What kind of tag is this?

[Eike41]

Hi all,

I see these tags once in a while with town names on them this one happens to be Bialystok Poland, anyone know what type of unit used these?

THANKS!

[bigmacglenn]

Kommandantur der Gendarmerie Bialystok....Military Police Command Bialystok....
cheers, Glenn

[Eike41]

Glenn,

Thanks!

[HPL2008]

Kommandantur der Gendarmerie Bialystok....Military Police Command Bialystok....
cheers, Glenn

Beg to differ, Glenn.

"Kdr." stands for Kommandeur (Kommandantur was abbreviated as "Kdtr."). Also, Gendarmerie is the rural police. (Military police would be Feldgendarmerie.)

The KdGend Bialystok [Kommandeur der Gendarmerie Bialystok] was one Major Helmut Limpert. He was subordinate to the KdO Bialystok [Kommandeur der Ordnungspolizei Bialystok] (Oberst Hans-Georg Hirschfeld, later Oberst Leberecht von Bredow), who, in turn, was subordinate to the IdO Königsberg [Inspekteur der Ordnungspolizei Königsberg].

[bigmacglenn]

Thanks for the correction, much appreciated! "Commander of the Rural Police Bialystok" would be a better translation...I was far too hasty with my initial ID...
cheers, Glenn

[Eike41]

So does that mean rural police=civilian police?

Military chain of command but civilian situations?

[HPL2008]

So does that mean rural police=civilian police?

Military chain of command but civilian situations?

The Gendarmerie was the police branch in charge of policing rural areas including smaller towns/villages with less than 2,000 (in certain exceptional cases 5,000) inhabitants.

It was part of the police/SS chain of command and had no connections to the military as such.

However, in the occupied territories, the Gendarmerie was heavily involved in partisan warfare, general occupation/security duties (with everything hideous that involved) and actual combat. Here, Gendarmerie forces were frequently employed in close co-operation with the military and the Waffen-SS.

[Eike41]

Wow Thanks! I had no idea.