Key Points
Establishment
The SS established Neuengamme in December 1938 as a subcamp of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, initially intended for political prisoners. It expanded rapidly as the Nazis began to imprison Jews, Roma, homosexuals, and others deemed undesirable. It was located on the grounds of an abandoned brickworks on the banks of the Dove-Elbe, a tributary of the Elbe River in the Hamburg suburb Neuengamme, in northern Germany.
Inmate Population
Over its years of operation, Neuengamme held approximately 100,000 prisoners from various backgrounds. Many were subjected to forced labor in nearby factories, quarries, and construction projects.
Brutal Conditions
The conditions in Neuengamme were harsh, characterized by overcrowding, inadequate food, lack of medical care, and brutal treatment by guards. Many inmates suffered from malnutrition, disease, and physical abuse. The conditions under which the camp authorities forced the prisoners to work, and the absence of even rudimentary medical care facilitated the spread of disease, including pneumonia, tuberculosis, and typhus. More than 1,000 prisoners died in a louse-born typhus epidemic that began in December 1941.
Forced Labor
The camp authorities deployed Prisoners at forced labor, in camp construction, in the brickworks factory, in river-regulation projects on the Elbe, and on construction of a canal between the Dove and Elbe Rivers. After the Allies began bombing cities in northwestern Germany in late 1942, the SS deployed prisoners from Neuengamme to clean up rubble and to remove unexploded munitions from the streets of major cities, such as Hamburg and Bremen. The labor was grueling, and inmates often faced long hours with little rest or sustenance.
Subcamps
Neuengamme had numerous subcamps scattered throughout northern Germany, where inmates were forced to work on various projects. Many subcamps were located in industrial areas or near construction sites.
Medical Experiments
Some prisoners were subjected to inhumane medical experiments, including tests on infectious diseases. These experiments were conducted without consent and often resulted in suffering and death. For example, in early 1942, scientists from the Institute for Marine and Tropical Diseases used prisoners to test a means to combat lice-borne typhus. In 1944, an SS physician conducted experiments to develop drugs to combat tuberculosis; his subjects were 20 Jewish children transferred from Auschwitz.
Liberation
Neuengamme was liberated by British forces on May 3, 1945. Upon liberation, they found thousands of sick and emaciated prisoners, many of whom were in dire need of medical assistance.
Post-War Trials
After the war, several camp officials were tried for war crimes. The trials revealed the brutality and inhumane conditions that prisoners faced at Neuengamme.
