New scorn
Neu-Hohne was the largest refugee camp in the district of Celle after the Second World War . It was set up in parts of the former Bergen-Belsen concentration camp and existed from 1946 to 1953.
history
Because of the housing shortage after the war, the barracks of the SS pre-camp and the administrative area of the camp were used to accommodate refugees, bombed-out and displaced persons. This area was originally intended to house the guards. Forced resettlers from the village of Hohne were also accommodated here. They had to vacate their apartments on the orders of the British because the training area Bergen-Hohne , which the Wehrmacht had set up in 1935, was taken over by the British military and was to be expanded. Hence the name "Neu-Hohne" came from.
"The German residents of Neu-Hohne saw themselves as victims, they did not feel empathy for the suffering of the concentration camp inmates and the survivors."
The living conditions in Neu-Hohne were very inadequate. Earning opportunities existed only on the British military training area.
Coming to terms with the past
The Bergen-Belsen concentration camp memorial is trying to come to terms with the past of the former refugee camp. On May 22, 2011, the memorial was invited to a "narrative café" for the first time.
"" My mother had checked out all the villages beforehand, but the barracks were still the best solution under the poor living quarters, "recalls Ludwig Weber, who was one of the resettlers with his family."
The life of the youth and children in particular was shaped by the aftermath of the war. They played with ammunition and in winter used the bomb craters as toboggan mountains.
"" The site of the former camp was almost like a playground for us, "says Ludwig Weber," the old sewage treatment plant, for example, was an exciting area for us boys. "
The end of the refugee camp
The refugee camp was closed in 1953 on British orders and the barracks auctioned. A number of residents stayed in the Celle district, some settled in surrounding villages and some moved to industrial locations in Lower Saxony where they found work.
literature
- Gaps. Displaced persons, internees and refugees in the former concentration camp . Ed .: Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial . Bremen 2010 (articles on the history of National Socialist persecution in Northern Germany; 12), Edition Temmen, 228 pages, ISBN 978-3-8378-4017-9
- Former refugees tell stories , report by Cellesche Zeitung on May 20, 2011, author: Christoph Zimmer
Individual evidence
- ↑ After the liberation, the British burned the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp to cope with the risk of epidemics. However, the SS pre-camp was not burned down, so the camp for refugees and resettled persons could be housed here.
- ↑ This scorn is not the scorn (Samtgemeinde Lachendorf). The former village of Hohne is shown on this map.