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Teaching the Holocaust and other Genocides

Gross-Rosen Concentration Camp

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Gross Rosen

Gross-Rosen was a Nazi concentration camp located in Lower Silesia, Poland, near the town of Gross-Rosen (now Rogoźnica). Established in 1940, it was one of the major camps in the Nazi system and played a significant role in the exploitation of forced labor during World War II. Below are some key points about Gross-Rosen.

Key Points 

Establishment
Gross-Rosen was established as a subcamp of Sachsenhausen concentration camp in May 1940 as a camp for political prisoners and later expanded to include various groups targeted by the Nazis, including Jews, Roma, homosexuals, and Soviet prisoners of war. It became an independent concentration camp in 1941.

Inmate Population
At its peak, the camp housed around 120,000 prisoners from various nationalities, including Polish, Jewish, and others. In October 1941, the SS transferred about 3,000 Soviet POWs to Gross-Rosen for execution by shooting. Gross-Rosen was known for its brutal treatment of the so-called Nacht und Nebel (Night and Fog) prisoners vanishing without a trace from targeted communities. Most died in the granite quarry. The brutal treatment of the political and Jewish prisoners was not only in the hands of guards and German criminal prisoners brought in by the SS, but to a lesser extent also fueled by the German administration of the stone quarry responsible for starvation rations and denial of medical help.

Conditions
The conditions in Gross-Rosen were brutal. Inmates faced overcrowding, inadequate food, poor sanitation, and harsh treatment from the guards. Many suffered from malnutrition, disease, and physical abuse.

Forced Labor
Prisoners were subjected to forced labor in quarries and factories, producing materials for the German war effort. The work was grueling and often resulted in severe punishment for perceived disobedience or failure to meet quotas.

Subcamps
Gross-Rosen had a vast network of at least 97 subcamps scattered throughout the region, where inmates were forced to work on various projects, including the construction of military infrastructure and factories. These subcamps often had even worse conditions than the main camp. The population of all Gross-Rosen camps at that time accounted for 11% of the total number of inmates incarcerated in the Nazi concentration camp system.

Medical Experiments
Some inmates were subjected to inhumane medical experiments, including tests related to infectious diseases and other unethical procedures.

Liberation
Gross-Rosen was liberated by Soviet troops on February 14, 1945. Many prisoners had already been evacuated or transported to other camps as the Nazis sought to conceal their atrocities in the face of advancing Allied forces.