N
o other Nazi concentration camp is as well known for the atrocities committed within than the Auschwitz-Bikenau camp. Auschwitz and its two other main subcamps, made up the largest Nazi concentration camp. The camp served three main purposes: to imprison real enemies of the Nazi regime, to provide a supply of forced labor for SS-owned companies, and to eliminate groups seen by the Nazis as unfit for survival, including Jews, gypsies, and Poles. Medical experiments on twins, dwarfs, and other groups also made Auschwitz notorious. Auschwitz is the most famous of all Nazi camps because of its size and the large number of lives lost within the walls of this death camp. The girls in this camp were raped and slaughter for the amusement of the guards.
Victims Killed: At least 1.1 million
Jews from across Europe
Victims Killed: 10,000-15,000
Other Nationalities
Victims Killed: 15,000
Soviet Prisoners of War
Victims Killed: Between 6,500-16,000
Roma (Gypsies)
Victims Killed: Between 70,000-75,000
Poles
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Poland
300,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Greece
55,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: France
69,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Bohemia and Moravia
46,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Slovakia
27,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Hungary
426,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Netherlands
60,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Norway
690
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Yugoslavia
10,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Italy
7,500
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Other (including concentration camps)
34,000
Deportation Numbers to Auschwitz by Country: Belgium
25,000
Camps: Main Camps
Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II (Auschwitz-Birkenau), Auschwitz III (Monowitz)
Other: First Gypsies arrive from Germany and Austria
26 Feb 1943
Other: New gas chambers open each kills 2,000 daily
22 Mar 1943
Other: Typhus epidemic kills 184 male prisoners
3 Jul 1942
Other: First transport of Jews from France arrives
30 Mar 1942
Other: Auschwitz I camp opens with arrival 30 prisoners
20 May 1940
Other: Heinrich Himmler inspects Auschwitz
1 Mar 1941
Other: First Jews arrive from Italy
23 Oct 1943
Other: SS test the use of Zyklon B gas to kill prisoners
3 Sep 1941
Other: Polish prisoners deported to Auschwitz
Jun 1940
Other: First Jews from Hungary arrive
16 May 1944
Other: First Jews arrive from Netherlands, most gassed
17 Jul 1942
Other: Construction begins on Auschwitz-Birkenau subcamp
8 Oct 1941
Other: First Jews arrive from Belgium
5 Aug 1942
Other: First Greek Jews arrive from the Salonika ghetto
20 Mar 1943
Other: Forced labor camp opens at Monowitz-Auschwitz III
31 May 1942
Other: Prisoner uprising fails
7 Oct 1944
Other: Allies take first aerial photographs of Auschwitz
4 Apr 1944
Other: Mass gassing operations begin
20 Mar 1942
Other: First Jews arrive from the Theresienstadt ghetto
9 Sep 1943
Other: Two Slovak Jews, Wetzler and Vrba, escape
7 Apr 1944
Commandants of Auschwitz: SS Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Liebehenschel
Nov 1943 - May 1944
Commandants of Auschwitz: SS Lieutenant Colonel Rudolf Hoess
May 1940 - Nov 1943
Commandants of Auschwitz: SS Major Richard Baer
May 1944 - 27 Jan 1945
Other: Soviet forces liberate Auschwitz
27 Jan 1945
Other: SS evacuates Auschwitz
18 Jan 1945
Other: Gassing operations end as Soviet Army approaches
25 Nov 1944
Medical Doctor who conducted experiments
SS Captain Josef Mengele
