On Auschwitz

Auschwitz Memorial

The official podcast of the Auschwitz Memorial. The history of Auschwitz is exceptionally complex. It combined two functions: a concentration camp and an extermination center. Nazi Germany persecuted various groups of people there, and the camp complex continually expanded and transformed itself. In the podcast "On Auschwitz," we discuss the details of the history of the camp as well as our contemporary memory of this important and special place. We kindly ask you to support our mission and share our podcast in social media. Online lessons: http://lesson.auschwitz.org

  1. "On Auschwitz (72): The first transports of women to KL Auschwitz

    1 DAY AGO

    "On Auschwitz (72): The first transports of women to KL Auschwitz

    The Germans established the Auschwitz concentration camp in the spring of 1940 for man  prisoners. The first women were deported to the camp in March 1942. In total, more than 130,000 women  prisoners were registered there during the camp’s existence. The history of the first transports of women is discussed by Dr. Teresa Wontor-Cichy from the Research Center of the Auschwitz Museum. ====== Online lesson about women in KL Auschwitz

    38 min
  2. "On Auschwitz (71): Testimonies about expulsions of the local population in connection with the expansion of KL Auschwitz

    25 APR

    "On Auschwitz (71): Testimonies about expulsions of the local population in connection with the expansion of KL Auschwitz

    Before the war, Oświęcim was a town inhabited mainly by Poles and Jews. During the Second World War it was annexed to Germany and the name of the town was changedto Auschwitz. At the end of 1939 the town had a population of over 12,500 people, about half of whom were Jews. Near Oświęcim there were several villages, which in December of 1939 were incorporated into the German administrative unitof Stadtbezirk Auschwitz. About 13,000 people lived in thesevillages.   Due to the establishment and expansion of the Auschwitz camp, several thousand Polish and Jewish residents of Oświęcim and nearby villages were forced to leave their homes. In the “On Auschwitz” podcast, we share fragments oftestimonies from witnesses and their relatives about these events. ===== The podcast features material from the collections of: The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum Archives: - account by Zofia Przybyłowska - account by Piotr Bielenin - account by Marian Górnicki - account by Sylwester Szałaśny - account by Krystyna Szałaśny - account by Sabina Rosenbach (transcribed, read by a narrator) - account by Helena Mataniak (written down, read by a narrator) - account by Helena Hoła (written down, read by a narrator) Museum of Remembrance of the Residents of the Oświęcim Region: - account by Helena Grzesło - account by Aleksander Karkoszka - account by Józefa Handzlik - account by Wanda Saternus - account by Maria Gawron - account by Janina Stawowy - account by Wanda Patyna - account by Henryk Kuczek - account by Maria Jurczyk - account by Tadeusz Firczyk Jewish Museum in Oświęcim: - account by Abraham and Jerzy Feiner - account by Lola Bodner The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw: - account by Ewa Neiger (written down, read by a narrator) - account by Sylwia Bachner (written down, read by a narrator) - account by Anna Hönig (written down, read by a narrator) - account by Tauba Grünn (written down, read by a narrator)

    56 min
  3. "On Auschwitz" (70): Deportations of Jews from Slovakia

    26 MAR

    "On Auschwitz" (70): Deportations of Jews from Slovakia

    Among the many groups of people deported to the German camp Auschwitz, Slovakian Jews occupied a special place. They were brought to the camp at a time when it was undergoing fundamental, organizational and functional transformation. From a place of concentration and gradual destruction of prisoners through dramatic living conditions and hard labor to a center of mass extermination in gas chambers. Dr. Piotr Setkiewicz, the head of the research center of the Auschwitz Museum, recounts the details of this process. ===== On-line lesson about the deportations of Jews from Slovakia

    41 min
  4. "On Auschwitz" (69): Contacts between SS garrison of KL Auschwitz and the local population of the Oświęcim area (1940-45)

    9 FEB

    "On Auschwitz" (69): Contacts between SS garrison of KL Auschwitz and the local population of the Oświęcim area (1940-45)

    How the demographic structure of the area around the camp changed and what contacts existed between the SS camp garrison members and the local civilian population is discussed by dr. Agnieszka Kita, deputy head of the Auschwitz Museum archives. ===== Article published in the post-conference publication, "Face of War", Vol. 6, "City and the War".

    51 min
  5. "On Auschwitz" (68): Evacuation marches in the accounts of Survivors and other witnesses

    17 JAN

    "On Auschwitz" (68): Evacuation marches in the accounts of Survivors and other witnesses

    On 17 January 1945, the SS began evacuating the Auschwitz camp. Around 56,000 men and women, prisoners under the escort of armed SS men, marched out from various parts ofthe camp complex in the direction of Wodzisław Śląski and Gliwice. Several thousand people were killed during these so-called Death Marches. In this episode of the “On Auschwitz” podcast, we quote fragments of eyewitness accounts relating to these events. ===== Illustration: Zbigniew Otfinowski, Marsz ewakuacyjny [Evacuation march] (1946). Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum Collections =====  Excerpts from accounts read by narrators (Therese McLaughlin & Mike Skagerlind) come from the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum Archives:  Teofil Balcarek, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements],t. 115, k. 204-205. Israel Berkowski, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 35, k. 29. Wanda Bienioszek, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 116, s. 176. Wanda Błachowska-Tarasiewicz, APMAB, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 1, k. 19-20. Józef Ciepły, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t.86, k. 48, 127-128. Jan Dziopek, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t.10, k. 29. Jan Dziopek, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 50, k. 138-143 Róża Dryjańska, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t.88, k. 211, 233. Ilona Engelova, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 80, k. 171. Abraham Dawid Feffer, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 16, k. 54. Jan Gabryś, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t.104, k. 138-140. Janina Hinczowa, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 62, k. 60. Irena Konieczna, APMAB. Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements],t. 113, k. 130. Wanda Koprowska, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 13, k. 66-68. Eulalia Kurdej, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t.66, k. 142. Erwin Olszówka, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 72, k. 138. Antonina Piątkowska, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 85, k. 45 Franciszka Pieczka, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 88b, k. 133. Ilona Strusińska, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements],t. 80, k. 170. Marii Śleziona, APMAB. Inne Zespoły [Others] (IZ) – 27/3. Maria Ślisz, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t.61, k. 134. Zofia Stępień-Bator, APMAB, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 74, k. 167. Maria Świderska, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 21, k. 85, 88. Józef Tabaczyński, APMAB, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 44, k. 60-63. Anna Tytoniak, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t.12a, k. 198 Jan Wawrosz, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories]t. 1, k. 59. Franciszek Wieszała, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 16, k. 81. Helena Włodarska, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 66, k. 78. Jadwiga Zając, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 139, k. 13-15. Leszek Zienc, APMA-B, Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 2, k. 226. Natan Żelechower, „Siedem obozów”, [in:] Zespół Wspomnienia [Memories], t. 83, k. 68-72, APMA-B. Maria Żumańska, APMA-B, Zespół Oświadczenia [Statements], t. 4, k. 420.

    28 min
  6. "On Auschwitz" (67): The SS Hygiene Institute

    11/12/2025

    "On Auschwitz" (67): The SS Hygiene Institute

    The Waffen-SS and Police Hygiene Institute at Auschwitz was established in the autumn of 1942. Its tasks included conducting hygienic and bacteriological tests for SS units, the German army, the police, and concentration camps, including the entire Auschwitz camp complex. Teresa Wontor-Cichy from the Auschwitz Museum Research Centre talks about the activities of the institute, which used camp prisoners both for labour and as research subjects. ===== Voiceover: Sarah Edwards, Therese McLaughlin

    34 min
  7. "On Auschwitz" (66): Ideological Training of the SS Garrison of the Camp

    15/11/2025

    "On Auschwitz" (66): Ideological Training of the SS Garrison of the Camp

    What did ideological training for SS personnel at the Auschwitz camp look like, and how did the ideology of national socialism influence the functioning of this SS formation? These questions are addressed in the podcast by Dr. Agnieszka Kita, Deputy Head of the Auschwitz Museum Archives. ==== Voiceovers: Therese McLaughlin and Kate Weinrieb

    50 min
  8. "On Auschwitz" (65): The trial of Rudolf Höss and other SS garrison members of Auschwitz

    13/10/2025

    "On Auschwitz" (65): The trial of Rudolf Höss and other SS garrison members of Auschwitz

    Some 8,200 SS men and 200 women overseers served in the camp garrison of the German Nazi camp Auschwitz between 1940 and 1945. How were the perpetrators from Auschwitz, including the first commandant, Rudolf Höss, and other garrison members, held accountable? Dr. Wojciech Płosa, head of the Archives of the Memorial, explains. ===== Voiceovers: Greg Littlefield, Mike Skagerlind

    34 min
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About

The official podcast of the Auschwitz Memorial. The history of Auschwitz is exceptionally complex. It combined two functions: a concentration camp and an extermination center. Nazi Germany persecuted various groups of people there, and the camp complex continually expanded and transformed itself. In the podcast "On Auschwitz," we discuss the details of the history of the camp as well as our contemporary memory of this important and special place. We kindly ask you to support our mission and share our podcast in social media. Online lessons: http://lesson.auschwitz.org

Information

  • Creator
    Auschwitz Memorial
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    76
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Auschwitz Memorial
  • Show Website
    On Auschwitz

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