German camps in occupied Poland during World War II

During the Nazi German occupation of Poland during World War II , a system of concentration camps of various kinds was established across the country.

The German camps in occupied Poland during World War II were built by Nazi Germany in the course of its occupation of Poland (1939–1945) both in the areas annexed by Germany, and in the territory of General Government created by the Third Reich . A system of camps of various kinds was established across the entire country, including extermination camps , Nazi concentration camps , labour , and POW camps . German occupied Poland was a prison-like territory. It contained 457 camp complexes. Some of the major ones, such as Auschwitz , Gross-Rosen , and Stutthof , consisted of dozens of subsidiary camps scattered over a broad area. At Gross-Rosen (to which Polish nationals were expelled from the annexed part of Poland ) the number of subcamps was ninety seven (97) . Under Auschwitz I , Auschwitz II Birkenau , and Auschwitz III ( Monowitz ) the number was forty-eight (48) , with thousands of prisoners each; their detailed description of purpose is provided by the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum . Stutthof had forty (40) subcamps officially and as many as 105 subcamps in operation, some as far as Elbląg , Bydgoszcz and Toruń , at a distance of 200 kilometres (120 mi) from the main camp. Gross-Rosen Museum (Muzeum Gross Rosen w Rogoźnicy) . "Stutthof (Sztutowo): Full Listing of Camps, Poland" ( Introduction ) . Source: "Atlas of the Holocaust" by Martin Gilbert (1982). : External link in |format= ( help )

The German camps in occupied Poland during World War II were built by the Nazis between 1939 and 1945 throughout the territory of the Polish Republic , both in the areas annexed in 1939, and in the General Government formed by Nazi Germany in the central part of the country (see map) . After the 1941 German attack on the Soviet Union, a much greater system of camps was established, including the world's only industrial extermination camps constructed specifically to carry out the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" . Some of the major concentration and slave labour camps consisted of dozens of subsidiary camps scattered over a broad area. At the Gross-Rosen concentration camp , the number of subcamps was 97 . The Auschwitz camp complex (Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II-Birkenau, and Auschwitz III-Monowitz ) had 48 satellite camps ; their detailed descriptions are provided by the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum . Stutthof concentration camp had 40 subcamps officially and as many as 105 subcamps in operation, some as far as Elbląg , Bydgoszcz and Toruń , at a distance of 200 kilometres (120 mi) from the main camp. The camp system was one of the key instruments of terror, while at the same time providing necessary labour for the German war economy. The camp system was one of the key instruments of terror, while at the same time providing necessary labour for the German war economy. Historians estimate that some 5 million Polish citizens (including Polish Jews ) went through them. Impartial scientific research into prisoner statistics became possible only after the collapse of the Soviet Empire in 1989, because in the preceding decades all inhabitants of the eastern half of the country annexed by the USSR in 1939 were described as citizens of the Soviet Union in the official communist statistics. Straty ludzkie poniesione przez Polskę w latach 1939-1945 . Według ustaleń Czesława Łuczaka, do wszelkiego rodzaju obozów odosobnienia deportowano ponad 5 mln obywateli polskich (łącznie z Żydami i Cyganami). Translation: According to postwar research by Czesław Łuczak over 5 million Polish nationals (including Polish Jews and Roma) were deported to German camps, of whom over 3 million prisoners perished. "Filie obozu Gross-Rosen" [Subcamps of Gross-Rosen, interactive]. Gross-Rosen Museum (Muzeum Gross Rosen w Rogoźnicy) . "Stutthof (Sztutowo): Full Listing of Camps, Poland" ( Introduction ) . Source: "Atlas of the Holocaust" by Martin Gilbert (1982). : External link in |format= ( help )

The German camps in occupied Poland during World War II were built by the Nazis between 1939 and 1945 throughout the territory of the Polish Republic , both in the areas annexed in 1939, and in the General Government formed by Nazi Germany in the central part of the country (see map) . After the 1941 German attack on the Soviet Union, a much greater system of camps was established, including the world's only industrial extermination camps constructed specifically to carry out the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" . Some of the major concentration and slave labour camps consisted of dozens of subsidiary camps scattered over a broad area. At the Gross-Rosen concentration camp , the number of subcamps was 97 . The Auschwitz camp complex (Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II-Birkenau, and Auschwitz III-Monowitz ) had 48 satellite camps ; their detailed descriptions are provided by the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum . Stutthof concentration camp had 40 subcamps officially and as many as 105 subcamps in operation, some as far as Elbląg , Bydgoszcz and Toruń , at a distance of 200 kilometres (120 mi) from the main camp. The camp system was one of the key instruments of terror, while at the same time providing necessary labour for the German war economy. The camp system was one of the key instruments of terror, while at the same time providing necessary labour for the German war economy. Historians estimate that some 5 million Polish citizens (including Polish Jews ) went through them. Impartial scientific research into prisoner statistics became possible only after the collapse of the Soviet Empire in 1989, because in the preceding decades all inhabitants of the eastern half of the country annexed by the USSR in 1939 were described as citizens of the Soviet Union in the official communist statistics. Straty ludzkie poniesione przez Polskę w latach 1939–1945 . Według ustaleń Czesława Łuczaka, do wszelkiego rodzaju obozów odosobnienia deportowano ponad 5 mln obywateli polskich (łącznie z Żydami i Cyganami). Translation: According to postwar research by Czesław Łuczak over 5 million Polish nationals (including Polish Jews and Roma) were deported to German camps, of whom over 3 million prisoners perished. "Filie obozu Gross-Rosen" [Subcamps of Gross-Rosen, interactive]. Gross-Rosen Museum (Muzeum Gross Rosen w Rogoźnicy) . Source: "Atlas of the Holocaust" by Martin Gilbert (1982).