History 29/02/20 Massacre at Dachau: how Americans dealt with the guards of the concentration camps
the Allies liberated at the end of the war scattered all over Europe, concentration camps were horrified by what was going on there. Known cases of lynching of surrendered German soldiers and guards of the death camps. The largest such incident occurred at the Dachau concentration camp in Bavaria on April 29, 1945.
the Polygon of death
Dachau originated in 1933 and was one of the first concentration camps in Germany. It was here that the Nazis began developing the technology of mass destruction, which then will apply throughout Europe.
The secrecy in the camp is conducted horrific experiments on human beings. The unfortunate prisoners were left in icy water and watched how long they can spend in the extreme cold. The living prisoners were cut, they were trained marksmanship skills. Others waited for the gas chamber. During the years of the war there has killed more than 70 thousand people, among them Soviet citizens.
Shocking
the Advanced parts of the American army came to the district of Dachau almost without resistance on 28 April, and the next day went to the concentration camp. The guards at the approach of the Americans fled, on the contrary, prepared to meet the allied troops.
to Meet them came a day earlier, was appointed the new commandant of Dachau, SS obersturmführer Heinrich Skodzinsky. Despite the situation, he looked marvelous: clean-shaven, in a smooth clothing. Kozinski started with the Americans to negotiate the surrender and guarantees of security to their subordinates.
Initially, it was favorable for the Germans. However, what the allies found after a few minutes on site, Dachau, and threw them into deep shock.
the Americans saw tens of cars without the wingShi, brim full of the dead bodies of tortured victims by the Germans. Some were killed quite recently, while others – more than a week ago. Shocked the allies and discovered the gas chambers and crematoria coal, full of barely-clad bodies of the prisoners.
As stated in the testimony of a former part of a group of American troops at Dachau, Colonel Joseph Whitaker, shocked by the sight of the commander of the 157th infantry regiment William Walsh was ordered to take Skodzinsky and accompanied his soldiers in one of the carriages of the “trains of death” and shoot. The sentence executed private albert Pruitt.
Punishment
subsequent events unfolded rapidly. About half-past eleven in the morning the Americans finish with 122 captured Germans – for the most part the soldiers of the Waffen SS. It should be noted that the end of the war the SS became engaged in the protection of all concentration camps, and therefore to conceal their involvement in what was happening there, events I could not. However, they perfectly understood all and did not expect no mercy.
the Americans let the prisoners out of the camp, which killed 40 guards, most of them killed with his bare hands or improvised tools. Contrary to popular belief, the Jews in Dachau at the time was no more than 5% of the total prison population, the others serving there time criminals.
Temporarily to restore order, the command of the allies at noon. The prisoner was taken 358 German soldiers, many of them have been raised from beds of the hospital. Took even doctors and nurses who provided medical care to the wounded.
some time Later, one of the American gunners thought that the prisoners want to escape. Soldiers opened fire and killed 12 Germans, before Lieutenant Colonel Felix Sparks was ordered to cease fire. But the order was not executed. According to another version, the Spark he led the massacre of the prisoners.
346 the Remaining Germans, including hospital staff, were shot from machine guns at block C. One SS man was beaten with a shovel. The wounded were finished off by shots. Alive from that massacre is not yourno one was eating. In the staff note, “the Fate of the garrison Dachau” Lieutenant Howard Brukner said the number of victims of the massacre 560.
a Crime without punishment
the dead Bodies lying in the coal yard of the concentration camp for another five days. Then their documents are destroyed, removed the medallions and other identifying marks, and then buried in an unmarked common grave.
the incident was the assistant inspector-General Seventh army Lieutenant Joseph Whitaker was the beginning of the investigation. But despite the fact that the U.S. military has committed a crime, violating the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners, no one involved in the massacre of soldiers and officers of punishment has not suffered.
Ivan Proshkin
Source:
© Russian Seven
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