Lithuanian Auxiliary Police

Lithuanian Auxiliary Police
Litauische Hilfspolizei
Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft standing in formation in Vilnius Cathedral Square
Active	July 9, 1941 (1941-07-09) - May 1945 (1945-05)
Country	Lithuania
Type	Schutzmannschaft
Operations jurisdiction	German-occupied Europe including Lithuania, Belarus, northern Russia, Ukraine, and Poland [1]
Commanders
Notable commanders	Lucian Wysocki, SSPF in Generalbezirk Litauen[2] A. Engel, KdO[2] Antanas Špokevičius, inspector of the Lithuanian police battalions[2] Antanas Rėklaitis, head of the staff[2]

The Lithuanian Auxiliary Police was a Schutzmannschaft formation formed during the German occupation of Lithuania between 1941 and 1944, with the first battalions originating from the most reliable freedom fighters, disbanded following the 1941 anti-Soviet Lithuanian June Uprising in 1941.^[3] Lithuanian activists hoped that these units would be the basis of a reestablished Lithuanian Army commanded by the Lithuanian Provisional Government.^[4] Instead, they were put under the orders of the SS- und Polizeiführer in Lithuania.^[5]

Lithuanian auxiliary policemen were divided into four types. The first three were: regular law enforcement policemen, firefighting policemen, and auxiliary units grouped into platoons that assisted the local police when needed.^[2] The last were Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft battalions, closed formations organized into battalions, companies, platoons and groups.^[2]

The battalions were charged with internal security duties and engaged in anti-partisan operations in the Wehrmacht's rear areas, e.g. Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Northwest Russia.^[6] Some battalions took part in the Holocaust, most notably the 12th and the 13th battalions, which started as the Lithuanian TDA Battalions. These two battalions were responsible for an estimated 78,000 Jewish deaths in Lithuania and Belarus.^{[citation needed]} While the battalions were often deployed outside Lithuania, they generally did not participate in combat. In total, 26 battalions were formed and approximately 20,000^[7] men served in them.^[8] In July to September 1944, the remaining units were combined into two Lithuanian Volunteer Infantry Regiments^[9]