German Concentration Camps

Theresienstadt Ghetto as painted by one of the inmates during the war. All photos and artwork

in this presentation were found in the camp museums.

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THE CAMP RULES

These rules on display are in Sachsenhausen but all camps were subject to the same rules.

FREE TIME Prisoners may spend their free time in the barracks, reading,writing, or in conversation. Gambling is forbidden. It is also forbidden to enter other people's barracks, and so is making unnecessary noise, whistling, singing or playing games. It is forbidden to enter cordoned-off areas. Prisoners may use designated areas, but forming groups of more than three persons is not allowed. The Camp library and radios can be used for educational purposes. Party newspapers may be delivered after gaining permission from the Camp Commandant. (Notice that screaming,whining, moaning or crying was not forbidden so WHY it was necessary to forbid singing, whistling and playing games? And notice they had access to radios and a library.)Receiving Money All prisoners are allowed to receive money from their family. Received monies will be paid into the prisoner's account. To buy in the Canteen prisoners may withdraw up to RM 15,- per week from their account. However all purchases will be carried out cashless. It is strictly forbidden for prisoners to carry cash, including foreign money, to hide cash in cupboards, or horde large sums of money. (So now we know prisoners not only had access to radios and a library but they also had bank accounts as well.) CUPBOARD RULES The top board is for letters, toothbrush, razor, tobacco etc. The lower board is for your plate and drinking glass. Behind these you put your bread and other edibles. Spoon and knife are to

be put in the board of the cupboard door. All these are to be kept spotlessly clean. Your coat is to lay folded on the bottom, number to the top. Shoes are, just before lights out, to be cleaned outside the barracks and then placed in front of the cupboard with the socks on top. It is forbidden to take socks into the sleeping area.

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Q: So, what about those skeletons we all see in the media? A: Those were people who had caught diseases such as typhus etc. Now compare them to these pictures taken by Allied photographers after the camps were captured in 1945.

Taken by the Russians in Auschwitz

The two photos above were taken by the British in Bergen-Belsen.

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Many Prisoners Got Married and had Children

Wedding in Auschwitz 1944: They had printed cards, photos, flowers, fashionable hairdos (not shaven), and grooms wore a suit and tie.

Another wedding in Westerbork Camp in Holland and a photo of two nurses holding babies born in KL, Auschwitz. (KL= Konzentrations Lager)

______________________________What was the Food like ?Up until the war destroyed most of Germany’s ability to produce and deliver food to the camps, the food was quite adequate.

Most camps had their own gardens as the photos below show. Some camps kept animals such as pigs for food. (Below is a sketch of KL Neuengammes pig pens.)

The photo below shows a prisoner's meal time.

This photo shows the daily food ration for prisoners in Auschwitz.

Towards the end of the war, food became scarce for everyone including the German population.

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In many camps, prisoners could go SWIMMING:

Above is the pool in Auschwitz, below that is the pool in Theresienstadt and below that is the pool in the Women's Camp of Ravensbrueck.

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As well as swimming, the inmates could play football or watch a concert, and they even had the appropriate clothing with them.

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RELAXATION IN THERESIENSTADT WAS…EXPRESSING YOUR ARTISTIC TALENTS ... KNITTING OR …JUST WATERING YOUR GARDEN.

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The prisoners (NOT the SS guards) had the use of brothels. Here we show (from the top) the brothel in Mauthausen Camp, below that, the brothel in Buchenwald, and at the bottom, the brothel in Dora-Mittelbau.

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The Brothel in Neuengamme Camp: notice the well kept gardens.

Foto: Courtesy Camp Museum______________________________

To visit a brothel a prisoner had to first get a permit and be checked by the Camp Doctor.

Below is the brothel in Buchenwald with a radio on the wall, flowers and ashtrays on the tables.

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Orchestra of Neuengamme

There were orchestral concerts and lectures, as painted by a prisoner.

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What about Christmas ?

This Christmas tree was standing in a block of Auschwitz Camp.

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NEW YEARS PARTY SACHSENHAUSEN CAMP

Friday 31st Dec 1943

There will be a buffet, shooting gallery, circus, ballet, dancing, acrobats, singing and many other fun things to do. The Party starts at 11pm and goes until ...?

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Jewish youth celebrating Hannukah in Westerbork Camp and below that, a schoolclass.

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Prisoners who got ill had access to a hospital and a dental surgery as these photos from Auschwitz, Buchenwald, Belsen and Ravensbrueck show.

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Yes, prisoners were released from the camps after they had finished their time.

Above is a release form from Auschwitz, and below, the camp commandant of a camp in Hamburg farewells prisoners who are being released.