Today was International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

This is always a sobering day as I have visited Buchenwald a couple of times.

Here is the main gate at Buchenwald. The clock on the tower is stopped at the time that the camp was liberated by the Third Army at 3:15pm on April 11, 1945.

The gate under the tower has the words ‘Jedem das Seine’ which is roughly in English ‘to each what he deserves’.

The phrase is seen in the proper orientation as you leave the camp.

Here is a picture of the living quarters that housed the inmates of Buchenwald. You can see that there were a large number of buildings.

The picture here is taken from the entrance tower.

This picture is taken from the Hospital Block which is the large building in the upper right of the previous picture. You can see the entrance gate at the upper left in this picture. The location of the living quarters are marked by darker rocks and you can see the layout of the buildings and walkways.

This is a sobering picture. This is one of the blocks of ovens in the crematorium. Most of the buildings in the camp were destroyed in 1950, but the crematorium, main gate and the hospital block were all spared.

It is important that we take the time to remember and learn from the past, whether it is the Holocaust or other important events in our history.

Steven

See also:

Holocaust Remembrance

Holocaust Remembrance Day

Buchenwald Liberation

Yom HaShoah

A Day of Remembrance