What is the Holocaust? The term Holocaust means total burnt offering. The Holocaust is responsible for the deaths of 6 million Jews and two-thirds of the total European Jewish population. Former Buchenwald prisoners .

Adolf Hitler Hitler was appointed the Chancellor of Germany January 30, 1933. Hitler becomes Dictator of Germany in 1933. By 1934 Hitler had total control of the army. (Photo credits: KZ Gedenkstatte Dachau, courtesy of USHMM Photo Archives)

A parade of Hitler Youth in Nuremberg.

Mass Meeting for Hitler In huge rallies, Hitler captured the minds and imaginations of everyone. Anyone that opposed this policy was an immediate candidate for the first concentration camp, Dachau, where they were re-educated. Mass Meeting for Hitler photo courtesy of Yad Vashem

Concentration Camp in Buchenwald 1st Concentration camp opened in March 1933. Prisoners in Buchenwald are forced to stand without moving for endless hours as a punishment. Prisoner’s at roll call.

Mistreatment of the Jews The world accessible to German Jews narrowed. Jews were no longer allowed to enter cinemas, theaters, swimming pools, and resorts. The publishing of Jewish newspapers was suspended. Jews were required to carry identification cards and to wear Star of David badges.

Chart of Prisoner Markings Used in Concentration Camps Jews Roma Jehova Witnesses Homosexuals Photo credit: KZ Gedenkstätte Dachau, courtesy of USHMM Photo Archives

The mistreatment of the Roma's The Roma were nomadic people that believed to have come originally from northwest India. Like Jews, they were deprived of their rights. The fate of the Romanic peoples paralleled that of the Jews during the war. In total, hundreds of thousands of Roma were killed during the Holocaust.

The Mistreatment of the Jehovah's Witnesses The Jehovah’s Witnesses were a relatively small group of prisoners in the concentration camps. If Jehovah's Witnesses within the camps signed documents renouncing their religious beliefs, they would be freed. Very few, signed the declarations. About 10,000 Jehovah's Witnesses were imprisoned in concentration camps.

The Mistreatment of Homosexuals A state policy of persecution of homosexuals began in Germany in 1933. Publications by and about homosexuals were prohibited and burned. Some homosexuals spent time in prisons and about 10,000 were sent to concentration camps.

A group of children in the Soviet Union just prior to their execution. The Kristallnacht In November 1938, an event occurred which was called "Kristallnacht," or the "Night of Broken Glass.“ In one night, 1,350 Jewish synagogues were burnt. 30,000 Jews were thrown into concentration camps 7,000 Jewish businesses were destroyed A group of children in the Soviet Union just prior to their execution.

The smashed window of a Jewish shop is looked upon by Germans in the aftermath of Kristallnacht.

Concentration Camps Concentration Camps Through 1940 Jews are forced into ghettos and the lucky flee or are deported. The first mass murder of Jews begins in Poland. In 1942 Germany releases its “Final Solution” to eradicate all of the European Jews. Eastern European ‘Jew Ghettos’ are being emptied and they are sent to camps.

Concentration Camps Continued Concentration Camps Continued Not until 1943 do the world’s major powers admit that atrocities are being committed. By 1944 Hitler has stepped up the killings to over 15,000 Jews a day. Most Jews would be sent to Auschwitz where they would dig their own graves. In 1945 the death camps are emptied and Jews become ‘displaced persons’.

Concentration Camp Survivors

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