GB 1556 WL MF 51 - Reichskulturkammer: Generalkartei (Reich Chamber of Culture: General index) microfilm

Identity area

Reference code

GB 1556 WL MF 51

Title

Reichskulturkammer: Generalkartei (Reich Chamber of Culture: General index) microfilm

Date(s)

  • 1930s-1940s (Creation)

Level of description

Extent and medium

123 reels

Context area

Name of creator

Biographical history

Established by law in 1933, the Reichskulturkammer (RKK) was created to enable the Reichsministerium fuer Volksaufklaerung und Propaganda (RMfVP)(Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda) to control virtually all aspects of organised cultural life in Germany. The RKK was closely linked to the RMfVP under Joseph Goebbels, who also served as president of the RKK. The card index relates to some 185,000 members and applicants of the RKK and its affiliated organisations, including staff members of the RMfVP. For those whose livelihood derived from the arts, membership was compulsory in the RKK and its subordinate chambers of literature, music, film, theatre, radio, graphic arts and the press. Those denied membership were effectively prevented from practising their profession.

Repository

Archival history

The archives of the Reichskulturkammer became part of the Berlin Document Center, which was an artificial collection comprising material captured by the US army at the end of the Second World War, subsequently microfilmed and repatriated to the German Federal Archives.

GB 1556 WL MF 51 1930s-1940s Collection level 123 reels Reichskulturkammer (Reich Chamber of Culture)

Established by law in 1933, the Reichskulturkammer (RKK) was created to enable the Reichsministerium fuer Volksaufklaerung und Propaganda (RMfVP)(Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda) to control virtually all aspects of organised cultural life in Germany. The RKK was closely linked to the RMfVP under Joseph Goebbels, who also served as president of the RKK. The card index relates to some 185,000 members and applicants of the RKK and its affiliated organisations, including staff members of the RMfVP. For those whose livelihood derived from the arts, membership was compulsory in the RKK and its subordinate chambers of literature, music, film, theatre, radio, graphic arts and the press. Those denied membership were effectively prevented from practising their profession.

The archives of the Reichskulturkammer became part of the Berlin Document Center, which was an artificial collection comprising material captured by the US army at the end of the Second World War, subsequently microfilmed and repatriated to the German Federal Archives.

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

A microfilm copy of the central registry of membership of the Reichskulturkammer (RKK), 1930s-1940s, arranged alphabetically by individual surname. Originally maintained by the personnel section of the RKK, index cards have been supplemented by entries made by Allied occupation authorities. For each individual, one or more cards provide: name and address, birthdate and place, profession, RKK membership data and notations regarding political reliability and racial background. Also included in some instances are annotations from the Allied occupation authorities on denazification proceedings and artists' acceptibility for post war performances.

Alphabetical by surname of individual.

Open

Copies can be made for personal use. Permission must be sought for publication.

German

Microfilm

Wiener Library reading room

Bundesarchiv, Germany.

National Archives and Records Administration, USA.

Entry compiled by Howard Falksohn.

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

January 2008 Communication process Culture Europe European history German history Germany National history Nazism Persuasion Political doctrines Propaganda Reichskulturkammer x Reich Chamber of Culture Third Reich Totalitarianism Western Europe

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

Content and structure area

Scope and content

A microfilm copy of the central registry of membership of the Reichskulturkammer (RKK), 1930s-1940s, arranged alphabetically by individual surname. Originally maintained by the personnel section of the RKK, index cards have been supplemented by entries made by Allied occupation authorities. For each individual, one or more cards provide: name and address, birthdate and place, profession, RKK membership data and notations regarding political reliability and racial background. Also included in some instances are annotations from the Allied occupation authorities on denazification proceedings and artists' acceptibility for post war performances.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

System of arrangement

Alphabetical by surname of individual.

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Open

Conditions governing reproduction

Copies can be made for personal use. Permission must be sought for publication.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

  • Latin

Language and script notes

German

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Finding aids

Wiener Library reading room

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

Existence and location of copies

National Archives and Records Administration, USA.

Related units of description

Related descriptions

Notes area

Alternative identifier(s)

Access points

Place access points

Name access points

Genre access points

Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

Wiener Library

Rules and/or conventions used

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

  • English

Script(s)

    Sources

    Accession area