“Dear friends, In order to respond to the wish expressed by a large number of you, and in loyalty to the promise we made before leaving the camp, we have been led to establish the ‘Association of Dachau Survivors’” – Registration leaflet and founding principles of the Dachau survivors’ organization – the first publication issued by the organization in Paris by prisoners of the Dachau camp who had only recently been liberated – in accordance with the promise of loyalty they had made while still in the camp itself. A rare publication from an early stage, in which the members saw themselves as the founders of a temporary organization due to the difficulty of locating the camp’s survivors.
The leaflet opens with a declaration by Edmond Michelet, the first president of the Dachau Survivors’ Committee, who had been appointed “in secret” as head of the organization:
“Dear friends,
In order to respond to the wish expressed by a large number of you, and in loyalty to the promise we made before leaving the camp, we have been led to establish the ‘Association of Dachau Survivors’. Naturally, this association is only temporary. Once you have all had time to rest, and it is possible to unite here in Paris – with our friends from the capital and those from the suburbs — the duly authorized representatives of our regional branches will need to carry out whatever changes you see as desirable. The reason we did not wait for this meeting in order to establish the association is mainly because it seemed impossible at this stage to ask you to travel to Paris. Moreover, the legal establishment of this association was urgently necessary, particularly in order to carry out the following actions…” . He then lists the urgent steps that need to be taken, such as raising funds, renting a building to establish the organization’s office, and more. It is also written that the committee succeeded in recovering valuable belongings left behind in the camp in a special operation: “To the best of our knowledge, your Dachau Committee is the only one that managed to collect the valuables and clothing left in the camp’s dressing room. We have received thanks from all sides. These thanks are addressed to those among you who took upon themselves all the risks involved in the operation. Please accept, dear friends, the assurance of our warm and devoted sentiments.
Edmond Michelet
President of the French Committee of Dachau.”
The leaflet also includes a membership form for camp survivors to fill out, as well as the internal bylaws of the organization. A note is added regarding the location of recovered prisoners’ belongings: “Please note that valuables and stored items are located at 50 Avenue de Bougeaud, Paris. They are handed over to recipients at the above address. Regarding regional areas, items are sent free of charge to recipients via local town halls. Sending a letter to the above address will help expedite the shipments. P.S. Returning the membership form will be considered as provisional acceptance of the rules and internal bylaws.”
On the second page appears the bylaws of the newly founded association. Among the listed articles: The purpose of the Dachau Veterans’ Association is: To maintain bonds of brotherhood among its members, To protect the material and moral rights of those concerned, as well as of the families of deceased members, And more. Membership criteria are also defined: Anyone who was formerly imprisoned in Dachau and/or relatives of those who died in Dachau or during transport to the camp is eligible to join. It is also stated that the temporary bureau is composed of fifteen members of the French Dachau Committee, which had been established secretly, along with additional members appointed later. The registered office of the association is temporarily located at 11 Balzac Street, and may be moved to any other address by decision of the president, with the agreed opinion of the bureau.
The first General Assembly is to be convened before November 1, 1945. It will decide on the management of the temporary bureau, among other matters.
A form for filling in personal details of the joining member is attached.
This is the first publication issued by the Association of Dachau Survivors. The association was established shortly after the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp in April 1945, at the initiative of survivors – most of them Jewish – while still inside the camp itself. This is one of the earliest survivor organizations formed immediately after the war, born out of an urgent need to give collective expression to their experiences, grief, and also hope for rebuilding and a new life. The group initially operated from within the grounds of the liberated camp, with the encouragement and approval of the American occupation authorities. The association aimed to unite the survivors, safeguard their rights, and document the crimes committed in the camp. From its earliest days, the organization also worked to commemorate the victims, assist Holocaust refugees, and demand justice – both legal and moral, against Nazi perpetrators. In its first period, the association functioned as a sort of self-governing body within the former camp area, in cooperation with international Jewish and humanitarian organizations, and played an important role in locating survivors’ family members and shaping the identity and future of Holocaust survivors in post-Nazi Germany.
[3] pp. Very good condition.
