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Bergen-Belsen - Photograph

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Bergen-Belsen liberation concentration camps crematoria

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View of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Germany, date uncertain. [LCID: 77205] — View of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after the liberation of the camp. A row of small tents has been pitched outside the barracks. A group of survivors huddles in front of one of the tents.
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A camp survivor, soon after liberation. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 12, 1945. [LCID: 75127] — A survivor of the Bergen-Belsen camp, photographed soon after liberation. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 12, 1945.
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Soon after liberation, a camp survivor receives medical care. [LCID: 46362] — Soon after liberation, a camp survivor receives medical care. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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Female survivors in the "Gypsy barracks" of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp during liberation. [LCID: 63055] — Romani (Gypsy) survivors in a barracks of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp during liberation. Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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An emaciated victim sits on the ground outside of a fenced area. They are wearing a long coat and leaning back with a look of anguish on their face. The victim appears to be holding something in their lap. Several buildings can be seen behind the fence. — An survivor of the Bergen-Belsen camp, after liberation. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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The Bergen-Belsen former concentration camp is burned to the ground to halt the spread of typhus. [LCID: 75136] — Buildings of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp is burned to the ground to halt the spread of typhus. Germany, May 21, 1945.
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The Bergen-Belsen former concentration camp is burned to the ground by British soldiers to prevent the spread of typhus. [LCID: 75137] — Buildings of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp are burned to the ground by British soldiers to prevent the spread of typhus. Germany, May 21, 1945.
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Soon after liberation, camp survivors eat near scattered corpses. [LCID: 74108] — Soon after liberation, camp survivors eat near scattered corpses. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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Soon after liberation, concentration camp survivors wash each other with some of the site's limited supply of water. [LCID: 69160] — Soon after liberation, concentration camp survivors wash each other with some of the site's limited supply of water. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, April 21, 1945.
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Soon after liberation, camp survivors bathe in outdoor showers set up by the British. [LCID: 45050] — Soon after liberation, camp survivors bathe in outdoor showers set up by the British. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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Two survivors in front of the women's barracks in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. [LCID: 19023] — Two survivors in front of the women's barracks in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, April 1945.

© IWM (BU 3740)
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A uniformed soldier stands at the edge of a large burial pit. Groups of light-skinned women in dark clothing carry emaciated bodies by the hands and feet into the mass grave. — A British soldier watches women SS guards who were forced to carry victims' corpses to mass graves. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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After liberation of the Bergen-Belsen camp, British soldiers forced German mayors from nearby towns to view mass graves. [LCID: 74938] — After liberation of the Bergen-Belsen camp, British soldiers forced German mayors from nearby towns to view mass graves. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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A mass grave soon after camp liberation. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, May 1945. [LCID: 32072] — A mass grave at Bergen-Belsen soon after the liberation of the camp. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, May 1945.
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After camp liberation, one of the mass graves at the Bergen-Belsen camp. [LCID: 78261] — After camp liberation, one of the mass graves at the Bergen-Belsen camp. Germany, after April 15, 1945.
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The remains of a crematorium at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. [LCID: 75169] — The remains of a crematorium at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. This photograph was taken after the liberation of the camp in 1945. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, date uncertain.
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Cremation oven used in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. [LCID: 77419] — Crematorium oven used in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Photograph taken after the liberation of teh camp. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, April 28, 1945.
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A view of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after the liberation of the camp. [LCID: 74105a] — A view of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after the liberation of the camp. Bergen-Belsen, after April 15, 1945.

The 63rd Anti-tank Regiment and the 11th Armoured Division arrived at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp on April 15, 1945. When British troops entered the camp, they were totally unprepared for what they found. Inside were about 55,000 prisoners, many of whom were emaciated and ill and in desperate need of medical attention. Thousands of corpses in various stages of decomposition lay littered around the camp.
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Soon after liberation, camp survivors cook in a field. [LCID: 75115] — Soon after liberation, camp survivors cook in a field. Bergen-Belsen, Germany, after April 15, 1945.

In the days before liberation, the prisoners had been left without food or water. More than 13,000 inmates died in the three months following liberation.
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