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Background history
The presented report on the activity of the Scholarly Circle of Lawyers, which existed in Oflag VI B Dössel during World War II, is an interesting exhibit giving an idea of the specificity of this kind of scholarly activity conducted by Polish officers staying in the Wehrmacht captivity in the years 1939-1945. The establishing and functioning of the scientific circle of this provenance was connected with the presence, in the camp, of people who were professionally related to law, that is judges, public prosecutors, notaries, attorneys and legal advisors. They, being reserve officers, shared the same POWs’ fate with professional officers in German oflags. So as not to lose contact with the profession performed before the war, they formed scholarly circles of lawyers. The document on display is a report which sums up the half-a-year activity of the lawyers’ circle which functioned in the oflag from 2 May 1942 until the liberation of the camp, which took place on 1 April 1945. The circle comprised four sections dealing with the following: civil law, criminal law, law in force on the territory of the General Government, and the section of politics, administration and economy. The scholarly circle consisted of 124 members, including 75 active ones, who were charged an entry fee. It needs adding that it was not only professionals who were members of the Bar before the war, but all officers interested in this discipline who could stay members of the Scholarly Circle of Lawyers. The latter, having free time at their disposal, wished to get to know legal matters better. All of them met to attend lectures and speeches prepared by their mates. The dynamics of this group manifested itself in the fact that from May to December 1942 there were held as many as 50 such meetings. Furthermore, they organized 52 hours of classes and 5 hours of discussions, during which questions could be asked and the members shared their professional experience with one another. It can be concluded that the Scholarly Circle of Lawyers, which functioned in Oflag VI B Dössel, developed a very intensive activity and the officers-members put a lot of effort into organizing a variety of actions, like founding a library for lawyers, which was initiated by the more active members. In December 1942, there were 105 volumes of books in the library and it enjoyed a great popularity with POWs: during the half a year of its functioning there were 276 registered loans. The Circle of Lawyers in Oflag VI B Dössel, running its intensive scholarly activity, undoubtedly, integrated the professional environment, enhanced personal development of its members and offered a form of escape from the stagnation of the existence in the camp reality. Last but not least – it was a proof of determination in endeavoring to develop intellectually, understood as a form of resistance put up to the camp authorities, and indirectly – to the whole German political system. In the conditions of captivity that had a great value.
Prepared by: Bartosz Janczak
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The Bar behind the barbed wire
Source of acquisition
The exhibit comes from the collection of Józef Kobylański, which was being given over to the Museum in the years 1968-1970.
Description of the item
The report written on paper, consists of six pages of 30cm x 21.5cm, on opening out – 30cm x 42cm. Typewritten. On the front page – the title of the document, written by hand. The following five typewritten pages contain the report on the activity of the Scholarly Circle of Lawyers. The signatures of its members are put on the last page.
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