Auschwitz began as a barracks camp in the town of Oswiecim, for the polish army in the early 1930's.
captured Poland and needed another location for Polish political prisoners. In 1940, the German SS sent a .
commission to Oswiecim to see if the barracks there could be used. The first inspection reported that it could not be .
used, however, a later inspection stated that after a few minor changes it would be useable. .
On May 4, 1940 Rudolf Hoss officially established it as a German concentration camp. Hoss was Auschwitz's first .
commandant. .
Auschwitz was originally intended for Polish political prisoners and other Poles. In June of 1940, the first load of .
prisoners arrived. 728 Poles and a handful of Jews. Soon, though, it became a melting pot of prisoners. Czechs, .
Soviets, Yugoslavs, Jews, and Gypsies; but only men were housed there. Not until 1942 did women arrive. .
In January of 1942 it was decided that Auschwitz would become the main Jewish extermination camp. Thereafter .
cattle cars brought in ship loads of Jews monthly. They were brought from all over in these filthy cars, going for .
days without food, water, or washing facilities. Many times these cars were so crowded that people were simply .
crushed to death. .
During the first few months of operation, Auschwitz simply housed the Jews because an effective method for mass .
extermination had not yet been found. They performed many experiments on the prisoners to find a gas that was .
cheap and quickly effective. Also, they had not yet begun cremating the bodies so they had prisoners dig huge .
trenches 15 ft. wide, 15 ft. deep, and 150 yds. long to bury them. These massive holes would be filled within days. .
However, during the summer, the bodies bloated and rotted and a disgusting purplish liquid began seeping up from .
these graves, smelling of bile and rotting flesh. Nearby fish farmers complained that their fish were dying from .
pollution caused by the rotting bodies.
The name Auschwitz rings terror to the ears of so many. ... Some think that at least 1,100,000 Jews from all of Europe died at Auschwitz. ... Auschwitz was actually a series of three camps. ... The second part was Auschwitz II also known as Auschwitz-Birkenau. ... Most of the victims of Auschwitz were murdered here. ...
Auschwitz Located thirty seven miles west of Krakow , Auschwitz was the camp where Jewish people were killed and were worked to death . ... The prisoners at Auschwitz mainly consisted of Jews . ... The best known doctor at Auschwitz was Josef Mangele . ... Auschwitz was made up of three parts : first Auschwitz was the main concentration camp and also the first and oldest . ... Birkenau was the largest part of the Auschwitz camp . ...
Auschwitz - Birkenau could hold up to 70,000 prisoners at a time. ... Thousands were dying a day at Auschwitz. ... Block ten was the medical experimentation center in Auschwitz. ... Word about Auschwitz, and other concentration camps spread. ... Auschwitz was the largest graveyard in human history. ...
Recently, there has been an ongoing debate on whether or not Auschwitz should be maintained. To our readers who may not know, Auschwitz was the biggest Nazi concentration camp during the Holocaust, consisting of 48 smaller concentration, extermination, and labour camps it comprised 3 large camps: Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II-Birkenau, and a work camp called Auschwitz III-Monowitz. ... Even with other countries helping however, Poland still funds 94% of the total funding of Auschwitz (again according to the BBC), so cost is still an issue. ... Former Auschwitz inmate Wladyslaw Bartoszewski made ...
One of the most famous camps, would be Auschwitz. ... In his novel, he wrote about Auschwitz being "the worst time of his life.... When arriving to Auschwitz, the unloading of rail transports of prisoners took place on a ramp beside the camp in the prison huts of Auschwitz I. ... They would be given their "souvenir" of their stay at Auschwitz. ... Although there were many different camps at the Auschwitz grounds, the main one is Auschwitz I. ...
It was a sign that hung over the gates of Auschwitz. ... The inmates of Auschwitz hardly had clothes. ... The doctors of Auschwitz played a crucial role. ... Resistance was almost impossible in Auschwitz. ... He came to Auschwitz in 1941. ...
Levi was a twenty four year old chemist when he arrived in Auschwitz. ... However, he survived eleven months in Auschwitz. ... However, it could be interpreted that he lost himself in Auschwitz. ... Primo Levi speaks of Auschwitz with the mentality of a prisoner. ... Perhaps Levi survived Auschwitz physically but not mentally. ...
Over the years Auschwitz began to expand into three separate parts. ... On March 1941, Himmler ordered the construction of Auschwitz II, or Birkenau, which was a larger section of the camp, 1.9 miles from Auschwitz I (Museum 1). Birkenau held up to 100,000 prisoners (Auschwitz) and was known as the most cruel and heartless section of Auschwitz. ... As soon as the prisoners arrived in Auschwitz they went through a process known as selection. ... Mengele voluntarily went to Auschwitz to conduct medical experiments, primarily on twins (Auschwitz). ...
That is what Auschwitz is all about. ... The people at Auschwitz had to deal with many hygiene problems. ... All of these terror took place in Block 10 of Auschwitz. ... The gas used was Zyklon B (Auschwitz, pg.23). ... Mengele or of Auschwitz only four out of ten people had. ...
