Amblog - A (photo)blog through Europe

Natzwiller-Struthof, 3/02/2012:

Nowadays, Natzwiller-Struthof is a museum in remembrance of those who perished here, mainly political protesters. It is normally closed in the winter months, since the weather is too extreme to make upkeep of the camp for visitors reasonable. And to think, during the war, the prisoners were lucky to have thin pajamas and shoes to wear. We were told that during the winter, the death rate was 10% a month, just from the cold.

The first photograph shows the view from inside the camp to the outer gate. Immediately after entering the camp, I wanted to leave again. I did not like being enclosed by barbed wire and guard towers, even though they were unstaffed. 

The second photograph shows the view down the hill to the prison (where punished prisoners were held) and the crematorium. The sheds where the prisoners were held burned down, since they were only made of wood, but the prison and crematorium were made of stone and are original. The noose was where the guards would publicly execute prisoners (after torturing them in the prison to ensure they would not try to instill hope in others by shouting “Viva la France!” or something similar).

Our guide also told us the the sheer slope of the hill was dangerous to the prisoners. It got extremely slippery in the winter (we walked down the cleared road instead of attempting the stairs) and prisoners could be punished for walking too slowly or falling.