740.00119 Control (Germany)/6–1945: Airgram
The United States Political Adviser for Germany (Murphy) to the Secretary of State
A–43. The Goldcup82 Operations Staff of US Group CC83 has announced the establishment at Kassel of a Ministerial Control Center84 at which all activities connected with the records and personnel [Page 864] of the various German ministries and governmental agencies can be centralized.
This center will be equipped to receive and make available for exploitation the records of the German ministries. However, in view of the fact that the Political Division, with the agreement of the Political Division, British Element CC,85 has already established the bulk of the German Foreign Office archives in the castle at Marburg,86 it is not deemed desirable or necessary to make use of this aspect of the facilities at Kassel. The Goldcup staff has approved our decision to maintain the Foreign Office archives at Marburg and to continue to send there such additional archives as are uncovered from time to time.
The center now being established at Kassel will be equipped to handle a maximum of 5,000 persons from the staffs of the various ministries. It is our intention to make use of this opportunity to assemble the major part of the Foreign Office personnel so far located, numbering perhaps 300 persons. As has been previously telegraphically reported to the Department, it has been our intention to assemble Foreign Office personnel for interrogation. All previous efforts to achieve this through SHAEF have been fruitless and the present opportunity is therefore looked upon as the solution of our problem. While Kassel is not in the immediate vicinity of Frankfurt, it will nevertheless be relatively easy of access.
A member of my staff has been sent to Kassel today to examine the facilities being prepared and to make preliminary arrangements as are necessary. The Department will be kept advised of further developments.
[On August 22, 23, and 24, discussions took place in Washington between French President de Gaulle and Foreign Minister Bidault and various United States officials including President Truman. These discussions dealt with various topics of interest including establishment of central administrative machinery in Germany and separation of the Ruhr, Rhineland and the Saar from Germany; for documentation, see section entitled: “Efforts of the United States to Maintain Good Relations with France,” volume IV, pages 661 ff.]
- The Political Adviser’s office was moved to Hoechst, a district of Frankfurt-am-Main, on June 15.↩
- “Goldcup” was the code word for the operation establishing contact between SHAEF and the Soviet Central Command, and assuming the initial control over the former German ministries.↩
- The highest level military government headquarters for U.S. forces in Germany; the U.S. “element” of the Allied Control Authority for Germany.↩
- Under cover of despatch 878, September 1, from Berlin, Mr. Murphy reported some details about the Ministerial Collecting Center which was located at Fürstenhagen near Kassel. The Center covered an area of some 25 square miles, and as of August 10 some 752 tons of documents, and some 1056 personnel had been collected there. (740.00119 Control (Germany)/9–145)↩
- The highest level military government headquarters for British forces in Germany.↩
- For documentation on this subject, see pp. 1099 ff.↩