Prussian Trust
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__NOTOC__ The Prussian Trust, or Prussian Claims Society, (german: Preußische Treuhand GmbH & Co. KGaA) is a corporation registered in
Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
, founded in 2000 as ''Preußische Treuhand GmbH'' by some descendants of
German expellees The German Expellees or ''Heimatvertriebene'' (, "homeland expellees") are 12-16 million German citizens (regardless of ethnicity) and ethnic Germans (regardless of citizenship) who fled or were expelled after World War II from parts of Germa ...
, and supported by some officials of the
Landsmannschaft Schlesien The Landsmannschaft Schlesien - Nieder- und Oberschlesien e.V. ("Territorial Association of Silesia - Lower and Upper Silesia", "Homeland Association of Silesia - Lower and Upper Silesia") is an organization of Germans born in the former Prussian pr ...
organization. It seeks to claim compensation from
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
and the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
, among others, for property confiscated from
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
expelled from territories which after World War II became parts of
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
and
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
. The chairman of the
supervisory board In corporate governance, a governance board also known as council of delegates are chosen by the stockholders of a company to promote their interests through the governance of the company and to hire and fire the board of directors. In civil s ...
is Rudi Pawelka, who also is president of the Landsmannschaft Schlesien, and vice president is Hans Günther Parplies, also vice president of the
Federation of Expellees The Federation of Expellees (german: link=no, Bund der Vertriebenen; BdV) is a non-profit organization formed in West Germany on 27 October 1957 to represent the interests of German nationals of all ethnicities and foreign ethnic Germans and their ...
. The Trust probably has fewer than a hundred members.


Compensation claims against Poland

Rudi Pawelka told the
Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
on 15 February 2004 that: The then-
German chancellor The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany,; often shortened to ''Bundeskanzler''/''Bundeskanzlerin'', / is the head of the federal government of Germany and the commander in chief of the Ger ...
Gerhard Schröder Gerhard Fritz Kurt "Gerd" Schröder (; born 7 April 1944) is a German lobbyist and former politician, who served as the chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. From 1999 to 2004, he was also the Leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany ...
stated on 1 August 2004 that the German government will not support these claims. Also, the Polish
Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of t ...
declared that Poland will demand war reparations from
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
if the German government does not end the press for compensations. Some German politicians stated that the claims by the Sejm were ridiculous and had no legal basis. The corporation's activities have been repudiated by some German politicians who have addressed the issue, including the president of the Federation of Expellees,
Erika Steinbach Erika Steinbach (, born 25 July 1943) is a German right-wing politician. She previously served as a member of the Bundestag from 1990 until 2017. She was a member of the Christian Democratic Union from 1974 to 2017, and served as a member of t ...
. In December 2006, the corporation filed 23 individual claims against Poland in the
European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...
, an action which has been condemned by both the Polish and German governments. The Polish government decided that the submissions warranted a comment by
Anna Fotyga Anna Elżbieta Fotyga (; ; born 12 January 1957 in Lębork) is a Polish politician who currently serves as a Member of the European Parliament, and is the Secretary-General of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party. She has served as M ...
, the Polish Minister of the Foreign Affairs who "express erdeepest concern upon receiving the information about a claim against Poland submitted by the Prussian Trust to the European Court of Human Rights". On 9 October 2008 the European Court of Human Rights declared the case of ''Preussische Treuhand v. Poland '' inadmissible, because of the
non-retroactivity Non-retroactivity is the legal principle A legal doctrine is a framework, set of rules, procedural steps, or test, often established through precedent in the common law, through which judgments can be determined in a given legal case. A doctrin ...
of the
European Convention on Human Rights The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR; formally the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) is an international convention to protect human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by t ...
:


See also

*
Former eastern territories of Germany The former eastern territories of Germany (german: Ehemalige deutsche Ostgebiete) refer in present-day Germany to those territories east of the current eastern border of Germany i.e. Oder–Neisse line which historically had been considered Ger ...
*
Federation of Expellees The Federation of Expellees (german: link=no, Bund der Vertriebenen; BdV) is a non-profit organization formed in West Germany on 27 October 1957 to represent the interests of German nationals of all ethnicities and foreign ethnic Germans and their ...
*
Flight and expulsion of Germans (1944–1950) During later stages of World War II and post-war period from 1944 to 1950, Germans fled and were expelled to Germany, present-day Germany from Eastern Europe, which led to de-Germanization there. The idea to expel the Germans from the annexed ...


Notes


References


English language homepage
of the Die Preußische Treuhand GmbH & Co. KG a. A. Official comments * — Polish Minister of the Foreign Affairs (2006–2007) * * Journals * In the news * * * *


Further reading

*Clare Murphy.
WWII expulsions spectre lives on
' BBC News online 2 August 2004 *Stefan Theil
Germany: Road to Better Days
',
Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...
, August, 2004
backup site
*DW staff.

',
Deutsche Welle Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave" in English), abbreviated to DW, is a German public, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the German federal tax budget. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite television service con ...
, 3 August 2004. *Penny Campbell
Worldwatch:Pay Up
'
Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Mar ...
, 12 September 2004. *DW staff.
Warsaw-Berlin Tensions Rise Over Expellee Claims
',
Deutsche Welle Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave" in English), abbreviated to DW, is a German public, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the German federal tax budget. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite television service con ...
, 6 September 2004. *Staff.
Germans and Poles settle WWII row
' BBC News 27 September 2004 *DW staff.

'
Deutsche Welle Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave" in English), abbreviated to DW, is a German public, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the German federal tax budget. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite television service con ...
16 December 2006 *
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
article.
Polish prime minister urges parliament to affirm Poles' rights to property left by expelled Germans
' in the
International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France for international English-speaking readers. It had the aim of becoming "the world's first global newspaper" and could fairly be said ...
, 19 December 2006 *Associated Press article.
Polish foreign minister denies Warsaw wants to renegotiate 1990 border treaty with Germany
', International Herald Tribune 20 December 2006

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
25 December 2006

*Staff.

'
Deutsche Welle Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave" in English), abbreviated to DW, is a German public, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the German federal tax budget. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite television service con ...
27 December 2006 * W.Ż.
Claims, Complaints & Controversy
'.
Warsaw Voice ''Warsaw Voice: Polish and Central European Review'' (shortly ''The Warsaw Voice'') is an English-language newspaper printed in Poland, concentrating on news about Poland and its neighbours. First released in October 1988, it is a general news ma ...
, 3 January 2007 *Jan Puhl and Andreas Wassermann.
Suit Evokes Ghosts of War
'
Spiegel Online ''Der Spiegel (online)'' is a German news website. Before the renaming in January 2020, the website's name was ''Spiegel Online'' (short ''SPON''). It was founded in 1994 as the online offshoot of the German news magazine, ''Der Spiegel'', wit ...
2 January 2007 * Tom Hundley
German claims from WW II rankle Poland's twin leaders
',
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
, 25 January 2007 *Staff.
EU partners Poland, German ministers tackle WWII-era claims
' DPA German Press Agency 31 January 2007 — Fro
rawstory.com
not a DPA website
a backup site
*Staff

Spiegel Online ''Der Spiegel (online)'' is a German news website. Before the renaming in January 2020, the website's name was ''Spiegel Online'' (short ''SPON''). It was founded in 1994 as the online offshoot of the German news magazine, ''Der Spiegel'', wit ...
15 February 2007. paragraphs 24-27. {{Authority control Companies based in Düsseldorf Financial services companies of Germany German irredentism