Dachau Concentration Camp - 26 May

Scott and I visited the Dachau Concentration Camp while in Munich, Germany. There wasn't a tour so we just walked around freely. There was so much information and there just wasn't enough time to read everything. It's very difficult to imagine this actually happening--very sad. I don't understand how this happens. They've now built four churches of different faiths at the camp for people to reflect on what they've seen.

This camp was open for 12 years with 200,000 incarcerated. 43,000+ died...

This marks where the prisons got off the bus to line up for entry

Gate to go inside

Me just outside the entrance

The crematorium was the furthest away from everything so we visited it first

The crematorium

This is the waiting area where victims were informed of their "showers".

Door to the gas chamber. The room was disguised as showers to prevent people from refusing to enter the room.

Inside the gas chamber. During a period of 15-20 min, up to 150 people at a time could be suffocated to death.

Room where the dead were brought before they were cremated.

Incinerator room

Each furnace could cremate two to three corpses at once.

Pistol range for execution

The entry to the crematorium area

Perimeter fence to prevent escape. If the prisoners got too close, they were shot.

The strips are were the barracks used to be

In between the rows of barracks

This was one of two barracks still there at the site, and the only one we could go into

Entry to the barracks

Beds

More rows of beds

Pic of men in the beds

Locker room

Outside the old maintenance building where it contained a kitchen, laundry, and supplies. It's also where the prisons registered upon arrival to the camp. It's now a museum.

Inside the museum

Prisoner uniform

Cruel form of punishment. The prisoner had to count along and if they misspoke, they would have to start again so they were hit more times than ordered. It says on the sign "The abused prisoner's screams were widely heard..."

Terrible living conditions

Gold teeth register

I always find treatment of women to be interesting. I didn't even think of them being here too for some reason. Women weren't brought here though until the final phase of war to do hard labor. They endured the same conditions as the men, but were also subjected to sexual violence.

Outside the building (to the left) for solitary confinement and special prisoners to include political prisoners.

Very long hallway with lots of rooms...

This shows the "standing cells". They created four areas in a room so small a prisoner couldn't sit or lay down. They were kept here for up to 72 hours. After the liberation, the American military removed the cells.

Looking into a room from the hallway...so creepy...