Germany/Austria 2012 ~ Dachau

On Wednesday morning, we took the kids to Dachau Concentration Camp which is only about 20 minutes from Munich.  It was the most gloomy and rainy day, which was fitting for this very sad and humbling visit to the camp.

Entering the camp.  The sign above the doorway means "Work Makes You Free".  It was the first of many things that infuriated me on this visit.  Apparently this is a replica of the original sign.  The original one was stolen when the camp was liberated.

Roll call was done here twice a day.  This area of the camp could hold 40,000-50,000 people.

This memorial was dedicated in September 1968 and stands in front of the former service building.  The sculpture is 48 ft. wide, 19 ft. tall, 4 ft. deep and was created by a Dachau Concentration Camp survivor.  It symbolizes the fences around the camp with the emaciated bodies of the individuals who starved and died there.  The hands of the people are made to look like part of the barbed wire.  Above the kids, you can see 1933-1945 which were the years the camp was used.

This sculpture represents the unity among the prisoners.  There are actually three links in a chain that are not all shown in this picture.  The colored triangles are the colors of the cloth badges worn by the prisoners to identify their classification.

A sculpture inside the service building which is now a museum. 

We toured the barracks where the prisoners were kept.  Two barracks had been replicated for the tour.  The barracks were intended to hold approximately 200 people.  At capacity, they were housing 2,000 people in each.

A look at the less than desirable conditions.

There were 34 barracks in all.  Seventeen were on each side of the path.  Even numbered were on the left and odd numbered on the right.  The prisoners built the barracks, and they were the most perfectly symmetrical plots you could imagine...a requirement of the Nazis.  There is a church on the site that was erected after the close of the camp.  It has several different roof lines and is asymmetrical to defy the former demands of the Nazi regime.

A look down the path (camp road) that goes between the barracks.  The service building and memorial are at the far end.

The chapel which is among the religious memorials.

The Jewish Memorial

This is part of the perimeter fence and one of the seven watch towers.  Any prisoner stepping onto the green was in the warning area.  Those that entered the trench were shot.  Often prisoners would enter this area to end their lives on purpose.

This area is behind the crematorium.  It was hard to imagine what life must have been like at this camp.

The New Crematorium
The original one was closed after the cremation of 11,000 people.  It was still open for viewing but looks very much like this one.  The crematorium was known as Barrack X.

Information about the gas chamber

The sign above the door means "showers".

The gas chamber

Monument of "The Unknown Prisoner" 

Leaving Dachau...they were relieved.  

The railroad that brought the prisoners to the camp was recently uncovered.

What a terrific learning experience.  One day, I think the kids will really appreciate that they were here.

Next up...Salzburg, Austria!
Until next time,
Wendy