Lichtenburg (Germany)

The concentration camp of Lichtenburg was a Concentration camp located in a castle of XVIe century at Prettin (Land of Saxony-Anhalt).

Already starting from 1812, it was used as Pénitencier and in 1928, it was closed due to insufficient medical condition and buildings in bad condition.

The concentration camp of Lichtenburg has a historical importance because it was one of the first concentration camps having had a provisional function in the system concentrationnaire of the state Nazi.

The June 13rd 1933, it became a “Concentration camp for men in detention pending trial”.

The most former prisoner, Wolfgang Langhoff, entered there the December 6th 1933. Then, there was approximately 70% of prisoners Communiste S, 20% of prisoners Socialiste S and 10% of political prisoners nonaffiliated to a party.

Initially the monitoring fell on the police force, starting from mid-August the S replaced it. In 1934, Arthur Liebehenschel was the adjudant and as of on June 1st 1934, it was under the orders of the camp of Dachau.

From this same year, hunting for the homosexual in full day started and after the decrees of the racial Lois of Nuremberg in September 1935 (because of “racial Shame”) of the Jewish prisoners were imprisoned there.

Following the construction of the camps of Sachsenhausen and Buchenwald, the camp of the men was dissolves in August 1937 and replaced as from December 1937 by a camp of women.

The December 15th 1937, the 200 first held arrived of the camp of women of the camwood of concentration of Moringen. Until 1939, 1415 women there were held and registered.

Beside the political prisoners, who for a part there were already imprisoned since 1933, were reinforced since 1935 by the more known “Tellers of the Bible” under the name of Témoins of Jéhovah, emigrating repatriated and, because of “racial Shame”, of the pursued women of Jewish origin, supposedly asocial and criminal of common right were off-set in this camp

In October 1938, Maria Mandel was integrated in the personnel of this camp like Aufseherin. She worked there with approximately 50 other women who as she belonged all to the S. In May 1939, it was sent with other guardians in the lately open camp of the concentration camp of Ravensbrück close to Berlin. Held followed them the same year in this same camp

The S occupied the castle of 1940 with 1945. This camp sheltered the Inspection of the concentration camps and in particular the meeting of Stabsführers and the representatives of the Inspectors of the concentration camps in the room of the gallery.

After 1945

In 1995, the association of the camp had to fight for the conservation of this historic site. At the beginning of the summer 2000, the KZ of Lichtenburg, like property of state, was to be sold by the Higher Financial management of the Federal state of Magdeburg. Under the slogan “Concentration camp to be sold”, a national and international protest appeared. The question was put to the Bundestag. In November 2004, the problem of the historic site was posed again. It is only after massive protests which the government of the Land of Saxony-Anhalt clears up its position by announcing clearly that it would take part financially in the site and its operation.

See too

List of the concentration camps Nazis

External bond

of the castle]

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