Volkssturm (All) – findings

The Volkssturm was the German People's Militia, which was formed by order of Adolf Hitler on 25 September 1944. It was made up of male civilians aged between sixteen and sixty. The commander of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, was in charge of arming, organizing and training. This militia was armed with light weapons (rifles, machine guns, armoured fists) and was to help stop the Allied attack. It was trained to carry out anti-tank obstacles. The Volkssturm's mission was to protect rear positions, railways, fortifications, etc.

From January 1945, its units were also sent to the front lines or to defend cities. On the western front, the Volkssturm often surrendered without a fight, but on the eastern front, they often fought doggedly or even fanatically. At the end of the war, when it was clear to the Germans that the war was over, some of them refused to fight senselessly. These people were lynched by special SS commandos by hanging them from electric light poles, and given a label around their necks that they were traitors or helpers of the Bolsheviks. In the Czech lands, the Volkssturm assisted the German security forces in guarding railway lines and buildings, in printingIt also took part in repressive actions against the civilian population in the areas where the partisans operated. At the very end of the war, he took part in fighting against the advancing Red Army, e.g. In the battles for Brno, where a large German minority lived, he inflicted considerable losses on the Soviets, destroying several Soviet tanks. He became infamous during the May Uprising of the Czech people, when he participated in the shooting of insurgents, as well as unarmed civilians from ambush. Immediately after the end of the fighting, members of the Volkssturm (already as "defenseless German civilians") in many cases became victims of retaliation and settling scores.