Documents analysis: transfer 30 women prisoners from Ravensbrück

Transcript of the podcast

The analysis of the surviving documents of the camp administration makes it possible, on the one hand, to trace how that centralized concentration camp system administered by the SS in Nazi Germany functioned, while on the other hand, it also shows various aspects of the functioning of the camp itself and the members of its garrison. One example is the surviving correspondence concerning the attempt to transfer 30 women prisoners - Jehovah's Witnesses - from Ravensbrück camp to Auschwitz, who were to be employed as domestic helpers in the homes of the SS men. Teresa Wontor-Cichy from the Research Center of the Auschwitz Museum, is talking about this set of documents.

The transport of prisoners between the camps was quite common in Nazi concentration camps, but most of the time the men were being transported because of their profession, for example, there was the request for bakers or men with another specific qualification. In terms of women sending them for particular job was usually dilemma for the administration of the camp, so this is why this set of documents issued between February and May 1943 it's illustrating the situation in the camp and also the situation of the women - female prisoners in Auschwitz. The correspondent starts in February, the 19th of February 1942. And it's a telegram sent from Auschwitz to Oranienburg to the main administrative office and in this telegram, the chief of the employment section here in Auschwitz - Heinrich Schwarz, is asking for 30 female prisoners - Bible Students. And 6 days after, so not even a week, he got the answer, also a telegram. And the chief of the office in Oranienburg is surprised to hear that 30 women are needed for Auschwitz, and especially for what kind of work they may be necessary. He is saying in the telegram that they are being sent for particular duties. So the reply for this telegram is two months later, so most probably the situation in the camp became a little bit tense. And in the end of April 1943, again the chief of the employment of the prisoners Heinrich Schwarz is saying that the women - the female prisoners, are needed for families of the SS staff members, especially in the situation that the wife is sick and there are many children in the family. The answer is after roughly 3 days. Oranienburg wants to know in which particular families the prisoners are to be employed. Auschwitz needed a week to prepare the answer, because they sent not only reply, so some text, but they also prepared a chart. And in this chart we may see the names of the SS soldiers, number of children and what kind of work the female prisoners are going to be sent for. Not only names, so the families are mentioned, but also many other places where the women are to work and there are mainly offices for German officers: it's a hotel, it's a place where they were having meetings, it's a restaurant for the German soldiers. Their job there was basically to clean and to do all the work concerning the maintaining. The office in Oranienburg still was not that sure that, that many specific prisoners are necessary for Auschwitz, so this is why in a letter which is having a notice that it has to be faster they want the age of the children. So again the chart dates 15th of May 1943 is being sent for Berlin and here we may read again the names of the officers. On the top we've got Commandant Höss. We may read that he had 4 children, that was in May 1943. His fifth child - a daughter, was born the next year. The children were aged 5, 9, 10 and 12, and he wanted two female prisoners with purple triangle to work in his house. The women were so important for the camp and for the families, because they were known as prisoners who are very good workers. They wanted German prisoners because in German families, the lifestyle, the housekeeping are mutual, so there would be no troubles in every day duties. Also, the language was very important issues, so no difficulties with communication. The correspondence stopped on the 15th of May 1943, so we may suppose that the Auschwitz office failed in getting another 30 prisoners with purple triangle for the work in the houses of the SS members. The office in Auschwitz had to solve the trouble and as there were still female Jehovah's Witnesses and Bible Students sent to Auschwitz, so for some duties Polish prisoners started to be sent for this work. Again, some cleaning in the hotel, in the restaurant or some other places, but still knowing that the prisoners are very good workers and as long as the work is not connected with any military elements, not with violence, they are going to be very loyal for this work. Still they were being widely sent for work for the, camp administration.