Linz II subcamp

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Location of the concentration camp in Linz

The Linz II concentration camp was a satellite camp of the Mauthausen concentration camp in Linz . It existed from February 21, 1944 until the end of the war in May 1945. A total of 380 prisoners were assigned to the camp, eight prisoners died in the camp. Almost half of the prisoners were deported to the Mauthausen main camp or Gusen concentration camp because of illness or exhaustion . The prisoners had to work mainly in the construction of underground air raid tunnels.

history

founding

From the summer of 1943 Austria came within range of the Allied air raids. Because of his personal connection to Linz, Hitler himself commissioned the construction of air raid tunnels in Linz. The plan was to expand the existing wine and beer cellars in the city area and connect them underground. This should also fix the problem that the different basements were supposed to serve catchment areas that did not match their capacity size. The Limonistollen, harpsichord cellar, March cellar and share cellar around the Linz Bauernberg had a combined capacity of 16,500 people. The capacity should be increased to 21,200 people. However, this expansion was restricted in favor of the expansion of the share cellar and the adaptation of the Linz central cellar for armaments production. In 1944 the rolling bearing plant of Steyr-Daimler-Puch AG was set up there.

On February 21, 1944, the first prisoners were transferred to Linz to build the tunnels. They were housed in one of the tunnels, the March cellar at the beginning of Bockgasse, in the middle of the city of Linz. The expansion of the tunnel itself was carried out by private companies. These paid the Linz magistrate to borrow the prisoners from the SS. The magistrate, in turn, settled the costs of the prisoners directly with the Mauthausen concentration camp.

Forced labor

The prisoners in Linz II were used for chiselling, excavation and assembly work as well as for the transport of material and plumbing work. The prisoners had to work around the clock in two or later possibly three shifts. Due to a lack of safety precautions, prisoners were repeatedly injured while working in the tunnel construction and several prisoners were killed in the process. The inmates were later used in clean-up work after air raids and in demining.

Prisoners

A total of 380 prisoners were deported to Linz II. Most of them came from the Soviet Union and Poland. However, there were also smaller groups from Germany and France and a few prisoners from other nations. In August 1944, the camp peaked with 285 prisoners.

Eight prisoners died in the Linz II camp, five of them in accidents in the tunnel due to poor working conditions. According to survivors, Soviet prisoners were also murdered directly by SS men. A total of 166 sick and exhausted prisoners were returned to Mauthausen and Gusen. It is unknown how many of them died.

living conditions

Prisoners and guards were fed by the city of Linz. The survivors describe the food supply as better than in other concentration camps, possibly because of this common supply. The prisoners were housed directly in the tunnel. Survivors report that they were therefore allowed to go out into daylight for a maximum of one hour a week, while others were not allowed to go into daylight at all. Because of the air raids on Linz, there were also several power outages in the tunnel, some of which lasted for days.

It is unclear how the prisoners were released. It is possible that the prisoners were transferred to the Linz III concentration camp or Mauthausen before the American soldiers arrived .

Guarding

Approx. 50 SS members were responsible for guarding the prisoners. Presumably they were taken over by the Air Force . They were housed in an inn directly in front of the tunnel entrance. SS-Oberscharführer Christoph Werner acted as camp leader . After drinking bouts, some SS men mistreated mainly Soviet prisoners. SS-Unterscharfuhrer Hermann Bührer and SS-Schützen Rudolf Julius also murdered prisoners. In the final phase, the warehouse was guarded by Linz theater employees. Survivors describe these as friendly.

Post war history

The tunnels were used by various companies after the war. Today some are empty, others are still used by companies.

The tunnels are not accessible privately today. However, historical tours are offered through parts of the tunnels. A Linz memorial initiative by the Mauthausen Committee of Austria set up a small memorial in today's harpsichord cellar.

In 2001 a small memorial for the prisoners of the Linz II concentration camp was erected in the Linz Botanical Garden , under which the share cellar is located. This "stone field of memory" with a metal plaque was designed by the artists Kurt Hoheisl and Andreas Knitz. Visitors to the exhibition "... half a century ago" in the Upper Austrian Provincial Museum were asked to bring stones to the museum to commemorate the prisoners of the Mauthausen concentration camp. Some of these stones were then used to design the monument. The "stone field of memory" consists of several granite stones numbered with metal plaques.

See also

literature

  • Bertrand Perz : Linz II. In: Wolfgang Benz , Barbara Distel (ed.): The place of terror. History of the National Socialist Concentration Camps. Vol. 4: Flossenbürg, Mauthausen, Ravensbrück. CH Beck, Munich 2006, pp. 394-397, ISBN 3-406-52964-X .
  • Bertrand Perz: National Socialist Concentration Camp in Linz . In: Fritz Mayrhofer, Walter Schuster (Ed.): National Socialism in Linz . Vol. 2 . Linz 2001, pp. 1041-1094

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c d e f g h i Bertrand Perz: Linz II. In: Wolfgang Benz, Barbara Distel (ed.): The place of terror. History of the National Socialist Concentration Camps. Vol. 4: Flossenbürg, Mauthausen, Ravensbrück. CH Beck, Munich 2006, pp. 394-397, ISBN 3-406-52964-X .
  2. ↑ a b c d e Linz II subcamp. In: Mauthausen Guides - Mauthausen Committee Austria. Retrieved May 28, 2020 .
  3. ↑ a b c The satellite camps. In: Mauthausen Concentration Camp Memorial. Retrieved May 29, 2020 .
  4. ↑ a b Linz Aktienkeller. In: Subterra. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Contemporary history tours in the Linz air raid shelter. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
  6. ^ Memorial for the victims of the Linz II concentration camp. In: City history Linz. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .

Coordinates: 48 ° 17 ′ 34.3 "  N , 14 ° 17 ′ 5.4"  E