THE EVACUATION OF RESERVE-LAZARET FÜR KRIEGSGEFANGENE, TOST
From Brian Cooper. 27/02/2025
[The Prisoner of War Hospital, Tost; previously the Civilian Internment Camp Ilag VIIIB.]
My previous post on 22 January left Major de Clive-Lowe, his medical team and patients under the watchful eye of his Red Army liberators at Tost. I pick up his story below.
The reader may be concerned about the positivity at times of de Clive-Lowe towards his liberators. Some might be harbouring thoughts that the general attitude of their liberators varied only between indifference to the liberated POWs to one of not appearing to be any improvement on their German gaolers. I would not deny the reader of their view. I can only report the written word as I find it. Perhaps the view of world of an officer POW was different to that of a mere private. I propose to explore the experience of the other ranks elsewhere at a future date.
This episode covers the time, 5 weeks, spent at Tost before the initial move away from there to Czestokowa and then on to Katowice at the beginning of March 1945.
STATEMENT OF MAJOR DE CLIVE-LOWE, No.2. N.Z.E.F. MEDICAL OFFICER AT TOST P.W. CAMP ON HIS EXPERIENCES IN GERMANY AND POLAND. [Cont’d]
“In small towns, apparently the Russians have no interpreters with them. In the case of TOST, I was requested to detail a Jugo Slav (ex PW), who spoke Russian and German, to the Town Commandant’s office. They also picked another interpreter from the Ukraine prisoners. He was armed with a sub-machine gun and wore a red band on his lefty arm.
“Interrogation of the German male population was commenced immediately the Administration arrived. All were interrogated first by the adjutant, and, if important, passed ON to the Assistant Commandant (NKVD). I was myself present part of the interrogation of the local bank manager. The interrogation was carried out by the interpreter previously detailed by me and was in a most polite and suave manner. I was also invited to question the German myself. This was in contrast to the brutal methods of interrogation used by the Germans.
“The policing of the town was done by the Commandant’s guard, consisting of some ten N.C.Os. and O.Rs. armed with sub-machine guns, assisted by two local Germans – one of them a known Nazi. The letter fact was reported to me by a German woman. I passed the information to the Assistant Commandant who merely smiled. At 1900 hrs there was a curfew and nobody was permitted to move in the town. Once each night a small patrol, headed by the Assistant Commandant went through the town.
“During the battle the supply of electricity and water failed and, in my five weeks in TOST after the Russians taking over, it was never re-established. After some days electricity for the Commandant’s Office was laid on by means of a portable generator. A field hospital which took up quarters in my area was lighted in the same way and, although I requested many times to have an extension of the light to my building I was never successful.
“The German doctors left town with the general evacuation, leaving no medical services in the area. After consulting the Commandant regarding this he requested me to carry out medical services for the civil population and for his own troops pending the arrival of a Russian Medical Unit. On the arrival of the Russian Medical Unit we continued, at the request of the Russians to carry out medical services for the civil population. The German nurses who remained at their posts were permitted to carry out their duties unmolested, as were the Sisters of Mercy.
“Following the occupation of TOST, the entire town was looted of all food, clothing and any articles of value. The shops were destroyed and burned, and, during the five weeks following, there was no evidence of any money – either German or Russian.
“Apart from the rounding up of the male population who were marched East, the males remaining for essential services i.e. bakers, &c., were left unmolested.
Behaviour towards women was extremely bad. It was quite common for women from the ages of 15 to 60 to be raped at the point of a pistol.
“Within a week of the Commandant’s arrival, looting had, to a great extent, ceased, and there was a definite instruction from the Commandant to the effect that any looters would be shot. 2One Russian ex PW was admitted to my hospital suffering from a gunshot wound as a result of being shot while looting. The women of the town were rounded up for cooking, cleaning and also for laying of railway lines, the latter was carried out twenty four hours a day in shifts. Those who worked were given a small portion of bread. Other civilians were given nothing whatsoever except, on one occasion, when they were permitted to go to the local State Farm and take away what they could carry. The bakeries were set up in the town and run by female labour, but the bread was issued only to Allied ex PW and the Russian Army.
“Russian Attitude to Allied ex PW and Liberated Displaced Persons.
(i) Allied ex POW
“The attitude towards these people from those in authority was extremely friendly. We were given everything that was available as regards food and, according to Russian standards, life was made as comfortable as possible. But movement of ex PW in the town (Tost) was prohibited officially and fraternization with the German populace was discouraged. Repeated requests for transport, in spite of the fact that many vehicles were passing Eastwards through the town empty, were treated with complete disinterest.
There was no looting of Allied ex PW under my command. This I ascribed to the fact of my earlier administrative position in the town, and my close contact with the Russian authorities during the whole time I was there.
(ii) Liberated Displaced People.
“These people, after interrogation, were allowed to go on their way unmolested. Some elected to remain temporarily in the district, including some Czechs and Poles. Those who wished to return to their countries were march in organized parties, with their transport, if any, to designated assembly areas.
“Poles were well treated and, in fact, in the early days some of the male Poles were armed as assistant police. On several occasions the Russians offered to arm British troops. The offer was refused.
While not spelt out in detail, it seems that some British patients, of de Clive-Lowe, were conveyed by ambulance to a Russian hospital at CZESTOKOWA.
What is missing from the narrative is any mention of how the liberated prisoners of war were fed except the mention of bakeries being in operation. Else where there is mention of bartering for food using the prisoner of war’s possession and living off the land where possible.
“British Relations with the Russians.
“So far as I could see the general attitude was that of politeness, but disinterest. In order to reach any important decision it was quite impossible to come to terms with a young junior officer. Their reaction was one of indifference. I was told many bare-faced lies and I came to the conclusion, after some considerable experience, that one could only get action by adopting a very strong attitude, sometimes little short of menacing. One had to remind them constantly that we British were their allies.
“On 23 Feb I was invited by the General Staff of the First Ukraine Front, together with my Officers, as guest of honour at a banquet. The invite was sent by means of ADC of the rank of captain and we were conducted to the General’s quarters by the same officer. There we were met by the GSO2, A Major, who was most polite and made a long speech on Allied relations. We then proceeded to the banquet where we met three Major-Generals; one of these men was O.C., NKVD.
“The manner of all the officers at the banquet was most courteous and friendly, but their general deportment, including that of the Generals, as the night went on became more and more riotous. The Senior General assured me that whatever I requested he would make his business to arrange. This promise was eventually honoured when, the following day, I approached him with a request for transport. This he had laid on immediately and then entertained me to lunch.
In CZESTOKOWA I found the Russian PW Commandant at first hostile (in large towns in Poland there was always a separate Commandant to deal with liberated PW. He was in no way connected with the town commandant). After my previous experience I found it perfectly clear to him that as a Senior British Officer in charge of some four hundred men, I expected certain essential services from him. He then arranged a billet for my troops which I refused to take over until it had been inspected by me. Inspection showed 9the billet had previously been Russian Army quarters) that the place was in such a filthy state that I again refused to take possession. He then informed me that it was good enough for his troops. I replied that it was not good enough for British troops. We had considerable argument over the whole matter, and it was ot until I came to the point of actual insult that he came to an agreement. He then became most cooperative. Rations in this town for liberated prisoners were extremely bad, and, up to my arrival, there appeared to be no organised distribution.
“Transport.
On Tuesday, 6 Mar, at 2000 hrs we moved off by motor transport from CZESTOKOWA to KATOWICE with approximately two hundred British troops. We travelled all night in a blinding snowstorm on open trucks, arriving at KATOWICE at 0830 hrs after a considerable delay – due to the fact that our transport officer, a Russian Captain, could not read and we got lost.
We were then put in to the worst billet I had yet seen. It had previously been occupied by Russian troops. I immediately went to the Commandant (Major) and told him that I would not have British troops housed under such filthy conditions. He promised me we would be there only two hours and that if, by any chance, we were there longer, or had to spend the night there, the men would be moved to better quarters which would be warm and clean. At 1730 hours the men were called for and marched to their new billet which was very little improvement on the one they had just vacated. The officers were promised officers’ accommodation but, as no move had been made n the matter by 2100 hrs they bedded down with the men. At 2210 hrs a Russian Sjt. arrived to take us to a new billet and I refused to go.
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