Have you ever wondered what exactly happened in the concentration camps that the Nazis used during the Holocaust? How they treated the prisoners, how often did they get to eat, were the clothes they had suitable for the winter months. Now is your chance to see what really happened in at least one of these unbearable camps that were said to be just "Work Camps". The camp I am writing of is Bergen-Belsen.
Many think the only people in these camps were the Jews. Yes, they did make up the majority of the people there, but there were also non-Jews. These people found themselves being put in these camps not only because of their race but because some were political prisoners, homosexuals, and mentally ill. They treated the young , the old, the women, and the men alike. These are not the only types of prisoners, but they were the majority.
The camp started out as P.O.W. camp for the French and Belgian prisoners. In April 1943, the camp was converted into a concentration camp. The camp was split up into eight different camps: two women's camps, a detention camp, a special camp, a "star" camp, a neutrals camp, a Hungarian camp, and a tent camp. The detention camp held prisoners from other camps to construct Bergen-Belsen. The special camp was for Jews with papers from foreign countries. The "star" camp was for the Dutch Jews, because they had to wear the Yellow Star of David on their clothes instead of the camp uniform. The Hungarian camp housed more than 1,600 Hungarian Jews. The tent camp was for the over flow of sick, debilitated women prisoners. This camp was not considered to be a death camp although there were many people who died there. The reason .
It was not called a death camp was there was no gas chamber or crematories on the premises. So the main purpose of this camp was to work and starve these poor, helpless, innocent people to death. .
This camp was located in-between the small village of Belsen, and the larger village of Bergen.