Bergen-Belsen Camp

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In this paper, we will explore the camp that is Bergen-Belsen and its workers, campy system, liberation and trial. The notorious detention camp, Bergen-Belsen, was constructed in 1940 and “was near Hanover in northwest Germany, located between the villages Bergen and Belsen” (jewishvirtuallibrary.org), hence the name. Originally, the “camp was designed to hold 10,000 prisoners” (jewishvirtuallibrary.org) but, Bergen-Belsen rapidly grew. “In the first eighteen months of existence, there were already five satellite camps.” (holocaustresearchproject.org). Eventually, the “camp had eight sections: detention camp, two camps for women, a special camp, neutrals camp, ‘star camp’, Hungarian Camp, and a tent camp.” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, p.165) It also held prisoners who were too ill/weak to work at the “convalescent camp” (Bauer, Yehuda, p.359) Each section had its own function and its type of prisoners. The “Detention camp housed Jewish prisoners brought in to construct the camp.” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, p.165) “Special Camp housed Jews from Poland who held papers, passports, entrance visa, etc. issued by foreign countries” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, p.165) The “Neutral Camp was reserved for several hundred Jew who were citizens of neutral countries.” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, p.165) The "Star Camp was reserved for about 4,000 Jewish prisoners who were to be exchanged for German nationals interned by the Allies” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, p.165) The living conditions were appalling. The conditions were OK as a concentration camp, however as more prisoners came, it drastically worsened. There was “overcrowding, poor sanitary conditions, the lack of adequate... ... middle of paper ... ... major camp to be liberated by the Allies,” (jewishvirtuallibrary.org) there was a lot of press coverage. With all of the pictures that went in the media, it “sent a wave of horror across Britain” (Wigoder, Geoffrey, and Danbury, Conn) and the world. In November of 1945, forty-eight staff members were tried. Including Josef Kramer, eleven members were sentenced to death, nineteen members were imprisoned, which included Herta Bothe, fourteen were set free, and the remaining four were too ill to stand trial. “On December 12, 1945, British military authorities executed Kramer and his codefendants.” (ushmm.org) Works Cited http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/bergen_belsen.htm http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/Belsen.html http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005224 http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/othercamps/bbelsen.html

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