history of the Second World War holds a lot of unsightly pages, but the German concentration camps - one of the worst.The events of those days clearly show that the cruelty of people to each other and really knows no bounds.
Especially in this regard, "famous", "Auschwitz".Not the best fame are talking about Buchenwald or Dachau.It was there that the death camps were located.Sovetskik soldiers who liberated "Auschwitz", long been under the impression of the atrocities that were happening within its walls the Nazis.What was this place, and for what purpose it was created by the Germans?This topic and the subject of this article.
Basics
It was the biggest and the most "powerful" concentration camp ever created by the Nazis.More precisely, it was a complex consisting of the usual camp facilities for forced labor and a special territory in which massively destroyed people.This is known and "Auschwitz".Where is this place?It is located not far from Krakow, Poland.
Those who liberated "Auschwitz", were able to save part of the "accounting" of this terrible place.From these documents the command of the Red Army learned that during the existence of the camp in its walls tortured about a million three hundred thousand people.About a million of them - Jews.The "Auschwitz" had four huge gas chambers, each of which is placed just 200 people.
So how many people were killed?
Alas, there is every reason to believe that the victims were much more.One of the commanders of this terrible place, Rudolf Hess, the trial in Nuremberg, said that the total number of people killed could well reach the number of 2.5 million.In addition, it is unlikely that the true criminals of the figure.Anyway, he is constantly bustled in court, claiming that he never knew the exact number of murdered prisoners.
Given the enormous capacity of the gas chambers, you can infer that the victims and in fact it was much more than indicated in official reports.Some researchers think that these terrible walls of their end found about four million (!) Of any innocent people.
bitter irony was that Gates "Auschwitz" was decorated with an inscription that read: «ARBEIT MACHT FREI».Translated into Russian, it means "Work makes you free".Alas, the reality is no freedom there is not even smell.On the contrary, the work of the necessary and useful lessons in the hands of the Nazis turned into an effective means of extermination that is almost never gave failures.
When was the death of this complex?
Construction began in 1940 on the territory of which previously held the Polish garrison.The first barracks were used as military barracks.Of course, the builders were the Jews and prisoners of war.They were fed poorly, killed for each offense - real or imaginary.So he collected his first "harvest", "Auschwitz" (where is this place, you know).
camp gradually grew, turning into a huge complex for the delivery of cheap labor, which would be able to work for the Third Reich.
now little to say about it, but prison labor was used extensively by all (!) Large German companies.In particular, the famous corporation BMV actively exploited slaves, the need for which is growing every year, as Germany threw in the meat grinder of the Eastern Front, more and more divisions, being forced to complement their new equipment.
conditions of detention of prisoners
The conditions were appalling.At first people to settle in barracks, where there was nothing.Nothing at all, except for a small armfuls of rotten straw on a few dozen square meters of floor.Eventually they gave mattresses, at the rate of one to five or six people.The most preferred option for prisoners were bunk.Although they were in three stories, each well was placed only two prisoners.In this case, it is not as cold as the bed had at least not on the floor.
In any case, it was good enough.In the room that could accommodate a maximum of fifty people in a standing position, nestled on a half-two hundred prisoners.Unbearable stench, humidity, lice and typhoid ... From all of this, people died by the thousands.
gas chambers to kill "Zyklon B" worked around the clock, with a break of three hours.In this concentration camp crematoria were burned every day the bodies of eight thousand people.
medical experiments
As for health care, then the prisoners who managed to survive in the "Auschwitz" at least for a month, the word "doctor" started to turn gray hair.Indeed, if a person is seriously ill, it was better to just get into the loop or run in the sight of the guards, hoping for a merciful bullet.
And no wonder: given that these parts "practiced" the infamous Mengele and some "healers" smaller rank, going to the hospital more often ended with the victim "Auschwitz" played the role of guinea pig.Prisoners were tested poisons, dangerous vaccines, exposure to extreme high and low temperatures, try new methods of transplantation ... In short, death was really good (especially given the tendency of "doctor" to perform operations without anesthesia).
In Nazi murderers was a "pink dream": to develop a means for fast and efficient sterilization of people that would destroy entire peoples, depriving them of the ability to reproduce.
this purpose, to the monstrous experiments: men and women of reproductive organs removed, examined the rate of healing of surgical wounds.Many experiments were carried out on the topic of radiation obesplozhivaniya.Unfortunate people were irradiated with doses of X-rays unrealistic.
Career "doctors"
Subsequently they also used in the study of many diseases of oncological nature, which, after such "therapy" appeared in almost all exposed.In general, all experimental waited just a terrible, painful death for the sake of "science and progress."Sadly admit it, but many of the "doctors" not only managed to avoid loops in Nuremberg, but also perfectly settled in America and Canada, where they were considered almost the luminaries of medicine.
Yes, their findings were indeed priceless, that's just the price paid for them, it has been disproportionately high.Once again the question of ethical component in medicine ...
Feeding
fed them accordingly: the whole day ration was a bowl of translucent "soup" of rotten vegetables and crumbs "technical" bread, which was a lot of rotten potatoes and sawdust, but it was notflour.Almost 90% of prisoners suffer from chronic bowel disorder, which kills them faster, "caring" Nazis.
Prisoners could only envy those dogs that are kept in the neighboring barracks: in kennels was heating, and only the quality of nursing and the comparison is not worth ...
Conveyor death
terribly legend now become gas chambers "of Auschwitz."Killing people was put on stream (in the truest sense of the word).Immediately after arriving at the camp prisoners were sorted into two categories: suitable and unsuitable for use.Children, the elderly, women and people with disabilities with the right platform gassed "at Auschwitz."Unsuspecting first prisoners were sent to the "locker room."
what to do with the bodies?
There they undressed, they were given soap and were "in the shower."Of course, we fell victim to the gas chambers, which were in fact disguised as showers (the ceiling were even spray water).Immediately after the party sealed the doors were closed, activated gas cylinders "Zyklon B", after which the contents of the tanks rushed into the "showers."People are dying for 15-20 minutes.
Then their bodies were sent to the crematorium, which worked for days on end without stopping.The resulting ashes were used to fertilize farmland.Hair that prisoners sometimes shaved, went to stuffing pillows and mattresses.When the cremation furnace broke down and their pipe goes bust of continuous operation, the bodies burned in huge accidents pit dug in the camp.
Today, the place was built the museum "Auschwitz."An eerie, oppressive feeling and now covers all who visit the area of death.
learn how to be rich in control of the camp
should be understood that the same Jews were brought to Poland from Greece and other distant countries.They promised "resettlement in Eastern Europe" and even jobs.Simply put, people came to the site of his assassination, not only voluntarily, but taking with him all the valuables.
should not consider them too naive: in the 30-ies of XX century, the Jews really were deported from Germany to the East.Just people failed to realize that times have changed and now Reich was far better to destroy not pleasing to him "Untermensch."
Where do you think, did all the gold and silver things, good clothes and shoes seized from the slain?For the most part they appropriated commandants and their wives (which did not bother that new earrings couple of hours ago were in a dead man), the protection of the camp.Especially the "distinguished" Poles moonlighted here.They called depots looted things "Canada".In their view, it was a wonderful, rich country.Many of these "visionaries" will not only enrich the sale of dead things, but managed to escape just yet in the very Canada.
How effective was the slave labor of prisoners?
Paradoxically, but the economic efficiency of slave labor of prisoners who "sheltered" camp "Auschwitz" was miserable.People harnessed (and women) in the wagon on agricultural land, more or less strong men used as the low-skilled labor in the chemical and military enterprises, their strength of bridges and repairing damaged bombings allies road ...
's only enterprise management, wherecamp "Auschwitz" supplied rabsilu was not happy, people carried a maximum of 40-50% of the norm, even with the constant threat of death for the slightest misdemeanor.And there is nothing surprising: many of them barely stood on their feet, what sort of operation there?
No matter what Hitler nonhumans on trial in Nuremberg, their sole purpose was the physical destruction of people.Even their performance in the labor force anyone seriously interested.
Relief mode
Almost 90% of the survivors in the hell I thank God that they were taken to a concentration camp "Auschwitz" in mid-1943.While the regime institutions significantly softened.
Firstly, from now on the guards were not allowed to extrajudicial killing of any prisoner that they were not attracted.Secondly, the local medical assistant item really started to heal, not to kill.Third, it becomes much better fed.
Germans woke up the conscience?No, everything is much more prosaic: it became clear that Germany would lose the war."Great Reich" were urgently needed workers, not the raw material for fertilizer fields.As a result, the life of the prisoners barely grew in the eyes of even the complete monsters.
In addition, no longer all newborn babies were killed.Yes, until that time, all the women who came to this place pregnant, lost her children: babies are simply drowned in a bucket of water, and then threw their bodies.Often, just behind the barracks in which they lived mother.How unfortunate women gone mad, we will never know.Recently noted the 70th anniversary of the liberation of "Auschwitz", but time does not heal these wounds.
so.During the "thaw" began to examine all infants: in terms of their individual slipped anything "Aryan", the child was sent to the "assimilation" in Germany.So the Nazis hoped to solve the terrible demographic problem, which stood to his full height, after huge losses on the Eastern Front.It is difficult to say how many live in Germany today, the descendants of Slavs captured and sent to Auschwitz.History is silent about it, and documents (for obvious reasons) have been preserved.
Liberation
everything in the world comes to an end.I was no exception and the concentration camp.So who liberated "Auschwitz" and when did it happen?
And did it the Soviet soldiers.Soldiers of the First Ukrainian Front liberated prisoners of this horrific place January 25, 1945.SS units guarding the camp, were death: they had received an order in whatever way was to give time for the destruction of both the Nazis all prisoners, and documents that would shed light on their heinous crimes.But our guys have done their duty.
's who liberated "Auschwitz."Despite the torrents of mud which now pouring toward them, our soldiers with their lives were able to save a lot of people.Do not forget about it.On the 70th anniversary of the liberation of "Auschwitz" is almost the same words came from the lips of the current leadership of Germany, who paid tribute to the Soviet soldiers who died for the freedom of others.Only in 1947, the camp was opened museum.Its creators have tried to keep everything as it is seen here arriving accidents.
