Auschwitz

There was at one time a custom of making prisoners wear striped clothing so that if they were to escape the prison, they could be more easily identified as escaped prisoners (at least until such time as they had a chance to get some new clothing). Even though inmates of concentration camps had not committed any crime and had not been convicted of anything, they were still prisoners, and so this was done it make it harder for them to successfully escape.

Some were forced to work and as long as they were able to perform their jobs they lived. Others were just lucky enough to not have their numbers called. NAZI's were killing as fast as they could but it took time and the unlucky ones were murdered before the Allies were able to stop the killing. Most of the ones who survived were just lucky. A very small number of Jews were used for office work in some camps - jobs such as sorting and listing valuables seized from new arrivals. Although they were fed miserable rations, the work was less strenuous than, for example, quarrying. Also those sent to the camps very late in the war stood a better chance of survival than others, provided they were 'selected' for work and not sent straight to the gas chambers. Psychological resilience may have helped some. However, as already stated, even these prisoners needed good luck. No amount of resilience could help against the outbreaks of disease that swept through many of the camps.

In November of 1944, in the face of the approaching allied Red Army, Himmler ordered gassings to stop and for a "clean-up" operation to be put in place in order to conceal traces of the mass murder and other crimes that they had committed. The Nazi's destroyed documents and dismantled, burned down or blew up the vast majority of buildings.

The orders for the final evacuation and liquidation of the camp were issued in mid-January 1945. The Germans left behind in the main Auschwitz camp, Birkenau and in Monowitz about 7,000 sick or incapacitated who they did not expect would live for long; the rest, approximately 58,000 people, were evacuated by foot into the depths of the Third Reich.

Those prisoners capable, began forcibly marching at the moment when Soviet soldiers were liberating Cracow, some 60 kilometers from the camp. In marching columns escorted by heavily armed SS guards, these 58,000 men and women prisoners were led out of Auschwitz from January 17-21. Many prisoners lost their lives during this tragic evacuation, known as the "Death March."

Auschwitz was a concentration and extermination camp.

It was the largest camp out of all of them.

It was the first camp to have gas chambers.

People that were in Auschwitz were told as they entered that if they worked hard, they would be set free (which was a lie).

The banner going into Auschwitz said "Arbeit Macht Frei", which is German for ' work makes one free'.

AUSCHWITZ The Auschwitz (Auschwitz-Birkenau) death camp was the site of the most killings of European Jews during the Holocaust. In 1941, 850 ill and malnourished Jews were killed in an experimental gassing there, and after its success, the Nazis started using this method as a daily routine. An estimated three million people were killed at Auschwitz through gassing, starvation, shooting, burning, and other methods. 9 out of 10 prisoners were Jews, but there were also large numbers of Soviet and other nations' POW's, gypsies, homosexuals, and others sent there. According to sources, Adolf Hitler personally ordered the mass executions at Auschwitz while visiting there once in 1940. Children were brought to the camp as well, but usually they didn't stay long. They were often killed as soon as they arrived, and chil

Around 7,000 SS Soldiers worked at Auschwitz Concentration Camp during the Holocaust.

Auschwitz had 3 big 'main' camps. They were called Auschwitz I, Auschwitz Birkenau and Auschwitz Monowitz. Monowitz was really a sub camp which was commonly used and when expanded did become as part of the main camps. Out of the lot, Auschwitz Birkenau was the biggest and most feared of as this part was about Extermination when the Final Solution was putted in place.

It has a continental climate with cold winters and hot summers.

I'll probably leave out a few of the intended groups, but the targets of the Nazi regime were (in no particular order): Gypsies, Jews, homosexuals, political dissidents, Jehova's Witnesses, Catholics, Slavs of any nationality, and the very old, mentally disabled or physically disabled.

The saying on the front gate is "Work will set you free."

The number of people in the Auschwitz complex at any one time was relatively small by comparison with the total number killed there. According to Wikipedia, there were between 13,000 and 16,000 prisoners in Auschwitz at one time. At least 1.1 million people were killed at Auschwitz during the holocaust, most of them shortly after arrival.

From 1772-1918 the town was in the Austrian Empire Oswiecim, and Auschwitz was its German name.

It was discovered by Nazi Germany after the Invasion of Poland in September 1939 and were converted to Labor/POW Camp but converted into Concentration Camp.

Auschwitz was Discovered by accident by the Allies April 4th 1944 but the Allies didn't do anything because at the time they still thought it was only used as a Labor Camp and didn't known it was Auschwitz but it wasn't until After the War where between April 1944 and December 26th 1944 where there were Photos taken of Auschwitz including Birkenau. In the photos, you could see the Gas Chambers, cattle wagons and people were selected for Working or be sent to the Gas Chambers.

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The Allies had of course heard about Auschwitz from escapees and local resistance groups, not to mention the detailed report of Vrba and Wexler.

Auschwitz hasn't actually been destroyed. It's still there and is a museum visted by thousands of people a year.

There are two parts to Auschwitz. There's the original camp (the one that has the famous Arbeit Macht Frei sign over the gate) and there's a newer one (Birkenau) which has the famous railway line leading into and under the main gate tower.

Birkenau was where the most killings were done and it's there that the main gas chanbers and crematoria were blown up by the Germans at the end of the war to destroy evidence. So to that extent you are right in asking why Auschwitz was destroyed, but be aware that only a small part of it was.

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The main site at Auschwitz (that is Auschwitz I, II and III) was liberated on 27 January 1945.

Please also see the related question.

The main ones were purpose- built. They looked like shower rooms, they had shower heads, though they were not connected to any water supply.

There were hollow pillars into which the gas pellets were dropped, there they were protected by gauze until they sublimated. In winter there would be additional heating as to allow the pellets to sublimate sooner.

The door was metal, with a glass peep-hole.

Eventually extractor fans were installed so that residual gas could be extracted before the Sonderkommando entered, wearing gas masks, to clear the corpses.

No, Auschwitz is actually 40 Miles west of Krakow and 214 Miles South, South West of Warsaw.

Auschwitz is the German name for the Polish town of Oswiecim, which is about 42 miles west of Krakow. The notorious concentration and extermination camps (actually a vast complex of camps) was well outside the town and surrounded by an exclusion zone while the camp was in operation.

The few remaining prisoners were nursed back to health, if possible, and sent home.

In 1947 the Polish government decided to preserve parts of Auschwitz I and II as a museum, and you can visit it ...

Large sections of Auschwitz I and II have been preserved as a museum.

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It is at the end of the railway line at Auschwitz II (Birkenau) between where Krematoria II and Krematoria III stood.

About 190,000 People died at Auschwitz I during the Holocaust.

The phrase was used by the Nazis purposefully so that the people coming there would think that it was a work camp and that there was a possibility that they would someday be released if they were cooperative and worked. There were thousands and thousands of Jews arriving each and every day. There were not enough German guards to contain them if they decided to riot and overthrow the Germans. So the phrase was used as a purposeful deception - and, unfortunately, it worked. The phrase is tragically ironic in that Nazi scientists planned out the diets of the prisoners at camps like Auschwitz. The prisoners were given just below the amount required to survive. As they worked, they were using these calories. As long as the prisoners worked, they were dying a death of slow starvation. The only liberty planned for the prisoners was death, and the work done at Auschwitz was the easiest way for the Nazis to reach that goal.

The distance between Warsaw and Auschwitz is 312km(192miles) by car.