Mauthausen Concentration Camp

Key Points 

Establishment
Mauthausen was established in August 1938, several months after the German annexation of Austria, initially as a camp for political prisoners and “asocials.” It soon expanded to include Jews, Roma, homosexuals, and other groups deemed undesirable by the Nazi regime. During 1940, the number of prisoners arriving grew exponentially. About 11,000 new inmates were sent to Mauthausen, leading the camp authorities to establish the first of several satellite camps nearby. Among the prisoners who arrived in 1940 was a group of Republican Spaniards who had fled Spain after General Francisco Franco won the Spanish Civil War. They had sought refuge in France only to be arrested there by the Nazis after the German invasion in May 1940. Still later, Mauthausen absorbed survivors of the infamous death marches from evacuated extermination camps.  

Inmate Population
Over its years of operation, an estimated 200,000 prisoners passed through Mauthausen. Many inmates were subjected to forced labor in quarries and other industries, with harsh conditions leading to a significant number of deaths. The Jews interned in Mauthausen were treated much worse than the other prisoners. They were forced to dig tunnels at the sub-camps for underground ammunition factories and were expected to do so at an unbearably fast pace.  After a month or so, the Jewish workers were so physically broken and exhausted they could hardly move.  

Brutal Conditions
Inmates faced overcrowding, malnutrition, and extreme brutality from camp guards. The camp was notorious for its physical punishment, including torture and executions. Many prisoners died from exhaustion, starvation, disease, and mistreatment.

Forced Labor
Mauthausen operated a series of nearly 100 subcamps, located throughout Austria and southern Germany, that exploited prisoners for forced labor, particularly in stone quarries. Mauthausen and its subcamps also included munitions factories, mines, arms factories and plants assembling Me 262 fighter aircraft.  Prisoners were subjected to grueling work conditions, often with little food or rest.

Liberation
Mauthausen was liberated by American forces on May 5, 1945.  Altogether, 199,404 prisoners passed through Mauthausen. Approximately 119,000 of them, including 38,120 Jews, were killed or died from the harsh conditions, exhaustion, malnourishment and overwork. Upon liberation, the soldiers discovered thousands of emaciated prisoners and evidence of the atrocities committed there.

Post-War Trials
After the war, several camp officials were tried for war crimes. The trials highlighted the brutal conditions and the systematic nature of the atrocities at Mauthausen.