Nisko Plan - Planning

Planning

In late summer 1939, Nazi German dictator Adolf Hitler, with one of his foremost Nazi intellectuals, Alfred Rosenberg, developed the idea for a Jewish reservation (German: Judenreservat). The town of Lublin in Poland had been in the focus of Nazi planners since the earlier 1930s, with Nazi ideologue Herrmann Seiffert's describing it as a center of Jewish worldwide power and source of genetic potential. After Nazi Germany had defeated Poland in September 1939 and partitioned her with the Soviet Union, the Lublin area became part of the Generalgouvernement headed by Hans Frank. Once under Nazi German control, the area was inspected by Frank's deputy Artur Seyss-Inquart in November 1939. He reported that - according to the local governor - the area, "swampy in its nature", would serve well as a reservation for Jews, and that "this action would cause considerable decimation." On 25 November, Frank informed the local administration that an influx of "millions of Jews" was proposed. Also in November, Odilo Globocnik was put in charge of all issues regarding the Jews in the Lublin area, representing the SS as the area's SS and Police Leader. Globocnik set up a department led by a Dr. Hofbauer to plan the settlement of the expected Jews and their conscription to forced labour.