried
Krupp's Reederij en Transportbedrijf N.V. (Krupp’s Shipping and Transport
Co.); (2) Krupp’s Erts-Handel Maatschappij N.V. (Krupp's Ore Trading Co.);
(3) N.V. Stuwadoors Maatschappij “Kruwal” (The Stevedores Co.); and
(4) Devon Erts Maatschappij N.V. (The Devon Ore Co.). The first three
maintained their principal places of business at Rotterdam and the latter at
Amsterdam.
In addition, Krupp-Eisenhandel (Krupp Iron Trade Co.), a
Krupp subsidiary located at Duesseldorf, Germany, had a branch office at
Rotterdam.
Throughout the period of the German occupation the
Netherlands industries were forced to produce for the German war economy. By
1942 the so-called Lager-Aktion program was underway, under which the produce
of the Dutch firms was seized and held for shipment to Germany. This covered,
in the main, the period from 1942 to September 1944 which may be referred to as
the first phase of organized spoliation. The branch office at Rotterdam of
Krupp-Eisenhandel had sold Krupp products for many years in Holland and knew
where many of these materials were located. The German authorities were
informed and seized these products which included goods owned by the Board of
Works, the Municipal Gas Works of Dutch municipalities, and several private
firms. (Article 52 of the Hague Regulations protect “municipalities”
of belligerently occupied territories as much as “inhabitants.” In
addition, Article 56 of the Hague Regulations reiterates: “The property of
municipalities * * * shall be treated as private property.”) These
municipal and private enterprises were compelled to deliver these confiscated
materials to various depots in Holland from which they were transported by the
Krupp Dutch subsidiary, Krupp’s Shipping and Transport Company, and
shipped to Germany. The prices for these goods were arbitrarily set by the
German authorities without the consent or approval of the Dutch owners. During
this phase of the spoliation policy the Krupp subsidiary Dutch company shipped
to Germany about 16,000 tons of confiscated materials which |
1364 |
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