Imperial Labor and Military Training Camp in Mausbach

The Reich Labor Service (RAD) was an organization in Nazi Germany. The corresponding law was enacted on June 26, 1935 . It obligated all young Germans of both sexes to serve in the Reich Labor Service and established the number of conscripts to be called up annually as well as the duration of service.

Predecessors to such labor service obligations already existed in the First World War: The Auxiliary Service Law within the framework of the Hindenburg Program required men between the ages of 17 and 60 to work in the war economy. During the economic crisis of the 1920s, the Volunteer Labor Service was introduced in 1931/32 for youth. With the Nazis' rise to power in 1933, labor service gradually became mandatory: With the Reich Labor Service Law of 1935, all young adults between 18 and 25 were required to perform "public welfare" work, initially limited to half a year .

Goals of the RAD:

• Education of German youth in the spirit of National Socialism towards a national community
• Conveying a "true work ethic" and respect for manual labor
• Reduction of unemployment rates
• Preparation of youth for military capability

The tasks of RAD members included the reclamation of land, the construction of roads and agriculture, and the building of military facilities, e.g. on the Westwall. Participants, known as "labor men" and "labor maidens," were accommodated in their own camps .

In Mausbach, a Reich Labor Service camp was established in 1938 . By 1942, it was temporarily empty.

Reich Labor and Military Training Camps

The Reich Labor Service (RAD) was an organization in Nazi Germany. The law for the Reich Labor Service was enacted on June 26, 1935. It stated, among other things: "All young Germans of both sexes are obliged to serve their people in the Reich Labor Service" and "The Führer and Chancellor of the Reich determines the number of conscripts to be called up annually and sets the duration of service."

There was already a labor service obligation in the First World War with the Auxiliary Service Law under the Hindenburg Program. This law provided for a general work obligation for men between the ages of 17 and 60 in the war economy. The labor service in its later form was established in connection with the economic crisis of the 1920s, especially for all youths as the "Volunteer Labor Service" in 1931/32. Following the establishment of the Nazi regime after 1933, the Reich government forced all young adults between 18 and 25 years of age to perform "public welfare" work under the Reich Labor Service Law of June 26, 1935. This "service" was initially limited to half a year. The goal of the Reich Labor Service (RAD) was, according to law: "to educate German youth in the spirit of National Socialism towards the national community and a true work ethic, especially respect for manual labor." Just as important as this ideological claim were the reduction of unemployment figures and rearmament.

The German youth was to be made "war-capable." To this end, they worked on land reclamation, road construction, agriculture, and the establishment of military (defensive) installations like the "Westwall." The "labor men" and "labor maidens" were accommodated in their own RAD camps.

The Mausbach Reich Labor Service camp was established in 1938. By 1942, it was already vacant for some time.

Text Sources: Wikipedia/Reich Labor Service; Federal Archives

Transfer Camp for Jewish Transport

The camp was established in 1938 and used by the Reich Labor Service until 1942. Subsequently, it gained tragic significance as a transit camp in the Nazis' extermination strategy, as in June 1942, over 300 Jewish individuals, mostly from Cologne nursing homes, were crammed together for a few days before their transport to the death camps.²

People from Mausbach recount that the elderly arrived in the evening twilight by tram to the church and had to walk the path to the camp in a miserable procession with their heavy suitcases. Young boys who wanted to help carry were prevented by the head of the women's organization in Mausbach and sent away.

Sensing their fate, the couple Toni and Richard Löwendahl took their lives a day before the transport to the extermination camp Theresienstadt on June 14, taking Veronal. Richard and Toni Löwendahl were 75 and 59 years old. An official report on the transport of people from the Mausbach camp via the Stolberg main train station needs no comment:

“The transport of 340 Jews from the Mausbach camp to the tram … proceeded without obstacles. At 08:40, the people were loaded into 12 tram cars and transported to the main train station in Stolberg Rhld. Here, the special train only arrived at 12:10 from Herzogenrath. The loading of the Jews into freight cars could only take place with the assistance of all police officers present, as the elderly could not board the high cars. In each car, 45 persons, including luggage, were accommodated. The loading was conducted under the orders and supervision of officers of the Gestapo [State Police]. At 12:30, the train was able to depart in the direction of Cologne. Two Jews had taken their lives in the Mausbach camp the previous night by poisoning with Veronal. Through the Gestapo [...] I was handed 20 RM to distribute to the involved officers. The amount was divided among the 15 officers present.”

After Hitler ordered the establishment of so-called "military training camps of the Hitler Youth" in March 1942, the camp began to be used by the SS as such from August 1942. The goal of indoctrination there was also the psychological preparation for an unconditional readiness for death at the war fronts.

Text Sources: Dr. Franz-Josef Ingermann, “Conditions in the camp inhuman”, in: Stolberger Nachrichten v. 12.08.1988; Group Z, “Moved to Auschwitz” (1995), pp. 14-15; Manfred Bierganz, “The Suffering Story of Jews in Stolberg during the Nazi Era” (1989); Martin Rüther, “I Want to Have Power”, Federal Agency for Civic Education (2017), p. 180