The Liberation of Auschwitz: What the Soviets Discovered on January 27, 1945
On January 27, 1945, Soviet soldiers finally breached the gates of the notorious Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, bringing an end to the horror and terror that had endured for nearly six years. The liberation of Auschwitz, the largest of the Nazi’s extermination camps, was a moment of grim triumph for the Soviet Army, but also a stark reminder of the atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II.
Auschwitz, located in southern Poland, was built by the Nazis in 1940 and became the epicenter of their systematic attempt to eradicate six million Jews, as well as millions of other innocent people, including Poles, Romani, LGBTQ individuals, and individuals with disabilities. The camp’s sprawling complex held over 130,000 prisoners at its peak, and thousands more were forced to labor under brutal conditions or were systematically slaughtered in the camp’s gas chambers.
When the Soviet Army finally arrived at the camp, they were met with a scene of unimaginable carnage. Tens of thousands of emaciated prisoners, many suffering from typhus, tuberculosis, and other diseases, lay weakened and helpless, their eyes sunken and their skin yellow with starvation. Many more were buried in mass graves, their bodies a testament to the cruelty and brutality of the Nazi regime.
The Soviet liberators were appalled by the sheer scale of the atrocities committed at Auschwitz. They found numerous gas chambers, including the notorious Crematorium IV, which was still in operation despite being heavily damaged. The ruins of the crematorium, as well as the sprawling camp’s morgue and hospital facilities, bore testament to the countless thousands of lives cut short.
Among the many harrowing discoveries made by the Soviets was the remains of nearly one million people killed at the camp, including around 960,000 Jews. The Soviets also found a plethora of Nazi records, documents, and propaganda materials, including personal belongings and possessions of the camp’s prisoners. These records served as critical evidence of the Holocaust, which was later used at the Nuremberg trials to bring the Nazi leaders responsible for the atrocities to justice.
The liberation of Auschwitz marked the beginning of a long and arduous process of documentation and reckoning for the horrors of the Holocaust. In the months and years that followed, thousands of former prisoners and camp survivors shared their testimonies, helping to spread awareness of the atrocities committed during the war.
In the aftermath of the liberation, the world came to a slow and painful recognition of the horrors that had unfolded at Auschwitz. The discovery of the camp’s atrocities galvanized international condemnation of the Nazi regime and led to a surge in support for Jewish refugees and Holocaust survivors.
Today, Auschwitz remains a potent symbol of the atrocities committed during World War II and a poignant reminder of the devastating consequences of anti-Semitism and hate. On January 27, 2020, the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, paying tribute to the victims of the Holocaust and vowing to ensure that such horrors are never forgotten or repeated.
