German camp brothels in World War II
Encyclopedia
In World War II
Nazi Germany
established brothels in the concentration camps (Lagerbordell) to create an incentive for prisoners to collaborate, although these institutions were used mostly by Kapos
, "prisoner functionaries" and criminal element, because real inmates, penniless and emaciated, were usually too debilitated and wary of exposure to SS schemes. In the end, the camp brothels did not produce any noticeable increase in the prisoners’ work productivity levels, but instead, created a market for coupons among the camp VIPs. The women forced into these brothels came mainly from the Ravensbrück concentration camp
, except for Auschwitz, which employed its own prisoners. In combination with the German military brothels in World War II
, it is estimated that at least 34,140 female inmates were forced to serve as prostitutes during the Third Reich.
in 1942. After 30 June 1943, a camp brothel existed in Auschwitz, and from 15 July 1943, in Buchenwald
. The one in Neuengamme was established in early 1944, Dachau's in May 1944, Dora-Mittelbau's in late summer, and Sachsenhausen
's on 8 August 1944. There are conflicting dates for the camp brothel in Flossenbürg
: one source claims summer 1943; another states it was not opened until 25 March 1944.
The camp brothels were usually built as barracks surrounded by a barbed-wire fence, with small individual rooms for up to 20 women prisoners, controlled by a female overseer (aufseherin). The sex workers were replaced frequently due to exhaustion and illness, and were usually sent away to their deaths later. The brothels were open only in the evenings. No Jewish male prisoners were allowed. Those with access to the customer lineup (Aryan VIPs only), had to sign up for a specific day and pay two reichsmarks for a 20-minute "service" based on a predetermined schedule. The prostitutes were matched with their clients by an SS-man. The market for the "prize-coupons" was routinely cornered by the common criminals who wore the green triangles
(hence the "green men" denomination). There is evidence (somewhat controversial) that in some of the brothels, women might have had tattoos inscribed on their chests saying "Feld Hure" Field Whore or "Die Armeenhure" the Army Whore. Some of them underwent forced sterilizations as well as forced abortions, often resulting in death.
The subject of camp prostitution was alluded to in survivors' memoirs at least as early as 1972, when the first edition of Heinz Heger's book was published. However, the subject remained largely taboo in studies of Nazism
until the mid-1990s, when new publications by female researchers broke the silence.
Sometimes the SS enticed women into becoming sex workers by promising them better treatment or reductions of their indefinite sentence. This caused anger or envy among some female inmates. Nina Michailovna, Russian camp prisoner, reported: “When we found out that a girl in our block was chosen, we caught her and threw a blanket on her and beat her up so badly that she could hardly move. It wasn’t clear if she would recover. They just wanted to have a better life and we punished them this way.”
also intended them to be used as a means of teaching pink triangle
prisoners "the joys of the opposite sex", i.e., as "therapy" for their homosexuality. Heger claims that Himmler directed that all gay prisoners were to make compulsory visits to the camp brothel once per week as a means of curing them of their same-sex attraction.
films made in the 1970s such as Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS, Last Orgy of the Third Reich, Love Camp 7
, SS Experiment Camp
and Nazi Love Camp 27
. Examples of Israeli fictional literature on the subject include writer's Yehiel De-Nur
alias K. Tzetnik's book The House of Dolls
and Stalag fiction
genre.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
established brothels in the concentration camps (Lagerbordell) to create an incentive for prisoners to collaborate, although these institutions were used mostly by Kapos
Kapo (concentration camp)
A kapo was a prisoner who worked inside German Nazi concentration camps during World War II in any of certain lower administrative positions. The official Nazi word was Funktionshäftling, or "prisoner functionary", but the Nazis commonly referred to them as kapos.- Etymology :The origin of "kapo"...
, "prisoner functionaries" and criminal element, because real inmates, penniless and emaciated, were usually too debilitated and wary of exposure to SS schemes. In the end, the camp brothels did not produce any noticeable increase in the prisoners’ work productivity levels, but instead, created a market for coupons among the camp VIPs. The women forced into these brothels came mainly from the Ravensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück was a notorious women's concentration camp during World War II, located in northern Germany, 90 km north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück ....
, except for Auschwitz, which employed its own prisoners. In combination with the German military brothels in World War II
German military brothels in World War II
In World War II, the German military brothels were set up by the Third Reich throughout most of occupied Europe, for the use by their soldiers in the Wehrmacht and for the SS officers. These establishments were sometimes set up via existing brothels which they took over in the West, but generally...
, it is estimated that at least 34,140 female inmates were forced to serve as prostitutes during the Third Reich.
History and operation
The first camp brothel was established in Mauthausen/GusenMauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen Concentration Camp grew to become a large group of Nazi concentration camps that was built around the villages of Mauthausen and Gusen in Upper Austria, roughly east of the city of Linz.Initially a single camp at Mauthausen, it expanded over time and by the summer of 1940, the...
in 1942. After 30 June 1943, a camp brothel existed in Auschwitz, and from 15 July 1943, in Buchenwald
Buchenwald concentration camp
Buchenwald concentration camp was a German Nazi concentration camp established on the Ettersberg near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937, one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps on German soil.Camp prisoners from all over Europe and Russia—Jews, non-Jewish Poles and Slovenes,...
. The one in Neuengamme was established in early 1944, Dachau's in May 1944, Dora-Mittelbau's in late summer, and Sachsenhausen
Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Sachsenhausen or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used primarily for political prisoners from 1936 to the end of the Third Reich in May, 1945. After World War II, when Oranienburg was in the Soviet Occupation Zone, the structure was used as an NKVD...
's on 8 August 1944. There are conflicting dates for the camp brothel in Flossenbürg
Flossenbürg concentration camp
Konzentrationslager Flossenbürg was a Nazi concentration camp built in May 1938 by the Schutzstaffel Economic-Administrative Main Office at Flossenbürg, in the Oberpfalz region of Bavaria, Germany, near the border with Czechoslovakia. Until its liberation in April 1945, more than 96,000 prisoners...
: one source claims summer 1943; another states it was not opened until 25 March 1944.
The camp brothels were usually built as barracks surrounded by a barbed-wire fence, with small individual rooms for up to 20 women prisoners, controlled by a female overseer (aufseherin). The sex workers were replaced frequently due to exhaustion and illness, and were usually sent away to their deaths later. The brothels were open only in the evenings. No Jewish male prisoners were allowed. Those with access to the customer lineup (Aryan VIPs only), had to sign up for a specific day and pay two reichsmarks for a 20-minute "service" based on a predetermined schedule. The prostitutes were matched with their clients by an SS-man. The market for the "prize-coupons" was routinely cornered by the common criminals who wore the green triangles
Nazi concentration camp badges
Nazi concentration camp badges, primarily triangles, were part of the system of identification in Nazi camps. They were used in the concentration camps in the Nazi-occupied countries to identify the reason the prisoners had been placed there. The triangles were made of fabric and were sewn on...
(hence the "green men" denomination). There is evidence (somewhat controversial) that in some of the brothels, women might have had tattoos inscribed on their chests saying "Feld Hure" Field Whore or "Die Armeenhure" the Army Whore. Some of them underwent forced sterilizations as well as forced abortions, often resulting in death.
The subject of camp prostitution was alluded to in survivors' memoirs at least as early as 1972, when the first edition of Heinz Heger's book was published. However, the subject remained largely taboo in studies of Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
until the mid-1990s, when new publications by female researchers broke the silence.
Sometimes the SS enticed women into becoming sex workers by promising them better treatment or reductions of their indefinite sentence. This caused anger or envy among some female inmates. Nina Michailovna, Russian camp prisoner, reported: “When we found out that a girl in our block was chosen, we caught her and threw a blanket on her and beat her up so badly that she could hardly move. It wasn’t clear if she would recover. They just wanted to have a better life and we punished them this way.”
Homosexual prisoners and camp brothels
In addition to using camp brothels as a means to control inmates, encourage collaboration, and prevent riots and escapes, Heinrich HimmlerHeinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
also intended them to be used as a means of teaching pink triangle
Pink triangle
The pink triangle was one of the Nazi concentration camp badges, used to identify male prisoners who were sent there because of their homosexuality. Every prisoner had to wear a downward-pointing triangle on his or her jacket, the colour of which was to categorise him or her by "kind"...
prisoners "the joys of the opposite sex", i.e., as "therapy" for their homosexuality. Heger claims that Himmler directed that all gay prisoners were to make compulsory visits to the camp brothel once per week as a means of curing them of their same-sex attraction.
Cultural references
German concentration camp brothels were re-enacted in fictional Nazi exploitationNazi exploitation
Nazi exploitation is a subgenre of exploitation film and sexploitation film that involves villainous Nazis committing criminal acts of a sexual nature often as camp or prison overseers in World War II settings...
films made in the 1970s such as Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS, Last Orgy of the Third Reich, Love Camp 7
Love Camp 7
Love Camp 7 is a 1969 U.S. women-in-prison B-movie directed by Lee Frost and written by Wes Bishop and Bob Cresse, the latter of whom also acts as a sadistic camp commandant.-Plot:...
, SS Experiment Camp
SS Experiment Camp
SS Experiment Camp is a 1976 Nazi exploitation film directed by Sergio Garrone. The plot concerns a Nazi officer who wanted a testicles transplant. It gained infamy in the 1980s for its bad-taste sexual and violent content involving, as the title suggests, Nazi human experimentation...
and Nazi Love Camp 27
Nazi Love Camp 27
Nazi Love Camp 27 is a 1977 Italian Nazi exploitation film by western director Mario Caino starring Sirpa Lane. The film is notable for its truly grim scenes, dramatic plot and hardcore sex scenes.- Plot :...
. Examples of Israeli fictional literature on the subject include writer's Yehiel De-Nur
Yehiel De-Nur
Yehiel De-Nur or Dinur, , born Yehiel Feiner was a Jewish writer and Holocaust survivor, whose books were inspired by his time as a prisoner in the Auschwitz concentration camp....
alias K. Tzetnik's book The House of Dolls
The House of Dolls
The House of Dolls is a 1955 novella by Ka-tzetnik 135633. The novella describes "Joy Divisions", which were allegedly groups of Jewish women in the concentration camps during World War II who were kept for the sexual pleasure of Nazi soldiers....
and Stalag fiction
Stalag fiction
Stalag fiction was a short-lived genre of Israeli fiction Nazi exploitation that flourished in the early 1960s, at the time of the Eichmann Trial.-Premise:...
genre.
See also
- Comfort womenComfort womenThe term "comfort women" was a euphemism used to describe women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II.Estimates vary as to how many women were involved, with numbers ranging from as low as 20,000 from some Japanese scholars to as high as 410,000 from some Chinese...
(Japan) - German military brothels in World War IIGerman military brothels in World War IIIn World War II, the German military brothels were set up by the Third Reich throughout most of occupied Europe, for the use by their soldiers in the Wehrmacht and for the SS officers. These establishments were sometimes set up via existing brothels which they took over in the West, but generally...
- German war crimesGerman war crimesThe government of Germany ordered, organized and condoned several war crimes in both World War I and World War II. The most notable of these is the Holocaust in which millions of people were murdered or died from abuse and neglect, 60% of them Jews...
- Recreation and Amusement AssociationRecreation and Amusement AssociationThe , or more literally Special Comfort Facility Association, was the official euphemism for the prostitution centers arranged for occupying U.S...
(Japan) - Sexual Slavery by Germany during World War II
- War rape by German forces during World War II