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Auschwitz
Auschwitz was a Nazi controlled concentration, extermination and labor camp located in Poland. Opened in 1940, the camp was liberated in 1945 by Soviet troops. Questions and answers about Auschwitz can be found here.
731 Questions
What work did the Jews do at Auschwitz?
They were put to forced labor in mining or the German armaments industry; some crushed rock, some forged documents, money and works of art, some moved rocks, some built V-2 Rockets, some stacked rocks, some, as subjects, were abused in scientific and pseudo-scientific experiments, but mostly they were made until they died or were no longer fit to work and were sent to die. The nature of their work wasn't important (in principle) to the Nazis. They were rented out as laborers for a pittance. This pittance times millions filled the SS coffers, and nothing was wasted. The prisoners' hair was sold at 50 pfennig per kilo (7 tons were confiscated at Auschwitz), and before cremation their gold teeth were extracted as Judengeld for the support of the war effort.
Who was involved in Auschwitz?
Millions of people were involved in the Holocaust. It affected the lives of almost all Jews in Europe (approximately six million were killed) as well as gypsies, homosexuals, and other minority groups. It was perpetrated by Adolf Hitler, Himmler, the SS and other Germans, and Europeans in occupied countries who collaborated with the Germans or looked the other way.
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The word involved is vague. It is common to divide those involved into three groups:
- The victims
- The perpetrators (the people who killed, and also those who transported the victims to killing centres and so on. This group can be extended).
- The bystanders. That is the people who knew what was happening and did nothing about it.
How many Jews died in the Auschwitz extermination camp?
Probably about 1 million at Auschwitz. The overall number of Jews killed in the Holocaust is traditionally given as 6 million.
How is the Holocaust remembered?
There are numerous ways people remember the Holocaust.
- Yad Vashem in Israel honors the victims, survivors, and the ones who helped Jews during that time.
- Yom HaShoah is the Holocaust Memorial Day in Israel.
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) in Washington D.C. is full of information.
- January 27 is the international Holocaust Memorial day, as Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated January 27, 1945.
- Movies, television shows, and docudramasset during the Holocaust include true stories.
- Biographies such as The Diary of Anne Frank give us a reminder.
How did they transport the Jews?
he drug them behind his car. they were tied by their ankles and drug. pretty brutal. there were about 4 behind every car.
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Completely WRONG. Hitler had them moved by the hundreds in box cars. (trains) The trip was brutal and many died on the trip by starvation and disease.
What methods were used to kill in Auschwitz?
the prisoners, once sent to concentration camps, were split into two lines: one went to work to death, literally, and the other went to the gas chamber. after being gassed they were incinerated in a nearby oven.
What type of jobs did they do in Auschwitz?
Strange as it may sound, some were involved in the manufacture of products like the V-2 rocket, the counterfitting of US and English money and art objects. Most however were involved in manual labor. one of the most popular jobs at work camps was working in the toilets. sure it smelled a bit but you were always in doors and away from the German patrols
Did people know about Auschwitz when it opened?
This is one of the Horror stories of WW2. If people were taken straight from the transport train to the gas chambers, they no doubt thought they were just going to the showers, but, if they had been taken to the main camp, and then at a later stage were removed during the 'selection' system, then I am afraid they KNEW!!
There is the story of a Rabbi who was on his way to the Chamber with hundreds of Women and Children, who prayed to God, and Said something to the effect; "God, if you are real, save my people from this horror" Then, as the 'shower' doors closed on him and his people, he was hear to shout, "You are not a True God, you do not exist, it's all been a lie!!" and then the doors closed, and the gas entered.
This story, with the name of the Rabbi was told by people who were still alive when the Russians entered this Camp in Poland, and shows the true horror of all this.
The next question that could be asked, is just how could people do this, to other human beings? There is no true answer to this!
We, in our 'safe' lives, would say, " I would not do this, I would refuse!" But think about it? Would you refuse, if it meant you were pushed in with these poor people? WELL, MAYBE some of us would! But many of us would just do what we were told to do.
The sad thing about this is, that after the second or third time you did this, you would start not to even think about it anymore.
Which is why, nothing has changed in this World. The same things are being done right now in many parts of the World, though not in the same massive numbers.
History tends to repeat it's self, and if you read History, you will find many incidents of this nature, people killing other people, and in the past in very large numbers.
Only the Methods changed. In WW2 Science was used, not the sword as in the 'old' days.
What was written above the gates of Auschwitz?
"Arbeit Macht Frei", Which is supposed to mean "Work makes one free". This was the most infamous slogan of World War II, especially on the gates of Auschwitz-Birkenau, where the innocent victims, mostly Jews were deceived from the terrible end that they would eventually face.
What was the treatment of prisoners at the Auschwitz camp?
Answer
They were treated like scum, they had to work all day doing pointless things like cleaning batteries. They ate watery soup with different types of bugs in it. They slept in basically cabinet like beds and slept with thousands of other people. Then, they either got poisoned by showers, died of diseases, or died of too much work.
- Most were killed as soon as practical after arrival.
- Some were selected for work as slave labourers and worked to death.
- Some were used for 'medical' experiments.
- Some died when the camps were evacuated on foot (death marches) in January 1945.
- A few survived.
They were all treated appallingly.
What are some people that died in concentration camps during the Holocaust?
There was a distinction in Nazi Germany beyween extermantion camps and concentration camps. Concentration camps held Jews, political prisoners, criminals, homosexuals, gypsies and the mentally ill who were forced to undertake labour. Many of these prisoners died due to poor treatment, from disease, starvation and overwork, or were executed as unfit for labour.
The extermination camps were created to allow murder to occur on an industrial scale. The vast majority of these victims were Jews but also included the handicapped, and those with criminal records.
For more information on this topic, please see the related links.
How do you pronounce Auschwitz?
The pronunciation is (OWSH-vits) - the German AU has the OW sound as in haus. The first syllable is stressed.
How many Nazi soldiers were there?
How many barracks did Auschwitz have?
It in unclear whether you are asking how many sections and sub-camps Auschwitz had, or whether you want to know the total number of death camps. Auschwitz was a vast complex and had about 40 satellite camps, some of them over 80 miles from the main camp. * Auschwitz I was the original camp, built in 1940 for Polish dissidents and intellectuals. It was later used for a wide range of prisoners and was an extremely harsh forced labour camp, where most of the prisoners were worked to death. * Auschwitz II (Birkenau) was the section with the (main) gas chambers. It was primarily an extermination camp. Most new arrivals were gassed soon after arrival. Auschwitz II also housed a forced labour camp for women. For a time the women who worked there were allowed to keep their children. For about 12 months from November 1943 onwards Birkenau was a separate camp, but was then merged back into the Auschwitz network. * Auschwitz III (Monowitz) was a 'private entreprise camp', built and owned by I.-G. Farben and was a chemicals plant producing polymers. Though owned privately, the day-to-day supervision of the workforce was in the hands of the SS. For a list of all the Nazi extermination camps please see the related question below.
How many people were in Auschwitz at one time?
The numbers varied from time to time based on the efficency of the killing systems efficiency and how efficiency was carried out efficiently in efficently efficient ways (abz, hana n sam xxx) and the labor requirements were required in requirements! In August of 1944 the official roll call indicated a prisoner count of 105,168, In January of 1945 to avoid the advancing Soviets, 58 thousand were marched away from the camp leaving only the sick behind. When the camp was liberated on 27 January 1945 about 7000 of them remained alive.
What was the significance of the Auschwitz concentratoin camp?
Auschwitz was the biggest Nazi concentration camp and also the biggest death camp. (Estimated death toll 1.3 million according to the German Wikipedia article on Auschwitz). More than any other camp, it has come to epitomize the Holocaust and all the horrors of Nazism. Part of it is now a museum.
When did the selection process began at Auschwitz and how did it work?
At the Auschwitz complex of camps, some newly arrived Jews were selected for work - and the rest were usually gassed as soon as possible. Selection in this sense only took place on a large scale at camps that were both extermination camps and labour camps - namely Auschwitz and Majdanek.
At all the extermination camps a small number of new arrivals were sometimes selected to help with the extermination process, for example by digging graves, and some had to help the SS sort the victims belongings.
A medical officer like Dr. Mengele said to go left or right. One line was if your healthy and you would go work. The others were gassed as soon as possible.
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In addition to 'selection' on arrival, 'selections' would take place at any time. (A good example of this is in Schindler's List when the ladies are trying to make their cheeks red and they have to run around)
Often they would happen at roll call, but selection could happen at any time.
What were the methods of killing at Auschwitz?
The Holocaust victims were lined up naked in front of a large hole. They were then shot and fell into their grave. Also, much more sinisterly, the prisoners were told they would be allowed to shower, and locked into a fake showering facility, where they were gassed with hydrocyanic acid (Zyklon B). The main methods were: * Mass open air shootings (especially in the Soviet Union) * Gassing * Hard manual labour on insufficient food * Confining the victims in ghettos with insufficient food, poor sanitation and severe overcrowding that led to the spread of killer diseases
Why is Auschwitz the most notorious concentration camp?
Auschwitz, located at the intersection of several Polish cities, making it easily accessible from cities in German-occupied Europe. Auschwitz was the worst concentration camp because the goal of the camp was the extermination and elimination of all the prisoners admitted to the camp.
Yes. Auschwitz was #1 an extermination camp for men, women and children and also #2 a slave labour camp for women as well as men.
How bad was Auschwitz concentration camp?
With the mass starvation of the Jewish people, followed by gassing utilizing Zyklon B, it was worse than anyone can even imagine (although the photos of emaciated people behind barbed wire, in a state of near total undress is quite graphic, to say the least).
Worse than you can imagine. Trust me on this one.
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Elie Wiesel's autobiographical account Night will give you some idea of life at Auschwitz for those 'selected' for work.
What was the purpose of buchenwald concentration camps?
The main purpose of the camp was to terrorize political opponents of the Nazi regime.
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It was all apart of the master plan, they were to make the "eligible" prisoners work until they were nothing but skin and bones, most died from malnutrition or suicide. The others were taken to the gas chambers and "exterminated" immediately. After they had been killed they were cremated.
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Dachau was intended mainly for political prisoners but in the later stages also took other prisoners. It was not an extermination camp and it did not have any large gas chamber.
Who is the infamous Nazi doctor presiding over the Auschwitz arrivals?
It sounds as if you are thinking of Josef Mengele.
How many people could fit inside an Auschwitz gas chamber?
The size of the gas chambers varied and was geared to the size of the crematoria.
The capacities were as follows (per 24 hours):
- Crematorium I (abandoned as too small) - about 340 people
- Crematoria II and III - up to 2,500 people in one session
- Crematoria IV and V - up to 1,500
The capacities were limited only by the capacity to dispose of the bodies, the chambers could be re-used within about four hours. During most of the Holocaust the SS had more 'gassing capacity' than it needed.
