![At left, a column of Soviet prisoners of war, under German guard, marches away from the front. [LCID: 76154]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/1bb2e55e-960e-4393-9b3d-44bf7d5ca008.jpg "At left, a column of Soviet prisoners of war, under German guard, marches away from the front. [LCID: 76154]")
At left, a column of Soviet prisoners of war, under German guard, marches away from the front. Place uncertain, July 1, 1941.
Item View![Two malnourished Soviet prisoners of war, survivors of the Hemer prisoner of war camp in western Germany. [LCID: 37308]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/11e1c9af-2059-492e-ac58-32220eda7cd3.jpg "Two malnourished Soviet prisoners of war, survivors of the Hemer prisoner of war camp in western Germany. [LCID: 37308]")
Two malnourished Soviet prisoners of war, survivors of the Hemer prisoner of war camp in western Germany. More than three million Soviet prisoners of war died in German custody, mostly from malnutrition and exposure. Hemer, Germany, April 29, 1945.
Item View![Soviet prisoners of war, survivors of the Majdanek camp, at the camp's liberation. [LCID: 83855]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/9ddacbf5-80d4-4884-8da5-524346509a1d.jpg "Soviet prisoners of war, survivors of the Majdanek camp, at the camp's liberation. [LCID: 83855]")
Soviet prisoners of war, survivors of the Majdanek camp, at the camp's liberation. Poland, July 1944.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View![Wounded Soviet prisoners of war. The German army provided only minimal treatment, and permitted captured Soviet personnel to care ... [LCID: 69319]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/1822ace6-d131-48c7-892f-ce871873f108.jpg "Wounded Soviet prisoners of war. The German army provided only minimal treatment, and permitted captured Soviet personnel to care ... [LCID: 69319]")
Wounded Soviet prisoners of war. The German army provided only minimal treatment, and permitted captured Soviet personnel to care for their own wounded using only captured medical supplies. Baranovichi, Poland, wartime.
Item View![Wounded Soviet prisoners of war await medical attention. [LCID: 67670]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/22a5daf9-9eea-4133-8e2d-112f10b1c30b.jpg "Wounded Soviet prisoners of war await medical attention. [LCID: 67670]")
Wounded Soviet prisoners of war await medical attention. The German army provided only minimal treatment, and permitted captured Soviet personnel to care for their own wounded using only captured medical supplies. Baranovichi, Poland, wartime.
Item View![Sack of wood flour (finely powdered wood or sawdust) used to make substitute bread. [LCID: 80792]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/765d662a-9d19-40b5-b77a-03d2170557c3.jpg "Sack of wood flour (finely powdered wood or sawdust) used to make substitute bread. [LCID: 80792]")
Sack of wood flour (finely powdered wood or sawdust) used to make substitute bread. The official ration of this "bread" for Soviet prisoners of war was less than 5 ounces a day. Deblin, Poland, 1942 or 1943.
Item View![Columns of Soviet prisoners of war. Soviet Union, September 15, 1942. [LCID: 76157]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/5acacfb9-3c19-463b-963c-e58c4f0701ad.jpg "Columns of Soviet prisoners of war. Soviet Union, September 15, 1942. [LCID: 76157]")
Columns of Soviet prisoners of war. Soviet Union, September 15, 1942.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View![Soviet prisoners of war wait for food in Stalag (prison camp) 8C. [LCID: 50193]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/c9dcfa4b-4841-48a2-9f0a-8c59bcde7e76.jpg "Soviet prisoners of war wait for food in Stalag (prison camp) 8C. [LCID: 50193]")
Soviet prisoners of war wait for food in Stalag (prison camp) 8C. More than 3 million Soviet soldiers died in German custody, mostly from malnutrition and exposure. Zagan, Poland, February 1942.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View![Photograph from a series taken by a guard in the Soviet POW camp of Belzen bei Bergen, and numbered in Roman numerals by the American ... [LCID: 88847]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/2d260d3a-167f-4d22-85e3-58117241efac.jpg "Photograph from a series taken by a guard in the Soviet POW camp of Belzen bei Bergen, and numbered in Roman numerals by the American ... [LCID: 88847]")
Photograph from a series taken by a guard in the Soviet prisoner-of-war camp of Belzen bei Bergen, and numbered in Roman numerals by the American officer, Lt. van Otten. The camp held approximately 10,000 POWs, most of whom came from Fallingbostel, 10 km away. When they fell ill, they were marched to Belsen. At Belsen, they were starved, often given only a soup made of field beets. This photo shows Soviet POWs assembled at the camp. Germany, 1941–45.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View![Soviet prisoners of war interrogated by German soldiers upon arrival at a prison camp. [LCID: 81525]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/088c52b4-ba93-43f8-9b3f-2a3595a27729.jpg "Soviet prisoners of war interrogated by German soldiers upon arrival at a prison camp. [LCID: 81525]")
Interrogation of Soviet prisoners of war by German soldiers upon arrival at a prison camp. Lida, Poland, 1941.
Item View![Dugouts, which served as living quarters for prisoners in Stalag 319—a Nazi-built camp for Soviet prisoners of war. [LCID: 80789]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/f6b1138c-41f4-4748-91be-09e66f9883ec.jpg "Dugouts, which served as living quarters for prisoners in Stalag 319—a Nazi-built camp for Soviet prisoners of war. [LCID: 80789]")
Dugouts which served as living quarters for prisoners in Stalag 319—a Nazi-built camp for Soviet prisoners of war. Chelm, Poland,1941–44.
Item View![Soviet prisoners of war arrive at the Majdanek camp. [LCID: 34143b]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/9e3827dc-cc50-4526-a6c3-200f1faf60e7.jpg "Soviet prisoners of war arrive at the Majdanek camp. [LCID: 34143b]")
Soviet prisoners of war arrive at the Majdanek camp. Poland, between October 1941 and April 1944.
Item View![Soviet prisoners of war receiving their meager rations. [LCID: 50166]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/eb617b96-c268-42cf-8f12-9baf75e315cc.jpg "Soviet prisoners of war receiving their meager rations. [LCID: 50166]")
Soviet prisoners of war receiving their meager rations. More than three million Soviet prisoners of war died in German custody, mostly from malnutrition and exposure. Rovno, Poland, 1941.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View![SS officers posing in front of a newly arrived transport of Soviet prisoners of war. [LCID: 19482]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/0f9cdc04-67fd-4d09-bc9f-b06c2cae8794.jpg "SS officers posing in front of a newly arrived transport of Soviet prisoners of war. [LCID: 19482]")
SS officers posing in front of a newly arrived transport of Soviet prisoners of war. Mauthausen concentration camp, Austria, 1941.
Item View![Germans guard prisoners in the Rovno camp for Soviet prisoners of war. [LCID: 50155]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/269da279-f020-4e33-a44b-33edb506f1ad.jpg "Germans guard prisoners in the Rovno camp for Soviet prisoners of war. [LCID: 50155]")
Germans guard prisoners in the Rovno camp for Soviet prisoners of war. Rovno, Poland, after June 22, 1941.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View![A German soldier guards Soviet prisoners of war at the Uman camp in the Ukraine. [LCID: 91098]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/a0be2b4b-7146-4f3d-b15e-ab263b11c927.jpg "A German soldier guards Soviet prisoners of war at the Uman camp in the Ukraine. [LCID: 91098]")
A German soldier guards Soviet prisoners of war at the Uman camp in the Ukraine. Soviet Union, August 14, 1941.
Item View![German soldiers guard Soviet prisoners of war marching to camps. [LCID: 91085]](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/images/large/be3e35c8-e4bf-430a-b78a-d88be4e3cc83.jpg "German soldiers guard Soviet prisoners of war marching to camps. [LCID: 91085]")
German soldiers guard Soviet prisoners of war marching to camps. Soviet Union, 1941.
Second only to the Jews, Soviet prisoners of war were the largest group of victims of Nazi racial policy.
Item View
An entrance to the former gas chamber and crematorium building at the Auschwitz main camp. Poland, April 1945.
In mid-August 1940, Auschwitz concentration camp authorities put into operation a crematorium adjacent to a morgue. This building was located just outside the boundaries of the Auschwitz main camp. In September 1941, the morgue was converted to a gas chamber for mass murder where several hundred people could be killed at a time. This gas chamber was used until December 1942, though the crematorium remained in operation as late as July 1943. In 1944, camp authorities dismantled the crematory furnaces and transformed the building into an air raid shelter for the SS hospital and for SS officers working in camp administration buildings nearby. During the creation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in 1947, two crematory furnaces were reconstructed using original parts and the crematory chimney was rebuilt. Around this time, the air raid shelter walls were demolished to allow visitors to the museum and memorial to view the reconstructed gas chamber and crematorium space.
Item View
We would like to thank Crown Family Philanthropies, Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation, the Claims Conference, EVZ, and BMF for supporting the ongoing work to create content and resources for the Holocaust Encyclopedia. View the list of donor acknowledgement.
