Combat Groups of the Working Class


The Combat Groups of the Working Class was a paramilitary organization in the German Democratic Republic from 1953 to 1989.
The KdA served as the de facto militia of the ruling Socialist Unity Party of Germany composed of party members and politically reliable working people, based on dictatorship of the proletariat principles, to be deployed locally to fight civil unrest or invasion. The KdA was a civil reserve force tied to the GDR's Ministry of the Interior and the Volkspolizei, reaching 211,000 personnel at its peak in 1980. The KdA was disbanded by the Volkskammer after the opening of the Berlin Wall in November 1989.

History

The Combat Groups of the Working Class was formed on September 29, 1953, in response to the Uprising of 1953 in the German Democratic Republic which had occurred three months earlier, and was violently suppressed by the Volkspolizei and the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany. The anti-government uprising threatened the Soviet-backed GDR and the ruling Socialist Unity Party of Germany, who viewed it as a "counter-revolutionary" act. Initially, the official task of the KdA was to fight against saboteurs, class enemies, and other "enemies of socialism" within the GDR, especially as armed protection for valuable factories. The KdA was intended to mirror the People's Militias of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia which played a very important part in the consolidation of party's power in Czechoslovakia in 1948. The organization was designed to reflect the dictatorship of the proletariat – the ethos of the worker being the centre of power in the new socialist state – so membership was mainly drawn from workers from state enterprises.
The KdA made its first public appearance at the annual May Day demonstration on May 1, 1954, and were visible in public during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 in case of a similar revolt in the GDR. A central school for KdA leaders was set up in Schmerwitz in 1957, and the organization received its official name Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse in 1959. The largest use of the KdA occurred during the construction of the Berlin Wall from 13 August 1961, with over 8,000 personnel mobilized to participate in the effort. The best-trained and most-politically reliable KdA units and members from Saxony, Thuringia, and East Berlin participated in the construction and guarding of the Berlin Wall in the summer and autumn of 1961. During the six-week deployment of the KdA to the East Berlin-West Berlin sector boundary, only eight members defected to the West, indicating a high state of morale and faith in the SED. By 1966 and 1967, the total strength of the KdA was 181,500 "fighters" which was divided between "asset security forces" and "operational reserves". Units whose districts bordered West Berlin and West Germany received better equipment and were directly subordinate to the district management of territorial defense.
The KdA were not activated during the peaceful mass protests of the Peaceful Revolution in late 1989, which saw the decline of the SED and rapid political changes in the GDR, as many KdA members identified with the protesters and some even participated in the marches. On 9 November 1989, the GDR government announced the opening of the Berlin Wall and the free travel of East German citizens, rendering the purpose of the KdA no longer relevant or necessary. The Volkskammer, the parliament of the GDR, made the decision to disband the KdA on 14 December, with the processes of disarmament and demobilization beginning that month. The disarming of the KdA was supervised by the Volkspolizei and the National People's Army who consolidated and stored the weapons and equipment. The final 189,370 personnel in 2,022 units were completely demobilized by May 1990.

Organization

The KdA served a similar role to infantry to supplement the military and police as security in rear areas during wartime or in political emergencies, such as protests against the government. Units were closely tied to the workplaces they were recruited from such as factories, farms, the state and local administration offices, and other state-owned enterprises – their organizations and their employment generally did not extend beyond the district level. The organization was similar reserve forces like the United States National Guard or British Territorial Army; however, the KdA was strictly controlled by the SED itself and not the government.

Command and control

The KdA fell under the authority of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party with all directives and decisions made by the ZK's Politbüro, effectively making it the party's personal army. The ZK also supervised the rest of the armed forces through its security commission, but exercised its power over the KdA through two chains-of-command. The first ran through the Ministry of the Interior and then the Volkspolizei, which provided military training, equipment and operational expertise. The second was through the SED district and county directorates in the areas of personnel and political suitability of members. Commanders were appointed by the SED party organization in the major factories or enterprises in the area and were confirmed by the SED county leadership which received regular reports on the state of training, equipment and membership.
Der Kämpfer was the monthly newspaper and voice of the KdA, printed by the SED's Neues Deutschland publishing house.

''Hundertschaften'' and battalions

The KdA were organized into units called Hundertschaften and battalions.
Hundertschaften were the primary units of the KdA, made up of about 100 workers from large factories or even neighborhoods who sought to "defend the property of the people". Each hundred was organized into three platoons, each containing three groups. The commander of the hundred had a political deputy and a general deputy, plus a supply officer and a chief medical orderly. An inspector of the Volkspolizei assisted with training. Other personnel included the three platoon leaders, three deputy platoon leaders, eighty-one Kämpfer, and three medical orderlies. Three or four hundreds could form a Kampftruppe battalion.
Heavy hundreds were equipped with anti-tank, mortar and air-defense platoons, and were motorized using the trucks of their enterprises or nationalized haulage firms. Three or four heavy hundreds formed a heavy battalion of which there were over 130 by 1973. They may also be equipped with wheeled armored personnel carriers and armoured cars such as the BTR-152 and Garant 30k SK-1. Heavy hundreds designated Battalions of the Regional Reserve and could be employed outside their local and district areas.

Membership

Men between the ages of 25 to 60 were eligible for armed service while women were eligible for other roles, mainly used in the medical and supply services. Men under 25-years-old, if they were not performing compulsory military service in the National People's Army, could join the paramilitary Society for Sport and Technology until reaching the age for KdA membership. Membership was voluntary, although SED members were required to join the KdA as part of their party obligation. Non-SED members were compelled to join by the Free German Trade Union Federation, and recruitment was accomplished by the SED branches in the workplaces.
Membership of the KdA peaked in the early 1980s, reaching a total of approximately 210,000 personnel including approximately 187,000 active members and the remainder in reserve. Some sources claim that the KdA had reached over 500,000 members in 1987.

Training

Training for KdA personnel was conducted by the Volkspolizei, the GDR's civil police force, to avoid the KdA being counted as part of the total strength of the armed forces under international treaties. The KdA was substantially cheaper to maintain than the official army, since members did not require accommodation, supplies and wages were the same as regulars, and members continued their civilian work while training in their spare time. A KdA member trained with his unit after work and on weekends for a total of 136 hours annually, usually at a training camp in the wilderness. The KdA paramilitaries were often equipped like professional infantry, despite having somewhat less training.

Uniforms

The KdA wore olive green uniforms different from that of the National People's Army, and were similar in pattern to that of the American Battle Dress Uniform or Soviet Afghanka. The soft kepi style cap has a visor, a circular top crown, a side crown with an outside crown band, and earflaps which fold up and secure over the top. The jacket has a straight cut bottom, with two breast and two skirt pockets plus a pocket on each upper sleeve. The trousers contain four standard type pockets and later versions had an internal cargo pocket on each thigh. The M1956 helmet used by the army was also worn.
The KdA organizational patch was worn on the left sleeve over the sleeve pocket and rank patches were worn on or below the pockets on both sleeves, later they were moved to the left breast above the pocket.

Equipment

The KdA had at their disposal many of the weapons that the police would use in riot situations, and also SK-1 armoured cars and SK-2 water cannon. After the SPW 152 APC, a variant of the Soviet BTR-152, had been phased out from the army arsenals in the mid sixties, it became the standard combat transport for KdA units.
The early KdA was armed with surplus German and Soviet equipment from World War II or weapons which had been phased out by the regular east german army:
In terms of small arms, KdA personnel were armed with the Mauser Kar98k rifle, the Mosin–Nagant rifle, the Degtyaryov machine gun, and the PPSh-41 submachine gun during the 1950s and 1960s. In later years, KdA troopers were gradually re-equipped with Eastern Bloc weaponry like the AK-47 rifle and its numerous variations.

Ranks

The KdA did not have traditional military ranks but had "positional titles" as follows:
There were a series of badges as well as service and merit medals awarded to KdA members. The KdA also wore distinctive red rank insignia on the right arm of their uniforms.

Oath

The oath of the Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse states:

International deployment

There are indications that the KdA was involved in East German military aid to communist movements and governments in Africa. On May 23, 1980, Radio Brazzaville reported the visit of a KdA delegation in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, announcing they were willing to train Congolese people's militiamen in East Germany as well and supply them with equipment. Author Gunter Holzessig reports in that context, that the Congolese People's Militia commander Michel Ngakala was present at a KdA-event in East Germany in 1982.