Here is the final part of Auschwitz, Auschwutz III (a.k.a Monowitz, which was a labor camp, and the largest camp in Auschwitz). 11,000 slave laborers worked at Monowitz. 7,000 inmates worked at various chemical plants and 8,000 worked in mines. Approximately 40,000 prisoners worked in slave labor camps at Auschwitz or nearby. Doctors from Auschwitz II would visit the work camps quite often and select the weak and sick for the gas chambers of Birkenau, (if you don't remember from my last post, Birkenau was the second camp), so many were literally working for their lives under terrible conditions.
The prisoners' day began at 4:30 a.m. with roll call, with 30 minutes allowed for morning ablutions. After roll call, the Kommando, or work details, would walk to their place of work. Often the prisoners would be wearing no more than five striped camp fatigues, no underwear, and wooden shoes without socks, which were not properly fitted and caused great pain. An orchestra often played as the workers marched through the gates. Kapos (remember them from my last blog post?) were responsible for the prisoners' behavior while they worked, and so was an SS escort. The working day lasted 12 hours during the summer, and a little less in the winter. There were no rest periods were allowed. One prisoner would be assigned to the bathrooms to measure the time the workers spent in there. They weren't allowed to spend much time in the bathroom at all. After work, there was an evening roll call. If a prisoner was missing, the others had to remain standing in place until he was either found or the reason for his absence discovered, even if it took hours, even in the freezing cold or burning heat. After roll call, there were punishments, depending on what had happened during the day. After these, the prisoners were allowed to go to their blocks for the night to receive their bread rations and water. Curfew was two or three hours later, the prisoners sleeping in long rows of wooden bunks, lying in and on their clothes and shoes to prevent them from being stolen. (The picture at the beginning of this post shows this. The man circled in red is Elie Wiesel. This was taken at a different concentration camp he spent time in called Buchenwald.)
I can't believe the prisoner's work day started at 4 am! That must have been exhausting having to wake up so early every day to do labor work. I think it was smart that the prisoners slept on their clothes and shoes to prevent them form being stolen. This shows that people not only feared of death and the Germans, but also each other. They had no trust in one another because living in concentration camps definitely changed people and their ethic values.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Monica (about the sleeping on your clothes and shoes...). It is terrible that even when the Germans are acting so terribly towards the Jews, instead of them joining together to work through everything, they went against each other. And I don't understand how Elie Wiesel spent time in that camp. Was it one of the ones mentioned at the end of the book?
ReplyDeleteRosemarie: By "was it one of the ones mentioned at the end of the book?" do you mean Buchenwald? Yes he arrives at Buchenwald on page 103. That picure is NOT of Auschwitz, it is just there to show living conditions in a labor camp. Also, to show Elie Wiesel. He was at Auschwitz first, and then he went to Buchenwald. Did that answer your question? lol
ReplyDeleteWow, they are sooo skinny. That's why later on in the book when Eliezer finally got to take a glimpse of himself, he looked like such a different person.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting.. Thanks for providing a picture, this just realy explains the book to me just by looking at the picture. Good job gabby i just learned even more things, and started to comprehend things more.
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