DACHAU, THE FIRST CONCENTRATION CAMP, WWII HISTORY & TOUR скачать в хорошем качестве

DACHAU, THE FIRST CONCENTRATION CAMP, WWII HISTORY & TOUR

Welcome to Dachau, the site of the first Nazi concentration camp, established in 1933. Located just north of Munich, Germany, Dachau operated for twelve years under the Nazi regime, through World War II, and is said to have imprisoned over 200,000 people from across Europe. Initially it was intended to hold political prisoners, Communists, Socialists, and other dissenters, but it later also held Jews, Romani, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and others. It was not an extermination camp, but a place of forced labor, punishment, and unimaginable suffering, where it is said that more than 41,500 lost their lives. Today, we’ll explore its history, tour its layout, and its legacy as a memorial to those who endured it. Our journey begins at the main gate, marked by the wrought-iron phrase “Arbeit Macht Frei”, which means, “Work Sets You Free.” This gate was the entrance for prisoners arriving between 1933 and 1945. Built in the early days of the camp, it was part of the initial infrastructure when Dachau opened on 22 March 1933, under Heinrich Himmler’s orders. For many that crossed these gates, they were never free again. Beyond this gate lay a tightly controlled world of barbed wire and watchtowers, where prisoners faced a harsh new reality. Next, we move to the barracks area. Today, the outlines of the original 34 barracks are marked by concrete foundations, each numbered for clarity. These long, low buildings stretch out in rows—wooden skeletons of a brutal past. In 1933, Dachau was designed to hold 6,000 prisoners, but by 1945, it was overcrowded with over 30,000. Only two barracks have been reconstructed for visitors; the rest are left as outlines to show the scale. Prisoner life began with arrival, where they were stripped of possessions, shaved, and given striped uniforms. Please see the video for details. We now enter the crematorium area, where fumigation cubicles stand. Please see the video for a tour of this area. Adjacent are the showers—concrete and grim. Please see the video for this site. Further in, we reach the crematorium ovens, which is the hardest place for most visitors. The ovens stand as a stark testament to the scale of loss, their brick and steel preserved for history’s witness. Please see the video for a tour of this site. Outside, we find the memorial garden and ash grave. The garden is a quiet space of reflection, planted with trees and bordered by stones. Nearby, the ash grave holds the remains of thousands whose bodies were cremated, a collective resting place marked by a simple plaque. Adjacent is the Christian memorial grave, a cross-topped mound honoring the faith of many prisoners—Catholic priests and others—who perished. These areas, created post-liberation, offer a place to contemplate the lives lost and the resilience of those who survived. Turning to the camp’s darker corners, we reach the pistol execution areas. Here, SS guards shot prisoners at close range, often as punishment or reprisal. The walls remain pockmarked with bullet holes, and the blood ditch—a shallow trench—still scars the earth. Executions claimed around 4,000 lives, most of them Soviet prisoners of war, their deaths a grim fraction of Dachau’s toll. This site, though small, speaks to the brutality that defined the camp’s operation. Trees have grown since 1945, softening the scene, but the history cuts through. Imagine the silence before the shots, the terror of those final moments. It’s a place that demands stillness, a pause to honor those who died here. Dachau is known for its sadness and despair, but faith persisted here, reflected in the three chapels and monastery on the grounds. These sacred spaces, all post-liberation, mark a shift from suffering to reflection." Please see video for tours for the religious sites. Security defined Dachau’s perimeter. Seven guard towers, spaced along the walls, gave the SS clear sightlines. The walls, topped with electrified barbed wire, enclosed the camp, while ditches beyond them slowed escape attempts. From here, they controlled the morning roll calls, which was sometimes hours of standing in freezing cold or searing heat, counting the living and the dead. The tower’s shadow still falls across the gravel. It’s a reminder of the power that ruled this place. Outside, pill box guard positions—small concrete bunkers—fortified the exterior. Escape was rare; most who tried were shot or recaptured. This system ensured total control, a constant reminder of captivity. Scattered across the site are memorial statues. Please see video for memorials Finally, we enter the museum, housed in the former maintenance building. Please see video for exhibits. Dachau isn’t just a site—it’s a lesson, a warning, a memory etched in stone and silence. Check out our website at: www.familytreenuts.com Contact us at: [email protected] Join this channel to get access to perks:    / @familytreenutshistorygenealogy