"As a comparison it can be mentioned, that the informations received by the Town Council up till November 1945 represent the war damages for the whole country including the total losses of ships preliminarily calculated to more than 3 billion Norwegian kroner.
Rubber Stamp: OSLO TOWN COURT Signature: A. Skien."
For your Honors' information and merely as a gratuitous comment, the Kroner is now about five Kroner to the dollar, at present.
On Page 80, this particular document continues and there we have a letter dated 3 July 1947, signature: A. Roll-Mathiessen, Presented In Oslo Town Court. 3 July 1947:
"Central Bureau of Statistics the Director OSLO, 26 June 1947 NORWAY Dronningens Gate 16 Telegram Address:
STATISTIKK Telegrams:
STATISTIKK Your Ref.
AS/NH File No. 849/47 Supreme Court Attorney Mr. IVOR FOLIESTAD Strandgaten 19 BERGEN.
Criminal case against General RENDULIC -- concerning the ravages in the FINNMARK 1944/45.
We are in receipt of your query of 20 ult, regarding information on the value of the real estate in the FINNMARK and NORTH-TROMS before 9 April 1940. For this reason, the town council has had a conference with the authorities who supplied the information about the ravages before, and who have made a number of calculations of the total values before April 1940 for the different groups of property in the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS.
The calculations are as exact as they possibly could be at the present time, and the evaluation of laud and ground has been kept apart as you mentioned in your letter.
Subsequently the evaluation of property together with the estimation of damages have been put up and a percentage of damage within the various groups. The amount of damages according to the letter from the town council of 25 February this year, has in some cases been corrected according to more recent and complete informations.
Buildings, furniture and movables etc.
As mentioned in letter of 25 February most of the damages in the FINMARK and the NORTH-TROMS districts are under the war damage insurance for buildings and movables amounting to about 270 million Norw.cr. This preliminary figure has now been corrected by the company to about 290 million Norw.cr. The total capital on buildings-furniture and movables in these provinces in April 1940 can be stated to approximately 350 million Norw.cr. This amount comprises all houses, buildings, fire insured and not fire insured (inclusive municipal buildings but excluding the buildings of the State, which have been entered under various items below. Furthermore, it comprises all furniture and movables, machines (immovable and movable), tools and implements, crops and professional movables for agriculture (inclusive domestic animals), private bridges and quais, all small boats with a value below 250 Norw. cr. etc. The percentage of damage for the group makes about 83% Roads and bridges.
The total value on April 1940 of all roads and bridges which are part of the constructions of the road service as well as workshops, tools and stocks has been calculated by the Road Board to about 80 million Norw.cr. The damages of roads and bridges during the evacuation in the autumn 1944 which was formerly calculated to about 24.7 million Norw.cr. has now been supplemented by 5-10 million Norw.cr. for workshops, outfits and stocks (which had been extended considerably during the war and which was almost completely damaged) to a total amount of about 33 million Norw.cr. or approximately 40% of the total value. For the bridges damage was complete.
Telegraph and telephone.
The damage on stations (inclusive radio stations and air bases) and telegraph and telephone wires during the evacuation was formerly estimated to about 15.6 million Norw.cr. This preliminary amount has been corrected to about 20 million Norw.cr. The damage is reckoned to be total.
Harbours and Harbour works.
The part director has formerly estimated the war damage on public buildings (bridges belonging to the State, the port service and the local port services) in the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS during the evacuation to approximately 2.2 millionen Norw. cr. as a supplement was made for buildings and storehouses etc. belonging to the port service, which was not included before. The damage is considered to be total.
Ships, freighters smaller and larger fishing boats.
The town council has calculated the boat property in the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS in April 1940 to approximately 16.5 million Norw.cr. (about 15 million Norw.cr. for some larger boats originating from HAMMERTEST, VARDO and VADSO.)
The total amount of damage for war wrecked and war damaged fishing boats in the FINMARK and NORTR-TROMS ****ing the whole of the war has been estimated by the war insurance company for the fishing fleet to 2.9 million Norw.cr. If the value of the larger boats which practically all have been wrecked, is added to this amount the total damage for this group is approximately 4.5 million Norw.cr. or 27% of the total amount of 16.5 million Norw/.cr. In the letter of the town council dated 25 February of this year, the damages on this item are provisionally calculated to about 4 million Norw.cr.
Stores of goods and goods on board ships.
The town council has formerly given the damages under those items to about 19.5 million Norw.cr. The damage was total.
Various war damages covered by private insurance companies.
These are not able-as mentioned before-to give any information for the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS provinces alone. However, the amount for such damages will certainly not be very large, as mentioned before.
The forests.
The damages on the forests of the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS during the war, including the devastation made by the Germans during the evacuation in the autumn 1944 and inclusive future losses due to the exploiting of the forests, was formerly given by the town council as approximately 25 million Norw.
cr. The assets of the forests in April 1940 are calculated to about 40 million Norw. cr. which results in a percentage of damage of about 60%. The reason for the percentage of damages being so high is evidently, as mentioned before, the fact that in the estimate of the damages the future losses on account of exploitation of the forests is included.
In addition to the amounts mentioned above concerning the buildings of the State as well as material etc. there are some amounts relating to the power stations of the State, the State's schools, personages, post offices etc. inclusive furniture, material and outfits of transportation. The evaluation of these buildings etc. on April 1940 is calculated to about 5 million Norw. kr. and the damages during the war and the evacuation to approximately 4.5 million Norw. kr.
If all the amounts referring to the individual items above, are added together, the total evaluation of the property of the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS on april 1940 is about 530 million Norw.kr. (exclusively the value of lavd and ground) and a total damage of approximately 400 million Norw.kr.i.e. an average percentage of damages of about 75%.
signature: ARNE SKAUG signature:
A. SKOIEW Rubber stamp:
Oslo Town Court.
Dronningens Gate 16, telephone OSLO, 3 July, 1947 Telegramm Statistik Four reference Our reference HM/ SF DOCUMENT 4 Supreme Court attorney Mr. IVAR FOLLESTAD Strandgaten 19, B E R G E N.Criminal case against the General RENDULIC - concerning the ravages in the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS 1944/45.
According to letter from the Norw. Govt. statistical office of 25 February and 26 June this year, some of the items of war damages for the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS districts are covering all damages during the war, and consequently also the damages before the evacuation 1944/45.
To-day the Town Council has, however, obtained the following additional information about the part of damages that is to be attributed to the time before the evacuation and during the evacuation Buildings, furniture and movables, etc.
In the letter by the Town Council of 26 June, the damages have been put down with a total amount of about 290 million Norwegian kr. Of this amount approximately 50 million Norw. kr. cover the time before the evacuation and 240 million Norw. kr. approximately the evacuation period. The percentage for damages on buildings, furniture and movables, etc. during the evacuation then amounts to 70%.
Ships, freighters, larger and smaller fishing boats.
The Town Council has no information at present about the part of the amount of damage of 4.5 million Norw.kr. falling within the time of war before the evacuation. Still the damages before the evacuation were of very little importance.
The forest.
The main part of the damages on the forests in the FINMARK and NORTH-THOMS districts, estimated to approximately 25 million kr. falls into the time of evacuation. The damages before the time of evacuation can only be estimated to 2-8 million Norw.Kr. Considering that the estimate of damages for the time of evacuation of approximately 23.5 million Norw.kr., the percentage obtained is about 56%.
Supplement to the buildings belonging to the State as well as material, etc.
The damages included in the amount of 4.5 million Norw. kr. are only concerning the time of evacuation.
According to the additional information given above the total estimation of the damages for the FINMARK and NORTH-TROMS for the time or evacuation is about 400 million Norw.
kr. minus about 52.5 million norw.kr. 347.5 million Norw.kr. or an average percentage of about 66% of the total real capital on April 1940 of about 530 million Norw.kr.
signature A. SKIEN If your Honors now please turn to page 17 of the document book, page 19 of the German document book.
This document was offered for identification only as 516A. It is now being submitted as Prosecution Exhibit 516.
I would like to call to your Honors attention that we have only translated excerpts of this letter from the City Engineer of Hammer-fest, but we have furnished defense counsel with a complete translation of such letter.
The City Engineer of Hammerfest The devastation of Hammerfest after the compulsory evacuation of the population at the beginning of the month of November 1944.
On Sunday 29 October it was proclaimed that "the population of Finmark was to be compulsorily evacuated immediately". The first district of Hammerfest to be evacuated was Fuglenes-Storelven at the latest Monday, 30 October, 1200 hours.
On Monday 30 October I called on the then Island Commandant Major Gaedke-who simultaneously was Evacuation Commissar-in order to find out what was to happen to the public utilities i.e., fire department, water works, electricity works etc., I was together with the administrator of telegraphy who wished to receive similar information concerning telephone and telegraph. We were told that there was no further use for the fire department. However, the water and the electricity works were to continue until further orders. I asked whether I myself should remain in the city and was told that of course i did not have to evacuate.
Then I stated the necessary number of employees I required i.e. three engineers, one guard for the dem of one electricity work and preferably three men for the water work, However, the families of these people had to be evacuated because women and children were not permitted to remain.
The fire department was given leave of absence. Some of them had left already-they had been evacuated to the country previously with their families-as had other inhabitants of the city.
"After the evacuation of the population was finished on 3 November it became possible in the course of the following week to collect, pack up and to send away all essential remaining fire department and air protection material with the help of the persons who had remained. This material was collected from different places. All of it was went away with two freighters which had stayed there with evacuees and loaded diverse goods.
.......................
"On 15 November when the General Horwegian Telegraph service was supposed to be liquidated or terminated and the machines were to be dismantled I telegraphed as a matter of orderly procedure to the Norges Brandkasse (Norwegian Fire Insurance). I told them that the fire department had ceased to exist on 1 November and that according to rumors the city was to be destroyed entirely.........
"The devastation of the city The figures in parenthesis in the following refer to the enclosed map of Hammerfest 1:4000.
This map shows the different areas or buildings.
"As early as on the 5 and 6 November 3 farms in Fuglenesdalen and all smaller buildings in the neighborhood of the city were burned down and at the same time also the houses in Soereyesund-the area along the Akkerfjordweg to Sjaaholmen. -The building containing the reduction valves of the water works seemingly was mistaken for an ordinary dwelling. It was burned down so that the valves were partly destroyed packing were standing open. After the inspection the Evacuation Commissar was informed that the mains of the water works would freeze if a heavy frost should occur which would put the works out of commission.
...................
"(2) On 22 November the first part of the city, the western part (Hauen)-about 50 plots- were burned down. One or two buildings were blasted in order to prevent the fire from spreading to other buildings. At the corner of the cemetery in the street toward the Krutthusstrasse a few small bombs and sure burning wood had been dropped. German soldiers were successful in removing all this with the exception of one bomb which exploded and blasted a piece of the cemetery wall.The burning down had started in the morning. About 9:00 o'clock I arrived at a place where the German soldiers brought out hose from a fire station to extinguish the fires. They wanted to prevent the fire from spreading across the street toward the elementary school. However, the keys for the hydrants, the connection for the hose etcetera were missing. I then had to help to organize the extinguishing and were now able to keep the fire from spreading.
"During the following days all foundations of the burned down places were blasted. There were still 10 buildings standing unharmed, west across the Akkerfjerdweg.
They remained until the last..........
"(5) On 18 December the settlement on Hammeren near Fuglonesweg-(Mella) a total of 5 buildings was burned down. One house (Loekkes) down the road remained whole.
"(6) On the 24 December (Christmas Eve) the houses near the old shooting area near Storvannet, a single h use in Breillia (Roy Pedersens) and a few little barracks, the building on Einan and the Ilslageret were burned down (for nothing).
"(6a) On 27 December the remaining houses in Breilia and the nursery, the Villa Nissons and the rest of the barracks around there were burned down. On the same day probably also the buildings below the power plant were burned down. On 28 December the large Naval barracks on Skansen Fuglenes were burned.
"On one of the first days of 1945 the buildings west of Stottabakken on Fuglenes (5-6 houses) were burned down. "(7) On 12 January 1945 The buildings east of Storelven were burned down i.e. the entire Molla and Mollaplataa including the buildings on the spur of Storelven from Storvannet. However, not the factory of Hauan with its storage plant where cement was kept.
"(8) On 13 January 1945 all of Fuglenes, so to speak was burned down excepting the steam operated factory of Fuddersen & Nissen and the landing stages there and the two western buildings up above including three houses in Fuglenesbugten. Still remaining are the buildings of the coal depot of Robertson and the hospitals with the apartments for the physicians and janitors.
"(9) ..............
"(10) The following were burned on 20 January: the remaining parts of eastern city district between Storelven and Material- and Stenkuls Kleminningen building on Batteriebakken up to and including the corner building number 474 with the three houses in the back below the new sub-stations.
"(11) On the following days the main building of Robertson and the packing houses in Fuglenes and the landing stages and buildings were demolished. These belonged to the Finmark Canning Factory.
"(12) After the houses on the southwest side of Storvannet had been evacuated (the Prohibited area) which had been requisitioned by the Naval Commandant they were all burned down and a newly erected bunker building with tremendous iron concrete walls and iron concrete roof (broadcasting station etcetera) was blasted.
"In connection with the burning down of the city all poles of the electrical power lines were sawed down, the insulators were broken and the wires were rolled up and sent away. Transformers and the equipment of the transformer stations also were dismantled and sent away with German ships. As early as 19 November 1944 the dismantling of unit II of the power station was started after the old direct-currency generator for 1890 had been taken away. Generator III with the switch table and switches and the regulator of the turbine later was sent away by a German ship. Further dismantling was unsuccessful.
"On 4 December the destruction of the high voltage power line Persa-Hammerfest was started. They left the poles a good meter above the surface. The insulators were broken and the copper wires were cut, tolled up and taken away. Usually it was cut off at each pole so that the wire has only old metal value. I do not know what happened to the transformer poles later.
"On 6 February 1945 I received orders to leave the city, together with all Norwegians and the German units and the Russian prisoners.
Only a small detachment of engineers (blasting detachment), consisting of about 20 men and one lieutenant, and the evacuation authorities and a Norwegian tugboat with two Norwegian engineers on board remained. I received information from them concerning the fate of the rest of the city which was confirmed by the Germans mentioned above whom I met in Tromsee.
"(13) When we were in Haaja, fire was discovered in the district of the elementary school. Its reflection was visible to the neighborhoof of Loppa. All the remaining buildings in the center district of the city from Krutthusgaten to the steamer landing stage were burning all night, also all churches. A fresh southern wind prevailed. The German port captain related that 'unfortunately' fire had broken out in the Soldiers Home on Sadel Street (No. 353, together with No. 49, where the blasting detachment lived). It had been hoped that the church would remain but the tower started to burn and the church also was lost. On the following days the installation of the bunker depot was burned down and the crane tracks were blasted as well as the salt silo. But the demolitions did not work out as successfully as they were planned. The hospitals with the two apartments also were blasted and everything was levelled to the ground. The other buildings of Fuglenes and in the western part of the city and by the way some other houses - all of wood -- were burned down. The refrigeration plant and the administrative building of FFR - both of them of iron concrete - were blasted.
"The steamboat landing stage also was blasted but later the tug had great difficulty to break up the supporting pillars and here the blasting did not seem to have the intended effect either.
"The bridges across Storelven and Svartelven were blasted. The crews were prohibited from going ashore because mines had been laid.
I wish to add in this connection that two German members of the Organization Todt (engineer Beer and one soldier) lost their lives on 24 January in one of the many shelters of the civilian air raid protection (near Svartelven) where tread mines had been laid also.
It seems that in the main street as well as in all side streets which were open for automobile traffic such mines were laid until the end.
"The power station with the remaining machines and transformers was blasted on 5 February at 10:00 o'clock after the plant had stopped functioning at 9:00 o'clock. It was alleged that afterwards the dam was blasted and the pipe lines probably were blasted in some spots. All transformer stations were blasted after the electrical apparatus and the transformers had been dismantled and removed. The high voltage cables in the stations were cut above the floor but they are believed to have remained undamaged otherwise excepting near two blasted bridges.
"It is assumed that of the water work units the intermediate dam ....and the installations of the reduction valves had been blasted - in any case bombs had been brought there. Also a nine inch main line in the tubular bridge across Storelven where depth bombs had been laid. It seems that the line to Fuglenes was destroyed by the blasting of the bridge across Svartelv and/or of the road near this bridge. The jetty on the city side and the jetties on Fuglenes are undamaged.
"As stated above, after each burning the foundations, the smoke stacks, etc. were systematically blasted and leveled to the ground. It seems that the part of the city which was burned down after the sixth represents an exception. There the blasting was started. It stopped when the Germans suddenly left the city on 10 February 1945. Some smoke stacks, etc. were left standing near the Oscars-Plass, elementary school. It is possible that the Zentralkommandoplatz (iron concrete on the first floor) also has been forgotten. It was covered by snow on 6 February. On 10 February 1945 only the chapel in the cemetery remained standing.
"Temporarily Oslo, 20 April 45, signed Kummeneje (City Engineer)."
The next page attached to it was:
"To the Population.
"It has been decreed that the compulsory evacuation of the popula tion of Finmark will be carried out immediately.
"In Hammerfest this compulsory evacuation is to be carried out in the following manner.
"The section Fuglenes--Storelven is to be evacuated by 12 noon Monday, 30 October. People who do not go without delay to the Evacuation Office in the City Hall, 2nd floor (tax office) in order to be assigned transportation will be picked up by the" -- there is an asterisk -- "Police and the Wehrmacht.
"The Evacuation Authorities.
"*) Changed later to 'den vepnede makt' (Armed Forces, Wehrmacht)"
JUDGE BURKE: Mr. Rapp, without indicating that the document you have just read will have any evidentiary value or will be accepted as having any probative value, I am wondering about the ambiguity in the translation of the second paragraph you have just read.
MR. RAPP: Your Honor is referring to "In Hammerfest this compulsory evacuation is to be carried out in the following manner."
JUDGE BURKE: Yes. The apparent difference in being able to translate the language as to whether they were evacuated by the police or Wehrmacht, or by the Armed Forces, Wehrmacht.
MR. RAPP: Your Honor, I have been advised that the insert was put in there for the benefit of the Norwegian population to whom this particular proclamation was addressed, and it in both instances means the same. In other words, the word "den vepnede makt" is the translation into Norwegian of the German word "Wehrmacht", and that has boon put n parenthesis. I believe that is want you are referring to in the above paragraph. If Your Honors permit me I would like to show you the original, how it actually looked and was corrected.
"The time for compulsory evacuation of the next part of the city will be published by proclamation.
The Evacuation authorities.
") Changed later to "den vepnede makt" (Armed Forces, Wehrmacht."
If Your Honor will turn now, please, to page 26, page 28 of the German Document Book, Norwegian Doc. VI has been marked for identification as Exhibit 523-A.
We are submitting it now as Prosecution Exhibit 523.
DR. FRITSCH: Your Honor, I would like to ask the Prosecution who Preuthun should be, whether the Prosecution asserts this is a subordinate of the defendant Rondulic?
MR. RAPP: Your Honor, the individual Preuthun was an evacuation commissioner appointed by the then Norwegian Minister President Quisling. The sole purpose of this document is to show that these facts as contained in the document and reported within their own, then Quisling, Government, did happen during the evacuation. Minister Whist is minister of the Government at that time, and Preuthun was evacuation commissioner of some liasson position to the 20th Mountain Army.
DR. FRITSCH: I protest against the introduction of this document as evidence, because I don't think that this evidence is relevant. It has nothing to do with the defendant Rendulic.
MR. RAPP: Your Honor, this is an allegation on the part of defense counsel which we cannot concede. I think it has very much to do with the defendant Rondulic, because it shows what actually happened during the evacuation, and it was found in the Quisling files of the Norwegian-German puppet government at that time, and we feel it has strong probative value, because it shows what occurred during the evacuation and the date is fixed at the time, so that the defendant Rendulic was in charge of the evacuation.
THE PRESIDENT: In the light of our previous rulings it will be admitted, however, the Tribunal by that admission is not indicating what, if any, probative value it will later give to this document.
MR. RAPP: It is dated, Hammerfest, 3.11.44, 1655 hours.
To Minister W H I S T For information concerning situation stop SCHONER "Fortuna" 50 tons loaded from Lesbesby with 250 persons including Old Age Home and 10 persons confined to bed half frozen to death on deck stop Seventeen hours to here stop Transport must be continued in the same manner stop The people received warning two hours before and were ordered not to take along food or bedding since according to original German plan the men were to walk from Bellefjord to Hamuerfest stop signed PREUTHUN
MR. RAPP: Now, Your Honor, the last document in this Document Book 25, you will find on page 33. It is page 36 of the German Document Book. This was marked for identification as Exhibit 518-A, and it is now submitted as Prosecution Exhibit 518. These are the charges of the Norwegian War Crimes Commission before the United Nations War Crimes Commission in London pertaining to the evacuation of the Province of Finmark, Norway.
DR. FRITSCH: Your Honor, I protest against the introduction of this document. This document has already been mentioned, and I reserved my protest, because this is, as I have already said, surely an indictment. The probative value, therefore, can only be as great as if the prosecutive authorities here made some kind of an assertion. Any kind of probative value cannot be gained from such an indictment.
MR. RAPP: The defense counsel told us the same story yesterday, and I understand the Tribunal told us at that time it will be admitted for what it is worth.
DR. FRITSCH: Your Honor, a ruling was not made. Yesterday I merely protested against the form of this document, and I was told that a certification by Col. Follestad would be submitted, and therefore I reserved my further attitude.
MR. RAPP: Your Honor, I believe we mentioned yesterday this report was an official Norwegian Government report.
THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Rapp, did I understand your statement that this was an indictment, it was a part of same proceedings in England?
MR. RAPP: No, Your Honor, I mentioned that this is a report in the nature of an indictment, or rather in the nature of charges. That is the accepted way of the United War Crimes Commission. In other words, these Government reports can only be accepted by the United Nations in the form of these charged. They are not being submitted to the United Nations War Crimes Commission merely in presenting the evidence as it appears without the charges, and as such it was forwarded to us, and we picked it up as an official Government report made up in the form of charges.
THE PRESIDENT: The Tribunal is of the opinion it has no probative value as far as this defendant Rondulic is concerned, and the objection will be sustained and it will not be admitted in evidence.
MR. RAPP: Then your Honor we would like to have this document remain with the identification 518-A; is that acceptable to the Tribunal?
THE PRESIDENT: It is allright with us.
MR. RAPP: Mr. Fenstermacher will continue with Document Book 24.
MR. FENSTERMACHER: May it please the Tribunal, before beginning with the presentation of the documents in Document Book 24, I would like to hand to Dr. Laternser a copy of a memo which I received yesterday from the Yugoslav delegation attached to the Office of Chief of Counsel for War Crises. The memo is addressed to no fr m Lt. Col. Svonimir Ostric, Chief of the Yugoslav Delegation, It is dated Nurnberg, 26 August 1947.
"In connection with your inquiry this delegation is informed by the Yugoslav National War Crimes Commission in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, as follows:
1. "General Bader, Paul, is registered by the United Nations War Crimes Commission in London as a war criminal. He is not in Yugoslav custody, and the Yugoslav National War Crimes Commission does not know his present whereabouts.
2. "General Dandkelmann, Paul, was delivered to Yugoslavia by the British Occupation Authorities in Germany, and is now in Yug Slav custody in Belgrade, Yugoslavia.
3. "General Fohn, Gustav, and General Schmidt Ritzberg are registered by the United Nations War Crimes Commission in London, as war criminals. They are not in Yugoslav custody and the Yugoslav National War Crimes Commission dies not know their present whereabouts.
4. "Col. Zellmeyer, Joseph is at present in Yugoslav custody, in Belgrade Yugoslavia."