The Holocaust is something we all know about, but what was the actual timeline of events that comprised it? This guide takes you through it. The Holocaust is associated with the Second World War but it actually started back in 1933, when Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany and two months later, the first concentration camp was opened. Then Jewish shops were boycotted and 'undesirables' were sent to concentration camps. This included homeless people, the unemployed and alcoholics. In 1934, it was made illegal for Jews to have health insurance.
For the Jewish people in Germany, things only got worse from there, particularly when the Nuremburg laws were introduced in 1935. These prevented Jews from marrying non-Jewish people and also took away their German citizenship. The persecution had spread to Austrian Jews by 1938 and both Austrian and German Jews had the letter 'J' stamped on their passports. After this, an event called Kristallnacht killed hundreds of Jews while thousands ended up in concentration camps, Jewish shops were destroyed and synagogues were burned. The Jews were billed for the damage.
WW2 started in 1939 and German and Austrian Jews started being sent to live in Poland. For identification purposes, they were made to wear a yellow star on their clothes. Jews started being sent en masse to concentration camps in the early 1940s as Germany began occupying more countries. 1940 was also the year the Auschwitz concentration camp was opened and the Warsaw Ghetto was sealed off, leaving 400,000 Jews stuck inside. Russian Jews started being killed in 1941 as the German power spread.
The first 'death camp' was opened at Chelmno in 1941 and around the same time, huge numbers of Jewish people were being gassed at Auschwitz. Jews from right across Europe were being sent to concentration camps to die by the summer and gypsies were also sent there starting in 1943. The people who lived in the Warsaw Ghetto also ended up in death camps. The Germans tried to cover up these camps but at the same time, they sent 440,000 Hungarian Jews to die at Auschwitz.
Auschwitz was used for the last time at the end of October 1944 as Germany started to falter and the war began to come to an end. The death camps began to shut down and the Germans tried to hide them as much as they could. In 1945, Hitler killed himself and then defeat was inevitable, with Germany surrendering a week later. Later in the year, surviving Nazi leaders went on trial at Nuremburg and, while the Holocaust may have ended decades ago, we still feel its impact today.
For the Jewish people in Germany, things only got worse from there, particularly when the Nuremburg laws were introduced in 1935. These prevented Jews from marrying non-Jewish people and also took away their German citizenship. The persecution had spread to Austrian Jews by 1938 and both Austrian and German Jews had the letter 'J' stamped on their passports. After this, an event called Kristallnacht killed hundreds of Jews while thousands ended up in concentration camps, Jewish shops were destroyed and synagogues were burned. The Jews were billed for the damage.
WW2 started in 1939 and German and Austrian Jews started being sent to live in Poland. For identification purposes, they were made to wear a yellow star on their clothes. Jews started being sent en masse to concentration camps in the early 1940s as Germany began occupying more countries. 1940 was also the year the Auschwitz concentration camp was opened and the Warsaw Ghetto was sealed off, leaving 400,000 Jews stuck inside. Russian Jews started being killed in 1941 as the German power spread.
The first 'death camp' was opened at Chelmno in 1941 and around the same time, huge numbers of Jewish people were being gassed at Auschwitz. Jews from right across Europe were being sent to concentration camps to die by the summer and gypsies were also sent there starting in 1943. The people who lived in the Warsaw Ghetto also ended up in death camps. The Germans tried to cover up these camps but at the same time, they sent 440,000 Hungarian Jews to die at Auschwitz.
Auschwitz was used for the last time at the end of October 1944 as Germany started to falter and the war began to come to an end. The death camps began to shut down and the Germans tried to hide them as much as they could. In 1945, Hitler killed himself and then defeat was inevitable, with Germany surrendering a week later. Later in the year, surviving Nazi leaders went on trial at Nuremburg and, while the Holocaust may have ended decades ago, we still feel its impact today.
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