A reichskommissariat ; German civil government in the Netherlands 1940-1945

Abstract

This thesis deals with the Reichskommissariat instituted by the Germans in the Netherlands in May of 1940. The objective of this study is to sketch in large outlines the development and organization of this Reichskommissariat, to define its objectives and reasons for its existence, to arrive at some conclusions concerning its authority and influence both on the Dutch governmental administration and on the highest Nazi authorities in Germany, and to make some judgments about the success or failure of the Reichskornmissariat. Above all, however, this study aims at giving a description and an analysis of the relationships of the highest officials in the Reichskommissariat. Consequently, this study deals with the individual authority, ambitions, and activities of these German officials, as related to the Reichskommissariat. This is no chronological study or analysis of the nature of the German occupation in the broadest sense of the word. Space and time do not even permit the author to dwell on the details and the sub-departments of the Reichskornmissariat. Instead, after a general description of the organization of the Reichskommissariat, only the most important trends and events will be selected to adequately provide answers to the questions under consideration.

Most studies dealing with the German occupation of the Netherlands emphasize the suffering inflicted on the Dutch by the Germans and the heroic resistance offered by most loyal Dutchmen. Little attention is paid to the German leaders, unless their activities were of immediate consequence to the circumstances just mentioned. The average Dutchman hardly knew his rulers, except perhaps their names. Disagreements among the German rulers were suppressed by stringent censorship. When the war ended, the Dutch would rather remember their unjust suffering and their heroic struggle than their unwanted German masters. Most historical studies in this topic have a tendency to cater to this sentiment.

This thesis is divided into six chapters. The first chapter is introductory. It provides the setting by narrating the events leading up to the installation of the Reichskornmissariat, The second chapter is an attempt to relate the developme~t of the Reichskonnnissariat, speculating on the reasons for its institution and its objectives. In addition, this chapter sketches the organization of the Reichskonnnissariat. Chapter three deals with the personalities arid the involvements of the most prominent officials associated with the Reichskornm.issariat. The fourth chapter describes the significant relationships between the Reichskonnnissariat and the leading Dutch civil servants and also with the leaders of the Dutch National Socialist Party (NSB). The fifth chapter is concerned with the relationships between the Reichskommissariat and the highest Nazi leaders in Berlin. The final chapter presents some of the conclusions reached through this study.