Auschwitz

Polish: Oświęcim

Yiddish: Oszpicin; Latin: Oszwanczin, Oswiancin, Osswyanczim, Osvencim, Auswieczin; Czech: Osvětim

The name of the town probably derives from the name of the settlement’s owner.

50° 2' north latitude, 19° 13' east longitude, 230 m above sea level. Auschwitz is situated at the confluence of the Sola (Soła) and the Vistula (Wisła), approximately 60 km west of Kraków.

Lesser Poland

Republic of Poland. Auschwitz is a municipality in the district of the same name (Powiat oświęcimski) in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship (Województwo małopolskie).

The town’s coat of arms depicts a silver tower with a red roof on a blue shield, flanked by one of the two halves of a golden eagle.

As part of the Auschwitz castellany, Auschwitz belonged to the Diocese of Kraków and thus to Lesser Poland. The town was first mentioned in historical records in the 12th century, when it came under the control of the Silesian Duchy of Ratibor. In 1272, it was granted town privileges (Magdeburg Law) by Mieszko (Mieszko) I of Cieszyn (c. 1252/1256–1315), who hailed from the Opole branch of the Silesian Piasts and promoted settlement in this region. The castle became the seat of the Piast dukes. Following the death of Mieszko I in 1315, the Auschwitz region—which was closely linked to the Duchy of Cieszyn—was divided between his two sons, and the separate Duchy of Auschwitz was established. In the 14th and 15th centuries, the duchy – in which German settlers had established themselves – was at times under the rule of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire. The Polish King Casimir IV Jagiełło (1427–1492) acquired the rights to the duchy in 1457 and purchased it for 50,000 silver marks from Duke John IV of Auschwitz (1426/30–1495/97). Under his rule, the Jews were granted the privilege of settling in the town of Auschwitz, which had now become a royal town.

During the Polish–Swedish War (1600–1629), Auschwitz was largely destroyed. Following the First Partition of Poland, the town and its surrounding area came under Austrian rule and became part of the newly founded Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria (1772–1918). Maria Theresa and her successors to the throne also included the title ‘Duchess or Duke of Auschwitz and Zator’ in their titles until 1918.

During the Austrian period, the town and rural commune of Auschwitz belonged to different districts. From 1817 to 1866, the former duchy was part of the German Confederation and became a theatre of the Prussian–Austrian War. In 1863, a fire devastated large parts of the town. From 1868, the town and the rural municipality belonged to the district administration of Biala (Biała). In 1896, the town of Auschwitz was granted its own municipal charter. In 1900, 414 houses were recorded; the judicial district of Auschwitz comprised 23 local municipalities and 15 estate municipalities. Owing to seasonal work in Germany and emigration to America and other overseas territories, Auschwitz became, by the end of the 19th century, a major gathering place for seasonal workers and emigrants from Galicia, who waited in barracks on the outskirts of the town for their departure.

After the First World War, the town became part of Poland, which had regained its independence. As a result of the economic crisis in the late 1920s, which affected all social classes, tensions arose between the Christian and Jewish populations.

Following the German invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939, the town was one of the first Polish towns to be occupied. In the first few days of September, several Jews were murdered by the German occupiers; at the end of September, the Great Synagogue was burnt down and the Jewish cemetery destroyed. In October 1939, the town’s name, Oświęcim, was changed to ‘Auschwitz’ and the town was incorporated into the Bielitz district, which, as part of the Katowice administrative region, was annexed to the Reich.

In 1940, the site on the outskirts of Auschwitz—which had served the Polish Army for military purposes after 1918— and the buildings of the dissolved Polish Tobacco Monopoly, which had been confiscated by the German occupiers and incorporated into the site, were converted into a concentration camp. The first transport, carrying 728 Polish prisoners from Tarnów, arrived in June 1940. After the prisoners had been transferred to the main camp, the buildings of the former tobacco monopoly housed the command building, the offices of the concentration camp administration, the accommodation for the SS guards and the armoury.

In March and April 1941, on the orders of Heinrich Himmler (1900–1945), thousands of Jews were deported from the town of Auschwitz to Chrzanów, Sosnowitz/Sosnowiec and Bendzin/Będzin on the orders of Heinrich Himmler (1900–1945) in order to make way for housing for the construction workers at the Buna Works.

By mid-1942, Polish political prisoners accounted for half of the inmates at Auschwitz concentration camp. Following the so-called Wannsee Conference on 20 January 1942 (‘Final Solution to the Jewish Question’), hundreds of thousands of Jews from Germany and the German-occupied countries were deported to Auschwitz; from then on, they constituted the largest group of prisoners. Calculations made in the 1980s and 1990s on the basis of transport lists showed that at least 1.3 million men, women and children were transported to Auschwitz, of whom at least 1.1 million perished. With around 960,000 people, the Jews suffered the greatest number of casualties. Most of them were killed in the gas chambers at Auschwitz and in those built from 1942 onwards at the nearby Birkenau (Brzezinka) camp. During the so-called ‘evacuation’ of the concentration camp by the SS, which began on 17 January 1945, and during the death marches of some 58,000 prisoners from Auschwitz and Birkenau – who were to be distributed amongst concentration camps within the Reich – thousands more prisoners lost their lives. When the camp was liberated on 27 January 1945, the Red Army found only around 7,000 prisoners remaining, many of whom died of malnutrition and disease in the weeks that followed.

Around 1350, the town of Auschwitz had a population of around 1,400, including a significant number of Germans.^[1] In 1765, the town had 862 inhabitants, including 133 Jews. In 1880, the town had 4,754 inhabitants and in 1890, 5,054, including 2,535 Jews. The population grew rapidly, and in 1900 there were 6,841 inhabitants, including 3,029 Catholics and 3,779 Jews. 19 inhabitants were Greek Catholic, and 14 were of ‘other’ (presumably Protestant) denominations.^[2] Around 1919, Auschwitz had a population of approximately 10,000, including 5,300 Jews. Figures for 1939 are only available as estimates; it is assumed that there were around 14,000 inhabitants, including 7,000–8,000 Jews, who were deported in 1941 to the ghettos of Chrzanów, Sosnowiec and Będzin. In 2012, the town had a population of around 40,000.

In the Middle Ages, numerous craftsmen had settled in Auschwitz. The town experienced an economic decline in the 17th century during the Swedish-Polish Wars. It was not until the 19th century that an economic revival gradually began, as entrepreneurs settled in the town and a railway link was established. In 1804, the Haberfeld family set up a vodka and liqueur factory here.

Since 1847, Kraków has been connected to Upper Silesia via the link to the Upper Silesian Railway at Myslowitz/Mysłowice, through which trains on the Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway also travelled from Vienna to Kraków. It was not until 1856, when the Upper Silesian Railway was converted into the Imperial and Royal Eastern State Railway following an agreement, that an additional line was established from Trzebinia via Auschwitz to Dzieditz/Dziedzice (now Czechowice-Dziedzice). From 1858 onwards, the Emperor Ferdinand Railway operated the Vienna–Kraków route via Auschwitz. Thanks to the railway link, Auschwitz experienced an economic boom and, due to its border location, soon developed into a major railway junction. It was now possible to travel by rail from here via Myslowitz and Breslau/Wrocław as far as Berlin.

In Auschwitz, several factories were founded by Jewish entrepreneurs at the end of the 19th century, including those producing roofing felt, asphalt and fertiliser. Both Christian and Jewish traders, merchants, entrepreneurs and factory owners were affected by the economic crisis of the late 1920s and throughout the 1930s.

Apart from the parish church of the Assumption of Mary in the town, which was first mentioned in the 13th century, there had been a Dominican monastery on the outskirts of the town since the 14th century. Both buildings, along with many others, fell victim to the town fire of 1503 and were rebuilt during the 16th century. Under Austrian rule, the Dominican monastery was dissolved as part of the Josephine Reforms; the monks were forced to leave the monastery and the building fell into disrepair. Since the end of the 19th century, Auschwitz has been home to the Congregation of the Salesians and the Congregation of the ‘Daughters of Our Lady of Sorrows’.

In the second half of the 19th century, King Casimir IV Jagiellon (1427–1492) permitted Jews to settle at the foot of Castle Hill. They were subject to princely jurisdiction, were permitted to practise their religion and enjoyed self-government. The Jewish community faced restrictions as a result of the edict issued in 1563 by King Sigismund II Augustus (1520–1572), which introduced a numerus clausus for Jews. Accordingly, no further Jews were permitted to settle in the town, and Jews were forbidden from purchasing houses on Ringplatz. Despite these restrictions, Jewish community life did not wane. In 1588, a wooden synagogue was built and a cemetery established. With the introduction of new administrative structures in the Austrian partition territory from 1772 onwards, changes also took place in the organisation of the Jewish community. It was not until the Austrian Constitution, the Fundamental Law of 1867, that Jews were granted full civil rights, which also enabled them to stand for election to the town council. At times, Jews also held the office of deputy mayor. Following the town fire in 1863, the 16th-century wooden ‘Great Synagogue’ was rebuilt in brick and given a Neo-Romanesque and Neo-Gothic façade modelled on the Temple Synagogue in Kraków. The neighbouring ‘Small Synagogue’, dating from the 18th century, was also rebuilt. In addition, there were synagogues belonging to various Jewish associations. In 1900, there were four religious schools (cheder) and one yeshiva (Talmud college). By 1921, there were already eight religious schools. During the interwar period, two further yeshivas were established. The synagogues were destroyed during the German occupation. Only the Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot Synagogue, built in 1913, survived, as it was used as an ammunition depot by the German occupiers. Only a few Jews from Auschwitz survived the Holocaust, and only a handful of them returned to their home town after the war to re-establish a Jewish community there. A few years later, however, almost all of the Jews who had returned left the town.

The parish church of the Assumption of Mary, dating from the 13th century, was destroyed several times over the centuries by fires or enemy raids. After being rebuilt in the 17th century, the church burnt down again in 1863. It acquired its present appearance at the end of the 19th century. Some older elements have been preserved: the 16th-century portal above the entrance from the chancel to the sacristy, a late-Gothic portal on the south side of the church, and the late-Baroque high altar.

The Salesian Church forms part of the former Dominican monastery, which was founded in the 14th century and of which only part of the Gothic monastery chapter house remains, including St Jacek’s Chapel, which houses the tombs of several Dukes of Auschwitz. Following the dissolution of the Dominican monastery in 1782 by the Austrian Emperor Joseph II, the buildings fell into disrepair. In 1894, a citizens’ committee acquired the chapel and had it renovated. In 1898, the Salesians purchased the monastery ruins and began the conversion of the former Church of the Holy Cross; this work was interrupted in 1906 and was not completed until the 1970s and 1980s.

The history of the Castle Hill dates back to the 12th century; in 1241, the castle was destroyed by the Tatars and rebuilt under Mesko (Mieszko) II, Duke of Opole-Racibórz (1220–1246). The defensive tower is considered one of the oldest brick structures in Lesser Poland. When Auschwitz became the capital of the newly created Duchy of Auschwitz at the beginning of the 14th century, the castle became the seat of the Piast dukes. Following the town fire in 1503, the castle was rebuilt; in 1655, it was destroyed by the Swedes. At the beginning of the 19th century, two floods led to the destruction of part of the castle hill. The remains of the castle, sold by the Austrian authorities to a private buyer, were used as an estate office and a post office. In the second half of the 19th century, three Jewish merchants acquired the building, but sold it again in 1904. The new owner renovated the building and established a hotel with a wine and beer cellar. Later, it served as a warehouse for Jakub Haberfeld’s vodka and liqueur factory. During the interwar period, it was used by local government offices, but had been up for sale again since 1932. From 1939 to 1945, the building was used by the German occupying authorities. After the war, the castle once again housed government departments and offices. A comprehensive renovation was carried out between 2004 and 2006, and in 2010 a museum (Muzeum Zamek) was opened, dedicated to the town’s Christian and Jewish history.

The Łukasz Górnicki Public Library (Miejska Biblioteka Publiczna im. Łukasza Górnickiego), with a collection of approximately 130,000 volumes, has been housed in a modern library building since 2011. In 1994, following an initiative by Action Reconciliation Service for Peace in Berlin and the municipality of Auschwitz, the International Youth Meeting Centre in Auschwitz (Międzynarodowy Dom Spotkań Młodzieży w Oświęcimiu) was established as an educational institution. In 1996, the merger of the Municipal Cultural Centre and the Cultural Centre of the Chemical Works in Auschwitz led to the establishment of a new cultural centre (Oświęcimskie Centrum Kultury), which coordinates cultural events in the town. The Jewish Centre, founded in 2000, is dedicated to the more than 500-year history of the Jewish community in the town of Auschwitz (Centrum Żydowskie w Oświęcimiu, Auschwitz Jewish Centre), which was founded in 2000 and comprises the Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot Synagogue, the Jewish Museum and the Educational Centre, and offers numerous events and exhibitions on Jewish culture. In 2005, the State University of Applied Sciences (Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Zawodowa im. Rotmistrza Witold Pileckiego) began operating.

Łukasz Górnicki (1527–1603), a humanist, writer and poet born in Auschwitz, served as secretary in the Privy Council of King Sigismund II Augustus and as royal librarian. His works include *Dworzanin polski* (The Polish Courtier, 1566), Rozmowa Polaka z Włochem o wolnościach i prawach polskich (A Conversation between a Pole and an Italian on Polish Freedoms and Rights, 1587) and Dzieje w Koronie polskiej od roku 1538 aż do roku 1572 (History of the Polish Crown from 1538 to 1572), published by his sons in 1637.

• Auschwitz 1940–1945. Studies on the History of the Auschwitz Concentration and Extermination Camp. Vol. 1: Aleksander Lasik, Franciszek Piper, Piotr Setkiewicz, Irena Strzelecka: The Layout and Structure of the Camp. Oświęcim 1999.
• Auschwitz 1940–1945. Studies on the History of the Auschwitz Concentration and Extermination Camp. Vol. 3: Franciszek Piper: Extermination. Oświęcim 1999.
• Peter Chmiel: On the Demographic Structure of the Former Duchy of Auschwitz-Zator in the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries. In: Upper Silesian Yearbook 9 (1993), pp. 139–161.
• Deborah Dwork, Robert Jan van Pelt: Auschwitz. Historia miasta i obozu [Auschwitz. History of the Town and the Camp]. Translated from the English by Katarzyna Bażyńska-Chojnacka and Piotr Chojnacki. Warsaw 2011.
• Lucyna Filip: Jews in Oświęcim 1918–1941. Oświęcim 2003.
• Elżbieta Skalińska-Dindorf: Chronicle of Oświęcim. The History of Oświęcim against the Background of the History of the Oświęcim and Zator Regions up to 1772 [Chronicle of Auschwitz. The History of Auschwitz against the Background of the History of the Auschwitz and Zator Regions up to 1772]. Oświęcim 2007.
• Elżbieta Skalińska-Dindorf: The Chronicle of Oświęcim. The History of Oświęcim 1772–2003 [The Chronicle of Auschwitz. The History of Auschwitz 1772–2003]. Oświęcim 2006.
• Sybille Steinbacher: “Auschwitz: A Model Town”. Germanisation Policy and the Extermination of the Jews in Eastern Upper Silesia. Munich 2000 (Accounts and Sources on the History of Auschwitz 2).

• www.um.oswiecim.pl/ (Website of the town of Auschwitz in Polish and English)
• auschwitz.org/ (website of theAuschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum in Polish and English)
• www.mdsm.pl/ (website of the International Youth Meeting Centre in Auschwitz in Polish and German)
• ajcf.pl/ (website of the Auschwitz Jewish Centre in Polish and English)
• oszpicin.pl/ (Virtual history of the Jewish community in Polish and English)
• www.herder-institut.de/bildkatalog/index/index?searchfield_parameter=auschwitz&newperspective=thumbnails (Images relating to Auschwitz/Oświęcim in the image archive of the Herder Institute, Marburg)
• www.herder-institut.de/bildkatalog/wikidata/Q7342 (Images relating to Auschwitz/Oświęcim in the image archive of the Herder Institute, Marburg)

[1] Walter Kuhn: A History of Settlement in the Auschwitz Beskids Foothills. In: Ibid.: New Contributions to the History of Settlement in Silesia. A Collection of Essays. Sigmaringen 1984 (Sources and Accounts of the History of Settlement in Silesia 23), pp. 228ff.

[2] Encyclopaedia of Municipalities of the Kingdoms and Provinces Represented in the Imperial Council. Compiled on the basis of the results of the census of 31 December 1900. Vol. 12: Galicia. Vienna 1907, p. 6.

Isabel Röskau-Rydel: Auschwitz/Oświęcim. In: Online Encyclopaedia on the Culture and History of Germans in Eastern Europe, 2013. URL: ome-lexikon.uni-oldenburg.de/p32338 (as at 30 July 2021).