Objekt des Monats
Jedes Objekt in der Sammlung des Deutschen Auswandererhauses erzählt eine ganz persönliche Auswanderungs- oder Einwanderungsgeschichte. In dieser Rubrik stellen wir Ihnen jeden Monat ein anderes Objekt vor – eine Fotografie, ein Dokument oder ein persönliches Erinnerungsstück.
August 2020
Rehabilitation certificate of Karl Wasiliewitsch Schmik (correct: Schmück)
Issued on 19.02.2003 based on the law on the rehabilitation of victims of political repression dated 18.10.1991
Historical Context
Since 1982, the ‘Day of the Russians from Germany’ has been commemorated on August 28 in the Federal Republic of Germany, remembering the deportation of Soviet citizens of German nationality during World War II. The Germans from the former USSR not only make up the majority of the so-called ‘(Late) Resettlers’ but are also one of the largest migrant groups in the Federal Republic of Germany – even though many representatives prefer not to be referred to as migrants and instead emphasize the ‘return’ aspect. Most ancestors of the somewhat inaccurately described group as ‘Germans from Russia’ came to the area of the then Russian Empire before the formation of the German national state.
Short Biography
Karl Wassiliewitsch Schmik (correct: Schmück) was born in 1877. According to the certificate, he lived before deportation in Kalatsch District of the Stalingrad Region. His ancestors came from Isenburg near Göttingen and set out for the Russian Empire in 1863. Between 1898 and 1902, he served in the Russian Imperial Army. Until the beginning of collectivization, his family lived in the German colony of Grimm, after which they moved to Sarepta and finally to Kalatsch, where he worked in agriculture. From there, the family was deported to Kazakhstan in September 1941. In contrast to his son, Karl did not have to perform forced labor due to his advanced age. The document comes from the donation of his granddaughter Katharina Schmück, who was born in 1949 at the place of exile in East Kazakhstan and came to Germany in 1993.
Significance of the Object
On August 28, 1941, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR decided on the decree “On the resettlement of Germans living in the Volga regions.” Official justification: The Volga German population “harbors among them” “ten thousands of diversants and spies.” The population of the Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic of the Volga Germans is deported to Kazakhstan, Siberia, and the Altai Mountains. This marks the end of the turbulent history of numerous German communities along the Volga, where primarily the descendants of German farmers, craftsmen, and merchants had lived, who had been settled there since 1763 by Empress Catherine II. Since the deportation occurred without determination of individual guilt and without a court order, legal rehabilitation remains complicated even after the official repeal of the decree on August 29, 1964, and the lifting of restrictions on freedom of movement in 1972. Legally, former deportees are not considered to have a criminal record. In this document issued by the Main Administration for Internal Affairs of the Volgograd Region in 2003, repression is registered: “recognized as socially dangerous based on national characteristics.” No specific penal code paragraph exists in the case of deportees. Compensation for the confiscated goods was already provided in 1941 at the deportation site, but this was not fulfilled or was only partially done in most cases.
Do you also…
…have an emigration or immigration story of your family to tell and wish to pass this along with the relevant objects and documents to the German Emigration Center for its collection? Then please contact Dr. Tanja Fittkau at the phone number 0471 / 90 22 0 – 0 or via email at: t.fittkau@dah-bremerhaven.de
Archive: Previous objects of the month
Show all objectsDo You Also Have …
… a story of emigration or immigration in your family that you would like to share with the German Emigration Center together with the related objects and documents for its collection? Then please contact Dr. Tanja Fittkau by phone at +49 471 / 90 22 0 – 0
or by e-mail at: t.fittkau@dah-bremerhaven.de