Have you ever had any desire for learning the history, particularly the Second World War and the Holocaust? If that’s the case, then a visit to Sachsenhausen in Berlin, Germany should not be missed. This site of what used to be a concentration camp is a very good place to turn into a memorial and a museum. In this article, however, key features connected with the Sachsenhausen will be discussed and how you could optimise your visit.

A Brief Insight into Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp

Sachsenhausen was built just outside Oranienburg, to the north of Berlin in 1936 and was one of the first concentration camps in the Germany regime of Nazi. It was an example for other camps beginning to be established and was used the as a training base for SS officers and guards. During the existence of the camp many detainees died, the details of their suffering are still unclear, but according to extremely conservative calculations, simple arithmetic suggests that tens of thousands were imprisoned here, physically forced into labor and exterminated for being political enemies of the Nazis or because they were Jews, gays, Poles, Gypsies, Russians, Ukrainians and anybody else who the Nazi party considered outside the destined ‘master race’.

Exploring the Memorial Site

Today the Sachsenhausen is a memorial dedicated and ones again a living breath that concentrates all the tortured history of the holocaust. When you visit, you will have the opportunity to:

Take a guided tour: The guided tours are in several languages, and the clients can learn a lot about the camp’s history and prisoners’ lives, as well as about the crimes committed by the Nazis. Very strongly recommended if one wants to get a very good overall picture of Sachsenhausen.

Visit the museum: The museum is filled with artifacts, photographs, and narratives that tell the story of just what went on at the camp. This one is a fairly self-explanatory, as it is built to remember the horrors of the past and to ensure they’ll not be repeated.

Walk through the grounds: Walk around the camp and see how it looked like; the barrack, punishment cells, the ‘Tower A’ where the SS guards were standing. This experience assists to imagine the kind of life prisoners went through.

Pay tribute at the memorials: In Sachsenhausen there are several monuments for special victims such as Jewish and Soviet POWs. Spend some time to bow and honor their memory.

Practical Tips for Your Visit

Open House and Information Accessibility

Sachsenhausen is operating all along the year but it is still likely to have varying opening time. For more details about the schedule one can visit their official website or even get in touch with them. Some areas are a little restricted because of the old architectural design of the existing structures, but the memorial site is fully fitted with ramps for wheelchairs.

Allow Sufficient Time

You intend to spend probably four to five hours exploring the site and joining a guided tour, visiting Sachsenhausen Memorial Museum and trying to grasp the historical meaning of the place. There is very little in the way of food and drink within and nearby the facility, so bring some snacks and water to consume during breaks.

Respectful Behavior

Bear in mind that Sachsenhausen is a museum, or rather an open air ‘museum of shame’ that combines memories with education and. People are supposed to act properly, and hospitality extend to people by showing they care. Fear of speaking can be natural when walking on the grounds, so it is unwise to be loud and cheerful. Photography is permitted but one should not take photographs of persons, he or she should not take selfies and that he or she should not act in any rude manner.

In which Additional Learning can be found

If the reader wants to gain more information on options for World War II and the holocaust there is so much more available, from books, to documentaries, to sites on the internet. He still thinks that visitors should familiarize themselves with the place in advance, perhaps by reading about it a bit.

Conclusion

A trip to the Sachsenhausen in Berlin, Germany is both haunting and informative as this prisoners’ camp will tell you. It is in this sense that when people of all races learn and know about the Holocaust they are actually paying tribute to those who lost their lives as well as seeking to develop a better world. This memorial and museum will require at least a couple of hours of your time, and when visiting do so with the utmost respect and regards.