Armband of Security Staff in KL Mauth. Satellite Camp

Armband of Security Staff in KL Mauth. Satellite Camp
Very interesting cloth item used by a security staff member at the Wiener-Neudorf satellite of Mauthausen. The armband, used also (on other side) by a gate-watch guard, is marked in both German and Czech language for the Security Service of FOW (Flugmotorenwerke Ostmark), where most of the prisoners from the sub-camp worked. Research notes are included along with an interesting scan of a letter card sent to a Czech worker at the FOW site, written again in Czech. Rare and very interesting set. UV negative material (see scans).KZ-Aussenlager Wiener-Neudorf (Guntramsdorf) Mauthausen subcamp Wiener-Neudorf was located on Industriestraße in Guntramsdorf. Today, the site is used as a sheep pasture. The satellite camp existed from August 1943 to April 1944 and, after being destroyed by an Allied air raid which resulted in the death of 31 prisoners, was moved to a second location in the municipality of Wiener-Neudorf. Most of the prisoners worked in the neighboring "FOW" (Flugmotorenwerke Ostmark), one of the largest armaments factories in the German Reich. In total there were more than 4000 prisoners at the camp, with over 3000 present at its peak. SS-Hauptsturmführer Kurt Schmutzler led the guard detatchment. He was sentenced to death by a US military court after the war. When the Red Army approached, the camp was evacuated on April 2nd 1945. All prisoners unable to walk were shot and a lengthy death march to the main camp at Mauthausen began. Over 200 prisoner deaths were officially recorded, some killed when unable to keep pace on the forced march to Mauthausen. More than 2000 prisoner from eath march reached Mauthausen on April 13th 1945.