Never again

"May the example of those who were exterminated here between 1933-1945 because they resisted Nazism help to unite the living for the defence of peace and freedom and in respect for their fellow men."  - Dedication plaque at Dachau

We spent most of Wednesday exploring the darkest period of German history - the rise and fall of National Socialism.  In Nuremberg's Nazi Documentation Centre, we learned about Hitler's ascension to power, and how the cult of Hitler affected an entire generation of Germans.  Then we explored the nightmare that Nazism was for those "outside the circle" at the concentration camp in the centre of the Munich suburb Dachau.

Though it is a difficult topic to teach to the students, it is absolutely necessary.  With the rise of the internet, those who seek to pervert history to suit their own twisted, hateful biases have a huge audience, and despite the fact that there are mountains of documented evidence, including films, photos, and the Nazis' own meticulous records, there are people who deny that the holocaust happened, or downplay its significance.  Here in Germany, it is built into the curriculum that all students must visit a concentration camp memorial like Dachau.  The message:  never again.

The now banned book "My Struggle" was at one time owned by most families in Germany.

Inside the Nazi Documentation Centre.

"Fascination and Terror" is the fitting name for the display in the museum here.

The excellent audio guides gave us some insights into the rise of the Nazi party.

Hitler was beloved - seen as a messiah that had come to save the German people.

Hitler carefully constructed a public persona that balanced the stern, disciplined leader with the "man of the people".

The Hitler myth - that he was some sort of "superman" was created through innovative use of film and imagery of the grand spectacles that were the Nazi party rallies in Nuremberg.

Hitler knew that to really control the population, he must start with the education system.  Children were taught to mistrust and hate "enemies of the German people".  Here is some blatantly anti-semitic elementary school work from the 1930's. 

Dachau.

The memorial signifying the classification of prisoners at Dachau.

One of the hated groups of people who were sent to concentration camps - so-called "asocials" - essentially homeless people.

Homosexuality was deemed illegal and known or suspected homosexuals were rounded up and sent to concentration camps.

A detailed record of prisoner classification in the camps.  According to the symbols sewn onto the prisoners uniform, the guards would immediately know from which subgroup a prisoner belonged, and treat them accordingly.

Some of the prisoners at Dachau were very young.  As long as they were strong enough to do manual labour, they would be sent here.  If they were too young, they would typically be sent to extermination camps like Auschwitz.

As persecution of the Jews in Germany and its conquered territories grew, Jews were forced to wear a yellow star to identify themselves.  Eventually, as the "final solution" was put into place, Jews were rounded up and sent to their deaths through murder in the gas chambers or "annihilation through work" as was the case at Dachau.

A significant number of Roman Catholic clergy had preached against Hitler and Nazism and were imprisoned in Dachau for doing so in the so-called "priest block" barracks.

Dachau on April 29, 1945 - liberation by the Americans after 12 years in operation.

The crematorium where the bodies of prisoners who finally sucumbed to over work, malnutrition, disease, or outright murder were disposed of.  When the American liberated the camp, fuel for the ovens had been exhausted for some time - there were large piles of bodies of the recently deceased - shocking and sickening for even the battle scarred soldiers to see.