Dachau Uprising

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dachau Uprising
Part of World War 2 and Freiheitsaktion Bayern

Dachau concentration camp memorial
DateApril 1945
Location
Result

Rebel Victory

  • SS guards fleeing in panic
  • US liberation of Dachau
  • A number of lives saved through the action
  • Massacre of SS guards by American troops and prisoners
  • Starting of Dachau liberation reprisals
Belligerents

SS personnel

 Germany

Jewish rebels

Bavarian rebels (triggered the uprising)

The Dachau Uprising was a revolt of Jewish prisoners in 1945 against Schutzstaffel (SS) guards in Dachau concentration camp during World War II.[1] It happened during the Freiheitsaktion Bayern uprising against the Nazi regime.

In April 1945 the prisoners of Dachau concentration camp were supposed to be sent on a death march south with their SS guards to be used as labourers in the Alpenfestung.[2] The General of Freiheitsaktion Bayern, Rupprecht Gerngroß triggered the uprising while trying to overthrow the Nazis in Munich.[3][4] The SS left in panic, abandoning the inmates who were liberated by the arriving US forces soon thereafter.[5][6] After the US troops liberated the concentration camp, they were shocked how the Nazis treated the inmates. As an act of revenge, the American troops and the freed prisoners killed a few dozen SS guards.[7][8][9][10]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Dachau Prisoners n Revolt". Townsville Daily Bulletin. 1 May 1945. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Dachau Concentration Camp 1933–1945". KZ Gedenkstätte Dachau. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  3. ^ "Dachau, Gedenktafel Dachauer Aufstand, Rathausplatz – Landesvereinigung Bayern" (in German). Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  4. ^ "Dachau - Wiederaufbauatlas :: Haus der Bayerischen Geschichte". hdbg.eu. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  5. ^ "The Last Days of the Dachau Concentration Camp". The National WWII Museum. New Orleans. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  6. ^ "Dachau 29 April 1945: the Rainbow liberation memoirs". Choice Reviews Online. 36 (06): 36–3507–36-3507. 1 February 1999. doi:10.5860/choice.36-3507. ISSN 0009-4978.
  7. ^ Goldfarb, Kara (1 March 2018). "How Dachau Concentration Camp Guards Got Their Comeuppance". All That's Interesting. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  8. ^ "Execution of SS guards at KZ Dachau, April 29th, 1945 - TracesOfWar.com". www.tracesofwar.com. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  9. ^ "Newly revealed photographs chronicle aftermath of Dachau's liberation". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  10. ^ "Summary Judgement at Dachau: Exploiting the Massacre of SS Guards by Allied Liberating Troops at Dachau | fau.digital.flvc.org". fau.digital.flvc.org. Retrieved 21 October 2023.