Auschwitz Liberated

The Soviet Union liberated Auschwitz in 1945.  When the Nazis started to retreat, they wanted to hide evidence of their crime.  The Nazis forced most of the camp prisoners to march west into Germany or they tried to burn the bodies in the crematoria or in large graves.  The Soviets only found a few thousand emaciated prisoners in Auschwitz.  However, there was abundant evidence of mass murder in Auschwitz. The Germans had tried to destroy most of the warehouses in the camp, but in the ones left intact, the Soviets found personal belongings of the victims.  For example, they discovered hundreds of thousands of men's suits, more than 800, 000 women's outfits, and more than 14,000 pounds of human hair.

After the liberation of these camps was the full realization of what Nazis did to Jews was exposed to the world.  The Jews who survived were so thin because of the horrible conditions, forced labor, and the small amount of food they were given. Many were so weak that they could barely move.  Disease still was a danger, and most of the camps had to be destroyed to prevent the spread of sickness.  Survivors had a long and painful recovery. It was so terrible that millions of people still think about it today.