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Auschwitz

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  • Sandor (Shony) Alex Braun describes how music gave him the strength to survive while imprisoned in concentration camps

    Oral History

    Shony was born to religious Jewish parents in a small Transylvanian city. He began to learn the violin at age 5. His town was occupied by Hungary in 1940 and by Germany in 1944. In May 1944, he was deported to the Auschwitz camp in Poland. He was transferred to the Natzweiler camp system in France and then to Dachau, where he was liberated by US troops in April 1945. In 1950, he immigrated to the United States, and became a composer and a professional violinist.

    Sandor (Shony) Alex Braun describes how music gave him the strength to survive while imprisoned in concentration camps
  • Hanne Hirsch Liebmann describes the effects of Kristallnacht (the "Night of Broken Glass")

    Oral History

    Hanne's family owned a photographic studio. In October 1940, she and other family members were deported to the Gurs camp in southern France. In September 1941, the Children's Aid Society (OSE) rescued Hanne and she hid in a children's home in Le Chambon-sur-Lignon. Her mother perished in Auschwitz. In 1943, Hanne obtained false papers and crossed into Switzerland. She married in Geneva in 1945 and had a daughter in 1946. In 1948, she arrived in the United States.

    Hanne Hirsch Liebmann describes the effects of Kristallnacht (the "Night of Broken Glass")
  • Mayer Adler describes his family's preparations for deportation

    Oral History

    Mayer grew up in a rural town that was occupied by Hungary in 1940. After Germany occupied Hungary in March 1944, Mayer and his family were forced into a ghetto. They were then deported to the Auschwitz camp in Poland, where Mayer's parents and brothers perished. Mayer was selected for forced labor, and was later transferred to a satellite camp of Dachau, in Germany. He was liberated from Dachau in 1945. Sponsored by a children's committee, he immigrated to the United States.

    Mayer Adler describes his family's preparations for deportation
  • Murray Pantirer describes one of Oskar Schindler's rescue efforts

    Oral History

    The Germans occupied Krakow in 1939. Murray's family was confined to the Krakow ghetto along with the rest of the Jewish population of the city. In 1942, Murray and a brother were deported for forced labor in the nearby Plaszow camp. In May 1944, his brother was transferred to Auschwitz and Murray was sent to the Gross-Rosen camp in Germany. Murray was later transferred to Bruennlitz, in the Sudetenland, as a forced laborer for German industrialist Oskar Schindler. Schindler helped the Jews who worked for…

    Murray Pantirer describes one of Oskar Schindler's rescue efforts
  • Ludmilla Page describes German industrialist Oskar Schindler

    Oral History

    Ludmilla was born to an assimilated Jewish family in Kishinev, Romania. She and her mother, a physician, were living in Poland when the Germans invaded on September 1, 1939. They were taken to Krakow. Ludmilla was forced to live in the Krakow ghetto; her mother was sent to the Warsaw ghetto. Ludmilla worked in a factory at the Plaszow labor camp for a businessman who was a friend of the German industrialist Oskar Schindler. In October 1944, Schindler attempted to save some Jewish workers by relocating them…

    Ludmilla Page describes German industrialist Oskar Schindler
  • Sam Itzkowitz describes a death march from Landsberg, a subcamp of Dachau, to the Bavarian Alps

    Oral History

    The Germans invaded Poland in September 1939. When Makow was occupied, Sam fled to Soviet territory. He returned to Makow for provisions, but was forced to remain in the ghetto. In 1942, he was deported to Auschwitz. As the Soviet army advanced in 1944, Sam and other prisoners were sent to camps in Germany. The inmates were put on a death march early in 1945. American forces liberated Sam after he escaped during a bombing raid.

    Sam Itzkowitz describes a death march from Landsberg, a subcamp of Dachau, to the Bavarian Alps
  • John Komski describes Krakow after the outbreak of World War II

    Oral History

    John, who was born to a non-Jewish Polish family, graduated from an art academy. Following the German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, John was in Krakow. Food became scarce in Krakow, with long lines of people waiting for whatever food was available. John decided to join the resistance against the Germans. By early 1940, he and two of his friends felt that they were in danger and decided to try to escape to France. John was caught and arrested during this escape attempt. He survived imprisonment…

    John Komski describes Krakow after the outbreak of World War II
  • Dorotka (Dora) Goldstein Roth describes retaliation against women for an escape from Stutthof

    Oral History

    After the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, Dora's family fled to Vilna, Lithuania. When the Germans occupied Vilna, Dora's father was shot and the rest of the family was confined in the Vilna ghetto. Dora, her sister, and her mother were deported to the Kaiserwald camp in Latvia and then to the Stutthof concentration camp near Danzig. Her mother and sister perished in Stutthof. Dora herself was shot immediately before liberation, but she survived.

    Dorotka (Dora) Goldstein Roth describes retaliation against women for an escape from Stutthof
  • Leo Kutner describes forced labor in Stutthof

    Oral History

    Leo was arrested on the first day of the war, and assigned to forced labor in a shipyard, then on a farm. In 1940, like other Jews, he was deported to Stutthof. There, he upholstered furniture for the SS. The following year, he was sent to Auschwitz, where he cleaned the streets and dug ditches. As the Allies neared, Leo was evacuated to a series of camps. On a death march from Flossenbürg, the Nazis dispersed, allowing Leo and other prisoners to get away. He was liberated by US forces in April 1945.

    Leo Kutner describes forced labor in Stutthof
  • Ruth Meyerowitz describes deportation to and conditions in Ravensbrück

    Oral History

    In Frankfurt, Ruth's family faced intensifying anti-Jewish measures; her father's business was taken over and Ruth's Jewish school was closed. In April 1943, Ruth and her family were deported to Auschwitz. Ruth was forced to work on road repairs. She also worked in the "Kanada" unit, sorting possessions brought into the camp. In November 1944, Ruth was transferred to the Ravensbrueck camp system, in Germany. She was liberated in May 1945, during a death march from the Malchow camp.

    Ruth Meyerowitz describes deportation to and conditions in Ravensbrück
  • Leo Bretholz describes arrival at the Drancy camp

    Oral History

    After the Germans annexed Austria in 1938, Leo attempted to flee. He eventually reached Belgium. In 1940 he was deported to the St.-Cyprien camp in France but escaped. In 1942 Leo was smuggled into Switzerland but was arrested and sent back to France, this time to the Rivesaltes and Drancy camps. He and a friend escaped from a train deporting them to Auschwitz in Poland. Leo joined the French underground in 1943. He arrived in the United States in 1947.

    Tags: camps Drancy
    Leo Bretholz describes arrival at the Drancy camp
  • Leo Bretholz describes conditions in the Drancy camp

    Oral History

    After the Germans annexed Austria in 1938, Leo attempted to flee. He eventually reached Belgium. In 1940 he was deported to the St.-Cyprien camp in France but escaped. In 1942 Leo was smuggled into Switzerland but was arrested and sent back to France, this time to the Rivesaltes and Drancy camps. He and a friend escaped from a train deporting them to Auschwitz in Poland. Leo joined the French underground in 1943. He arrived in the United States in 1947.

    Tags: camps Drancy
    Leo Bretholz describes conditions in the Drancy camp
  • Bella Jakubowicz Tovey describes conditions in Bergen-Belsen

    Oral History

    Bella was the oldest of four children born to a Jewish family in Sosnowiec. Her father owned a knitting factory. After the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, they took over the factory. The family's furniture was given to a German woman. Bella was forced to work in a factory in the Sosnowiec ghetto in 1941. At the end of 1942 the family was deported to the Bedzin ghetto. Bella was deported to the Graeben subcamp of Gross-Rosen in 1943 and to Bergen-Belsen in 1944. She was liberated in April 1945, and…

    Bella Jakubowicz Tovey describes conditions in Bergen-Belsen
  • Ludmilla Page describes sabotage during production of munitions in Oskar Schindler's factory in Brünnlitz

    Oral History

    Ludmilla was born to an assimilated Jewish family in Kishinev, Romania. She and her mother, a physician, were living in Poland when the Germans invaded on September 1, 1939. They were taken to Krakow. Ludmilla was forced to live in the Krakow ghetto; her mother was sent to the Warsaw ghetto. Ludmilla worked in a factory at the Plaszow labor camp for a businessman who was a friend of the German industrialist Oskar Schindler. In October 1944, Schindler attempted to save some Jewish workers by relocating them…

    Ludmilla Page describes sabotage during production of munitions in Oskar Schindler's factory in Brünnlitz
  • Ludmilla Page describes a celebration of Oskar Schindler's birthday in Bruennlitz toward the end of the war

    Oral History

    Ludmilla was born to an assimilated Jewish family in Kishinev, Romania. She and her mother, a physician, were living in Poland when the Germans invaded on September 1, 1939. They were taken to Krakow. Ludmilla was forced to live in the Krakow ghetto; her mother was sent to the Warsaw ghetto. Ludmilla worked in a factory at the Plaszow labor camp for a businessman who was a friend of the German industrialist Oskar Schindler. In October 1944, Schindler attempted to save some Jewish workers by relocating them…

    Ludmilla Page describes a celebration of Oskar Schindler's birthday in Bruennlitz toward the end of the war
  • Thomas Buergenthal describes the impact of the Nuremberg trials on the development of international law

    Oral History

    Judge Thomas Buergenthal was one of the youngest survivors of the Auschwitz and Sachsenhausen concentration camps. He immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Judge Buergenthal devoted his life to international and human rights law. He served as chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience; was named the Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law and Jurisprudence at the George Washington University Law School; and served for a decade as the American judge at…

    Thomas Buergenthal describes the impact of the Nuremberg trials on the development of international law
  • Thomas Buergenthal reflects on the value of truth commissions

    Oral History

    Judge Thomas Buergenthal was one of the youngest survivors of the Auschwitz and Sachsenhausen concentration camps. He immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Judge Buergenthal devoted his life to international and human rights law. He served as chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience; was named the Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law and Jurisprudence at the George Washington University Law School; and served for a decade as the American judge at…

    Thomas Buergenthal reflects on the value of truth commissions
  • Thomas Buergenthal describes the significance of the Nuremberg trials to him both personally and as a lawyer and judge

    Oral History

    Judge Thomas Buergenthal was one of the youngest survivors of the Auschwitz and Sachsenhausen concentration camps. He immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Judge Buergenthal devoted his life to international and human rights law. He served as chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience; was named the Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law and Jurisprudence at the George Washington University Law School; and served for a decade as the American judge at…

    Thomas Buergenthal describes the significance of the Nuremberg trials to him both personally and as a lawyer and judge
  • Thomas Buergenthal discusses quote from Abel Herzberg

    Oral History

    "There were not six million Jews murdered; there was one murder, six million times."Holocaust survivor Abel Herzberg Judge Thomas Buergenthal was one of the youngest survivors of the Auschwitz and Sachsenhausen concentration camps. He immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Judge Buergenthal devoted his life to international and human rights law. He served as chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience; was named the Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law…

    Thomas Buergenthal discusses quote from Abel Herzberg
  • Thomas Buergenthal describes international tribunals

    Oral History

    Judge Thomas Buergenthal was one of the youngest survivors of the Auschwitz and Sachsenhausen concentration camps. He immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Judge Buergenthal devoted his life to international and human rights law. He served as chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience; was named the Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law and Jurisprudence at the George Washington University Law School; and served for a decade as the American judge at…

    Thomas Buergenthal describes international tribunals
  • Thomas Buergenthal reflects on the importance of memorials

    Oral History

    Judge Thomas Buergenthal was one of the youngest survivors of the Auschwitz and Sachsenhausen concentration camps. He immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Judge Buergenthal devoted his life to international and human rights law. He served as chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience; was named the Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law and Jurisprudence at the George Washington University Law School; and served for a decade as the American judge at…

    Tags: remembrance
    Thomas Buergenthal reflects on the importance of memorials
  • David (Dudi) Bergman describes liberation by US Army in mountains near Innsbruck

    Oral History

    The Germans occupied David's town, previously annexed by Hungary, in 1944. David was deported to Auschwitz and, with his father, transported to Plaszow. David was sent to the Gross-Rosen camp and to Reichenbach. He was then among three of 150 in a cattle car who survived transportation to Dachau. He was liberated after a death march from Innsbruck toward the front line of combat between US and German troops.

    Tags: liberation
    David (Dudi) Bergman describes liberation by US Army in mountains near Innsbruck
  • Hana Mueller Bruml describes black market activity in the Theresienstadt ghetto

    Oral History

    In 1942, Hana was confined with other Jews to the Theresienstadt ghetto, where she worked as a nurse. There, amid epidemics and poverty, residents held operas, debates, and poetry readings. In 1944, she was deported to Auschwitz. After a month there, she was sent to Sackisch, a Gross-Rosen subcamp, where she made airplane parts at forced labor. She was liberated in May 1945.

    Hana Mueller Bruml describes black market activity in the Theresienstadt ghetto
  • Hana Mueller Bruml describes preparations for a Red Cross visit to Theresienstadt

    Oral History

    In 1942, Hana was confined with other Jews to the Theresienstadt ghetto, where she worked as a nurse. There, amid epidemics and poverty, residents held operas, debates, and poetry readings. In 1944, she was deported to Auschwitz. After a month there, she was sent to Sackisch, a Gross-Rosen subcamp, where she made airplane parts at forced labor. She was liberated in May 1945.

    Hana Mueller Bruml describes preparations for a Red Cross visit to Theresienstadt
  • William (Welek) Luksenburg describes the first night of the German invasion of Poland

    Oral History

    Shortly after the German invasion of Poland in September 1939, William's family was ordered into a ghetto and his brother went to a work camp. William bribed officials to discharge his brother from a hospital destined for evacuation to Auschwitz. Later, after escaping from a prison camp to tend to his brother, William was jailed. He was sent to Blechhammer, Gleiwitz (where he met his future wife), and other camps. William collapsed during a death march near the Austrian border, but was then liberated. His…

    William (Welek) Luksenburg describes the first night of the German invasion of Poland
  • Beno Helmer describes conditions in the Lodz ghetto

    Oral History

    As a young man, Beno used his foreign language skills to land small movie roles. He and his family were deported to the Lodz ghetto, where they struggled daily to find food. In the underground, Beno became an expert at derailing trains. The family was sent to Auschwitz and was separated. All but Beno and one sister, whom he found after the war, died. Beno survived a series of camps and later helped to track war criminals.

    Tags: Lodz ghettos
    Beno Helmer describes conditions in the Lodz ghetto
  • Leo Schneiderman describes conditions in the Lodz ghetto

    Oral History

    The Germans invaded Poland in September 1939. Leo and his family were confined to a ghetto in Lodz. Leo was forced to work as a tailor in a uniform factory. The Lodz ghetto was liquidated in 1944, and Leo was deported to Auschwitz. He was then sent to the Gross-Rosen camp system for forced labor. As the Soviet army advanced, the prisoners were transferred to the Ebensee camp in Austria. The Ebensee camp was liberated in 1945.

    Tags: Lodz ghettos
    Leo Schneiderman describes conditions in the Lodz ghetto
  • Murray Pantirer describes the antisemitic climate in postwar Krakow

    Oral History

    The Germans occupied Krakow in 1939. Murray's family was confined to the Krakow ghetto along with the rest of the Jewish population of the city. In 1942, Murray and a brother were deported for forced labor in the nearby Plaszow camp. In May 1944, his brother was transferred to Auschwitz and Murray was sent to the Gross-Rosen camp in Germany. Murray was later transferred to Bruennlitz, in the Sudetenland, as a forced laborer for German industrialist Oskar Schindler. Schindler helped the Jews who worked for…

    Murray Pantirer describes the antisemitic climate in postwar Krakow
  • Hana Mueller Bruml recalls the occupation of Prague

    Oral History

    In 1942, Hana was confined with other Jews to the Theresienstadt ghetto, where she worked as a nurse. There, amid epidemics and poverty, residents held operas, debates, and poetry readings. In 1944, she was deported to Auschwitz. After a month there, she was sent to Sackisch, a Gross-Rosen subcamp, where she made airplane parts at forced labor. She was liberated in May 1945.

    Tags: Prague
    Hana Mueller Bruml recalls the occupation of Prague
  • Gerda Haas describes prewar Jewish community life in Ansbach

    Oral History

    Gerda was raised in a religious family in the small town of Ansbach, Germany, where her father was the Jewish butcher. She attended German schools until 1936, and then moved to Berlin to attend a Jewish school. She returned to her hometown after Kristallnacht in November 1938. Her family was then ordered to move to Munich, and in July 1939 her father left for England and then the United States. He was unable to arrange for the rest of his family to join him. Gerda moved to Berlin in 1939 to study nursing.…

    Gerda Haas describes prewar Jewish community life in Ansbach
  • Leon Bass describes his knowledge of Nazi camps during and after World War II

    Oral History

    Leon Bass was born in Philadelphia, PA in 1925. He joined the US Army in 1943 and served as a member of the all-Black 183rd Engineer Combat Battalion attached to General Patton's Third Army. Leon's unit was involved in the Battle of the Bulge as well as the liberation of Buchenwald. After the war, Leon went on to receive his doctorate, teach, and speak about the Holocaust and racism.  In this interview, Leon describes what he knew about Nazi concentration camps and the Holocaust during and after…

    Leon Bass describes his knowledge of Nazi camps during and after World War II
  • Barbara Ledermann Rodbell describes Anne Frank's parents

    Oral History

    Describes Anne Frank's parents

    Tags: Anne Frank
    Barbara Ledermann Rodbell describes Anne Frank's parents
  • Barbara Ledermann Rodbell describes using false papers and living in hiding

    Oral History

    Describes using false papers and living in hiding

    Barbara Ledermann Rodbell describes using false papers and living in hiding
  • Guta Blass Weintraub describes Starachowice ghetto cultural life

    Oral History

    Guta and her family fled to Starachowice, Poland. There, the Germans ordered them and other Jews into a ghetto and put them to work in forced-labor factories. As an act of resistance at the Majowka camp, Guta attacked a Nazi guard preparing to shoot her and other prisoners at a mass grave. A bullet grazed her, but Guta pretended to be fatally wounded. Days later, Guta was deported to Auschwitz, then Ravensbrueck, where she was liberated. Her mother died only weeks short of freedom.

    Guta Blass Weintraub describes Starachowice ghetto cultural life
  • John Komski describes resistance activities in Krakow, including an underground newspaper

    Oral History

    John, who was born to a non-Jewish Polish family, graduated from an art academy. Following the German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, John was in Krakow. Food became scarce in Krakow, with long lines of people waiting for whatever food was available. John decided to join the resistance against the Germans. By early 1940, he and two of his friends felt that they were in danger and decided to try to escape to France. John was caught and arrested during this escape attempt. He survived imprisonment…

    John Komski describes resistance activities in Krakow, including an underground newspaper
  • Resistance

    Animated Map

    View an animated map describing acts of resistance to Nazi oppression, ranging from armed resistance to acts of spiritual preservation.

    Resistance
  • Non-Jewish Resistance

    Article

    A variety of non-Jewish groups and individuals resisted the Nazi regime, both in Germany and in German-occupied territory. Learn more.

    Non-Jewish Resistance
  • Leni Riefenstahl

    Article

    Leni Riefenstahl was a German dancer, actress, and film director best known for her imposing propaganda films in support of the National Socialist (Nazi) Party.

    Leni Riefenstahl
  • Le Chambon-sur-Lignon

    Article

    From 1940 to 1944, Le Chambon-sur-Lignon and neighboring villages provided shelter to some 5,000 people, among them Jews fleeing persecution.

    Le Chambon-sur-Lignon
  • Ghettos

    Article

    Ghettos separating Jews from the rest of the population were part of the Nazi plan to destroy Europe's Jews. Read about ghettoization during the Holocaust.

    Ghettos
  • World War II in Europe

    Article

    Germany started World War II in Europe on September 1, 1939, by invading Poland. War would continue until 1945. Learn more about WWII and genocide in Europe.

    World War II in Europe
  • Kovno

    Article

    Kovno had a rich and varied Jewish culture. Learn about the Soviet and German occupations of Kovno, ghettoization, secret archives, and resistance in Kovno during WWII and the Holocaust.

    Kovno
  • Rescue

    Article

    Rescue efforts during the Holocaust ranged from the isolated actions of individuals to organized networks both small and large.

    Rescue
  • Collaboration

    Article

    To perpetrate the Holocaust, Nazi Germany relied on the help of allies and collaborators from across Europe, including governments, institutions, and individuals.

    Collaboration
  • Romania

    Article

    Even before joining the Axis alliance in 1940, Romania had a history of antisemitic persecution. Learn more about Romania before and during World War II.

    Romania
  • Sachsenhausen

    Article

    In July 1936, the SS opened the Sachsenhausen concentration camp as the principal concentration camp for the Berlin area.

    Sachsenhausen
  • The 11th Armoured Division (Great Britain)

    Article

    The discovery of the Bergen-Belsen camp and t...

    The 11th Armoured Division (Great Britain)
  • The Holocaust

    Animated Map

    View an animated map showing key events of the Holocaust, the persecution and murder of 6 million Jews by the Nazi regime and its allies and collaborators.

    The Holocaust
  • Herzogenbusch Subcamps

    Article

    Learn about the subcamps of the SS-established Herzogenbusch concentration camp in the Netherlands, including Amersfoort, Arnheim, Eindhoven, and others.

  • Sobibor: Key Dates

    Article

    Explore a timeline of key events in the history of the Sobibor killing center in the General Government, the German-administered territory of occupied Poland.

    Sobibor: Key Dates

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