Auschwitz -Poland. For everyone, it is inextricably linked to the terror of the Nazis and the great extermination camp designed and built on behalf of Heinrich Himmler. A place that has caused so much misery, but fortunately has been preserved for humanity as a warning of what humanity is capable of.
Location
Auschwitz -Birkenau the town known in Polish as Ocwecim. A place near the big city of Krakow. Krakow is a city included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. A beautiful city about 20 kilometers from Auschwitz. In Krakow you will find the famous Cloth Hall and beautiful churches. The Grote Markt, the heart of the old center, is bustling with activity all day long and in the evening you can admire the most diverse street artists. A stark contrast with Auschwitz. A small town that most resembles a small rural village. Time seems to have stood still here. At least if one can see through the many visitors.
History
Auschwitz is used as a labor camp for political and military prisoners from Russia. These are also the builders of the camp and its expansion. Many of them will not survive this. During the war, IG Farben decides to move its factory near Auschwitz. This will expand the camp even further to provide workers for the large chemical industry. Until the moment that Heinrich Himmler sets his sights on Auschwitz. The desolation, afforestation and accessibility make this seem the ideal place for his final solution, the destruction of the Jews. Many millions will die here in various gas chambers due to the gas, Zyklon B, produced by IG Farben. The first people were murdered by driving them into the back of a truck and placing a hose attached to the exhaust pipe in the truck. and then start the engine, where thousands are now driven into the ,showers, at the same time to be ,washed, with gas. The oven runs at full speed and burns the bodies.
Kamp Auschwitz -Birkenau anno 2009
Auschwitz I
The camp is still there and the memories are still palpable. Auschwitz I, the camp with the famous ,Arbeit Macht Frei, gate, is now a museum for the various victims of various nationalities. Yet the camp still provides an impressive insight into life in Auschwitz I. On the gate, the B for Arbeit Macht Frei is upside down. This was done by the prisoners to indicate to the new arrivals that things are not right here. Immediately at the entrance you can see the place where the shot and hanged Jews ended up. This was the place where the men who had to work passed every evening and this served as a warning to them. The glag can still be seen in front of the kitchen and if you walk through the different blocks you get an idea of life in the blocks, the captured suitcases, glasses, shoes, etc. It is also shocking to see what people took with them. their suitcase. It really seemed like people thought they would still have a life here. The prison block also makes a deep impression. Here they were placed in a 1.50 meter high, cramped, brick box with about four people, so they could not move and had to stand all night. Rudolf Hoss’s villa can be seen a few steps away. Just outside the camp you can see the gallows of Rudolf Hoss. This was hung here in 1947 after the Nuremberg trials. Near his gallows is the first gas chamber and incinerator. The hatches in the roof are clearly visible. The first Jews were murdered here using Zyklon B gas. The gas jars were thrown in through these hatches.
Auschwitz II -Birkenau
About a mile further on, you can still go through the gate with a lookout tower via the railway that leads to Auschwitz II -Birkenau. If life in Auschwitz I was bad, the gate in Auschwitz II is not called the ,gate of hell, for nothing. The vastness of the complex is the first thing you notice here. The stones are on the left and the wooden barracks are on the right. The wooden barracks already give an inkling of life here. Sleeping with five people in a place where there is actually only room for two people. The first row of barracks here have been rebuilt. Of the other barracks, only the chimney was rebuilt to show how many of these barracks were there. Quite ironic that chimneys and even stoves were built in the barracks during construction. It’s as if the Nazis cared that the Jews would get cold feet. The sanitary facilities are dire. Having to sit next to each other with about forty people to do your business, with little to no options for washing.
The journey to the gas chambers passes through the selection area. Here the German doctors sat to judge who could work and who could not. The ,lucky, were taken to the barracks on the left and right, while the ,unlucky, could go straight. Here the gas chambers awaited them. Under the excuse that they were allowed to take a shower, people had to undress and were herded into the rooms. Even before the doors closed, the ,sonderkommandos, were already busy transporting the clothing and other belongings to the warehouses. However, after the gassing, an even more unpleasant task awaited them: removing the golden molars from the mouths of the gassed Jews. The gas chambers are only ruins. Here you will also find the memorial for the victims. In various languages, including Dutch, people are calling for this to never be forgotten.
On the way back to the gate, the stone barracks are on the right. Here I get an even better picture of the misery that took place here. Because of the stuffiness here, one can ,somewhat, imagine what it would be like to sit here when it is chock full and choking with disease and vermin.
In 2009, Auschwitz still has a lot to tell and teach us. When a fellow Catholic claims that no people were gassed in Auschwitz, he can explain where those six million have gone.