Sachsenhausen Concentration camp was a camp in Oranienburg Germany during World War II. Issed in Germany from 1936 till 1945 and provided a template for other concentration camps. Due to its past, Sachsenhausen is an easy way to watch what was going on during the period of Holocaust paying attention to human rights nowadays.
The Origins of Sachsenhausen
Sachsenhausen was established in 1936 by the SS as a security-po lice prison for political opponents, dissenters and socially undesirable elements. It was first founded as a holding camp for the Nazis’ political enemies, dissident Jews, and intellectual dissuaders of Hitler’s reign of terror. Later its function was broadened to include Jews, Romani people, homosexuals and other people wanted by the Nazis.
Life Inside the Camp
It is shocking, but living in the Sachsenhausen was one of the hardest experiences in people’s lives accompanied with cruelty. They were subjected to back breaking forced labor, forced to do with little enough to eat and beaten mercilessly. The SS guards ensured that the inmates lived in degrading environment the inmates were subjected to constant watch and the routine use of force on them. Disease, malnutrition, starvation, and sheer physical collapse took their toll among thousands of men.
The camp also acted as a training ground for SS officers who concocted strategies used to kill large numbers of people used in extermination camps. It turned into the centre of their medical experience, for example, when new medication or surgical procedures are carried out on the inmates, they exposed them to a lot of pain and killing them in the process.
Remembering the Holocaust
It also indeed remains a horrifying and heartbreaking grim reminder of the holocaust when one visits Sachsenhausen today. Education should help avoid any repeat of such acts or otherwise the world is in vain.
Preserving Sachsenhausen
Sachsenhausen was almost completely demolished after the close of the war but steps were taken to salvage some sections of the camp as a memorial /museum site. The parts of Warsaw preserved today opened a sickening though rather dark look in the life of the prisoners and the cruelty of the Nazis.
The museum displays numerous artefacts, photographs and documents regarding the latter, and the history of the camp. People can also visit the towers for watch, barracks, and crematorium. Can be recommended for broader themed guided tours offering a better grasp of prisoners’ day to day life and the holocaust as a whole.
Reflection and Commemoration
In this case, the visited Sachsenhausen is very meaningful and more like informative center. This is because it helps us learn more about human rights equality and tolerance. It is a symbol of millions of people who perished and died during extermination period of the Second World War.
Practical Tips for Visitors
It is always advisable to compare the operating time for the park and any limitation with want to enter in advance.
As the site is walk throughs, one should put on comfortable shoes.
Late arrivals will be directly ushered to the memorial event, and pray or meditate in the designated area only, following instructions.
Organized tours may be taken to learn even more about the history of this camp.
They should also take time to assess the experience later and make follow-up learning about the holocaust.
Also, when visiting Sachsenhausen, people are taking part in the process of creating awareness to avoid repeating similar actions in future.