80: Revolt

80 years ago today (October 7, 1944) the Sonderkommando revolted at the Auschwitz Death Camp in German-Occupied Poland.

(Ruins of Crematoria 4 and the Memorial to the October 7, 1944 Revolt at Auschwitz.)

The Sonderkommando (Special Work Unit) were Prisoners (Jews and Non-Jews) that were forced by the Germans to aid, under penalty of their own death, the Victims going to the Gas Chambers – they did not directly participate in the killings.

There were around 14 different “Generations” of Sonderkommando at Auschwitz alone with the vast majority either committing suicide by jumping into the Crematoria or being murdered by the Germans.

The Sonderkommando helped on the Selection Platform, taking the belongings of the Prisoners to big Warehouses so they could be sorted with Currency, Jewels and Valuables going to Switzerland to help finance the German War Machine and the Clothes and other Personal Belongings being sent to Germany and given to German Civilians.

The Sonderkommando also helped those selected to die undress in the Undressing Rooms, giving them string to tie their shoes together and soap to “wash” when they were being “disinfected.”

2,000 Men, Women and Children were sealed inside the Gas Chamber at a time (believing they were taking Disinfecting Showers) the Germans then poured the poison gas in from the roof and within 20 minutes of screaming and painful agony everyone inside was dead.

The Sonderkommando was then forced to cut the dead Women’s Hair which was used to make blankets for German U-Boats and to remove any gold teeth which was melted down and made into gold bars and sent to the banks.

The Sonderkommando then had to burn the dead bodies, some of their own Family Members and Friends, in the Crematoria and when there were too many bodies they had to burn them in piles outside.

As the Sonderkommando had detailed knowledge of the Germans’ War Crimes they were considered “Geheimnisträger” or  “Bearers of Secrets” and kept in complete isolation from the other Prisoners in the Camp  - living and working in the Gas Chambers and Crematoria.

From May 1944 until September 1944 424,000 Jewish Men, Women and Children from Hungary were murdered in the Gas Chambers at Auschwitz.

With the Germans losing the War on both the Eastern and Western Fronts and the number of Jews transported to Auschwitz in October 1944 declining the Germans murdered 300 Sonderkommando Prisoners and the remaining Sonderkommando realized their time was short too so they decided to revolt.

On October 7, 1944 the Sonderkommando at Crematoria 4 and 5 started revolting using homemade weapons to kill the German Guards. A fire started inside causing Crematoria 4 to collapse and damaging Crematoria 5.

The Sonderkommando at Crematoria 2 also took part in the revolt with 80 Prisoners cutting the barbed wire fence and fleeing.

The Sonderkommando at Crematoria 3 were supposed to join in the revolt, but after seeing the reenforced German Guards outside they decided not to.

252 Prisoners of the Sonderkommando were killed during the Revolt and 200 Prisoners of the Sonderkommando were killed immediately after the Revolt (from Crematoria 1,2,3,4 and 5 – even though Crematoria 3 didn’t participate in the Revolt the Germans didn’t want any witnesses)

27 of the 80 Sonderkommando Prisoners that escaped survived the War.

After the Revolt the Gas Chambers were not used again although the Crematoria were still used to burn the dead bodies.