Concentration Camps

Dachau March 20, 1933 Heinrich Himmler announces the establishment of the first concentration camp Theodor Eicke – chief inspector of the camps Dachau, Germany 9 miles NW of Munich

Dachau March 22, 1933 first group of prisoners arrive Surrounded by electrified fence Planned to hold 5,000 prisoners at a time Held 12,000 by ,000 at liberation 206,206 prisoners were registered Estimated 50,000 death took place First Prisoners Primarily political prisoners, habitual criminals, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witness, and others considered “problematic”

Dachau Registration tags worn

Dachau Types of Concentration Camp - generic term for the prison camps Extermination camps - six in Poland mass murder took place Auschwitz Labor Camps - maintained for the purpose of exploiting slave labor Dachau Krakow

Dachau

,000 Jews arrive Main gate sign “Arbeit Macht Frei”

Dachau Two crematoria 1942 gas chamber is built Used? Medical experiments conducted

Dachau April 29, 1945 liberated by the US 7 th Army 27,400 prisoners left alive in camp

Vocabulary Final Solution The systematic murder of all the Jews in Europe First used at the Wannsee Conference in Berlin in 1942 Carried out by the SS “Shutzstaffel” – protection units Leader Heinrich Himmler Holocaust Refers to the period from Jan 1933 to May 8, millions is the figure accepted Non-Jews another 6 million

Vocabulary continue Jew Anyone with 3 Jewish grandparents Anyone with 2 Jewish grandparents who belonged to the Jewish community Anyone married to a Jew/Jewess Anyone who was the offspring of a liaison with a Jew Righteous among the Nations Refers to those non-Jews who aided Jews Judenrat Council of Jews appointed by the Nazi in the ghettos

Who knew? Was known by most of the European gov. before WWII started 1942 US knew Decision was made not use air power to bomb camps or RR into these camps Authenticity was not discovered until 1945 at the time of liberation Would the bombing of the camps been effective? 15,000 camps all over E. Europe