Plaszow Concentration Camp, Poland

The Plaszow concentration camp was a Nazi concentration camp located in the southern suburb of Kraków, Poland.

The camp was established in October 1942 on the grounds of two former Jewish cemeteries.

Initially intended as a forced labor camp, it later became a concentration camp.

Most of the prisoners were Polish Jews, but it also held prisoners from other ghettos and camps. The camp was notorious for its harsh conditions, forced labor, and executions. Mass murder was carried out by shootings, as there were no gas chambers or crematoria.

The camp had two main commanders. Amon Götth was the first commandant, known for his sadistic treatment of prisoners. He was executed by hanging in September 1946. The second commandant, Arnold Büscher, took over in September 1944.

Grey House, Camp Office

Amon Götth Villa near the camp

The Plaszow concentration camp was progressively dismantled starting in the fall of 1944. The Nazis began deporting many prisoners to Auschwitz and other concentration camps, burning exhumed bodies, and destroying installations to erase evidence of the camp's existence. The final group of prisoners left on January 14, 1945, and the Red Army liberated the area on January 20, 1945. After the war, the site was further devastated by the Soviet Army and became publicly accessible, leading to continued destruction.

Today, the site of the former Plaszow concentration camp is a memorial and museum dedicated to the memory of the victims. The KL Plaszow Museum includes an open-air exhibition called "KL Plaszow. A Site After, A Site Without," which features 14 media installations with materials in Polish, English, and Hebrew. The exhibition is accessible 24 hours a day and is free of charge.

The museum also includes the Grey House, which served as the administration building of the cemetery used by the Jewish religious community in Kraków. Additionally, there is a new memorial building under construction on Kamieńskiego Street, which will host a permanent exhibition and serve as a central point for commemoration.


Schindler Connection

Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist and member of the Nazi Party, initially employed Jewish workers from the Kraków Ghetto in his enamelware factory. When the ghetto was liquidated in March 1943, many of these workers were sent to the Plaszow camp, which was under the command of the brutal Amon Göth.

Schindler managed to establish a subcamp of Plaszow at his factory, providing better conditions for his workers. He used his connections and bribes to protect them from deportation to extermination camps. Eventually, Schindler relocated his factory to Brněnec (Brünnlitz) in Czechoslovakia, saving around 1,200 Jews from certain death.

Related sites

Oskar Schindler Factory Krakow

Krakow Ghetto

Index to Nazi Trail of Terror in Europe

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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'Euthanasia' Murders Memorial in Berlin Germany

 

The Nazi euthanasia program, known as Aktion T4, was a campaign of mass murder targeting individuals deemed "unworthy of life" due to physical or mental disabilities. Initiated by Adolf Hitler in 1939, the program aimed to eliminate those considered a burden on society and the economy.

The program involved the systematic killing of patients in psychiatric hospitals, care homes, and other institutions across Germany and occupied territories. Physicians were authorized to select patients for "mercy deaths" based on their medical conditions. The methods used included lethal injections, gas chambers disguised as showers, and starvation.

Although officially discontinued in 1941 due to public protests, the killings continued covertly until the end of World War II in 1945. It is estimated that between 275,000 and 300,000 people were murdered under this program.

For more information about the Nazi genocide, see the additional sites at the link below.

LINK TO -->> THE NAZI TRAIL OF TERROR

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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Google Map to the Memorial

Gleis 17 Memorial Berlin Germany

 

The Gleis 17 Memorial in Berlin is a poignant tribute to the Jews deported from Berlin during the Holocaust. Located at the Grunewald train station, it marks the spot where 186 deportation trains departed between 1941 and 1945, transporting over 50,000 Jewish Berliners to ghettos and extermination camps like Auschwitz and Theresienstadt.

Along the tracks are plaques documenting the deportations.

The trees at the ends of the railway remind us that deportations won't happen again.

The Gleis 17 Memorial was officially opened on January 27, 1998.

For more information, see the additional sites at the link below.

LINK TO -->> THE NAZI TRAIL OF TERROR

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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Google Map to the Gleis 17 Memorial in Berlin

Roma & Sinti Memorial Berlin

 

Roma Sinti Memorial, Berlin Germany

A series of storyboards form a wall on the outside of the memorial. The panels are organised by year. I have cropped the images to reveal only the English text.

1933

1935

1936

1938

1939

1940

1941

1942

1943

1944 & 1945

For more information, see the additional sites at the link below.

LINK TO -->> THE NAZI TRAIL OF TERROR

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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The names of the Nazi camps where the Roma and Sinti were sent are etched in stones surrounding the memorial pond. Two examples below.

Google Map to the Memorial

Wannsee Conference in Wannsee, Germany

 

The Wannsee Conference was held in Wannsee, a suburb of Berlin Germany

In January 1942, the Nazi leadership met to plan the Final Solution to the Jewish Question, which was the plan to murder all the Jews they could.

The Wannsee House is a Holocaust memorial

The Nazis murdered some 6 million Jews from 21 countries. They used concentration camps, ghettos, and mobile killing units to carry out this planned genocide.

Hitler's letter

Likely conference room - planning the Final Solution

On 31 July 1941, Hermann Goring authorized Reinhard Heydrich to prepare and submit a plan for a 'total solution of the Jewish question.'

LINK TO -->> THE NAZI TRAIL OF TERROR

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

Nuremberg, Germany and WWII

 

The Nazi Era in Nuremberg

The Grandiose Coliseum in Nuremberg

Hitler's "Coliseum" project in Nuremberg, officially known as the Kongresshalle, was an ambitious architectural endeavor designed to be a grand Nazi rallying ground. The Kongresshalle was intended to be the centrepiece of the Nazi party rally grounds, echoing the grandeur of the Roman Colosseum. Designed by architects Franz and Ludwig Ruff in 1935, the structure was planned to seat 50,000 people.

Construction began in earnest, but the project was never completed due to the outbreak of World War II. The building reached only about half of its planned height of 70 meters. Today, the Kongresshalle stands as a stark reminder of the Nazi regime's grandiose ambitions and is home to the Documentation Center Museum, which chronicles the rise of the Nazi party and the horrors of World War II.

Site of the Nazi Rallies

The Zeppelin Field in Nuremberg was a central site for the Nazi Party rallies, designed by Hitler's architect, Albert Speer. Named after Count Zeppelin, whose airship landed there in 1909, the field was transformed into a grandstand and parade ground for the Nazis. The rallies held here were massive propaganda events, meticulously orchestrated to showcase the power and unity of the Nazi regime.

The Nuremberg Rallies, officially known as the Reich Party Congresses, were held annually from 1927 to 1938. These rallies were designed to reinforce party enthusiasm and demonstrate the strength of National Socialism to both Germany and the world. They featured elaborate ceremonies, including torchlight processions, military parades, and speeches by Adolf Hitler. The rallies were a key tool in Nazi propaganda, creating a sense of unity and power among the attendees and the broader German population.

The Nuremburg Courthouse

The Nuremberg Palace of Justice is a historic building complex in Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany. Constructed between 1909 and 1916, it houses the appellate court, the regional court, the local court, and the public prosecutor's office. The building is most famous for hosting the Nuremberg Trials, where key Nazi leaders were prosecuted for war crimes after World War II.

The trials took place in Courtroom 600, located in the east wing of the Palace of Justice. This courtroom was chosen because the building was largely undamaged during the war, was large enough to accommodate the trials, and included a prison complex. The trials began on November 20, 1945, and were a landmark in the establishment of international criminal law.

17 October 2024

The Adam and Eve image over the door of the courtroom in the Nuremberg courthouse is an engraving by the German Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer. Created in 1504, this engraving depicts Adam and Eve in a dense, dark forest, which contrasts with the idyllic Garden of Eden described in Genesis. The image showcases Dürer's mastery of classical proportions and artistic innovation.

The significance of this image in the context of the Nuremberg Trials is symbolic. It represents the themes of justice, morality, and the human condition, which were central to the trials. The presence of this image serves as a reminder of the moral and ethical considerations that underpinned the prosecution of Nazi war criminals.

Adam & Eve, Nuremberg Courthouse

Today, the Nuremberg Palace of Justice houses the Nuremberg Trials Memorial, an information and documentation center located on the top floor of the courthouse. The memorial provides insights into the defendants, their crimes, and the impact of the trials on international law.

A museum tells more of the story using storyboards. For example, here are images of the cells and where the prisoners waited.

Resources

LINK TO -->> THE NAZI TRAIL OF TERROR

A few books related to the trials.

The Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials: A Personal Memoir by Telford Taylor - This book provides a detailed account of the trials from the perspective of one of the prosecutors. ON AMAZON

Nuremberg Diary by Gustave Mark Gilbert - A firsthand account of the trials written by the chief psychologist of the Nuremberg Trials.  ON AMAZON

The Nuremberg Trial by Ann Tusa and John Tusa - This book offers a comprehensive history of the trials and their significance in international law.  ON AMAZON

Robert H. Jackson: New Deal Lawyer, Supreme Court Justice, Nuremberg Prosecutor by Gail Jarrow - A biography of Robert H. Jackson, the chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials. ON AMAZON

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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