The Holocaust (Essay Sample)

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The Holocaust
Introduction
During the world war (II), the Nazis started establishing extermination camps. These camps were mainly used to detain and execute those people who resisted or were against the governments and colonies of that time (Furman, 1983). Another purpose of the camps was to kill all the Europe Jews who were deported into the camps. The main reason for this act was to ensure a full political control of these nations by instilling fear to the potential opposition or those who did not like the governments of these times (GILBERT, 1987). During the middle of Second World War, there emerged western public awareness about the heinous crime against humanity that were being committed by Nazi Third Reich (GILBERT, 1987).
This documentation will focus on the history of the history and the process of extermination in the death camp of Auschwitz.
The Auschwitz was a large complex that could hold up to 150,000 inmates at one given time. This was the largest death camp across Europe. Auschwitz complex was divided into three areas that were established by the Nazi in 1940 until it was put in use until 1945 when it was set out of use in its allied liberation process. Analysts and historical records estimate the number of people who were killed in Auschwitz camp to between 2.1 and 4 million. Majority of the victims who died in this camp were European Jews. Like in Treblinka, the majority of the detainees in the Auschwitz camp were killed by gas while other were killed by gun fire, starvation, disease and forced labor. Other people prisoners were killed injections from heinous medical experiment.
Today, Auschwitz is a synonymous word for terror, genocide and holocaust. The camp was partially destroyed by the retreating Nazi people in 1945.The remaining part was established as a museum to help the future generation to understand the kind of atrocities that were committed within the fences of this museum. Over thirty million people visited the museum by the end of 2011 (The holocaust educational Trust, 1998).
History of Auschwitz
The Auschwitz death camp was started as a network of the Nazi concentrations and labor camps that were established near Polish city. In 1942, this camp was converted into an extermination canter for the European Jews. The only reason why they were exterminated was simply because they were Jews (Gilbert, 1987).
By 1943, the Auschwitz camp comprised of the three major sub camps, namely; Auschwitz 1, Auschwitz 2 and Auschwitz 3 and other dozens of small camps of the sub camps (Shimon, 1883). The official historiography records that millions of Jews were executed or poisoned by while they were in the national socialist execution camps during world war (II), among these camps were the Auschwitz and Majdanek. These camps were established as concentration camps, but they were later turned into major extermination camps where able and strong bodied Jews were engaged into forced labor while the disabled ones were executed and gassed by poisonous fumes of gas (Mattogno, pg200).
Furthermore, official historical museums and books hint that there were four pure extermination camps which included the Treblinka camp, Sobibor camp, Belzec camp, and Chelmno camp (Kulmhof), that served the exclusive purpose of destroying Jews people (Mattogno, pg. 200). Except for the few ‘Jewish Slaves,’ who were under forced labor to keep the camp in operation, all other detainees, regardless of age or state of their health, murdered indiscriminately without any record them being kept. Claims about the mass murder and extermination of are based on entirely and exclusively upon eyewitness testimonies of those who managed to escape.
The evidence of the acts of atrocities were completely destroyed so that there was no proof of such acts. History explains that the national socialists did not compile any documents from the execution camps.
The main purpose of these this camp was for the effecting of a methodical killing of innocent people. The first Camp, Chelmno, began operating in late 1941, while the others began operating in 1942.
Initially, Auschwitz camp was designed as an execution camp unlike other camps that begun as concentration camps to confine millions of people without trying them. This camp occupied Poland in the middle of world war (II). During this time, approximately 850,000 men children and women were killed. Forensic archaeologists, previously uncovered mass graves that were discovered in this place in 2012 help to prove that was an extermination camp.
This Auschwitz was built as part of an action called Reinhard (Action Reinahrd). Unlike other extermination camps like Treblinka, Sobibor and Majdanek, Auschwitz was built close to the prying eyes. It could easily be accessed by trolley cars and all sides of this camp were easily seen from outside the camp.
The Jews were the first people to be brought to the camp for execution. In the month of March 1942, some 25000 Jews first deportees were brought in by the train cars.10, 000 Jews were deported from Slovakia while 14000 came Bohemia and Monrovia through the old camp at Terezin. All the deportees at the Auschwitz camp eventually consisted of citizens from France, Netherlands, Belgium, and Greece while the remaining Jews came from the Lublin and Bialystok districts.
One key incident in history of Auschwitz is attempted escape of 200 prisons of war on 14 July 1942. Approximately half of the POWs were never captured. Those who escaped joined the retaliation units to fight the act of atrocities until the end of World War II. This event is similar to act of resistance that occurred in the death camps: In these incidents, there were successful prison breaks from both the Auschwitz and the Sobibor camps.
The mass executions in Auschwitz by use of the poison gas (Zyklon -B) begun in September 24, 1942. The process of expanding this camp was so fast and extensive that by the end of 1943, the camp was completed and already divided into six sections; one section was women’s camp, the second section was hospital field mainly for use by the soviet collaborators and the Nazi-, third section was male polish-political prisoners and the Jews from the Warsaw and Bialystok district, fourth section was men’s hospital-the forced laborers, fifth section for male political prisoners ,prisoners of war as well as civilian hostages who were killed routinely in a reprisal action, the sixth section was an area that was never completed that which was to act as new barracks ,poison gas factories, extermination, more gas chambers and crematoria.
To date, the number of people killed in the Auschwitz and Majdanek genocide has remained to be a Mistry that cannot be determined from the holocausts of the Nazi (Hejlsberg, 33).
In contrast, the camp's museum, the U.S.A Holocaust Memorial Museum indicates that more than 300,000 were killed at the camp (US memorial holocaust museums, 2013). Forty Percent of the total number of inmates killed were the European Jews. However, evidence from the historical death toll numbers in this camp indicates that’s the major victims who suffered and killed in the gas chambers of the Auschwitz and Majdanek were the Jewish.
Many victims of the gas chambers of Majdanek were Jewish. In addition to the genocide, other inmates died due to the harshest conditions they were left in while they were mistreated in the camp.
While this qualifies to be no less genocide, this occasion does point out to the mission of the Auschwitz partly as the worst part of the last and final solution that the Nazis had to unleash on the European Jews.
Extermination process applied in Auschwitz death camp
In this camp, gas chambers and crematoria were used to conduct the atrocities. The people who were picked from the camp were never told their fate. The entire process of mass murder greatly depended top secrecy, keeping the information from the victims. This is because, if victims had known they were headed for death, they would definitely fight back. Since they did not know, they only believed the Nazis’ deceptive words that they were going to have a shower, disinfected and then be sent back (Shimon, 1983).
The deportee were ushered into ante-rooms, in which they were told to undress all the clothing. While they were completely naked, men, children and women were ushered into large rooms that exactly looked like big shower rooms even with fake shower heads. Once the doors were shut, the Nazi would the pour Zyklon-B pellets into openings of the fake shower rooms or through the roofs and windows. The pellets would in turn produce poison gas once it was mixed (contacted water or moisture) that killed all the insiders (The holocaust educational trust, 1998).
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The gas would kill quickly but not instantaneously. Therefore, victims would finally realize these were not showers and started clambering over each other for fresh air while others clew at the door until their finger bled. Once everyone was dead, Sonderkomandos, special prisoners who were entitled the task of removing the dead bodies from the rooms and placed in the cremation chambers for burning .The cremation was conducted to conceal the evidence of the atrocities that were being conducted.
Initially, this was built as an extermination camp but later was converted into genocide camp, built in the year 1942. This camp was built sixty miles to the north east of the Warsaw town. Compared to Treblinka that occupied a small complex occupying 400 by 600 square meters, Auschwitz Camp occupied a very large complex that was divided into phases. (William Morrow, pg.66).
The process of extermination in this camp was purely based on the experience of the Nazis while they were in the Sobibor and Belzec camps. In the year 1942, trains containing 7000 peop...