Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, Germany

Built in 1936 by prisoners, the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp was created by SS architects as the ideal concentration camp. Designed in an equilateral triangle shape, it became a model camp to subjugate prisoners to the absolute power of the SS.

More than 200,000 people were imprisoned here between 1943-1945. The first prisoners were mostly political opponents of the Nazi regime. As time progressed it began to hold increasing numbers of "racially and biologically inferior members" as defined by the SS. Tens of thousands of people died of starvation, disease, forced labor and mistreatment. Some were also victims of systematic experimentation operations. Thousands died during the death marches following the evacuation of the camp at the end of April 1945.

After the end of the war, the Soviet secret service used the site to hold arrested Nazis, and those against the Soviet regime.

The camp was finally closed in March 1950. 60,000 people had been imprisoned here. 12,000 had died of malnutrition and disease. After the closure, the buildings were left to crumble. The area became a memorial in 1961 which focused on building a memorial complex.  Preservation of the buildings did not occur until 1993. As a result, very few original structures remain today.

It was very eerie experience to walk through the remains of the camp.  There are no birds singing in the trees, no bugs flying through the air yet there are beautiful forests on the site.

After a three hour train ride, we finally arrived at the camp. It was a very early morning but worth it.

 Below is the layout of the camp.  I have only highlighted certain points on the map which I will refer to later. Barracks would have been lined up all along the green area.

3. SS Troop Camp
6. Entrance to the Prisoners' Camp
7. Roll Call Area
8. Site of the Gallows
9. Small Camp
11. Prison
14. National Memorial
15. Cremmemoration site
16. Execution Trench
20. Infirmary Barracks
21. Pathology Building

Source: http://chgs.umn.edu/museum/memorials/sachsenhausen/history.html

Prisoners would have first walked through the gate of this building in order to enter the prison site. This imposing building housed the department that was specifically in control of prisoners. When new prisoners were brought in, the camp commander would "welcome" them by stating that the only exit from the camp would be through the chimney of the crematorium.

Prisoners were taken through these gates to enter the camp. 

The building from the prisoners side.  A machine gun was stationed on the third floor balcony.

The gate prisoners walked through states "Work will set you free."

This picture would have been taken during roll-call from the balcony of the Entrance to the Prisoners' Camp.

Source: http://www.museumsmedien.de/xberg-ged/person.php?id=63

While standing in the roll-call area, it is hard to imagine all the barracks that would have surrounded the area. The tour guide mentioned that she had the opportunity to meet with one of the former prisoners of the camp. He had mentioned that the camp has changed the most for him through the way it smells.  He said that it smells fresh now rather than the smells that existed when he was a prisoner.

Standing in the Roll-Call Area. Around would have been the many barracks. Today they are marked with stoned outlines. 

The Security Fence would have been very intimidating for the prisoners. There was a white line on the ground that marked how far a prisoner could go before being shot. if they were not noticed by the guards, they would have to get through barbed wire, and climb a fence with electric wiring.

The Security Fence.

One of the many towers located around the perimeter of the camp. 

Sachsenhausen began as a working camp, not a death camp. This means prisoners worked and had jobs to do and were not brought to the camp to be killed. Two factories were nearby which used prisoner labor. The camp also used prisoners to test new boots for the Nazi military. Prisoners were given boots to wear and would march endlessly around the Roll-Call Area, over various surfaces to test the material for the soles of the boots. They would walk 40-60 km a day along this track. In order to inflict further suffering, the shoes prisoners were given were often two sizes too small and they were forced to carry sacks filled with 20 kg of sand.

Part of the Shoe-Testing Track. It consisted of 9 different types of surface. 

Because many of the buildings have been torn down, the Museum rebuilt two barracks to the exact design as the originals. These two barracks are located in the area of the camp that housed the Jewish prisoners.  Each barrack had its own bathroom facilities and dining area as well as sleeping quarters.

The exterior of the barracks. Yes, they did have windows. No, I don't think it made living inside these buildings any better

The bathroom facilities of a barrack.

The sleeping area. Depending on how full the camp was, these bunks could have held up to 4 people.

The Dining area.

Jewish prisoner attire. 

Some of the shoe parts prisoners were forced to test.

Because being in the prisoner area of the camp was not punishment enough, the SS also created a prison inside the prison. This area was reserved for punishing those prisoners who broke camp rules as well as prominent figures arrested by the Gestapo. There were three barracks that made up the prison. Some cells had windows, while others did not. It was a place of torment and murder. Prisoners were isolated and given very little food.

A Cell.

The marked layout of one of the barracks that was destroyed. 

Torture Poles. Prisoners had their wrists tied together behind their backs. They were then hung by their arms on the posts for hours at a time. The picture below gives an example. 

Source: http://www.thecontrarianmedia.com/2009/10/the-hauntings-of-auschwitz-and-other-concentration-camps/

Prisoners who were sentenced to death faced what I can only describe as the longest walk ever. They would be brought to an execution site and have to walk down a switch-back ramp in order to reach the spot where they would either be hung or shot.

The Execution trench. Prisoners were taken down the hill and either shot or hung under the roofed area (left side). They could hang six prisoners at a time.

Different angle of the execution trench.

Prisoners would either stand against this wall to be shot and killed or slowly be lifted from the ground by a rope around their neck to be hung.

German scientists and medical researchers conducted medical experiments on prisoners. 40 different types of experiments were conducted, including sterilizations, castrations, experimenting with hepatitis, inserting infectious material into incisions in the muscle, and testing the effects of various chemicals on the human body.

An extermination camp, Station Z, was added to Sachsenhausen in 1942. It consisted of four crematoriums and a height gauge used for mass executions. Prisoners were escorted into a special room in the infirmary where they were lead to believe they were receiving a physical exam. Prisoners would stand against a height gauge, thinking they were being measured. However, there was a hole at the back of the gauge that lead into another room where an SS officer stood.  As the "doctor" measured the height, the officer in the other room would place the gun through the hole and shoot the prisoner in his neck.

About 600 corpses could be cremated in the ovens within 24 hours. During that year, SS invited dozens of high ranked Nazi officials for the inauguration of the new camp. To illustrate its effectiveness and efficiency, 96 prisoners were shot.

The height guage. Based on the height of the prisoner, the shooter could determine where best to aim for a "clean kill."

The name Station Z was intended to be a joke because the entrance to the camp was through Building A (the gate house) and Station Z was the exit from the camp for those who were executed.

The remains of the crematorium. The SS blew up the building before abandoning the camp in April 1945.

A close-up of the crematorium.

 A gas chamber was added in 1943. The room was tiled and equipped with real showers. Beside the door was a ventilation system for the insertion of the liquid Zyklon B. A bottle of the poison, along with warm air, were vented into the gas chamber. 25-30 prisoners could be put into the room at once.

The gas chamber.

In order to get rid of the ashes, the SS would dump the ashes into mass graves and eventually bury them. These trenches were discovered between 1996 and 2004.

Trench full of ashes. 

Being a lover for history, this tour truly opened my eyes to the horrors of WWII.  It is one thing to read about it or watch a documentary about the Nazis; however, to see the buildings and documents that were used to inflict pain and suffering on so many is beyond words.  It was one of the most moving and memorable experiences I have had since starting this traveling journey.