Site Visit: The "Leipzig-Schönau" Subcamp

with Mirko Koch

Leipzig was an important center of the arms industry during World War II. Many metalworking companies such as Hugo Schneider Aktiengesellschaft (HASAG) or Allgemeine Transportanlagen-Gesellschaft (ATG) were already located here before 1933 with large production facilities. With the outbreak of war, they switched their production to armaments, primarily aircraft parts. Initially, they primarily used foreign civilian forced laborers and prisoners of war. From 1943 onwards, "war-important" companies were also allowed to use concentration camp prisoners for forced labor. A system of concentration camp subcamps emerged - one of them in Schönauer Lindenallee (today Parkallee).

From the summer of 1944, about 500 Hungarian Jewish women were interned in the "Leipzig-Schönau" concentration camp subcamp. The women and girls had to work in aircraft production for ATG. The camp was a subcamp of Buchenwald concentration camp until the end of the war.

At the authentic site of the former "Leipzig-Schönau" concentration camp subcamp, we will first approach the phenomenon of forced labor in general. Afterwards, participants will gain insight into the daily lives and work of the prisoners. Using exemplary biographies and visual material, we will go on a search for traces at a place that offers few traces.

Meeting point: 11:00 AM at the Parkallee tram stop
Tram 8, 15 (Parkallee)
Duration: approx.