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Daniel Melnikov; Stalin's inner circle. Sunday Times. 28th February 1995
LOOTING AND PILLAGE
The looting of everything German proceeded. Every house and every apartment was entered,
searched, and stripped of everything at once valuable and moveable - jewelry, silverware, works of
art, clothing, household appliances, money. Stores, shops and warehouses were ransacked. Farms
were deprived of their farm animals, machinery, seed stocks, fodder, wine, food stocks. Telephones
were removed, telegraph equipment dismantled. Cars, trucks, even fire engines were seized.
The Russians and the British, and the Americans too found themselves knee-deep in booty, loot, and
the remnants of a standard of living that most could only dream about William HG. Stoneman,
Chicago Daily News Foreign Correspondent, stationed with the U.S. Army, wrote in May, 1945 of:
".... great stocks of food have been left to the reckless inroads of looters. Millions of dollars worth of
rare things varying from intricate Zeiss lenses to butter and cheese and costly automobiles are being
destroyed because the Army has not organized a system of recovery of valuable enemy material. (the
term 'recovery' is a euphemism for looting).
They (front line troops) are rough and ready about enemy property. They naturally take what they
want if it looks interesting... but what front line troops take is nothing compared to the damage caused
by wanton vandalism.
Today we have two more examples of this business, that would bring tears to the eyes of anybody
who has appreciation of material values."
He went on to describe, scattered everywhere, millions of dollars worth of plundered goods. The
troops simply couldn't carry everything that they could steal so they vandalized it and left it to rot.
It is estimated that the value of looted properties by the allied armies ran into hundreds of millions of
dollars and 'deprived the German civilian population the comforts and necessities so sorely needed."
THE MUGGERS FALL OUT WHEN THE U.S. SELLS THEIR STOLEN PROPERTY
Such was the whirlwind of looting by all the invading armies that the Russians complained that,
"American officials have stolen equipment from plants in a zone earmarked for shipment to Russia on
reparations account and sold it to foreign countries at a profit."
It was decided to organize the destruction of the German economy to the levels of 1932, when before
Hitler's election a third of the population was out of work.
LOOTED
'Bought' .... again, a euphemism for seizure. Between two and four billion dollars worth of German
property exchanged for worthless military currency... by order. "As to crimes against property, the
explanation is obvious. No effective steps were taken to discourage looting by the invading armies
during the war. Officers and men alike committed this crime and for much the most part went
unpunished. It was tolerated under such euphemism as 'souvenir collecting'... the fault of course, lies
with the high command which permitted the abuse." - Chicago Sunday Tribune, November 18th 1945
Over 200 art masterpieces were looted and are still held by the Americans.
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