1945 The end of the war

January 27, 1945 Red Army liberates Auschwitz That date has become the International Holocaust Remembrance Day Auschwitz is actually a network of concentration and extermination camps It is named after the Polish town that it was next to

It was designed by Heinrich Himmler as the place for the “final solution to the Jewish question in Europe.” Between 1 and 3 million people died at Auschwitz (90% of them Jews), the majority by gassing The commonly accepted number is 1.1 million

Work makes you free

When the prisoners arrived they would be sorted into work and gas sections The work sections would do work for German companies until they were too weak and either starved or were gassed Those chosen for the gas chambers were told they were going to a shower Once in the chamber the door was locked and poison gas was let in through vents in the roof.

Medical Experiments High doses of x-rays to try and sterilize women Prisoners sold for guinea pigs to pharmaceutical companies Dr. Josef Mengele – The Angel of Death He would select for death to the left or life to the right He performed experiments on “patients,” he was especially interested in twins

Bombing Campaign against Japan America developed a new bomber with longer range and larger bomb load called the B-29 It had several innovations including a pressurized cabin and remote controlled gun turrets It could fly faster, farther, and higher than any other bomber in the world at the time

American B-29 Bomber

Japan was often obscured by clouds The wind patterns over Japan threw bombs off course Switched to night time bombing at lower altitudes Used fire bombing techniques like what was used on Hamburg Particularly effective because Japanese homes were made of wood and paper.

March – Tokyo Fire Bombing Firestorms raged out of control Estimated 100,000 people killed Single most destructive air raid in history