Deutscher Aufbaudienst

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D.A.D. symbol Deutscher Aufbaudienst (Slovakia) symbol.png
D.A.D. symbol

Deutscher Aufbaudienst ('German Construction Service', abbreviated D.A.D.) was an organization of ethnic Germans in Slovakia during World War II, organizing volunteer labour for construction efforts. [1] German sources claimed 19,725 persons participated in the D.A.D. brigades of 1941. [2]

Carpathian Germans are a group of ethnic Germans. The term was coined by the historian Raimund Friedrich Kaindl (1866–1930), originally generally referring to the German-speaking population of the area around the Carpathian Mountains: the Cisleithanian (Austrian) crown lands of Galicia and Bukovina, as well as the Hungarian half of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, Bosnia-Herzegovina and the northwestern (Maramuresch) region of Romania. Since the First World War, only the Germans of Slovakia and those of Carpathian Ruthenia in Ukraine have commonly been called Carpathian Germans.

Slovakia republic in Central Europe

Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's territory spans about 49,000 square kilometres (19,000 sq mi) and is mostly mountainous. The population is over 5.4 million and consists mostly of Slovaks. The capital and largest city is Bratislava, and the second largest city is Košice. The official language is Slovak.

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

In the summer of 1941 a women's wing of D.A.D. was set up under the leadership of Edith Neumann. [3]

Amongst the buildings constructed by the D.A.D. labour brigades was a sports stadium in Bratislava. [1] Participants in the labour brigades were awarded pins with the D.A.D. symbol in bronze, silver or gild, depending on how many hours of volunteer labour they contributed with. [1]

Bratislava Capital city in Slovakia

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia. With a population of about 430,000, it is one of the smaller capitals of Europe but still the country's largest city. The greater metropolitan area is home to more than 650,000 people. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia, occupying both banks of the River Danube and the left bank of the River Morava. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two sovereign states.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 David Littlejohn (1 January 1994). Foreign Legions of the Third Reich. R. James Bender Publishing. pp. 52, 54. ISBN   978-0-912138-29-9.
  2. ↑ Nation und Staat; deutsche Zeitschrift fur das europaische minoritatenproblem. 1941. p. 379.
  3. ↑ Tatjana Tönsmeyer (2002). Das Dritte Reich und die Slowakei 1939-1945: politischer Alltag zwischen Kooperation und Eigensinn. Schöningh. p. 317. ISBN   978-3-506-77532-0.
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