A chilling wind whispers through the barbed wire remnants. This is Neuengamme. Imagine the sounds of despair echoing across this land. This wasn’t just a camp. Neuengamme was a network of Nazi concentration camps. It comprised the main camp and over 85 subcamps. Established in 1938 near the village of Neuengamme it became the largest in Northwest Germany.
More than 100000 prisoners passed through its gates. Twenty-four subcamps housed women. The sheer scale of suffering is almost impossible to grasp. Over 42900 died. 14000 perished in the main camp. Another 12800 died in the subcamps. The final weeks of World War II brought death marches and bombings. The death toll from these alone was 16100.
The story begins long before the first prisoner arrived. In 1937 Hitler designated Hamburg a Führer city. The Elbe River banks were to be remade. The SS-owned Deutsche Erd-und Steinwerke needed bricks. They bought a defunct brick factory and land in Neuengamme.
On December 13 1938 Neuengamme opened. One hundred prisoners from Sachsenhausen began construction. They operated the brickworks. In 1940 Himmler visited. He found the brick production substandard. A contract was signed with Hamburg. It called for a larger factory and a waterway. It also provided bricks and prisoners for city construction.
June 4 1940 Neuengamme became independent. Transports arrived from across Europe. Death rates climbed. A crematorium was built. Messap and Jastram opened armament plants. They used concentration camp prisoners as laborers. The Soviets were a huge group of prisoners. They suffered brutal treatment.
The first satellite camp opened in Salzgitter. Soon there were almost 80 subcamps. By 1942 the death rate reached 10% a month. A subcamp was set up on Alderney. In 1944 a section for prominent French prisoners opened. Among them was John William. He found his singing voice in Neuengamme. He later became a famous singer.
By late 1944 almost 49000 prisoners were held. 12000 were in Neuengamme itself. The rest were in the subcamps. Almost 10000 women were in the subcamps designed for women.
In March 1945 Scandinavian prisoners arrived. Subcamps were emptied. Death marches started. Prisoners were sent to Bergen-Belsen and Osnabrück. An air raid on a train resulted in the Celle massacre.
The main camp was evacuated on April 19. Between April 20 and 26 over 9000 prisoners were put onto four ships. The Cap Arcona and Deutschland were passenger liners. The Thielbek and Athen were large steamers. Prisoners were held without food or water.
The RAF mistook the ships for fleeing Nazis. They bombed them on May 3. Intelligence about the prisoners hadn’t reached them in time. Thousands died. Survivors in the water were strafed. The British Army arrived. They found mass graves. 7100 prisoners and officials died in the raid. Only 450 survived.
After the war Neuengamme became a Soviet displaced persons camp. It later became an internment camp for SS and Nazi officials. The camp was dismantled. In 1950 a prison opened. It stayed until 2004.
Today Neuengamme is a memorial. It serves as a stark reminder of the horrors. The memorial is a place of mourning. It stands as a testament to the victims. Their suffering must never be forgotten. Neuengamme. A name forever etched in history.