November 7 th, 1938 a Jewish boy shot a Nazi official in Paris Nazis used this event to increase pressure on the Jewish population of Germany The Nazis claimed the “Night of Broken Glass” was a case of public outrage, not government sponsored violence

In one night, Jews were attacked and their property vandalized People were grabbed out of their homes & beaten or killed, windows smashed on Jewish stores

Property Damage; Over 7,000 Jewish shops 1,668 synagogues 91 dead (official number) 30,000 men, women & children were then sent to concentration camps

Ghettos were “holding/staging” places for the Jews of Europe The Warsaw was the largest ghetto with ~400,000 people living there. (30% of the population living in 2.4% of the city’s area)

Ghettos were “unofficially” run by a group of Jews called Judenrat (Jewish council) They were responsible for the day-to-day running of the ghetto They were also responsible for picking people to be sent to camps

Diets were restricted to 300 calories a day. People need ~2,000 a day to survive Nazis tried to dehumanize the residence of the Ghettos No school for the children No worship/holiday’s Jewish Ration Card

“The Germans came, the police, and they started banging houses: “Raus, raus, raus, Juden raus.”…[O]ne baby started to cry…another started to cry. So the mother…gave the baby a drink to keep quiet…[When the police were gone] I told the mothers to come out. And one baby was dead…from fear, the mother had choked her own baby.” - Experience from a ghetto

There were 14 major camps 50% of the people in the concentration camps died Concentration camps were never meant to be “death camps” It’s estimated that the Nazi government created 15,000 camps in Nazi Europe (most in Poland)

Jews were forced into cattle cars and sent to these camps Many never survived the journey They were treated as animals

Jewish men, women & children were forced to work hours a day They would literally be worked to death To keep track of the people, some Nazi camp leaders would have them tattooed with a number

Single Triangle Red – Political enemies Green - Criminals Blue – Foreign workers Purple – Bible/Religious students Pink – Sexual offenders Black – “asocial” Mentally handicapped, Drug addicts, Alcoholics, etc… Brown – Gypsies

Double Triangle – Jewish person Strip above triangle – Repeat offender Yellow & Black Star of David – Race Defiler Red circle – Escape suspect

Himmler was wanting an absolute solution to the Jews in Europe The German Army officers were opposed to killing of Jews used in labor camps, due to many reasons; one being the humanitarian sentiment

In all of German occupied Europe, there were 6.5 million Jews The goal is that all these Jews would be sent to camps, and one way or another put to death Those unfit would be gassed right away, all others would be kept alive until they were not useful

Public opinion was indifference. People were more interested in the war, than what was happening to a specific group of people

Groups of Germany troops would travel with the army and kill anyone who were deemed undesirable At first victims were shot in front of ditches Then mobile gas trucks were used to protect the German troops

Main purpose was the killing of people People confuse Concentration Camps with Death Camps There were 8 Extermination Camps built

Camp NameTotal Killed (approximate) Auschwitz II1,400,000 Belzec600,000 Chelmno320,000 Jasenovac58,000-97,000 Majdanek360,000 Maly Trostinets65,000 Sobibor250,000 Treblinka870,000

Once at the camps prisoners were sent either to the; Right - Life/Work Left – Gas Chambers Those going to the gas chamber were told they were going to get a shower

Daily life started at 4:30 am Roll call outside no matter what the weather was 12 hours of work per day, 7 days a week, with no breaks Bathroom breaks were timed, and that time had to be made up Roll call after the work day If someone was missing, everyone had to stay outside, sometimes for hours Punishments handed out if needed

Food was handed out Typically a chunk of bread and some water Curfews were strictly enforced Prisoners were sent to the bunks to sleep on wooden bunks They laid on their clothes & shoes to prevent them from being stolen Elie Wiesel

Medical experiments were conducted on prisoners Nazi “doctors” used prisoners as guinea pigs Twins & children were used often by Dr. Mengele Many times diseases were injected into the people, limbs sown on, pain tests, military experiments & body changing experiments

Gas Chambers Crematoriums

British & Americans were shocked to find these camps “[T]roops found sights, sounds, & stenches horrible beyond belief, cruelties so enormous as to be incomprehensible to the normal mind.”

Americans started to provide food to the people of the camps Later, doctors told the troops that they would have to take food away from the starving people of the camps

Too weak to handle “real” food these men had to suck on sugar cubes to gain strength back. When British & American troops entered the camp they gave the people K-rations This actually killed some of the people due to shock

After the camps were cleared of survivors, Allied troops made German citizens enter the camps to see what had been happening around them War trials were set to make those responsible for these crimes face a judgment that their victims never got