Holocaust Extermination Camps

1933 to 1945 is a time known as the Holocaust, a word meaning sacrificed by fire or burnt. It was a government endorsed plan lead by the Nazi’s and their brutal leader Adolf Hitler, to separate, persecute and execute European Jews. By the end of the Holocaust around 6 million Jews died from execution or disease, which was far off the Nazi’s ultimate goal to eliminate 11 million. Jews were the main target but Sinta and Romanian people (also known as gypsies), homosexuals and people with disabilities were also harmed.

As a temporary place for Jews to be kept away from society, ghettos were formed in the majority of towns and cities. They were small areas surrounded by brick walls and barbed wire not far from homes that were used to isolate Jews.

The first camps were simply improvised prisons in old factories and warehouses but more camps were built throughout Nazi territory, mostly in Poland. There were many functions for the camps. There were forced labour camps where people deemed fit underwent hard physical work in awful conditions. There were prisoner of war camps where soldiers where kept and tortured for information. And the others were extermination camps, were the people classed unfit for labour were sent to die. The largest camp was Auschwitz-Birkenua in Poland and was where the unfit were often sent. The main method they used to kill such large groups of people was to cram hundreds into gas chambers and poison them. They’re bodies were then thrown into a crematorium to burn. If you weren’t on of the 3 million who were shot or poisoned, scientist kept you for experiments, especially twins.

Mass shootings was another method of execution for Jews. Mass killing campaigns were the most public phase of the holocaust and were conducted by Nazis and were assisted by members of the mobile killing squad, the SS, and the German armed forces. Members of the local Jewish community were gathered some place near there town and shot. In December 1941 at Babi Yar 33, 771 people were