Photo Tour: Terezín, Czech Republic
Terezín (TEH-reh-zeen) was a fortress town built in the late
1700s to protect the northern entrance to Prague and Bohemia. Starting
in 1940, Hitler converted it to a concentration camp and, later, into a
devilish hoax that fooled almost everyone -- except the 140,000 Jews
who lived here and who knew what really
was going on.
For a larger version of any picture, click on it; a new window
should open. When you close that window, this window should still be
here.
|
|
This
was the first part of Terezín that I saw.
|
|
|
|
|
The Small Fortress,
across the river from the main town, is behind high walls. It's left
open and empty for visitors to explore. Today, early in April and
before most tourists come, it was especially empty -- empty outside and in. Last summer's terrible
floods devastated both the town of Terezín and this fortress.
The furnishings and exhibits were gone; you could see the water line on
a lot of the walls. The quiet and the destruction made the scene even
more eerie. |
|
|
|
"Work makes you free."
Prisoners at Terezín knew that this German slogan was a lie;
they saw friends and loved ones shipped in groups -- in "transports" --
to the east, to death camps like Auschwitz-Birkenau, never to return.
At first, Terezín was a holding camp for Jews, like the others
scattered around Europe. This one held many from Prague, which is just
south of here. But Terezín became one of the Nazis' most
dastardly and successful propaganda schemes.
In the middle of the war, the town of Terezín was re-made into
what seemed to be a "resort," where Jews were "allowed" to pursue what
looked like normal lives. Artists and musicians painted, composed and
performed; children were schooled; town squares became pleasant parks;
shops sold goods (many of which were stolen from the camps' prisoners)
with currency specially printed for Terezín. The
International Red Cross inspected the town twice -- and came away
convinced that occupants were being treated well. Of course, they
didn't visit other Nazi camps,
and the extent of what had happened.didn't become clear until the war
was ending.
I'll leave the rest of the photos to do the talking. (These are all
from the small fortress. There are no photos from the town itself.)
|
|
|
|
|
[Previous page: Eastern Czech Republic]
[Next page: South Bohemia]
[Tour start: Central Europe, 2003]
[Tours]
(These photographs are Copyright © 2003 by Jerry Peek.
Much higher-resolution versions of most images,
and many other images too, are available at
Jerry Peek Photography.
Photos are available at reduced prices, or free, for non-commercial use.)
Contact us