The End of the War
During the latter part of 1942, 1943 and the beginning of 1944, more and more prisoners were transferred from Hinzert to other camps or prisons, and the camp’s population slowly began to decrease. In November 21st, 1944, Hinzert was named a subcamp of Buchenwald. By 1945, the groups of newcomers were very small and by March 2nd and 3rd the camp population had been reduced to about 120 or 150 when, as the United States troops reached Trier, the Germans dissolved Hinzert camp and transported the rest of the prisoners to Buchenwald, from where they were liberated not much later.
Hinzert’s leaders and Kapos were later judged at multiple trials. Ivan the Terrible was sentenced to 10 years and later committed suicide in prison. Brendel was sentenced to prison for his crimes. Wipf was sentenced to life in prison but died about a month after the trial. Callaux was judged by the French and sentenced to spend the rest of his life performing hard labor. And many more faced the consequences for their actions. (Browning et.al, 2009, p.827)
Hinzert was unique and so were his prisoners: its location, the camp’s organization and foundation, its strange mix of nationalities and charges, its layers of collaboration and resistance, the relationships between the inmates. Hinzert had a way of self-sustenance, it kept itself upright since before the war started, until the very end. It had a way to grow and change upon itself in order to adapt to the circumstances. It evolved, adhered new sections, organically switched from following one path to following another one. Its purpose was perhaps the most unique aspect about it. It was meant to discipline some for re-insertion into society, punish others for their stubbornness and bravery, and simply delete others from the map. Everything was pretty much secret. Little is known about it. And yet, with time and through brave unfortunate souls, we have come to know so much about how it worked and how this vital part of so many people’s lives was a small piece in the enormous dynamic machine that was Nazi Germany. And although so many years later we have gathered incredible amounts of information on the war and the tragedies that came with it, I can’t help but wonder how many men and women’s stories are still hidden under the Reich’s fog, how many more pieces are missing from the puzzle.
Wiesel, Elie, Doris L. Bergen, Christopher R. Browning, David Engel, Willard A. Fletcher, Peter Hayes, Michael R. Marrus, and Nechama Tec. “HINZERT MAIN CAMP.” In The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos, 1933-1945: Ghettos in German-Occupied Eastern Europe, edited by Geoffrey P. Megargee, 823–46. Indiana University Press, 2009. www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt16gzb17.26.
Roderick Miller. Hinzert Concentration Camp. Frank Falla Archive. https://www.frankfallaarchive.org/prisons/hinzert-concentration-camp/. Rettrieved April 12th, 2020.
Schmuhl, Robert. "A Nazi official plays with his dog in the snow at Hinzert (sub-camp of Buchenwald) while prisoners can be seen working in the background. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. 1937-1941. https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/pa1166109