In this blog post I am going to discuss about the historical background related to the concentration camps of Berlin during world war II. It is to here that we take a look at what was done, what was done to them, and the reason why this is necessary for the world to know.
Brief History on Berlin Concentration Camps
Little is known of the precise locations of concentration camps prior to the second World War, but evidence indicates that during the war, specifically the Second World War, the Nazis built some of these death camps around Berlin. These camps were designed to imprison, torment, and kill millions of minorities, especially Jews, but also others within other specified special categories, including political enemies, the Romani people, the disabled, and homosexuals.
The Use of Concentration Camps
The principal purpose for all of the Berlin concentration camps, like other camps in other areas in Germany, was the process of extermination of individuals who were Annunziata and perceived as a threat to the NAZI regime. These camps operated as killing, forced labor, medical experimentation and concentration places where psychological torture also prevailed.
The Notorious Concentration Camp near Berlin
The two well known concentration camp that surrounded Berlin were Sachsenhausen and Ravensbrück.
Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp is also referred to as Sachsenhausen Oranienburg or only Oranienburg.
Sachsenhausen is situated around 35klm north of Berlin and was fully functional in 1936. The first purpose was to detain political prisoners and later begun to hold Jews, homosexuals and other oppressed people.
The prisoners at Sachsenhausen had to endure working conditions demanded of them, lack of enough food, and proportionate punishment. Some were used for medical experiments and others made to undertake a forced march as the allies closed in on Germany.
Ravensbrueck KZünkü Ravensbrück Concentration Camp
Ravensbrück, located about sixty-five kilometers north of the city of Berlin was the largest concentration camp for women in the German Reich. It was created in 1939 and mainly comprised mid-twentieth century women such as political prisoners, resistance operatives, intellectuals, and Jews.
Life in Ravensbrück camp was horrendous with scarcity of food, diseases piercing almost every prisoner. Using the prisoners, the Nazis obliged them to do forced labor, tested chemical substances on them, and those who refused to be tested were killed in the gas chamber or executed.
Remembering the Victims
The dead must never be forgotten and there are so many innocens lost in the Berlin concentration camps. In this case acknowledging the horror that occurred ensures that it does not happen again. Efforts have been made in coming up with memorial and museums that docent the sufferance and loss that these camps owed.
Tours to the concentrations camp such as the Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum will however give one a deeper understanding to the sad incidences and this should call on to everyone to stand up against discrimination, prejudice and hate in society.
Conclusion
The Berlin concentration camps were harrowing symbols of the Holocaust and the systematic oppression carried out by the Nazis. These camps represented a dark period in human history, reminding us of the importance of tolerance, compassion, and the preservation of human rights.
By actively learning about and acknowledging the history of these camps, we can collectively work towards creating a more inclusive and just society where such atrocities are never repeated.
