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72-687: Lorsch lies about 5 km west of the Bergstraße in the Rhine rift just west of the Odenwald between Darmstadt to the north and Mannheim to the south. The town lies not far from the Weschnitz 's lower reaches. To the town's southeast the Weschnitzinsel conservation area is located. Lorsch borders in the north on the community of Einhausen and the town of Bensheim , in the east on

144-831: A future Czechoslovakia to be burdened with a sizable German minority. The idea of expelling ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia was supported by the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Britain's Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden . In 1942, the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile received the formal support of the United Kingdom for the expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia and, in March 1943, President Beneš received Moscow's support. In June 1943, Beneš traveled to Washington, D.C. , and obtained support for

216-595: A joint German and Czech commission of historians in 1995 found that the previous demographic estimates of 220,000 to 270,000 deaths were overstated and based on faulty information; they concluded that the actual death toll was at least 15,000 persons, and that it could range up to a maximum of 30,000 dead if one assumes that some deaths were not reported. The Commission statement also said that German records show 18,889 confirmed deaths including 3,411 suicides. Czech records indicated 22,247 deaths including 6,667 unexplained cases or suicides. The German Church Search Service

288-745: A scale as possible, and as expeditiously as possible to present the Western powers with a fait accompli . Between 1945 and 1948, a series of Czechoslovak government decrees, edicts, laws and statutes were proclaimed by the president of the republic, the Prague-based Czechoslovak Parliament, the Slovak National Council (Parliament) in Bratislava and by the Board of Slovak Commissioners (an appendage of

360-501: Is an 80-kilometre-long (50 mi) ancient trade route in the south-west of Germany. The route and the area around it is a mountainous " theme route " running north–south along the western edge of the Odenwald forest in southern Hesse and northern Baden-Württemberg . The route passes through the Bergstraße administrative district , and independent viticultural regions of Hessische Bergstraße and Badische Bergstraße . Between

432-471: Is famous for its almond trees which thrive in the area and bloom as early as March. Other Mediterranean plants such as figs and olive trees also grow there. Because of the mild climate, Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor (1765–1790), pausing at the Bergstraße on a trip back from Frankfurt am Main , is said to have exclaimed "This is where Germany starts to become Italy". As part of the conurbation at

504-671: Is the Carolingian-era entrance hall of the one-time Lorsch monastery, designated by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage site. The Bergstraße area was settled in early times. Numerous excavations have uncovered finds dating back to the times of the Linear Pottery c. 5500 BC and Corded Ware cultures , who tilled the land and herded cattle there in around 2500 to 1500 BC. The population grew in Roman times and settlements were built in different sizes, villae rusticae . These were

576-562: The Beneš decrees and it specifies that "Any act committed between 30 September 1938 and 28 October 1945 "the object of which was to aid the struggle for liberty of the Czechs and Slovaks or which represented just reprisals for actions of the occupation forces and their accomplices", is not illegal, even when such acts may otherwise be punishable by law." This law, which is still in force, has de facto ensured that no atrocities against Germans during

648-782: The Czech resistance groups demanded the deportation of ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia. The decision to deport the Germans was adopted by the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile which, beginning in 1943, sought the support of the Allies for this proposal. The final agreement for the expulsion of the German population however was not reached until 2 August 1945 at the end of the Potsdam Conference . In

720-599: The Investiture Controversy in the 11th century, the abbey sustained great losses in holdings to the nobility. In the late 12th century, with the record of the old deeds, there was an attempt to reorganize the administration ( Lorsch codex ). Nevertheless, in 1232, Lorsch was awarded to the Archbishopric of Mainz and newly settled by Premonstratensians . Thereafter, Mainz and the Electorate of

792-535: The Neckar from Heidelberg to Wiesloch is still usually known as the Bergstraße, even though the type of country and climate typical of the Bergstraße is no longer as pronounced. The Bergstraße passes through three rural districts and two urban districts : Darmstadt , Landkreis Darmstadt-Dieburg , Kreis Bergstraße , Heidelberg and the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis . The northern part belongs to Hesse and

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864-692: The Nibelungenbahn (railway) between Bensheim and Worms . Furthermore, there are bus connections with Lampertheim/Bürstadt, Heppenheim, Einhausen and Bensheim. Lorsch lies on Hesse's cycle path R9, which leads from Worms by way of Bensheim to Höchst im Odenwald . Lorsch has two regional daily newspapers, the Bergsträßer Anzeiger with its regional Lorsch/Einhausen edition, and the smaller circulation Starkenburger Echo . Bergstra%C3%9Fe Route The Bergstraße ("Mountain Road")

936-469: The Sudeten Germans had become known, Wenzel Jaksch (a Sudeten German Social Democrat in exile) wrote a letter to Beneš protesting about the proposed plans. Initially, only a few hundred thousand Sudeten Germans were to be affected — people who were perceived as being disloyal to Czechoslovakia and who, according to Beneš and Czech public opinion, had acted as Hitler's " fifth column ". Due to

1008-619: The 1938 Munich Agreement, the flight and forcible expulsion of people from the Czech border area and the forcible breakup and occupation of the Czechoslovak Republic. It regrets the suffering and injustice inflicted upon the Czech people through National Socialist crimes committed by Germans. The German side pays tribute to the victims of National Socialist tyranny and to those who resisted it." Czech–German Declaration 1997 The joint Czech–German commission of historians in 1996 stated

1080-919: The Czechoslovak government in Bratislava). After the revocation of Munich Agreement had been publicly announced in the British Parliament in August 1942, the British government gave its consent to the transfer of German population from the Czech Crown Lands. President of the United States Franklin D. Roosevelt joined the relocation policy in June 1943. Moscow gave its consent by a declaration on June 5, 1943. The transfer

1152-628: The Czechs, or those who had manifested "their loyalty to the Czechoslovak Republic, had never committed any offence against the Czech and Slovak nations, and who had either actively participated in the struggle for the liberation of the country, or had suffered under Nazi or fascist terror". The decree was in accordance with the Czechoslovak constitution which did not allow dual citizenship. Decree No. 5/1945 of 3 June 1945 , determining that "any form of property transfer and transaction affecting property rights in terms of movable and immovable assets, and public and private property shall be invalidated, if it

1224-616: The Germans ;... German women and the Hitler Youth also bear the blame for the crimes of the Germans. Deal with them too in an uncompromising way." On 15 June, a government decree directed the army to implement measures to apprehend Nazi criminals and carry out the transfer of the German population. On 27 July, the Ministry of National Defence issued a secret order directing the transfer should be carried out on as large

1296-512: The King's Hall Or, below party per pale, argent a cross pattée fitchy gules and azure the Lion of Hesse springing. The King's Hall ( Königshalle ), the building declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, is borne as a charge in the town's arms. The red cross pattée fitchy (that is, cross with “flattened” ends to three of the arms, and a point on the bottom one) is the coat of arms formerly borne by

1368-475: The Lorsch Abbey in its heyday. The Lion of Hesse, shown here springing (with both hindfeet on the ground) rather than rampant (with only one hindfoot on the ground), comes from Hesse's coat of arms (in which he is rampant) and symbolizes Lorsch's status as part of Hesse. There is also a friendship arrangement with: This came about through the sponsorship arrangement for those ethnic Germans driven out of

1440-485: The Mutual Relations and their Future Development: III. The Czech side regrets that, by the forcible expulsion and forced resettlement of Sudeten Germans from the former Czechoslovakia after the war as well as by the expropriation and deprivation of citizenship, much suffering and injustice was inflicted upon innocent people, also in view of the fact that guilt was attributed collectively. It particularly regrets

1512-578: The Nazi occupation. They made rough estimate claiming 350,000 Germans in Czechoslovakia passed through one or more of these institutions and 100,000 perished. However the Red Cross was able to confirm only 6,989 deaths in the internment camps. According to Alfred de Zayas : One of the worst camps in post-war Czechoslovakia was the old Nazi concentration camp of Theresienstadt . Conditions under

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1584-670: The Palatinate found themselves at odds over who should hold the vogt rights. Of the Carolingian Benedictine abbey, which in parts has been unearthed, the gatehall (from about 800) has been preserved. It is today a UNESCO -protected World Heritage Site . In 1991, the town hosted the 31st Hessentag state festival. The firm TrekStor GmbH & Co.KG was founded in 2001 in Lorsch and has its head office here. The municipal election held on 26 March 2006 yielded

1656-870: The Potsdam Communique concerning the expulsions, wrote on 31 July 1945 to John Troutbeck , head of the German Department at the Foreign Office: "The Sub-Committee met three times, taking as a basis of discussion a draft which I circulated ... Sobolov took the view that the Polish and Czechoslovak wish to expel their German populations was the fulfilment of an historic mission which the Soviet Government were unwilling to try to impede. ... Cannon and I naturally strongly opposed this view. We made it clear that we did not like

1728-664: The Potsdam Conference were confirmed by its signatory states in 1996. The US government, said: "The decisions made at Potsdam ... were soundly based in international law. The conference conclusions have been endorsed many times since in various multilateral and bilateral contexts. ... The conclusions of Potsdam are historical fact and the United States is confident that no country wishes to call them into question". No Czechoslovak/Czech/Slovak legal norm (decree, law, etc.) ever existed that would have dealt with

1800-526: The Prague military command "Alex", issued an order to "deport all Germans from territory within the historical borders." A pamphlet issued on 5 June 1945 titled "Ten Commandments for Czechoslovak Soldiers in the Border Regions" directed soldiers that "The Germans have remained our irreconcilable enemies. Do not cease to hate the Germans ... Behave towards Germans like a victor ... Be harsh to

1872-671: The President of the Republic, page 27 Without such act, many resistance combatants would be open to criminal prosecutions for their activities against Nazis. The law stipulating that the sentences pronounced against the Czech Resistance fighters during the war had been lawful were valid in Germany until 1997. President Decrees 2.a However, the Czech government did express its regret in the 1997 Joint Czech–German Declaration on

1944-455: The Soviet zone (East Germany). The expulsions ended in 1948, but not all Germans were expelled; estimates for the total number of non-expulsions range from approximately 160,000 to 250,000. The West German government in 1958 estimated the ethnic German death toll during the expulsion period to be about 270,000, a figure that has been cited in historical literature since then. Research by

2016-552: The Sudetenland, fewer people work in high-skill sectors such as finance and healthcare. Significantly lower educational enrollment was first observed in 1947 and lower educational achievement is still evident from the results of the 2011 Czech census . The UN Human Rights Committee issued decisions in three cases concerning Sudeten Germans ( Des Fours Walderode v. Czech Republic; Petzoldova v. Czech Republic; Czernin v. Czech Republic) in which violations of articles 26 and 14 of

2088-497: The border areas, where it won 75 per cent of votes in the 1946 election . Without these votes, the Communist Party would not have achieved a plurality in the Czech lands. The expulsions of Germans are therefore considered a key factor in the success of the 1948 coup . According to a 2020 study, the expulsion of the Germans triggered a depopulation and de-urbanization of the border areas. Compared to adjacent areas outside

2160-626: The camp was a centre of sadism, where human life and human dignity had no meaning. Hrneček, who'd spent two years in pre-trial custody, was pardoned by the Allied High Commission after serving another 7 months in prison. Germans living in the border regions of Czechoslovakia were expelled from the country in late 1945. The joint German and Czech commission of historians estimated that there were about 15,000 violent deaths. Czech records report 15,000–16,000 deaths not including an additional 6,667 unexplained cases or suicides during

2232-536: The centuries. In 1955 traces of the old paved Roman road were discovered during work on the drains in Heppenheim . They were moved to the Ferdinand Feuerbach Unit (on the corner of Karlstraße and Karl-Marx-Straße) and can still be seen there today. They cover an area of about 20 m². The Bergstraße travels through the following towns (from north to south): The countryside directly along

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2304-532: The cities of Heidelberg and Weinheim the Upper Rhine Railway Company (OEG) tram route runs alongside. The route goes almost straight from north to south at the spot where the Rhine lowlands meet the western edge of the Odenwald . The name comes from the road's route along the foot of the mountains, the Rhine lowlands once being too damp to build a road there. The route mostly follows

2376-609: The colour of authority. In the summer of 1945, for instance, there were localised massacres of the German population. The following examples are described in a study done by the European University Institute in Florence : During the wild transfer phase, it is estimated that the number of murdered Germans was between 19,000 and 30,000. Accounts indicated that the Czechoslovak government was not averse to "popular justice" as long it did not excessively blacken

2448-408: The communities of Jívová (formerly Giebau), Pohorsch, Weska and Hraničné Petrovice (Petersdorf bei Giebau), who then settled in Lorsch. In Lorsch on Tuesday during Carnival – locally known as Fastnacht – there is a Carnival parade with more than 100 attractions. Through the town's municipal area run Autobahn A 67 and Bundesstraßen 47 and 460. Lorsch's DB railway station lies on

2520-684: The country's reputation abroad. There were even government officials who maintained that the massacres at Usti would not have happened if the government dealt with the Germans more harshly. According to the German "Society against Expulsion", some Germans were sent to what the society terms "concentration camps". A 1964 report by the German Red Cross stated that 1,215 "internment camps" were established, as well as 846 forced labour and "disciplinary centres", and 215 prisons, on Czechoslovak territory. Special Courts sentenced 21,469 persons to prison and 713 were executed for crimes committed during

2592-493: The decision made at Potsdam). On the basis of this decree, the Czechoslovak State released from its citizenship those persons who, "in compliance with the regulations of the foreign occupation forces had acquired German or Hungarian citizenship". Czechoslovak citizenship was maintained in the cases of those Germans (280 000) who, at the time of the increasing threat to the Czechoslovak Republic, had officially supported

2664-467: The displacement of the German population. Decrees 5, 12, 33, 108/1945 concerned the expropriation of wartime traitors and collaborators . Decrees 33/1945 and 108/1945 explicitly stated that the sanctions did not apply to anti-fascists. Typically it was up to the decision of local municipalities. 160,000–250,000 Germans, some anti-fascists, but mostly people crucial for the industry remained in Czechoslovakia. Decree No. 33/1945 of 2 August 1945 . (After

2736-458: The dominant economic units of the mountainous country along the Bergstraße between 120 and 260 AD. Expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia The expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia after World War II was part of a series of evacuations and deportations of Germans from Central and Eastern Europe during and after World War II . During the German occupation of Czechoslovakia ,

2808-552: The end of the war. During April and May 1945, an estimated 1.6 million Germans from Polish Silesia fled the advancing Soviet forces and became refugees in Bohemia-Moravia . Thus according to German estimates there were 4.5 million German civilians present in Bohemia-Moravia in May 1945. From London and Moscow, Czech and Slovak political agents in exile followed an advancing Soviet army pursuing German forces westward, to reach

2880-470: The end of the war. There was no stable central government and record-keeping was non-existent. Many of the events that occurred during the period were spontaneous and local rather than being the result of coordinated policy directives from a central government. Among these spontaneous events was the removal and detention of the Sudeten Germans which was triggered by the strong anti-German sentiment at

2952-549: The escalation of Nazi atrocities in the Protectorate as the war progressed, there were increasing demands by the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile, Czech resistance groups, and the majority of Czechs, for the expulsion of more and more Germans, with no individual investigations or inference of guilt on their part. The only exception were to be 160,000 to 250,000 ethnic German anti-fascists, and those ethnic Germans crucial for industries. The Czechs and their government did not want

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3024-564: The evolving expulsion plans from President Franklin D. Roosevelt . During the German occupation of Czechoslovakia , especially after the Nazis' brutal reprisal for the assassination of Heydrich , most of the Czech resistance groups demanded the final solution of the German question, which would have to be achieved by transfer or expulsion. Those demands were adopted by the Government-in-Exile which, beginning in 1943, sought

3096-407: The excesses which were contrary to elementary humanitarian principles as well as legal norms existing at that time, and it furthermore regrets that Law No. 115 of 8 May 1946 made it possible to regard these excesses as not being illegal and that in consequence these acts were not punished. II. "The German side acknowledges Germany's responsibility for its role in a historical development, which led to

3168-479: The expulsion, and others died from hunger and illness in Germany as a consequence. In 1946, an estimated 1.3 million ethnic Germans were deported to the American zone of what would become West Germany. An estimated 800,000 were deported to the Soviet zone (in what would become East Germany). On 8 May 1946 the Czechoslovak provisional National Assembly passed Act No. 115/1946 Coll. It was enacted in conjunction with

3240-459: The following numbers: the deaths caused by violence and abnormal living conditions amount approximately to 10,000 persons killed; another 5,000–6,000 persons died of unspecified reasons related to expulsion; making the total number of victims of the expulsion 15,000–16,000 (this excludes suicides, which make another approximately 3,400 cases). The Communist Party controlled the distribution of seized German assets, contributing to its popularity in

3312-674: The following results: The town executive ( Magistrat ) is made up of seven councillors. Three seats are allotted to the CDU, two to the SPD and one each to the PWL and the Greens. From 1993 to 2011, the mayor was Klaus Jäger (independent). He was re-elected on 7 February 1999 with 85.2% of the vote, and again on 13 February 2005 with 70.6%. Since 2011 the mayor has been Christian Schönung (CDU). Lorsch's arms might be described thus: Party per fess, above sable

3384-570: The grass-roots level and organized by local officials. According to the Schieder commission , records of food rationing coupons show approximately 3,070,899 inhabitants of occupied Sudetenland in January 1945, which included Czechs or other non-Germans. In addition, most of the roughly 100,000 Carpathian Germans from Slovakia were evacuated on Himmler 's orders to the Czechia region just before

3456-403: The idea of mass transfers anyway. As, however, we could not prevent them, we wished to ensure that they were carried out in as orderly and humane manner as possible". (FO 371/46811, published in facsimile in A. de Zayas , Nemesis at Potsdam , pp. 232–34). Developing a clear picture of the expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia is difficult because of the chaotic conditions that existed at

3528-499: The modern B3 road. It begins in Darmstadt and, after passing through Eberstadt , splits into the "Old Bergstraße" and the "New Bergstraße", which goes somewhat further to the west. The two routes meet again at Zwingenberg . In Weinheim-Lützelsachsen an old and a new Bergstraße once more form, the new one passing west of the old route as far as Heidelberg-Handschuhsheim , where the two meet once more. The route carrying on after

3600-471: The months following the end of the war, "wild" expulsions happened from May until August 1945. Czechoslovak President Edvard Beneš on 28 October 1945 called for the "final solution of the German question" ( Czech : konečné řešení německé otázky ) which would have to be solved by deportation of the ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia. The expulsions were carried out by order of local authorities, mostly by groups of armed volunteers. However, in some cases it

3672-440: The new Czech administration are described by H. G. Adler , a former Jewish inmate as follows: ... in the majority they were children and juveniles, who had been locked up only because they were Germans. Only because they were Germans ...? This sentence sounds frighteningly familiar; only the word 'Jews' had been changed to 'Germans'. ... The people were abominably fed and maltreated, and they were no better off than one

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3744-405: The picturesque old town centers in many cities and towns, especially the almost completely preserved (except for the city walls) town of Heppenheim with its splendid city hall, marketplace, "Bergstraße Cathedral", and numerous medieval half-timbered structures; and in addition the old town centers of Zwingenberg, Bensheim and Weinheim. An extraordinary sight in the immediate vicinity of the Bergstraße

3816-550: The point where the Rhine , Main and Neckar rivers meet, the Bergstraße is highly developed and industrialised. But tourism is also of some importance there. Apart from the countryside, the most important sights are Heidelberg with its castle and old city; Darmstadt, the center of Jugendstil art, with its artists' colony; the chain of castles on the edge of the Oden forest (Castle Frankenstein, Alsbach Castle, Auerbach Castle, Starkenburg above Heppenheim, Wachenburg and Windeck above Weinheim, Strahlenburg above Schriesheim), as well as

3888-420: The reborn Czechoslovak state were subjected to various forms of court procedures, citizenship revocations, property confiscation, condemnation to forced labour camps, and appointment of government managers to German and Hungarian owned businesses and farms, referred to euphemistically as "reslovakization". Western Czechoslovakia was liberated by U.S. forces under General Patton . General Zdeněk Novák , head of

3960-438: The removal, through a combination of minor border rectifications and population transfer , of the state's German minority, so as to bolster the territorial integrity of state. Although the details changed, along with British public and official opinion, and pressure from Czech resistance groups , the broad goals of the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile remained the same throughout the war. The pre-war policy of minority protection

4032-413: The route is also named after the road. The weather in the region is typically particularly mild and sunny, with around 1500 hours of sun every year. Spring starts earlier here than anywhere else in Germany. This and the good soil conditions (a fertile loess soil) make the Bergstraße one of Germany's richest fruit-producing areas, with grapes, other fruit, almonds, sweet chestnuts and walnuts. The Bergstraße

4104-503: The southern part to Baden . The border between these two Länder is between Heppenheim and Laudenbach . The Bergstraße was used as a trading route as far back as Roman times. The name bergstrasen was first recorded in 1165. A Latinised form of the name ( strata montana ) did not arise from the Romans but during the Renaissance . Older names are: strata publica  (795), platea montium  (819) and montana platea  (1002). The route has changed slightly in places across

4176-410: The support of the Allies for the proposal. The April 1945 Košice Program , which outlined the postwar political settlement of Czechoslovakia, stipulated an expulsion of Germans and Hungarians from the country. The final agreement for the transfer of the German minority however was not reached until 2 August 1945 at the end of the Potsdam Conference . Geoffrey Harrison , who drafted article XIII of

4248-418: The territory of the first former Czechoslovak Republic . Beneš proclaimed the programme of the newly appointed Czechoslovak government on 5 April 1945, in the northeastern city of Košice , which included oppression and persecution of the non-Czech and non-Slovak populations of the partially restored Czechoslovak Republic. After the proclamation of the Košice program, the German and Hungarian population living in

4320-514: The time-period in question have been prosecuted in Czechoslovakia. Decree No. 115/1946 of 8 May 1946 . Activities (which would otherwise be considered criminal), were not illegal if their "objective was to contribute to the fight for regaining of freedom of Czechs and Slovaks or were aimed at righteous retaliation for deeds of occupants or their collaborators". Inappropriate violence or any other similar excesses were not amnestied. They were always crimes and were always punishable as crimes. Decrees of

4392-501: The town of Heppenheim , in the southeast on the community of Laudenbach and the town of Hemsbach (both in Rhein-Neckar-Kreis , Baden-Württemberg ), in the south on the town of Lampertheim and in the west on the town of Bürstadt . Lorsch Abbey (German: Kloster Lorsch ) was founded in 764 by the Frankish Count Cancor and his mother Williswinda. The abbey was one of the greatest centres of Carolingian art . Several Carolingian kings of Germany were buried there. The monastery

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4464-489: The years 1945–6, Václav Hrneček , later fled Czechoslovakia and came to Bavaria where he was recognized by former German inmates of the camp. Hrneček was brought to trial before an American Court of the Allied High Commission for Germany presided by Judge Leo M. Goodman. The Court based an eight-year sentence against Hrneček upon findings that the Budějovice camp was run in a criminal and cruel way, that although there were no gas chambers and no systematic, organized extermination,

4536-410: Was able to confirm the deaths of 14,215 persons during the expulsions from Czechoslovakia (6,316 violent deaths, 6,989 in internment camps and 907 in the USSR as forced laborers). Following the Munich Agreement of 1938, and the subsequent Occupation of Bohemia and Moravia by Hitler in March 1939, Edvard Beneš set out to convince the Allies during World War II that the expulsion of ethnic Germans

4608-419: Was adopted after September 29, 1938, under pressure of the Nazi occupation or national, racial or political persecution" (i.e. this Decree repealed the Nazi confiscation measures adopted against the victims of Nazism). Decree No. 108/1945 of 25 October 1945: (After the decision made at Potsdam) "There is confiscated, without any compensation properties and property rights which are owned by: The confiscation

4680-457: Was based on the international consensus declared in the documents of the Potsdam Conference and the 1945 Paris Agreement. Similar confiscation measure were also taken in other states such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg and Denmark. The 1945 expulsion was referred to as the "wild transfer" ( divoký odsun ) due to the widespread violence and brutality that were not only perpetuated by mobs but also by soldiers, police, and others acting under

4752-412: Was initiated or pursued with the assistance of the regular army. Several thousand died violently during the expulsion and more died from hunger and illness as a consequence. The expulsion according to the Potsdam Conference proceeded from 25 January 1946 until October of that year. Roughly 1.6 million ethnic Germans were deported to the American zone (West Germany), and an estimated 800,000 were deported to

4824-666: Was internationally approved at the Potsdam Conference in July 1945. Potsdam Agreement: XIII. Orderly Transfers of German Populations . "The Conference reached the following agreement on the removal of Germans from Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary:— The three Governments (The United States, Great Britain and Soviet Union), having considered the question in all its aspects, recognize that the transfer to Germany of German populations or elements thereof, remaining in Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary, will have to be undertaken. They agree that any transfers that take place should be effected in an orderly and humane manner." The conclusions of

4896-427: Was settled by Benedictines from Gorze Abbey near Metz. In a document from 885, the abbey is mentioned as Lauressam , from which, over the course of time, came the town's current name. In the Early and High Middle Ages , the abbey was a powerful Imperial monastery with holdings in the nearby Odenwald , on the Bergstraße and in Rhenish Hesse , and also in Alsace and Lorraine . In the civil war resulting from

4968-427: Was the best solution. Expulsion was even supported by Czechs who had moderate views about the Germans. The pro-Nazi Sudeten German Party had gained 88% of ethnic German votes in May 1938. Almost as soon as German troops occupied the Sudetenland in October 1938, Edvard Beneš and, later, the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile , pursued a twofold policy: the restoration of Czechoslovakia to its pre-Munich boundaries, and

5040-401: Was to be reached by the expulsion of most of the other minority groups and the successive assimilation of the rest. Because almost all people of German and Magyar ethnicity gained German or Hungarian citizenship during the occupation of Czechoslovakia, the expulsion could be legalized as the banishment ( German : Ausweisung ) of foreigners. On 22 June 1942, after plans for the expulsion of

5112-423: Was used to from German concentration camps. The civilian internees who survived to be expelled recorded the horrors of months and years of slow starvation and maltreatment in many thousands of affidavits. Allied authorities in the American and British zones were able to investigate several cases, including the notorious concentration camp at České Budějovice in Southern Bohemia. The deputy commander of this camp in

5184-469: Was viewed as counterproductive (and the minorities themselves saw it as the source of unrest and instability), because it was associated with the destruction of the Czechoslovak state and its democratic regime. Therefore, Czechoslovak leaders made a decision to change the multi-ethnic character of the state to a state of two or three ethnicities (Czechs, Slovaks and, initially, Ruthenians ). That goal

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