English Translation

19 The origin of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia increased the capacity of weapons production and ammunition in the empire by an incredible 26 percent. The Czech arms industry could cover the needs of the army with a strength of 40 © 45 divisions and a total of 1.5 million men. All the protectorate arms factories and metal industrial plants (including the auxiliary industry) involved in the organisation of the war empire arms production were fully loaded in the middle of 1941 and of 90 percent participated in the production either for the defence power or for the SS. They worked on three shifts, the pace of work increased and the factory buildings of larger and medium plants were expanded. The importance of the protectorate arms and auxiliary metal industry rose in the eyes of Berlin following the bombing of German Western and Northwest industrial areas. In the view of the German Military Command, the territory of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia represented the most protected industrial area of German space in terms of both air and land enemy operations. (21) In addition to the expansion of factory buildings, the capacity of other industries has not been used yet for placing reichs, whose parent factories have been damaged by bombardment. With the transfer of technical equipment, not only some officials and workers with families, but also design offices came to the Protectorate. The production of certain departments of Kruppovy plants from Porúří and Hamburg plants Blohm & Voss were reportedly transferred to the Škoda plants and ČKD. Central design offices and headquarters of the Junkers plants moved to Prague Dejvice, whose individual departments were to be gradually moved to the planned factory buildings not yet used for war purposes. (22) The fact that the Czechs survived the period of the Protectorate with relatively small losses and were not treated like Jews or Poles is, of course, not random. From the sad fate of the two named nations, they were saved by the fact that an empire did not have enough qualified labour to replace experienced Czech workers in the protectorate industry. Therefore, they became indispensable for Berlin and the priority task of Reichs and Acting Reich Protectors was nothing but to keep quiet and order in Bohemia and Moravia at all costs. ©I need peace in this space to make a worker, a Czech worker,