After visiting Auschwitz there is no chance that I will ever forget what happened there.
One thing I really like about Auschwitz is how the tours were conducted. Each visitor was given a headset and their guide could quietly speak about the camp while we listened on the headsets. This meant that even though thousands of people are walking around it is basically silent.
Auschwitz itself is tiny. I was shocked by how small it was. In fact, it was ultimately too small, and that is why the camp was expanded to include Auschwitz II (Birkenau), and Auschwitz III (Monowitz, which was built to provided slave labor for IG Farbenindustrie A.G. and was ultimately destroyed. This was the camp were Elie Wiesel was imprisoned).
The basic functions of Auschwitz could be divided into three periods:
- from its founding in 1940 to the first months of 1942 it functioned exclusively as a concentration camp. That means it killed its population slowly, primarily by starvation, but also by creating inhuman living conditions.
- from the first months of 1942 through October 1944 the camp continued as a concentration camp, but also functioned as the largest center for the immediate, mass killing of Jews.
- in the final two months of its existence it entered the final phase of liquidation, which ended with forced evacuation of the prisoners.
In Building Four we learned about the deportation of Jews throughout Europe to Auschwitz. The Nazis were brilliant at subduing any panic by creating elaborate lies regarding relocation. We learned that in Greece, the scheme went so far as to require Jews to buy a train ticket for their "resettlement". They were told to pack a single suitcase per person. This meant that each suitcase would contain their most valuable items -saving time and energy for the Nazi plunder.
It is a (small) blessing that the Nazis were so methodical in their record keeping. Although many records were destroyed, many remain to give voice and proof to the atrocities committed.
It is a (small) blessing that the Nazis were so methodical in their record keeping. Although many records were destroyed, many remain to give voice and proof to the atrocities committed.
The Nazis carried out experiments to determine the most effective agent and method for use in the gas chambers. About 600 Soviet POWs and 250 sick Poles were killed during these experiments. They settled on Zyklon B - ironically created by a Jewish scientist for killing vermin.
In Birkenau the elaborate (and calming) scheme of relocation/resettlement continued by installing shower heads in the gas chamber. They would tell the prisoners that after their long train journey they needed to undress and shower before moving to their new accommodations. They were told that they should neatly hang their clothes on the provided hangers and be sure to remember the hanger number for when they were finished.
In Auschwitz I the canisters were simply opened and dumped into the chamber. The primary agent of Zyklon B is cyanide. The Nazis computed how many many people per square foot it would take to reach the temperature at which the gas would be activated so as not to use additional resources in releasing the poison.
After they were killed their heads were shaved (the hair woven into fabric the Nazis then sold for profit or used to make military items like blankets). Any jewelry and gold or metal dental work was removed as well. The Nazis enlisted Sonderkommando units to clear the chambers, rob, and burn the bodies. These were generally men who came in the train and were deemed unfit for work at selection. They were given a choice - die with the rest or become Sonderkommando. This meant that frequently those robbing and burning the bodies were from the same train transport, the same town, and sometimes the same family as the dead. It is horrifying.
As part of the liquidation of the camps (liquidation of the evidence of their crimes, really) crematoria II and III were blown up in January 1945. Crematorium IV was partially destroyed by a Sonderkommando mutiny on October 7, 1944 and later dismantled. Crematoria V functioned until the end and was blown up on January 26, 1945 - the day before the camp was liberated.
Crematorium I - was demolished in 1943, but the Allies found original pieces of the furnace and were able to recreate the building.
Crematoria II and III
Prayer Shawls - Jewish men are buried in the prayer shawl so the only way these exist to be displayed is proof that Jewish men were denied a proper burial.
At the Holocaust museum in Washington DC there are shoes. Here you are not allowed to take pictures of the victims hair, but you can take photos of the shoes.
This entire hallway is filled floor to ceiling with shoes.
In the early years a mug shot was taken of each prisoner. Here you can see a triangle sewn on his shirt. These triangles were color coded for ease of identification: red = political prisoners (mostly Poles), green = criminals (mostly Germans), black = asocial (mostly Gypsies), purple = Jehovah's Witnesses, Pink = homosexuals. The Jews were mostly marked as political prisoners, at first they were given a red triangle with an inverted yellow triangle to form a Star of David, later the red triangle was overlain with a narrow yellow rectangular stripe.
Auschwitz was opened in a former Polish army barracks consisting of 20 buildings, later another 8 buildings were erected. The camp was designed to hold about 700 prisoners, but in practice it held closer to 1,200. During the first months of the camps the buildings had no furniture (including no beds). The prisoners initially slept on straw, then straw mattresses.
They were required to to pile the mattresses in the corners after morning reveille. The rooms were so overcrowded that prisoners could only sleep on their sides, in three rows.
The infamous three-tiered bunks began appearing in February 1941.
The building each had a lavatory that contained 22 toilets, urinals, and washbasins with trough-like drains and 42 spigots installed above them. Access was was strictly limited.
At Birkenau, there were existing brick barracks in the oldest part of the camp, and wooden barracks were added later (in fact, construction in Birkenau never stopped ... and the camp is mind-blowingly enormous).
Old foundations...are far as the eye can see.
Each barrack (block) in Birkenau had 180 sleeping partitions, each designed to hold 4 people. The SS envisioned each block with a capacity of 700. At first the blocks had earthen floors. This also meant that the prisoners on the bottom level were routinely sleeping on flooded, wet bunks. Later a single layer of bricks was laid, or a thin layer of concrete poured. The blocks were "heated" with two iron stoves that did not possess the capacity to actually heat the space, nor were there any toilets or sanitary facilities. These were only added to blocks in 1944.
Lice and rats were a constant problem in the camps and epidemics of contagious disease erupted frequently.
Our guide told us, however, that the despite the overall disgusting-ness of the toilets the women who were ScheisseKommanders (literally shit commanders) felt very fortunate. They were exempted from the back-breaking labor that others in the camp were required to perform, and generally they were left alone by the guards. One prisoner wrote that her promotion to ScheisseKommand was one of the happiest days of her captivity.
You may have heard that prisoners were not fed. Lies! They were fed three meals a day ...
In Birkenau the elaborate (and calming) scheme of relocation/resettlement continued by installing shower heads in the gas chamber. They would tell the prisoners that after their long train journey they needed to undress and shower before moving to their new accommodations. They were told that they should neatly hang their clothes on the provided hangers and be sure to remember the hanger number for when they were finished.
In Auschwitz I the canisters were simply opened and dumped into the chamber. The primary agent of Zyklon B is cyanide. The Nazis computed how many many people per square foot it would take to reach the temperature at which the gas would be activated so as not to use additional resources in releasing the poison.
After they were killed their heads were shaved (the hair woven into fabric the Nazis then sold for profit or used to make military items like blankets). Any jewelry and gold or metal dental work was removed as well. The Nazis enlisted Sonderkommando units to clear the chambers, rob, and burn the bodies. These were generally men who came in the train and were deemed unfit for work at selection. They were given a choice - die with the rest or become Sonderkommando. This meant that frequently those robbing and burning the bodies were from the same train transport, the same town, and sometimes the same family as the dead. It is horrifying.
As part of the liquidation of the camps (liquidation of the evidence of their crimes, really) crematoria II and III were blown up in January 1945. Crematorium IV was partially destroyed by a Sonderkommando mutiny on October 7, 1944 and later dismantled. Crematoria V functioned until the end and was blown up on January 26, 1945 - the day before the camp was liberated.
Crematorium I - was demolished in 1943, but the Allies found original pieces of the furnace and were able to recreate the building.
Crematoria II and III
Prayer Shawls - Jewish men are buried in the prayer shawl so the only way these exist to be displayed is proof that Jewish men were denied a proper burial.
At the Holocaust museum in Washington DC there are shoes. Here you are not allowed to take pictures of the victims hair, but you can take photos of the shoes.
This entire hallway is filled floor to ceiling with shoes.
In the early years a mug shot was taken of each prisoner. Here you can see a triangle sewn on his shirt. These triangles were color coded for ease of identification: red = political prisoners (mostly Poles), green = criminals (mostly Germans), black = asocial (mostly Gypsies), purple = Jehovah's Witnesses, Pink = homosexuals. The Jews were mostly marked as political prisoners, at first they were given a red triangle with an inverted yellow triangle to form a Star of David, later the red triangle was overlain with a narrow yellow rectangular stripe.
Auschwitz was opened in a former Polish army barracks consisting of 20 buildings, later another 8 buildings were erected. The camp was designed to hold about 700 prisoners, but in practice it held closer to 1,200. During the first months of the camps the buildings had no furniture (including no beds). The prisoners initially slept on straw, then straw mattresses.
They were required to to pile the mattresses in the corners after morning reveille. The rooms were so overcrowded that prisoners could only sleep on their sides, in three rows.
The infamous three-tiered bunks began appearing in February 1941.
The building each had a lavatory that contained 22 toilets, urinals, and washbasins with trough-like drains and 42 spigots installed above them. Access was was strictly limited.
At Birkenau, there were existing brick barracks in the oldest part of the camp, and wooden barracks were added later (in fact, construction in Birkenau never stopped ... and the camp is mind-blowingly enormous).
Old foundations...are far as the eye can see.
Each barrack (block) in Birkenau had 180 sleeping partitions, each designed to hold 4 people. The SS envisioned each block with a capacity of 700. At first the blocks had earthen floors. This also meant that the prisoners on the bottom level were routinely sleeping on flooded, wet bunks. Later a single layer of bricks was laid, or a thin layer of concrete poured. The blocks were "heated" with two iron stoves that did not possess the capacity to actually heat the space, nor were there any toilets or sanitary facilities. These were only added to blocks in 1944.
Lice and rats were a constant problem in the camps and epidemics of contagious disease erupted frequently.
Our guide told us, however, that the despite the overall disgusting-ness of the toilets the women who were ScheisseKommanders (literally shit commanders) felt very fortunate. They were exempted from the back-breaking labor that others in the camp were required to perform, and generally they were left alone by the guards. One prisoner wrote that her promotion to ScheisseKommand was one of the happiest days of her captivity.
You may have heard that prisoners were not fed. Lies! They were fed three meals a day ...
- Breakfast - half a liter of "coffee" (hot water with a coffee substitute) or "tea" (various herbal brews)
- Lunch - one liter of soup (main ingredients were generally potatoes, rutabaga, small amounts of groats and/or rye flour)
- Dinner - 300 grams of black bread (intended to cover the morning meal as well) served with 25 grams of sausage or margarine or a tablespoon of marmalade or cheese
The working day began for prisoners at 04:30 in the summer and 05:30 in the winter. They were woken up by a gong and had only a few minutes in which to relieve themselves, wash, and drink their coffee/tea. At the second gong they were required to muster for roll call in the square.
Eventually morning and noon roll calls were abandoned in favor of prolonging the work day. The prisoners would return from work with an SS escort, often carrying the corpses of those who had died or been killed during the day. Evening roll call began at 19:00 and could last for hours if there was a discrepancy in the numbers.
Punishment could be doled out for a variety of offences including trying to acquire additional food, shirking work duties, smoking or relieving oneself at an improper time, wearing non-regulation clothing, and attempting suicide. Punishments were also completely arbitrary. Prisoners received different punishments for the same offenses. The most frequent punishments were flogging, confinement in "Block 11", and "the post".
Prisoners were flogged publicly during evening roll call or in the courtyard of Block 11. SS or prisoner functionaries used either heavy sticks or bullwhips. Prisoners were often required to count the number of blows they received in German. If they lost count the punishment started over at the beginning.
Courtyard of Block 11
Block 11 punishments included the use of regular cells, dark cells, and standing cells. The regular cells had windows that were partially bricked over. Inmates could sleep on wooden bunks.
The dark cells, had vents covered by metal screens with small air holes punched in them. Prisoners slept on the bare floor. Confinement in a dark cell could last several days to several weeks. Prisoners who were sentenced to death by starvation (generally for escape attempts or held as hostages in reprisal for the escape of others) were also held in dark cells.
Death by starvation was also applied as a penalty to the camp after prisoner escapes. During roll call, the SS would select hostages from the escapees work detail or camp block. They were held in the dark cells, without food, until the escapee was caught. In all known cases, the hostages starved to death. During the selection of hostages at the end of July/beginning of August 1941 a Franciscan christian, Maksymilian Kolbe, volunteered to take the place of another hostage. After two weeks, he was killed with a lethal injection. His cell is still honored with candles and wreaths to mark his extraordinary sacrifice.
Standing cells measured less than 1 square meter each (telephone booth) with the only air source a 5 x 5 centimeter opening covered with a metal grill. Entry to the standing cell was a small, floor-level opening that closed with bars and a wooden hatch. Four prisoners were confined per cell overnight. In the morning they were required to go to work. Confinement could last from several nights to several weeks.
The post - the victim's hands were tied behind their back and they were hung from the post.
You can see the metal hooks near the top of the posts.
The punishment was usually inflicted for several hours (one hour at a time because the prisoner generally lost consciousness because of the intense pain). This punishment generally resulted in the tendons in the shoulders rupturing, thus rendering the prisoner "unfit to work" and putting them in jeopardy of being sent to the gas chambers.
Oh yeah, there was also a good, old-fashioned, firing squad at Block 11. The majority of these executions were carried out in the courtyard of Block 11 against a specially constructed "Death Wall"
The prisoners had to strip naked in a changing room on the ground floor of Block 11. Then were led in pairs to the wall where SS officers would approach from behind and shoot them in the back of the head. Occasionally, there wouldn't be a very big group for executions so the SS would simply shoot them in the changing rooms.
Hangings took place sporadically, but always in public - generally during roll call. The most notorious hanging was that of 12 prisoners from the surveyors' labor detail on July 19, 1943 in reprisal for the escape of 3 others from that detail.
Gallows
The "hospital" eventually consisted of several blocks: Block 19 for convalescing prisoners, Block 20 for contagious diseases, Block 21 as the surgical block, and Block 28 for internal medicine. Records were routinely falsified here. Causes of death were routinely altered (e.g. Maksymilian Kolbe's cause of death is listed as myocardia), and when larger groups were put to death the death dates were spread out over several weeks.
In all actuality, these "hospitals" provided no real care to the sick and wounded. This courtyard was used to "quarantine" patients who were unlikely to recover. They were sentenced to the courtyard to recover or die (or become sick enough to be killed) regardless of the season. They were also often subject to medical experiments with many dying or suffering permanent injury as a result. The monster, Josef Mengele, was carrying out his own horrific experiments (he loved twins - built in control sample) at Auschwitz.
The infirmary was also a hotbed of clandestine resistance - many were saved because of this.
Block 10 was used for sterilization experiments. Between 150 and 400 Jewish women were held in the 2 upstairs rooms and used for experimentation. Many patients died during these procedures. Others were purposely murdered so autopsies could be performed. Only a small number of those subjected to experimentation survived.
On January 27, 1945 soldiers of the 60th Army of the First Ukrainian Front opened the gates of Auschwitz Concentration Camp. Approximately 1.3 million people lost their lives in Auschwitz, more than 1 million of them Jews.
The camp commander lived just outside the gates. In the house amidst those trees. He claimed he had no idea about the atrocities occurring just yards away from his home.
He was later hung, just feet away from the camp.
So many lives lost, so many lives permanently scarred. And we, just walked past the "halt sign" and through the barbed wire to the other side.
Punishment could be doled out for a variety of offences including trying to acquire additional food, shirking work duties, smoking or relieving oneself at an improper time, wearing non-regulation clothing, and attempting suicide. Punishments were also completely arbitrary. Prisoners received different punishments for the same offenses. The most frequent punishments were flogging, confinement in "Block 11", and "the post".
Prisoners were flogged publicly during evening roll call or in the courtyard of Block 11. SS or prisoner functionaries used either heavy sticks or bullwhips. Prisoners were often required to count the number of blows they received in German. If they lost count the punishment started over at the beginning.
Courtyard of Block 11
Block 11 punishments included the use of regular cells, dark cells, and standing cells. The regular cells had windows that were partially bricked over. Inmates could sleep on wooden bunks.
The dark cells, had vents covered by metal screens with small air holes punched in them. Prisoners slept on the bare floor. Confinement in a dark cell could last several days to several weeks. Prisoners who were sentenced to death by starvation (generally for escape attempts or held as hostages in reprisal for the escape of others) were also held in dark cells.
Death by starvation was also applied as a penalty to the camp after prisoner escapes. During roll call, the SS would select hostages from the escapees work detail or camp block. They were held in the dark cells, without food, until the escapee was caught. In all known cases, the hostages starved to death. During the selection of hostages at the end of July/beginning of August 1941 a Franciscan christian, Maksymilian Kolbe, volunteered to take the place of another hostage. After two weeks, he was killed with a lethal injection. His cell is still honored with candles and wreaths to mark his extraordinary sacrifice.
Standing cells measured less than 1 square meter each (telephone booth) with the only air source a 5 x 5 centimeter opening covered with a metal grill. Entry to the standing cell was a small, floor-level opening that closed with bars and a wooden hatch. Four prisoners were confined per cell overnight. In the morning they were required to go to work. Confinement could last from several nights to several weeks.
The post - the victim's hands were tied behind their back and they were hung from the post.
You can see the metal hooks near the top of the posts.
The punishment was usually inflicted for several hours (one hour at a time because the prisoner generally lost consciousness because of the intense pain). This punishment generally resulted in the tendons in the shoulders rupturing, thus rendering the prisoner "unfit to work" and putting them in jeopardy of being sent to the gas chambers.
Oh yeah, there was also a good, old-fashioned, firing squad at Block 11. The majority of these executions were carried out in the courtyard of Block 11 against a specially constructed "Death Wall"
The prisoners had to strip naked in a changing room on the ground floor of Block 11. Then were led in pairs to the wall where SS officers would approach from behind and shoot them in the back of the head. Occasionally, there wouldn't be a very big group for executions so the SS would simply shoot them in the changing rooms.
Hangings took place sporadically, but always in public - generally during roll call. The most notorious hanging was that of 12 prisoners from the surveyors' labor detail on July 19, 1943 in reprisal for the escape of 3 others from that detail.
Gallows
The "hospital" eventually consisted of several blocks: Block 19 for convalescing prisoners, Block 20 for contagious diseases, Block 21 as the surgical block, and Block 28 for internal medicine. Records were routinely falsified here. Causes of death were routinely altered (e.g. Maksymilian Kolbe's cause of death is listed as myocardia), and when larger groups were put to death the death dates were spread out over several weeks.
In all actuality, these "hospitals" provided no real care to the sick and wounded. This courtyard was used to "quarantine" patients who were unlikely to recover. They were sentenced to the courtyard to recover or die (or become sick enough to be killed) regardless of the season. They were also often subject to medical experiments with many dying or suffering permanent injury as a result. The monster, Josef Mengele, was carrying out his own horrific experiments (he loved twins - built in control sample) at Auschwitz.
The infirmary was also a hotbed of clandestine resistance - many were saved because of this.
Block 10 was used for sterilization experiments. Between 150 and 400 Jewish women were held in the 2 upstairs rooms and used for experimentation. Many patients died during these procedures. Others were purposely murdered so autopsies could be performed. Only a small number of those subjected to experimentation survived.
On January 27, 1945 soldiers of the 60th Army of the First Ukrainian Front opened the gates of Auschwitz Concentration Camp. Approximately 1.3 million people lost their lives in Auschwitz, more than 1 million of them Jews.
The camp commander lived just outside the gates. In the house amidst those trees. He claimed he had no idea about the atrocities occurring just yards away from his home.
He was later hung, just feet away from the camp.
So many lives lost, so many lives permanently scarred. And we, just walked past the "halt sign" and through the barbed wire to the other side.
Always...
