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About Michael FitzGerald
Expertise
I am an expert in German history between 1918 and 1945, particularly with regard to the Nazi era. I am also very knowledgeable about most areas of philosophy (I have an honours degree in the subject) and am able to answer questions on that subject too. In addition, I am very knowledgeable about poetry. One of my hobbies is also politics, mainly British and European though I follow the US political scene as well. Another one is the history of crime and punishment and British social history (the two often overlap!) I am willing to answer questions on all the above issues.
Experience
Author of two published works, 'Storm Troopers of Satan,' an account of the lunatic fringes of Nazi ideology, and 'Adolf Hitler: A Portrait,' a biography of the German dictator. 'Adolf Hitler' was published in July 2006 by the top history publisher Spellmount and was named historical biography of the month by the Good Book Guide. I correspond with Ian Kershaw, Peter Stachura, Jeremy Noakes, Roger Moorhouse and Stan Lauryssens. I have undertaken research for radio, television, newspapers and magazines
Organizations
Society of Authors
Education/Credentials
I have an Honours degree in philosophy.
Awards and Honors
LT prize for poetry
Historical Biography of the month, Good Book Guide
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You are here: Experts > Homework Help > 20th Century History > 20th Century History > World War 2: Nazi Camps
Expert: Michael FitzGerald
Date: 1/1/2008
Subject: World War 2: Nazi Camps
Question
I am confused about the difference in the camps set up by Nazi leaders in WW2. There are basically 2 types, aren't there (concentration and death)? My question is what is the difference between the two types of camps. I understand that the death camps (Auschwitz, Sobibor, Treblinka, etc.) were created to extinguish racially inferior people. However, I keep finding that some of the concentration camps also had gas chambers for systematic murder. Please help me to see the difference between concentration camps and death camps during the Nazi era.
Thanks,
William, a sixth-grade teacher trying to stay a step ahead of his students.
Answer
Hi William,
Thanks for your question. I apologise for the delay in getting back to you but I was away for a few days.
Essentially the concentration camps proper were never designed to be places of extermination. They were set up as a combination of holding centres for political opponents, a form of slave labour and a torture chamber. They remained for many years essentially places where most inmates served only between 6 months to a year and the majority of prisoners there lived and were not treated with exceptional brutality.
Although there was always a certain amount of unsystematic killing during the Nazi regime, the only organised murder was the mass killings of mental patients. This was begun in 1935 by various doctors who were eager to take advantage of the Nazi 'philosophy' as an excuse to murder their patients rather than care for them. Not until 1939 did Hitler know about this situation, when he promptly signed an order of a single sentence approving it.
When the reality became known to the German people, there was such a howl of protest that Hitler was forced to stop the first of the Nazi genocide programmes.
Following the conquest of Poland in 1939, unsystematic massacres of Jews and Poles followed. Mainly the method of killing was by mass shooting, but by 1941 the problem of the large numbers of Jews captured following the invasion of the Soviet Union forced the authorities to rethink their whole policy. The result was the notorious 'Endlosung,' or 'Final Solution.'
From 1942 onwards a variety of methods were used to murder Jews, gypsies, Slavs and other 'undesirables.' I have gypsy blood in me and always stress that 800,000 Romanies were also murdered as well as the better-known Jewish casualties. I also remind people that the Poles lost 25% of their population, although Stalin also contributed to that toll of death.
At first mobile vans were used, prisoners being placed inside them and gassed with carbon monoxide. As the scale of the murders increased, new 'extermination centres' were set up specifically to murder people, though the healthy and fit could also expect to be asked to perform slave labour before they were killed. Ordinary concentration camps, though by no means the majority of them, were also refitted in many cases with gas chambers to assist in the more rapid disposal of the unfortunate inmates.
I hope this helps. If you need more information please do not hesitate to ask me.
Kind regards
Mike
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