Hello All,

Belated New Year Greetings and apologies for my absence.

Many of us are familiar with the May-June 1945 Drau Valley saga in Southern Austria and with the
forcible repatriations to Soviet custody, by units of the British Eighth Army's 5th Corps, of Domanov's
Cossack Division, Von Pannwitz's 15th Cossack Cavalry Division and Ghirey's North Caucasians.
Some of us, including those who, like this writer, sincerely lament the tragedies which occurred during
and after the above repatriations but who agree with, or see no viable on-the-ground alternative to, the
political and military Yalta Agreement decisions which prompted them, are constantly alert for new
'intelligence' and eye-witness statements or reliable anecdotes regarding the 5th Corps repatriations.
This writer, with others and with a view to a book or documentary script on the subject, has begun a
formal, New Millennium, investigation of certain aspects of those operations.
One aspect of the operations which has never been publicly resolved is the removal, from the Cossack
Bank IN LIENZ, in trucks driven by individuals wearing British uniforms, of a number of strong boxes
containing several million Deutschmarks and Italian Lira/e.
These monies, the Bank's Director (WHO WAS HE and what happened to him?) later said, comprised
the personal savings and other holdings of the officers and men of the Domanov Division (and of other
Cossack units held in the Drau - Draga Valley of Southern Austria ?).
Questions for which this writer and colleagues seek answers are:
* when, under whose direction and in what manner was the above Cossack Bank established; what is its
known history and where are the founding and surviving daily administrative operational records
held..was it established by the Allied Military Government team for that sector or by a wartime German
body
*who was the first and subsequent Director(s) and managerial staff of the Cossack Bank, did any of
them survive WWII and did any them compile personal memoirs relating to the above scenario
* was the Cossack Bank a wholly civilian body or was it directly subordinated to and staffed by Allied
or Wehrmacht / other German military personnel..who were the Allied or German / Austrian / other nonCossack staff, especially in May-June 1945
* regardless of who established it, was the concept of such a Bank unique to the Domanov Division or
did subordinate branches exist in other local Cossack units / Cossack units throughout the German
Armed Forces
* to which Allied and / or German Armed Forces field paymaster units and Wehrmacht / Waffen SS
Paymaster HQs were the Drau - Draga Valley Cossack units subordinated concerning the issuance and
receipt of everyday soldiers' pay and other field usage funds

* if solely German-created, where and under whose jurisdiction were other field monies of the above
Cossack units held at that time and what happened to them
* what were the May-June 1945 Occupation / Military Government Regulations concerning the seizure
of such monies; what was the relevant Chain of Command structure and through which channels
WOULD / SHOULD THEY HAVE BEEN TRANSFERRED TO A CENTRAL ALLIED OR
REICHSBANK STORAGE FACILITY...if so transferred, to which Allied and German repositories
would and should they have been transferred
* were the Lienz Cossack Bank monies - about whose fate even such a famous writer as Count Nikolai
Tolstoy has no knowledge and which some observers suggest was that of monies STOLEN by senior
British officers - taken as part of an official British 5th Corps war reparations action overseen by 5th
Corps / 8th Army HQs and conducted with the in situ and in transit oversight of UK Treasury - British
Army Pay Corps - UK /US Judge Advocate General Office(s)
* which British unit, and under whose overall and in situ / in transit field command, was delegated the
task of seizing the Cossack Bank and other monies in above categories; where are the wartime records
relating to this likely to be held ( if not in the UK National Archives )
* if taken as War Reparations funds, were the reparations those claimed by the Anglo-US forces in the
region or by the nearby Soviet forces, into whose latter custody tens of thousands of Cossacks and others
were soon transferred; what would and should the official procedure have been in such circumstances
*were the Cossack Bank monies seized at Lienz ever officially recorded in non - British 5th Corps
records (which apparently make no reference to the operation); if so, where and what do they state
* if the monies were stolen..what was the operational state of local railways and of captured German and
Italian airfields..where was the nearest functioning railhead able to transport such strongboxes to, e.g.,
the nearest airfield capable of usage by Dakota aircraft and where WERE the nearest such airfields
* finally..what was the least amount of time available to anyone stealing such monies before the issuance
of Occupation Currency and anti-black marketeering regulations would have greatly reduced or nullified
their value ?
Anyone able to help is guaranteed, if such is requested, reciprocal research per their own projects. All
matters offered in confidence will be treated with respect and all materials loaned or donated will be
copied and returned / credited where requested. Enquiries and / or offers of help from Editors interested
in helping this writer and associates to develop the theme will receive a warm welcome.
Besten and mfg to all...Alan Newark
(braveheart180203@hotmail.com)
Tel: +44 (0) 1132 250502
Fax: +44 (0) 1132 682125
New mobile telephone number: +44 (0) 7833511696