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Media Essay

Yitzhak (Irving) Balsam: Maps

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invasion of Poland youth Auschwitz death marches Mauthausen

Yitzhak Balsam was just under 15 years old when Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. Like other Jewish men in Praszka, he was forced to build roads outside of town. Yitzhak was later deported to several camps, including Auschwitz, and was imprisoned with 60 men after attempting to escape from a death march. He was later sent to Mauthausen for forced labor and to the Gunskirchen camp to die. In May 1945, he was liberated.

These maps add geographic context to Yitzhak's experience.

Poland, 1933

Poland, 1933 [LCID: pol19010]

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German invasion of Poland, September 1939

German invasion of Poland, September 1939 [LCID: pol81270]

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Killing centers in occupied Poland, Auschwitz indicated

Killing centers in occupied Poland, Auschwitz indicated [LCID: auc72090]

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Auschwitz environs, summer 1944

Auschwitz environs, summer 1944 [LCID: auc42030]

This map shows the Auschwitz camp complex in the summer of 1944.

The SS established Auschwitz in spring 1940 as a concentration camp for Polish political prisoners. It was located in German-occupied Poland on the outskirts of the town of Oświęcim. Over the next several years, the camp was expanded and transformed into a sprawling camp complex. In March 1942, the SS began operating a killing center at Auschwitz where they murdered Jewish people from all over Europe. 

By 1944, the Auschwitz camp complex included multiple camps that served different purposes. The largest of the Auschwitz camps included the Auschwitz main camp (Auschwitz I); Auschwitz-Birkenau (Auschwitz II), which included the killing center; and Auschwitz-Monowitz (Auschwitz III). There were also numerous smaller subcamps.

At Auschwitz, the Germans killed about 1.1 million people, including approximately 1,000,000 Jews; 70,000 Poles; 21,000 Roma and Sinti; and 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war.

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Major death marches from Auschwitz, January 1945

Major death marches from Auschwitz, January 1945 [LCID: auc72080]

On January 17, 1945, the SS began evacuating the Auschwitz camp complex. The SS forced tens of thousands of prisoners, mostly Jews, on death marches. Prisoners from Auschwitz, Auschwitz-Birkenau, and Monowitz were forced to march either northwest for 55 kilometers (approximately 30 miles) to Gliwice (Gleiwitz) or due west for 63 kilometers (approximately 35 miles) to Wodzisław Śląski (Loslau). Once they arrived in Gliwice and Wodzisław Śląski, most prisoners were put on unheated freight trains and transported to other concentration camps in Germany. There were also death marches from Auschwitz subcamps. During the marches, SS guards shot anyone who fell behind or could not continue. Prisoners suffered from the cold weather, starvation, and exposure. 

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Major Nazi camps in Europe, Mauthausen indicated

Major Nazi camps in Europe, Mauthausen indicated [LCID: mau72070]

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Mauthausen environs, April 1945

Mauthausen environs, April 1945 [LCID: mau42030]

A map of the Mauthausen concentration camp environs in April 1945.

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Mauthausen concentration camp, April 1945

Mauthausen concentration camp, April 1945 [LCID: mau22042]

A map of the Mauthausen concentration camp in April 1945.

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Major camps in Austria, Gunskirchen indicated

Major camps in Austria, Gunskirchen indicated [LCID: gun72020]

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Last Edited: Aug 17, 2018

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