The Federal Ministry of Displaced Persons, Refugees and War Victims (german: Bundesministerium für Vertriebene, Flüchtlinge und Kriegsgeschädigte; BMVt) was part of the West German federal government from 1949 till 1969. Before the formation of the ''Federal Republic of Germany'' on the territory of the three western (American, British and French) allied zones, the individual state governments were in charge of the care for displaced persons. Initially the Office for Displaced Persons (german: Amt für Heimatvertriebene) was formed for the

social policy Social policy is a plan or action of government or institutional agencies which aim to improve or reform society. Some professionals and universities consider social policy a subset of public policy, while other practitioners characterize soci ...

task of coordinating the integration of displaced persons and refugees, caring for war victims and providing compensation and initial aid. When the new ministry was formed in September 1949 after the

parliamentary elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

, it took over this office. The first minister was

Hans Lukaschek Hans Lukaschek (22 May 1885 – 26 January 1960) was a German lawyer and politician. Lukaschek, born 1885 in Breslau (now known to English speakers by its Polish name, Wrocław), had started his political career in the Catholic Center Party as ...

, member of the Bundestag for the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and former president of the ''Zentralverband vertriebener Deutscher'', an organisation of displaced Germans. Before the war he was responsible for organising propaganda against the Poles in Upper Silesia. He had eight successors, until in 1969 the ministry was dissolved and its competences were distributed among other federal ministries. The ministry was target of several scandals and controversies as Lukaschek's successor Theodor Oberlander was a former active Nazi, responsible for supporting ethnic cleansing of Jews and Poles and forced to resign due to his Nazi past. Another minister Hans Kruger, also a former Nazi, was also forced to resign after his involvement in atrocities in occupied Poland was revealed. As for Lukaschek, it was speculated that his departure was the result of intrigues made by former Nazis The ministry initially drafted the ''Lastenausgleichsgesetz'' and the Bundesvertriebenengesetz (passed in 1952 and 1953, respectively). These laws became the basis of its further activities. The ministry also mandated a multi-volume documentation of the expulsion of Germans after World War II (''Dokumentation der Vertreibung der Deutschen aus Ost-Mitteleuropa''), which was prepared by a large scientific commission led by former Nazi activist Theodor Schieder. The research project took roughly ten years to complete. A crucial role in this commission was played by the ''Königsberger Kreis'' led by former Nazis

Theodor Schieder Theodor Schieder (11 April 1908 – 8 October 1984) was an influential mid-20th century German historian. Born in Oettingen, Western Bavaria, he relocated to Königsberg in East Prussia in 1934 at the age of 26. . 56/sup> He joined the ...

and

Werner Conze Werner may refer to: People * Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name Fictional characters * Werner (comics), a German comic book character * Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Ra ...

as well as nationalist historian

Hans Rothfels Hans Rothfels (12 April 1891 – 22 June 1976) was a German nationalist conservative historian. He supported an idea of authoritarian German state, dominance of Germany over Europe and was hostile to Germany's eastern neighbours. After his appli ...

; it had previously provided ideological justifications for the Third Reich's aggressive eastbound Volkstum politics.Im Interview: Wolfgang J. Mommsen
/ref>

Ministers

Political Party:

Footnotes

{{Authority control 1949 establishments in West Germany 1969 disestablishments Germany, Displaced Persons, Refugees and War Victims Displaced Persons, Refugees and War Victims