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In the Munich suburb of Obermenzing, near the Blutenburg castle, there is a memorial commemorating the death march of concentration camp prisoners from Dachau to the south, just before the end of World War II.
Arrival - Bibliography - Comment - Discussion - Inscription - Internet
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Looking back to the Blutenburg |
Inscription |
General view of the memorial Photos: Hans-Rudolf Hower 2012 |
Inscription
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Comment
During the last months of World War II, the situation became increasingly chaotic. Especially after the Lublin concentration camp (Majdanek) had been lost, the Nazi regime first started less or more panicked actions to get the prisoners and their guards back from the borders of the Nazi reach of power to the concentration camps situated in the core country. This led to an enormous growth and more and more disastrous conditions for concentration camps like Dachau near Munich. When even the core country was no longer "safe", they started to evacuate the prisoners from the Dachau concentration camp. This operation was a real "death march" because the emaciated prisoners not only had to sustain the unendurable strain of the march going from Dachau to Waakirchen near Bad Tölz but also the ongoing torments and the even increasing murder rate caused by the guards, who were enervated by the critical situation and mostly found themselves outnumbered.
As for the destiny of the Dachau prisoners, you can find lots of documentation in the documentation center of the former Dachau concentration camp (called "Gedenkstätte" [Memorial] now).
More than 20 identical instances of the sculptural memorial have been erected in the towns and villages where the prisoners came past during their death march. I have already described or at least identified the places of the following instances:
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Having discovered this memorial during a charming walk from Pasing to Allach I've published my photos in a small gallery entitled Walking From Pasing to Allach.
Bibliography
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Author / Title / Subject |
Notes |
Info / Purchase |
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Munich, Bavaria and the Black Forest |
A guide to southern Germany. |
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Bavaria |
A specialized guide to Bavaria. |
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The SS state: The system of German concentration camps, by Eugen Kogon |
Standard work on the Nazi state. Translation from German. |
See my critique. |
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William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany |
Shirer's book is one of the great classics of historiography on the 3rd Reich. |
See my critique. |
Internet
Please be aware of our legal reservation concerning any Internet reference.
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Address / Owner |
Content / Subjects |
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In the English Wikipedia. |
Detailed encyclopaedic article on this concentration camp, which was the starting point of several death marches, and the end of some others. |
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In the English Wikipedia. |
Encyclopaedic article on the so-called death marches of concentration camp prisoners who were "evacuated" from their camps in 1945. During these marches many prisoners were killed by their guardians or died from torture, starvation, illness, or extreme weakening. |
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Todesmärsche aus dem KZ-Komplex Dachau On the web pages of the Dachau concentration camp memorial established in the former concentration camp. |
Description of all the death marches related to the Dachau concentration camp (German language). |
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In the German Wikipedia. |
Short encyclopaedic article on the sculptor who created the 22 memorials erected in the region of Munich to commemorate the Dachauer concentration camp prisoners' death marches (German language). |
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Arrival by Public Transport
For the arrival in Munich, see Inscriptions of Munich.
From the center of Munich, take a suburban train (S-Bahn) to Pasing, exit the station to the north (Nordausgang), immediately turn to the left, cross the small canal and continue to the brook named Würm, where you will turn to the right and follow the brook on its right-hand side up to the Blutenburg castle. Continuing your way between the castle and its small lake you will see the prisoners' memorial at the end of the lawn. This may be half an hour's walk.
Indications concerning the arrival correspond to our personal knowledge or even experience, but we cannot assume any responsibility for their rightness. When you are reading this page, things may have changed in reality.
Hans-Rudolf Hower, 2012
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Last updated: April 4, 2016
