Abbreviations and Glossary
ACA (Allied Control Authority). The supreme governing authority in postwar Germany.
ACC (Allied Control Council). On June 5, 1945, the Allies created the quadripartite Allied Control Council, the executive component of the Allied Control Authority (ACA), to function as the chief Allied agency to govern occupied Germany. The council members, the commanders of the four Allied armies, first met on July 30 in Berlin. The final session was held on March 20, 1948, when the Soviet participants walked out just prior to the Berlin blockade.
AGWAR (Adjutant General, Department of War).
AHC (Allied High Commission).
AJC (American Jewish Congress). See WJC.
AJDC (American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee). Founded in 1914 by Henry Morgenthau Sr., to aid Jews in Europe and Palestine.
ALIU (Art Looting Investigation Unit), created in the Office of Strategic Services in 1945.
APC (Alien Property Custodian). On March 11, 1942, by executive order, the APC was established within the Office for Emergency Management. APC was responsible to seize certain types of enemy property not already frozen or regulated by the Treasury Department. While Treasury continued to manage blocked assets such as currencies, bullion, and securities, the APC was authorized to seize (and manage or liquidate) enemy-owned businesses, patents, and copyrights in the U.S. The APC was abolished on October 14, 1946, and its functions transferred to the Office of Alien Property in the Department of Justice.
Ardelia Hall, Monuments and Fine Arts Advisor in the U.S. Department of State; also head of the Office of International Information and Cultural Affairs of the State Department between 1944 and 1964.
Aryanization, the forced transfer of Jewish-owned businesses or property to German or "Aryan" ownership. It had two stages, the "voluntary," in which Jews were excluded from German economic life, and the compulsory stage that began immediately after Kristallnacht (Night of the Broken Glass) on November 9, 1938. Jewish businesses were liquidated or transferred to Aryans and often Jews who emigrated had to "donate" their remaining property to the state.
ASA (American Security Agency).
BEW (Board of Economic Warfare). On December 17, 1941, the Economic Defense Board became, by a change of name, the Board of Economic Warfare. Until 1942, the Board's powers were limited chiefly to the control of exports, but an Executive Order on April 13, 1942, increased its authority by giving the Board a large measure of control over imports. The Board was also directed to "represent the United States Government in dealing with economic warfare agencies of the United Nations for the purpose of relating the Government's economic warfare program and facilities regarding the importation of strategic and critical materials." On July 15, 1943, an Executive Order terminated the Board of Economic Warfare, and its functions, personnel, and records were transferred to the Office of Economic Warfare (OEW).
BIS (Bank for International Settlements). Established as an international financial institution, enjoying special immunities, pursuant to the Hague Agreements of January 20, 1930. Its main objectives were to act as trustee or agent in regard to international financial settlements, particularly in regard to German reparations, to promote central bank cooperation, and to provide additional facilities for international financial operations.
CCP (Central Collecting Points). The U.S. military established CCPs to house cultural objects found in the United States Zone of Germany in need of preservation or suspected of having been looted by the Nazis. U.S. authorities established temporary facilities at Munich, Wiesbaden, Marburg, and Offenbach in 1946. On June 15, 1946, the Marburg Central Collecting Point was closed, and the three remaining CCPs became specialized. The Wiesbaden CCP held mostly German-owned material and closed in August 1951. The Munich CCP specialized in materials subject to restitution and material of the Bavarian State Museums and also closed in August 1951. The Offenbach Archival Depot was devoted primarily to Jewish materials, books, and archives and closed in June 1949. Upon the closure of the CCPs, the remaining objects continued to be stored, and authority over these objects was exercised by HICOG.
CIA (Central Intelligence Agency).
CIC (Counter Intelligence Corps). Evolved from the Military Intelligence Service's Counter Intelligence Branch. CIC detachments were quite active in postwar activities in Germany and Austria in an effort to locate war criminals, Nazi records, and looted property.
CID (Criminal Investigative Division of the U.S. Army).
CIG (Central Intelligence Group).
CINCEUR (Commander in Chief, European Command). See EUCOM.
COSSAC (Chief of Staff, Supreme Allied Commander). COSSAC was created as an Anglo-American organization in the spring of 1943 to plan for the Allied invasion of France and Germany, while also planning for eventual civil affairs and military government responsibilities.
Defrosting, the unblocking of "frozen" assets by the Treasury Department.
DP (Displaced Persons). A wide array of individuals, such as those imprisoned in Nazi concentration and death camps, forced laborers, prisoners of war (POWs), and evacuees who were uprooted from their homes during and after World War II.
ECEFP (Executive Committee of Economic Foreign Policy of the U.S. State Department).
Einsatzgruppen,
mobile killing units that accompanied German troops on the
eastern front.
ERP (European Recovery Program). See Marshall Plan.
ERR (Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg). A special Nazi task force under Alfred Rosenberg. A looting agency that seized archives and artwork, particularly of Jews, in German-occupied western and eastern territories from 1940 to 1945.
ETO (European Theater of Operations). Designated the area of operation in Europe of the United States air, ground, naval, and supply forces that joined the British forces after December 7, 1941. The theater area stretched from the British Isles to eastern Germany, from Scandinavia to the Pyrenees and the northern border of Italy and the Balkans.
ETOUSA (European Theater of Operations, U.S. Army). On June 8, 1942, the European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was created as the commanding headquarters for U.S. troops in Europe. On January 17, 1944, ETOUSA became a subordinate element of SHAEF, the combined British-American headquarters. On July 1, 1945, ETOUSA was redesignated United States Forces, European Theater (USFET) in preparation for the dissolution of SHAEF.
EUCOM (European Command). On August 1, 1952, EUCOM is redesignated the U.S. Army, Europe (USAREUR) at the same time the office of Headquarters, U.S. European Command is established.
FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation).
FEA (Foreign Economic Administration).
FED (Foreign Exchange Depository). Opened in April 1945, in Frankfurt, Germany, as the successor organization to the Currency Branch, SHAEF. In addition to its currency operations, in the early part of 1945, the FED began to receive foreign exchange assets from various sources in Germany. FED also supervised the shipments of valuables from the Merkers mine. The FED received, stored, inventoried, and disbursed over $500 million worth of loot and valuables. On September 21, 1949, FED responsibilities were turned over to the office of the U.S. High Commission for Germany.
FFC (Foreign Funds Control). In 1940, the Foreign Funds Control was created within the U.S. Treasury Department in accordance with the Trading With The Enemy Act.
FRB-NY (Federal Reserve Bank-New York).
GEPC (German External Property Commission).
Gestapo Geheime Staatspolizei (State Secret Police). Instituted by Göring in 1933 and operating under the control of Himmler by 1936, the Gestapo was instrumental in the Nazis pursuit of repression and terror.
Gold pool. Monetary gold looted by Germany and accumulated in neutral nations.
HICOG (U.S. High Commissioner for Germany). Established in the Department of State on June 6, 1949. On September 21, 1949, HICOG, a civilian agency, replaced OMGUS, a military agency, as the U.S. occupation government for Germany.
IARA (Inter-Allied Reparations Agency). Located in Brussels, Belgium, the IARA allocated German reparations among member governments of the agency, provided information on items available for reparation, and dealt with restitution of property. The agency's members included representatives from Albania, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Egypt, France, Greece, India, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, the United Kingdom, the U.S., and Yugoslavia.
IGCR (Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees). Organized in London in August 1938 to assist in the resettlement of refugees from Europe in countries allowing permanent immigration. The organization disbanded in 1947, and its functions and records were transferred to the International Refugee Organization (IRO) of the United Nations.
IRO (International Refugee Organization). In July 1947, the International Refugee Organization (IRO) superseded the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) and the Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees (IGCR) and continued to arrange for the care and repatriation or resettlement of displaced persons. In 1952, the IRO concluded its work and was replaced by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
JA (Jewish Agency for Palestine). The governing body of the world movement to promote the development of Palestine and, after 1948, of Israel by supporting the immigration of Jews to Palestine and to Israel.
JAG (U.S. Army Judge Advocate General).
JCR (Jewish Cultural Reconstruction). The JCR, Inc. was established in April 1947 as a membership corporation made up of several major Jewish organizations. The JCR became the trustee and distributor of unidentifiable heirless Jewish cultural property discovered in the U.S. Zone of Germany that could not be claimed under military government laws.
JCS (Joint Chiefs of Staff). The JCS was created as a result of the decision made during the Anglo-American military staff conference in Washington in 1941-1942 to establish Combined Chiefs of Staff. The Joint Chiefs of Staff served as the United States representative on the Combined Chiefs of Staff. The JCS became the principal agency for coordination between the army and navy. It gained legislative recognition as a permanent agency, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, by the National Security Act of 1947.
JRC (Jewish Rescue Committee).
JRSO (Jewish Restitution Successor Organization). On May 15, 1947, the Jewish Restitution Commission (later renamed the Jewish Restitution Successor Organization) was incorporated as a charitable organization in New York to "acquire, receive, hold, maintain and distribute for purposes of Jewish relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction, resettlement, and immigration, the property of Jews, Jewish organizations, cultural and charitable funds and foundations, and communities which were victims of Nazi or Fascist persecution or discrimination." The JRSO, first recognized by General Clay in Germany, was appointed by President Eisenhower on June 23, 1948, as the official successor organization allowed to claim identifiable heirless assets and to obtain title to Jewish property in the U.S. Zone of Germany unclaimed as of December 31, 1948.
JTC (Jewish Trust Corporation).
London Declaration. The U.S. and 16 other countries declared on January 5, 1943, that the Allies reserved the right to invalidate transfers or dealings with property, rights, and interests that had been situated in the territories that were under direct or indirect Nazi control. This warning applied to both looted material and transactions that were legal in form.
Macmillan Commission (The British Committee for the Preservation and Restitution of Works and Art, Archives, and Other Material in Enemy Hands), generally known as the Macmillan Commission after its chairman, Lord Macmillan; founded in May 1944 as a counterpart to the American Roberts Commission. The Macmillan Commission limited its interest primarily to problems of restitution and reparations, leaving protection of assets to the military authorities.
Marshall Plan, created to help reverse the economic, social, and political deterioration of Western Europe after World War II. Western European governments set up reconstruction plans and the U.S. offered $12.5 billion in aid from April 13, 1948, through June 30, 1951.
MCCP (Munich Central Collecting Point). See CCP.
Merkers Mine. In April 1945, U.S. troops with the 3rd Army discovered the contents of the Reichsbank in the Wintershal AG Kaiseroda potassium mine near the town of Merkers, Germany. The army required thirty ten-ton trucks to transport the treasure to Frankfurt, and the gold found was worth $238.5 million. The Merkers cache was the most astonishing discovery of looted materials by the U.S. military.
MEW (Ministry of Economic Warfare, United Kingdom).
MFA&A (Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives). The MFA&A Branch provided the army with specialist officers and guidelines shaped with the intent to protect and salvage cultural treasures and monuments in Europe--those on the battlefield and those uncovered by U.S. forces. MFA&A worked in the restitution program and operated CCPs throughout Germany and many art depots throughout Austria.
MG (Military Government).
MTO (Mediterranean Theater of Operations).
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization).
NSC (National Security Council, United States).
NSDAP (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei). The word "Nazi" is derived from the German name for the Nationalist Socialist German Worker's Party.
OAD (Offenbach Archival Depository). The Offenbach Archival Depository(OAD) was one of the central collecting points in Germany, holding mostly Jewish materials, books, and archives. See also CCP.
OAP (Office of Alien Property). On October 14, 1946, the Alien Property Custodian (APC) was abolished and its functions, funds, and personnel transferred to the Office of Alien Property within the Department of Justice. See also APC.
OCCWC (Office of the Chief of Counsel for War Crimes).
OE (Division of Economic Security Controls, U.S. Department of State).
OFD (Office of Financial and Development Policy, U.S. Department of State).
OIC (Office of International Information and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State).
OMG (Office of Military Government).
OMGUS (Office of Military Government for Germany, United States). OMGUS was established on October 1, 1945, to administer the U.S. Zone of occupation in Germany and the U.S. Sector of occupied Berlin. OMGUS succeeded the USGCC (May 8 to October 1, 1945) and was abolished December 5, 1949, when its functions were transferred to HICOG.
OMGUSZ (Office of Military Government, United States Zone).
OSS (Office of Strategic Services).
The OSS was established by a military order of June 13, 1942.
Its two basic functions were gathering, evaluating, and analyzing
intelligence
in support of the war against Axis Powers and planning and executing
intelligence operations.
Paris Agreement on Reparations, the result of an 18-power conference held in Paris between November 9 and December 21, 1945. The Paris Agreement established polices and procedures for the division of German assets among the 18 governments.
PCIRO (Preparatory Commission, International Refugee Organization). See IRO.
PCO (Property Control Office of U.S. Military Government).
POLAD (Political Advisor in USFET and EUCOM).
RD&R (Reparations, Deliveries, and Restitution Division).
Reichsbank The Central Bank of the German Government.
RM (Reichsmark), the currency of Nazi Germany. It was replaced by the Deutschmark in the three western zones of Germany as a result of currency reform in 1948.
Roberts Commission (The American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas). An advisory commission created on August 20, 1943 under the chairmanship of Owen J. Roberts, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, and composed of government and civilian representatives. The Roberts Commission was instrumental in the creation of the MFA&A.
Safehaven Program. The Safehaven Program, formally launched in July 1944, aimed to prevent Germany from transferring assets to neutral European nations, to ensure that German wealth would be available for the reconstruction of Europe and for the payment of reparations to the Allies, to return properties looted by the Nazis, to prevent the escape of German personnel to neutral havens, and to deny Germany the capability to start another war.
SCAEF (Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Forces).
SCAP (Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers).
SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Forces). On January 17, 1944, the Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) was created as a joint British-American command for military operations in Europe. On February 13, 1944, SHAEF absorbed the Chief of Staff Supreme Allied Command (COSSAC). SHAEF was dissolved on July 11, 1945.
SS (Schutzstaffel). The SS was an elite military and police organization within the Nazi Party controlled by Heinrich Himmler, with wide-ranging responsibilities including internal security, protection, intelligence, and the persecution of enemies of the Reich.
SSU (Strategic Services Unit).
STEG (Staatliche Erfassungsgesellschaft). German semipublic corporation to handle surplus war materials.
SWNCC (State-War-Navy Coordinating Committee).
TD (Treasury Decision).
TFR (Textual Financial Records). Forms used by the U.S. Treasury Department to gather information on assets in the U.S., such as assets in the U.S. belonging to blocked countries or their nationals (Form TFR-100), and later for a more general census of foreign-owned assets in the U.S. (Form TFR-300).
TGC (Tripartite Gold Commission). Established by the United States, France, and the United Kingdom for the restitution of monetary gold. See also Tripartite Brussels Conference.
Tripartite Brussels Conference. The outcome of the conference included the redistribution of gold from a "gold pool," accumulated in neutral nations obtaining looted monetary gold from Germany, to nations whose gold reserves had been looted by Germany.
Tripartite Gold Agreement of September 27, 1946, was to implement Part III of the reparation agreement signed in Paris on January 14, 1946. The governments of the U.S., the UK, and France established the Tripartite Gold Commission for the restitution of monetary gold. See Tripartite Brussels Conference and TGC.
TWEA (Trading With the Enemy Act).The legal instrument used by the U.S. Treasury Department for controlling foreign assets before and during the war.
U.K. (United Kingdom).
UN (United Nations).
UNIRO (United Nations International Refugee Organization). See IRO.
UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration). Established in 1943 to give aid to uprooted persons in areas liberated from the Axis powers, including the distribution of food and medicine, reinstatement of public services, and restoration of agriculture and industry. In March 1949, UNRRA disbanded and its responsibilities were distributed to other UN agencies, primarily the International Refugee Organization (IRO).
USACA (U.S. Allied Commission for Austria). Responsible for civil affairs and military government administration in the U.S. Zone of Austria and the U.S. sector of Vienna. It was organized concurrently with the establishment of Headquarters, United States Forces Austria (USFA), July 5, 1945, as a component of U.S. Forces European Theater. USACA was abolished following the transfer of U.S. occupation government from military to civilian authority in September 20, 1950.
U.S. Bureau of Customs. Beginning in 1940, the Foreign Funds Control (FFC) in the U.S. Treasury Department relied on customs inspectors to question and determine whether incoming travelers were carrying securities. The U.S. Customs agents monitored the currency that was entering the U.S. during 1940 and 1941, when the U.S. was still a neutral nation. Customs agents began seizing currency in March 1942 as a result of General Ruling 6A which dealt with "securities or evidences thereof." The U.S. Customs Bureau was responsible for ensuring that assets did not enter the United States illegally during and after World War II.
USFA (United States Forces Austria). On July 5, 1945, the United States Forces Austria, under General Mark Clark, was created out of the U.S. element of the 15th Army Group. USFA remained subordinate to USFET and EUCOM until May 23, 1949, when it became an independent command under the Joint Chiefs of Staff. [On June 28, 1946, military government ended in Austria.]
USFET (U.S. Forces, European Theater). On July 1, 1945, the U.S. Forces, European Theater replaced ETOUSA as an independent American command and, on July 15, assumed command of all American forces in Europe. On March 15, 1947, USFET became the European Command (EUCOM) under General Clay as commander in chief and military governor.
USGCC (U.S. Group, Control Council). On August 9, 1944, the United States Group, Control Council (Germany) was established as a planning group under ETOUSA to prepare for the military government of Germany; on March 5, 1945 it became a command under ETOUSA. On October 1, 1945, the USGCC was redesignated the Office of Military Government for Germany, United States (OMGUS). (On January 27, 1945, a U.S. Group, Control Council (Austria) is created under the Mediterranean Theater of Operations.)
WDCSA (War Department, Chief of Staff Army).
WJC (World Jewish Congress). Established
in 1932 with the purpose of defending
Jews against Nazism and anti-Semitism with its affiliate, the
American Jewish
Congress (AJC).
WRB (War Refugee Board). Created by an executive order from President Franklin Roosevelt in January 1944 for the purpose of rescuing Jews from occupied Europe.
X-2 (Counter Intelligence Branch of the Office of Strategic Services).
YIVO (Yiddish Scientific Institute). A Jewish historical research institution founded in 1925 in Vilnius, Poland. YIVO was considered to have the largest collection on eastern European Jewish history and culture and the Yiddish language and literature. After the German occupation of Vilnius in 1941, the Nazis closed YIVO and murdered most of its students and scholars.