Terezín
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This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in the German Wikipedia. (April 2013)
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- For the Nazi concentration camp, see Theresienstadt concentration camp. For the movie, see Theresienstadt (film).
| Terezín | |||
| Town | |||
 View to Resurrection church from Havlicek Street
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| Country | Czech Republic | ||
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| Region | Ústí nad Labem | ||
| District | Litoměřice | ||
| River | Ohře | ||
| Elevation | 150 m (492 ft) | ||
| Coordinates | 50°30′N 14°9′E / 50.500°N 14.150°E | ||
| Area | 13.52 km2 (5.22 sq mi) | ||
| Population | 3,121 | ||
| Density | 231 / km2 (598 / sq mi) | ||
| Founded | 1780 | ||
| Mayor | Jan Horníček | ||
| Timezone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Postal code | 411 55 | ||
   Location in the Czech Republic
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 Location in Litoměřice District
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| Wikimedia Commons: Terezín | |||
| Statistics: statnisprava.cz | |||
| Website: www.terezin.cz | |||
Terezín (Czech pronunciation: [ˈtɛrɛziːn]; German: Theresienstadt) is the name of a former military fortress and adjacent walled garrison town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic.
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Early history [edit]
In the late 18th century the Habsburg Monarchy erected the fortress on the Ohře River, near its confluence with the Elbe River at Litoměřice. It was named Theresienstadt after Empress Maria Theresa.
Construction started in 1780 and lasted ten years. The fortress consisted of a citadel, the "Small Fortress" (kleine Festung), to the east of the Ohře, and a walled town, the "Main Fortress" (große Festung), to the west. The total area of the fortress was 3.89 km². The fortification was designed in the tradition of Sébastian le Prestre de Vauban. In peacetime it held 5,655 soldiers, and in wartime around 11,000 soldiers could be placed here, and neighbouring areas could be inundated. Fortress Josefov in eastern Bohemia was built at the same time and had a similar purpose.
The fortress was never under direct siege. During the Austro-Prussian War, on 28 July 1866, part of the garrison attacked and destroyed an important railway bridge near Neratovice (rail line Turnov - Kralupy nad Vltavou) that was shortly before repaired by the Prussians.[1] This attack occurred two days after Austria and Prussia had agreed to make peace, but the Terezin garrison was ignorant of the news.[2]
During the second half of the 19th century, the fortress was also used as a prison.
During World War I, the fortress was used as a political prison camp. Many thousand supporters of Russia (Russophiles from Galicia and Bukovina) were placed by Austro-Hungarian authorities in the fortress. Gavrilo Princip, who assassinated Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria and his wife, died there of tuberculosis in 1918.
With the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918 the town became part of the newly-formed state of Czechoslovakia, but lay in an area of ethnic German population known as the Sudetenland. In 1938 the Sudetenland became part of Nazi Germany, followed in 1939 by the rest of Czechoslovakia.
Terezín during World War II [edit]
During WWII, the Gestapo used Terezín, better known by the German name Theresienstadt, as a ghetto, concentrating Jews from Czechoslovakia, as well as many from Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, and Denmark. More than 150,000 Jews were sent there, and although it was not an extermination camp about 33,000 died in the ghetto itself, mostly because of the appalling conditions arising out of extreme population density. About 88,000 inhabitants were deported to Auschwitz and other extermination camps [3][4] At the end of the war there were 17,247 survivors.
Part of the fortification (Small Fortress) served as the largest Gestapo prison in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, separated from the ghetto. Around 90,000 people went through it, and 2,600 of those died there.
It was liberated on 9 May 1945 by the Soviet Army.
Terezín after World War II [edit]
After the German surrender the small fortress was used as an internment camp for ethnic Germans. The first prisoners arrived on May 10, 1945. On February 29, 1948 the last German prisoners were released and the camp was officially closed.
Among the interned Germans were former Nazis like Heinrich Jöckel, the former commander of Terezín and other SS members. A great group of internees was arrested simply because of their German nationality, among them young boys or elderly people.
In the first phase of the camp lasting until July 1945 mortality was high due to diseases, malnutrition and incidents of simple outright murder. Commander of the camp in that period was Stanislav Franc. He was guided by a spirit of revenge and tolerated whimsical mistreatment of the prisoners by the guards.
In July 1945 the camp shifted under the control of the Czech ministry for domestic affairs. The new commander appointed was Otakar Kálal. From then on the inmates were gradually transferred to Germany and Terezín was increasingly used as a hub for the forced migration of Germans from the Czech lands into Germany proper.
Terezín today [edit]
After the war, Theresienstadt was resurrected as Terezín, dropping the German "stadt" from its name but still retaining a military garrison. The army left the city in 1996, which had a negative effect on the local economy. Terezín is still trying to decouple from its military past and become a modern, vibrant town. In 2002, the fortress, which was in a deteriorated condition, was listed in the 2002 World Monuments Watch by the World Monuments Fund.[5] The organization called for a comprehensive conservation plan, while providing funding from emergency repairs from American Express. In 2002 the city was also struck by floods during which the crematorium was damaged.[6] A plan was eventually developed in cooperation with national authorities. According to the Fund, a long-term conservation plan was conceived, which includes further repairs, documentation, and archaeological research.
327 bronze markers were stolen from the Jewish cemetery in mid-April 2008, with 700 more the next week. Some were recovered.[7]
Terezín is noted for its production of furniture and knitwear as well as for manufacturing.
Twin towns
Dębno, Poland
Strausberg, Germany (1998)
Terezín in Media [edit]
- The play "And A Child Shall Lead", by Michael Slade, takes place in Terezín Concentration Camp during World War II, specifically 1942-1945. The play revolves around 8 Jewish children, from ages six to fifteen, who create a secret newspaper in an attempt to show the world what is happening behind the camp's walls.
See also [edit]
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The cell where Gavrilo Princip was kept
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City church
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References [edit]
- ^ Description of the attack, pictures of the destroyed bridge: Světozor, September 20, 1867 UCL.cas.cz
- ^ Wagner, Arthur L. (Lt.Col., U.S. Army). The Campaign of Königgrätz, Second Edition, 1899 page 108
- ^ United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (accessed May 7, 2007).
- ^ Theresienstädter Studien und Dokumente (accessed October 5, 2007).
- ^ World Monuments Fund - Terezín Fortress
- ^ Terezin.cz
- ^ Patricia Treble (2008). "Meltdown: metal prices spur thieves". Macleans Magazine: 35.
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Terezín |
- http://www.terezin.cz/en/index.asp = The actual wWork camp Terezin located in Czech Republic.
- Crystal Touch Museum
- Fortress Details
- A Visit to Terezin, an article from Think Prague Magazine with pictures
- Fortress details (in Czech)
- Terezín Memorial
- Terezín Memorial Art-Installation
