The Bad Tölz author Christoph Schnitzer recently captivated his audience with an entertaining lecture on the history of the Tölz police force.
Bad Tölz –
50 years ago, the Tölz city police was dissolved and merged with the former rural police.
The historically well-versed Tölz author Christoph Schnitzer, together with the Kreisbildungswerk, recently took this as an opportunity to look back at the history of the Tölz police force.
During a lecture in the small Kursaal, the audience – including some retired police officers from the Tölzer Land region – first listened intently to the historical twist before marveling at the sometimes bizarre, sometimes sad stories.
Schnitzer went a long way - because according to his research, evidence of at least one "police work" in the Tölzer Land goes back to the early days.
"Even if the sources are not reliable, there has always been some form of police activity," he said.
For example, around 1616 there were already guards for four streets and two towers.
Kreisbildungswerk organizes a lecture with Tölz author Christoph Schnitzer
Schnitzer reported that the former city archivist Joachim Press had brought to light in his research on the early history of the police in 1972 that there had already been a prison below the city parish church in 1584 - where today's Metzgerbräu is.
In addition, a court case of "vagrancy" made it clear that there were major differences in social status in the penal system at that time.
"Beheading was only something for the upper class," said Schnitzer with a smug undertone.
Lower layers were hanged.
Namely, where today almost every tourist who comes to Bad Tölz goes for a selfie: on the Calvary.
The second Tölz place of execution was said to be where the Josefistift stands today.
Early prison below the parish church
It is thanks to the former police officer Johann Ertl from Lenggries, says Schnitzer, who appreciatively named his source for each sentence - as long as it is known - that the history of the local gendarmerie was documented.
According to this, the first written traces of a gendarmerie in Benediktbeuern can be found in 1883.
From this year there were also correspondence certificates between the stations in Jachenau and Lenggries and the Tölz main station.
The spectators laughed at Schnitzer's presentation of the official structures of the time.
He cited a letter between the stations.
It contained the explicitly stated rule: "If there is a new provision, this always cancels the old provision," says a directive from 1905. "Somehow nothing has changed to this day," said one listener, giggling.
In 1914 police officers announced the beginning of the First World War with a bell in the streets
The tasks of the police were regulated differently over the centuries.
In 1914, for example, a policeman and usher walked through the streets of Tölz ringing a bell to announce the start of the First World War.
"At that time, every municipality in Bavaria was obliged to have one person who was a police officer and a civil servant," explained Schnitzer.
In other words, he was half police officer and half magistrate employee.
In 1928, the building for the rural police was erected on Bahnhofstrasse, Schnitzer reported.
Because until the merger 50 years ago, the separate police forces worked together as partners.
The city police was housed in today's city museum.
“So the portrayal in the 'Bullen von Tölz' isn't all that wrong.
That's where Benno Berghammer's commissariat is located here," Schnitzer smiled before moving on to a dark chapter.
For in the Third Reich, the city and rural police had been effective instruments in the hands of the Nazi dictatorship.
"In half-monthly reports, the officials had to fill out a questionnaire on the population and their political attitudes, religious festivals and Jewish activities and send it to higher authorities for evaluation."
Police were in the city museum
In addition to the dark days of the police, Schnitzer also brought to light funny and weird events in a humorous way.
Like an unusual theft.
A steam roller was stolen in Lenggries.
A few days later, however, the police found it – properly parked – at Max-Höfler-Platz.
In July 1958, for example, the city police had the task of making pedestrians aware that the newly installed traffic lights for pedestrians at the crossing at the Isar Bridge were not only there for decoration, but should be observed.
He also captured the interest of the viewers with stories of manhunts.
No matter how hard the boys were on the road, one credo always applied: "crooks and police officers knew each other, talked to each other and respected each other," said Schnitzer.
As bouncers, the spectators were also amused by the stories about drunken driving by former mayors of Lenggries in 1960. "One name," says Schnitzer with a wink, "I'm not allowed to mention one name for data protection reasons." This led to one small anecdote after the other .
Until the end, the speaker slowly left the hall on Vichyplatz, chatting with former Tölz police officers.
More information
Christoph Schnitzer wrote criminal stories and their backgrounds in his book "Mordsgeschichten aus Bad Tölz und dem Isarwinkel".
Available online.
ISBN-13: 978-3000124211