Concentration camps were places of grief and painful experiences all through the Second World War. These were employed by the Nazis and were intended for incarceration and persecution of different categories of people such as the Jews, political opponents, the Roma, Gypsies, and any other person or group of people considered unfit or burdensome to the German nation by the Nazis. In so far as the capital city of Germany – Berlin is concerned, it must be said that there were concentration camps within this territory as well.

Auschwitz-Birkenau: The Infamous Concentration Camp

Berlin of course also suffered from some of the worst atrocities of the Nazi regime, however, one of the worst concentration camps, Auschwitz-Birkenau was in Poland. Auschwitz was the second major concentration camp, which is associated with the holocaust during which millions of unarmed people were tortured.

Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp: Berlin’s Own Camp

But, of course, this doesn’t mean that Berlin itself did not have a concentration camp in its territory. Sachsenhausen was one of the first large camps set up by the Nazis; it is situated to the northeast of Berlin. It existed from 1936 to 1945 during which liberation was effected by Soviet troops.

When created the Sachsenhausen was intended to be a prototype camp for detaining subversives and hence it became an instrument of oppression. Moreover, it developed into the central administration center of the whole complex of concentration camps and at the same time functioned as the training place for SS officers. It was used to hold political prisoners, but it also housed Jews, homosexuals, and other members of the minority.

This paper aims at analysing the experience in the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp.

Life in the camp meant suffering, inhuman treatment and subjection to inhuman working and living conditions. Concentration camp prisoners were erected in cases of forced labor, hunger, and experimentation. Many of them perished from inadequate conditions, some were shot or transferred to a death camp.

In April 1945 when the Soviet army advanced closer to Berlin, the Nazis began to move most of the prisoners from Sachsenhausen in death marches in which for many of them either died or were killed by the Nazis. The camp was liberated on 22 April 1945. Sachsenhausen today operates as a museum and a memorial dedicated to the memory of the victims and to help the people who come there learn more about the crimes committed by the Nazis.

Conclusion

The Holocaust is best linked with Auschwitz-Birkenau; however, Berlin had its own concentration camp in Sachsenhausen which was an important feature of the Nazi concentration camp system. They are harsh memories and their significance is recalling and analysis so that people can never repeat such dreadful actions.