Death Trains
Death trains were transports run by the Deutsche Reichsbahn national railway systems due to the German Nazis and their collaborators. They used the trains as forcible deportation of the Jews and other victims of the Holocaust to the German Nazi concentrations, forced labor, and extermination camps. Many Jews were taken from condemned ghettos where no food was available. Without the trains, the "Final Solutions" would have never been possible. The people that were targeted during the "Final Solution" depended on how large the capacity of the death camps to gas the victims and process their bodies quick enough, as well as how large the railway transports were to move the condemned bodies. By the end of 1941, about 3.5 million Polish Jews had been segregated and ghettoized by the SS in a massive deportation action involving the use of freight trains. Jews were sealed of from the general public in hundreds of virtual prison islands.
The fully enclosed train cars locked and contained no windows which greatly reduced the number and skill of troops required to transport the condemned Jews to their destination. The use of the railways allowed the Nazis to lie about their "Resettlement Program" at the same time as expanding and making their gas chambers larger and able to operate more efficiently. The Nazis disguised their "Final Solutions" as "Resettling in the East". They told their victims that they were being taken to labor camps in Ukraine, in reality it only meant they were heading towards their death at Belzec, Chlemno, Sobibor, Majdanek, Treblinka, or Auschwitz-Birkenau.
The SS killing squads could not deal with killing so many individuals so they forced the Nazis to make death trains that took Jews to death camps. The Nazis told the Jews that they were going to be taken to better labor camps that had better conditions. Many of the train cars had a layer of lime on the floor which burned human feet. On average the ride in the train car lasted four days, without ventilation, water, food, or a bathroom. Many of the cars had at least 150 people in them, no matter how hot or cold it was.
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The local police were charged with carrying out the Aktion (round-up of Jews) and the Jewish Police were also found participating in the round-up. They ordered Jews to gather in a certain location, which was usually the train station and to only bring few possessions. During the Aktion, whoever did not follow directions or participate was shot. Many people died in the train cars due to the harsh conditions. The Nazis lied about murdering many people to allow them to do it over and over. The Jews in Poland were told that “non-essential and unproductive elements” would be sent for labor in the east while Jews in the west were informed of their transfer to settlements in the east
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WORK CITED
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocaust_train
I learned about the Final Solutions the Nazis had for victims. I learned how the train cars benefited the Nazis. I learned how they called the Final Solution "Resettling in the East". http://www.aish.com/ho/o/The-Trains.html I learned that death trains were not the only way of killing Jews off. I learned most rides lasted four days. I learned they were not aloud a bathroom. http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/holocaust/about/05/deportation.asp I learned they shot whoever didn't participate. I learned that even Jewish Police participated in the round up of Jews. I learned that many people died while in the cars. |
LEARNING ACTIVITY
1. How many days on average were people held in the train cars?
[] A. 1 day [] B. 4 days [] C. 9 days [] D. 5 days 2. What did they call the Final Solution to disguise it? [] A. "Traveling North" [] B. "Resettling in the East" [] C. "Moving East" [] D. "Moving South" 3. What did the train cars not contain? [] A. Food [] B. Water [] C. Windows [] D. All of the above 4. Approximately how many people did they put in the train cars? [] A. 150 [] B. 200 [] C. 500 [] D. None of the above 5. Why did the Nazis take Jews to death camps? [] A. Because the SS killing squad was to small. [] B. Because the SS killing squad didn't feel like killing anymore. [] C. Because the SS killing squad couldn't handle that many killings. |
ANSWERS TO LEARNING ACTIVITY
1. B. 4 days
2. B. "Resettling in the East"
3. D. All of the above
4. A. 150
5. C. Because the SS killing squad couldn't handle that many killings.
2. B. "Resettling in the East"
3. D. All of the above
4. A. 150
5. C. Because the SS killing squad couldn't handle that many killings.