Police services in Upper Silesia during the Silesian Uprisings

Abstract

In this article the author illustrates the activity of police services in Upper Silesia between 1918 and 1922. In introduction the author describes international and political position of Upper Silesia. In this period the special Military Inter-Allied Commission of Control was a temporary legislator and administrator of Upper Silesia. The main task of the Commission was to conduct a plebiscite and divide a disputed territory. It also established its internal policy. Moreover, the Commission had its own police services, which were outlined chron-ologically in this article. Sicherheitspolizei was the first police service, formed in times of the German Reich. Sicherheitspolizei was replaced by combined plebiscite police, which operated until the division of Upper Silesia between Poland and Germany. In the mean-time a special police, military police and municipal police operated simultaneously in Up-per Silesia. During the analysis of particular police service the author paid a close atten-tion to its organization, assignments, conditions of recruitment and attitude to obligation to maintain neutrality towards the plebiscite. Activity of police services was elaborated against the background of the events of that time, such as the plebiscite, Silesian Upris-ings and rivalry between Poland and Germany. The article was mainly based on Polish literature, bilingual archival materials and partially on German literature.